Tag: Alaska

Sitka and Ketchikan

Although I took this photo in Ketchikan, it really is applicable to ALL of the cities along Alaska’s south coast: Juneau, Sitka and Ketchikan. If it’s simply cloudy, and not raining heavily, well, that qualifies as a great day.

In Sitka the probability of rain was quite high so we were glad we had opted for a whale watch. Marine life doesn’t care whether it’s raining or not, so we figured we’d get some good viewing.

When I booked, I had NO idea that we were going on a VERY small boat. I THOUGHT it would be like the one in Seward. Nope.

Our vessel could only hold 6 passengers. Okay, maybe that meant we could get closer to the wildlife. Nope again.

I’ll be honest, the marine life viewing was disappointing. These next photos are about as good as it got.

We DID see some sea lions hanging out on a buoy, but the viewing was MUCH better in Seward.

For our last excursion, we chose the sea plane to Misty Fjords National Monument. Well you know what they say about the best laid plans…like women, they sometimes go astray. And THESE women, PLUS their plans did exactly that.

Shortly after I took the photo of her by the “liquid sunshine” sign, Jean tripped, managed to land on her nose, and proceeded to bleed profusely. Fortunately, it happened right next to the ship, so Viking’s excellent staff immediately sprang into action. She was whisked down to the medical center where they quickly staunched the bleeding. Their rapid treatment probably prevented Jean from returning home with a huge black eye.

That meant that I would be “float planing” solo. At least THIS time, I knew what I was getting into. Sorta.

I knew the plane was going to hold no more than 6 passengers, and that it would briefly land somewhere. I just didn’t realize that “somewhere” was on the water, and that we wouldn’t be getting out on land at all!

The waiver I signed before boarding specifically absolved the company of any liability should I fall in. I had thought that applied to getting into and out of the plane at the dock! I didn’t realize there would be OTHER opportunities to fall into the water…without a life jacket…with no life preserver or a potential rescuer any where in sight.

As you can see, there wasn’t much of a margin for error!

But hey, our young female pilot walked what looked like a tightrope to get from one side of the plane to the other. The line is so thin, it’s barely visible in the photo, thus, the red arrows. Those thin boards in yellow and black were the ladder into the plane.

Spoiler alert, I managed to complete the flight without mishap, but you probably already figured that out…otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this blog, right?

The scenery was beautiful, but I have to be honest. It wasn’t as much fun without my buddy by my side.

I’m pleased to say that Jean’s spending the day resting paid off, so we were able to party hearty for the celebratory “next to last night” on the ship.

The last day is spent sailing thru the inside passage to Vancouver, then back to reality.

I’m so glad I was able to make so many wonderful memories with my bestie.

Icy Strait Point and Juneau

Once again, we are sharing the port with only one other mid sized ship, Silverseas. We each had our own dock, so Icy Strait Point was very peaceful and uncrowded.

My day started early, on the deck with Richard, the naturalist. Although we spotted some porpoises, they only briefly popped out of the water, disappearing before I could capture their image.

Viking offers one free excursion in every port. For THIS port, we got a ticket to the red gondola, which allowed us to go to the top of a mountain and enjoy a panoramic view.

Earlier that day, Jean and I chose what was described in the cruise literature as a “ demanding” hike through the Tongass National Forest. Demanding, like beauty, is definitely in the eye (or feet) of the beholder. It was less than a mile, and although there were a few slight inclines, the hike was mainly flat. But Tess, our guide, made it really special. Not only did she know about wildlife and vegetation, she also took great photos.

Thanks to Tess, we can now look at bear droppings and immediately determine the gender of the bear.

The first pile was deposited by a female, because the ladies STOP to relieve themselves. The males, on the other hand, don’t waste any time. They are “full speed ahead” so their “torpedoes” are scattered all along the trail.

Bet you didn’t know this post was going to be so educational.

But wait…there’s more!

We saw this plant EVERYWHERE.

It looks a lot like Queen Anne’s lace, but it’s not. If you touch it, a substance on the plant reacts with sunlight to produce a somewhat nasty rash. Tess pulled up her sleeve to show us how she came by that knowledge.

At the end of our hike, we were left off by the Hoonah Cannery, near the green “free” gondola, which provides one way to get from one dock to the other.

Or, you can opt to walk along the beautiful nature trail, which was a little longer than our “demanding “ hike.

My reward for taking the road less traveled? I got to watch this eagle hang out on a branch WAY high up in a tree. Yeah, I know. The zoom wasn’t great, so I had to crop the photo a lot, but you get the idea. That bad boy was swiveling his head and looking every bit as regal as the one on our dollar bill.

Eagles are plentiful in Juneau. One guide estimated there are about 30,000 eagles in Juneau alone, which makes them as common as a sea gull. Still, seeing this guy on the nature walk was really special to me.

Did you know that Southern Alaska gets a LOT of rain? We sure didn’t. Brett, our guide in Juneau, told us the area averages only about 30 sunny days per YEAR!

I’m so glad we took full advantage of the great weather in the other ports. Another difference when we got to Juneau— we also are no longer one of only two ships visiting the area. Take a look at Juneau’s harbor. The enormous cruise ships — Princess, Norwegian, Crystal, Holland America all docked at the port. We were moored in the bay and took a tender in to the port.

We lucked out with the morning weather for our “hike” with Brett in the Eagle Crest ski resort. This “hike” was only about a fourth of a mile long, but at least we got to see lots of wild flowers.

Jean and I were concerned about being late for our helicopter ride to the Herbert Glacier, so we got off the bus and walked the mile into town, arriving with enough time to grab lunch in a waterfront restaurant.

Although it rained during our ride and while we were in the glacier, it still was a pretty spectacular experience. I got to sit up front with Tom, the pilot.

The colors were brilliant.

We were cautioned to only walk on the ice, not the snowy patches, because you didn’t know what the snow was covering. It could be a 20 foot hole!

I’m signing off with two last now and then photos— taken 50 years apart.

The LAST time we spent more than a week together was in my first apartment in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. (I stuck this shot in especially for Tom, Jean’s husband, who didn’t know us way back then.)

Those are the only photos I have from the pre-cell phone, film era.

Valdez and Skagway

Sometimes I’m delighted when the weather report is wrong, and that was clearly the case when we visited Valdez. The probability of rain was pegged at an unambiguous 100%. Luckily, the only thing that was 100% was the inaccuracy of that report!

Jean and I decided to forgo the recommended visits to the museums and convention center, opting instead to walk to a viewing platform in what turned out to be a rather futile attempt to see some wildlife.

Because both of us are “map challenged”, we checked with a local guide to make sure we were heading in the right direction. His tone of voice when he told us the viewing platform was a MILE AND A HALF away clearly expressed his doubt in our ability to go the distance. (What the hell? TWICE in two days?! Are we looking particularly decrepit??)

We learned from the lovely ladies at the cute little visitors’ center that we were a few weeks ahead of the bears, but we thoroughly enjoyed the 3 mile walk (round trip) under the cloudy, but rain free skies.

Visitors’ center

Sadly, when most people hear of Valdez, the Exxon Oil Spill immediately comes to mind, so let me give you an alternative image for this lovely area.

The balance of the day was spent enjoying Viking’s incredible spa. All guests can take advantage of the sauna, steam room, snow cave, whirlpool, cold plunge pool and hot tub at no additional charge. I decided to “detoxify” the way the Scandinavians do, so dutifully sat in the sauna, spent about 20 seconds in the snow cave, followed by the steam room, before experiencing the whirlpool. I’m not sure I was “ detoxified” or even what that is supposed to feel like, but I DID very much enjoy the experience.

On Sunday, we spent the morning on one of Viking’s included Skagway tours—a very beautiful bus ride to White Pass Summit.

Although Valdez had a bear deficit, we spotted one on our Skagway excursion . He was outside the range of my iPhone and by the time I got my camera zoomed out, all I got was a butt shot. That’s okay. The image of him sauntering through the rocks was permanently imprinted on our brains. It was truly thrilling.

I did much better photographing Skagway’s more stationary subjects. It’s hard to believe that beautiful flowers bloom between rocks in this cold climate.

Our bus driver//guide saved us from horrible selfies.

We weren’t all that impressed with the town of Skagway.

The lure of craft beer, tee shirts, and gold mining memorabilia wasn’t strong enough to keep us from the ship’s outside hot tub. Hard to believe that there are over 900 guests on this cruise. We had the hot tub completely to ourselves.

Here’s to long term friendships. We’ve been doing the pool scene for more than a half a century, and I have the photo to prove it!

Anchorage and Seward

Jean’s and my Alaskan adventure is off to a fantastic start. Our direct flight from Newark to Anchorage was exactly what we hoped it would be—uneventful. Best part: the seat between us was unoccupied, which, for an 8 hour flight is a real bonus.

We spent the night at the Historic Anchorage Hotel, chosen because of its proximity to the train station. When I asked the 30-something woman at the front desk for directions to the train station, she said “it’s either a short cab ride or an ARDUOUS walk to the train station and you need to be there an hour before your 6:45AM departure.” Well, the last thing Jean and I wanted at 5:45 AM was anything that could even remotely be described as arduous. That morning, when I spotted the taxi outside our hotel, I told the 60-something driver we wanted to go to the train station. She pointed to a building in the distance and said, “ There it is”. Talk about an “ah ha moment”! The young clerk looked at us and saw two feeble old ladies incapable of walking very far. The taxi driver, who was closer to our age, saw two competent, healthy women perfectly capable of handling our luggage the .4 mile (I googled it) between hotel and station. And we did. So there, young desk clerk!

And what a train ride it was. Absolutely spectacular! We opted for the gold dome service, which was $129 more expensive than the adventure class, but it was SO worth it.

Not only do you get an almost 360 degree view, you also get a fantastic sit down breakfast, with a choice of four entrees, and access to a viewing platform that allows you to take “glass-free” photos.

Who knew? Those innocent looking mud flats are actually quite dangerous. The volcanic soil acts like quicksand, then turns into a concrete- like substance, trapping the unwary.

We saw our first glacier on our train ride.

Yet another welcome surprise—the train and Viking coordinated delivery of our luggage, so we were able to walk from the train to the ship unimpeded.

Check in was a breeze. Viking allowed us to print a boarding pass before we left home, so we were aboard the ship in a matter of minutes.

We quickly made an early dinner reservation at the Chef’s Table, one of Viking’s two specialty restaurants, for our first night on board.

Maybe we shouldn’t have had that glass of Prosecco before dinner…

It is a 5 course, fixed menu with every entree paired with a complimentary wine. Obey, our waiter from Zimbabwe, described each course and explained that the accompanying wine heightens the dining experience.

I won’t bore you with too many food photos, but I HAD to show one example of how beautifully the courses are presented.

We had an early morning departure for Wednesday’s Kenai (pronounced KEEN-eye) Fiords cruise so we were in bed by 8 PM.

Most of Wednesday was overcast and chilly, but we didn’t mind because we were dressed appropriately.

We saw humpbacks and orcas,

sea lions, puffins, otters and bald eagles.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t fast enough to capture the whales breaching, but I got a lot of good tail shots.

Not everyone was as fascinated by the wildlife. While I was outside, trying to get the perfect shot, Jean photographed this woman taking what our Dutch table mates described as a “very expensive nap”. But she wasn’t the only entertaining Homo sapiens on the cruise.

We all loved watching this young man groovin to music only he could hear. What was he listening to, we all wanted to know. Beyoncé ( Jean asked…)

All in all, it was a tremendous first day.

We had heard about the Seward Mountain Marathon, so expected to see crowds of people after we got off the ship at 2 PM, but nope. We walked from the dock to the cruise terminal without seeing many people at all.

Thursday in Valdez, will be a “self guided” tour, so Jean and I decided to stay up late, to enjoy the fantastic music (and dance) on the deck, by the pool.

Alaska Bound

My lifelong friend, Jean and I will be experiencing our 49th state —also known as “Seward’s big icebox“ — for the first time, via a cruise on Viking’s Orion.

We are flying to Anchorage a day early, taking Alaska Railroad’s Coastal Classic train to Seward.

Because of the 4 hour time difference, I expect our 6:45 AM departure will feel like 10:45 AM to us. After what has been billed as an exceptionally beautiful train ride, we will arrive in Seward at 11:20 AM, and will be able to board the ship. Our cabin won’t be ready until 2, but in the meantime we will be able to have lunch and familiarize ourselves with the ship.

Helpful hint for future cruisers: don’t wait too long to book your excursions. I booked in March for a July cruise, and I wasn’t able to get the bear viewing tour I wanted. I had made the mistake of waiting till Viking opened their bookings.

Many of the Viking offerings had already been filled by the time I was allowed to book, although I still had my choice of times for the included (free) offerings. Bookings are staggered, with the most expensive cabins booking first. Not a problem. I simply booked directly with port vendors.

Although we will arrive in Seward early enough to take the Kenai Fjord cruise, I decided it would be better to board the ship and save the cruise for our second day in port. In my younger days, I would have tried to cram everything in.

I liked the fact that Alaska Shore Excursions knew the times Viking would depart from each port. That prevented us from living my nightmare—returning from an excursion just in time to watch the ship slowly disappear on the horizon.

Although Alaska Shore Excursions had offerings for Juneau, by March all the ones I wanted were filled. Fortunately, Juneau Adventure Tours had availability for one of their helicopter tours to a glacier.

I hope you’ll join Jean and me on this adventure.