After much saving, planning, coordinating and waiting – we kicked off our summer vacation to Alaska! Off to the airport! For family and friends, ask for the unlisted version of this page which has family pictures!
7/26 – Anchorage and Whittier
Flying from LAX to ANC takes around 5.5 hours, and after a couple hour wait, the cruise transfer bus took us on a drive along the Turnagain Arm of the Cook Inlet. The last part of the drive proceeded through the Whittier Tunnel, a single-lane 2.5 mile long train and vehicle tunnel which opened out to the small town of Whittier, AK and the single cruise ship dock.
Coming out of the tunnel reveals the secluded harbor and the quite large Caribbean Princess ship. Normally this ship is in the Caribbean or other warm locations, so has no covered pool area and is more open to the weather. Luckily for our cruise, this will not be a problem.
The ship was suppose to leave at 8:30pm, however an excursion was running quite late and most of us called it a night. Whittier is a pretty little down, with nearly all residents living in that green and salmon colored building on the right.
7/27 – Hubbard Glacier (day at sea)
We started the day off with a talk from a Naturalist about some of the wildlife we could see during our tour.
Then checked out the Kids Club for the kiddos, the family game room (air hockey table, skeeball x2, foosball table, and a TV), walked around the deck looking at the snow-covered mountains around us, and then lastly the kiddos went swimming.
The glaciers contain this fine silt, and once you start getting close to them the water changes from the deep blue to this opaque and greenish-blue color.
Then we arrived at Hubbard glacier, and WOW was it bright white, and very wide.
7/28 – Glacier Bay National Park (day at sea)
This day is dedicated just to the national park. Around 7:30am, a boat full of park rangers boarded and guided us through the park and available for questions. There are no movies or music playing, no shows, and most activities restricted to take in all the park has to offer.
The route outlined in red in the third picture took us to Margerie Glacier.
Next up was Johns Hopkins Glacier.
And lastly Lamplugh Glacier.
7/29 – Skagway
Skagway was an important port city during the Klondike Gold Rush, and we had a busy day of excursions planned. First we disembarked the ship, got some sandwiches and coffee, and waited for our scenic train tour on the White Pass & Yukon Route.
Our tour guide, “Goldie Rush”, got us on the train where the narrow-gauge track twists 20 miles up to White Pass Summit and past some interesting sights.
She had plenty of interesting history and stories about the town – too many to put here. A couple interesting ones were the hijinks of Soapy Smith, the sometimes 2+ hour drive for cheaper groceries in Canada, and the “Ton of Goods” which was the Canadian government requirement that every stampeder take a year of supplies with them to prevent mass starvation – which sounds smart but imagine hauling a ton of goods solo up mountain passes in winter.
Next we went to a sled dog talk and demonstration with a family-ran sled dog breeder and trainer. Here they talked about the various races, the sleds, the gear, the struggles and most importantly showed off the dogs. The Alaskan huskies were sweet dogs with lots of energy, and the puppies were very cute!
The demonstration was just 6 dogs on gravel, so 16 dogs on snow must really fly!
The last part of the excursion was panning for gold. It took a bit of practice but we all got it. At the end you can weigh it and see the value of that little bit of gold.
We finished up Skagway with a walk through the town, and then it was time to get back on the ship.
7/30 – Juneau
We woke up in Juneau, the capital city of Alaska, and started the next round of excursions. First up was the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery just a short drive away. The salmon were returning to spawn, and the salmon ladder and tanks were completely packed.
Yummy looking fish! Leaving there, we got to see some more wildlife in the distance. There were bald eagles enjoying a salmon snack, a porcupine, seals and a bear that we saw but evaded my camera.
Next up was Mendenhall Glacier! Very neat!
We then finished up the excursion with a salmon bake.
7/31 – Ketchikan
The last port was Ketchikan, which according to their sign is Alaska’s first city, and the salmon capital of the world. Salmon numbers were nothing compared to yesterday’s hatchery. We had some fish and chips at the Alaska Fish House, then walked the salmon trail around the city.
The only excursion today was an afternoon “Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show”. The timber sports were very interesting, and the kiddos was screaming and cheering on our U.S. team so enthusiastically, that both kiddos got signed postcards from the lumberjack team.
8/1 – Cruising to Vancouver, BC, Canada
The last full day of the cruise. Packing begins, and doing fun things around the ship. Breakfast, a kitchen galley tour, playing card games, swimming, and eating!
Some orcas aka killer whales did show up in the distance, which was really cool! Here is a compilation of the sightings:
8/2 – Vancouver, BC, Canada
The journey is complete. Got some breakfast, and played some ping pong waiting for the ship to dock.
Our excursion and airport transfer in Vancouver would take us to the Lynn Canyon Suspension Bridge:
the Capilano Salmon Hatchery and lastly Stanley Park – a huge park in the city where we could watch sea planes land and take off, as well as look at some totem poles.
Off to the Vancouver airport for a few hour wait, and after a relatively short 2 hour 20 minute flight, we made it hope around 9:30pm, got our luggage and got home safely.
It was a great trip and a lot of great experiences!