Lisa and Andy`s Seattle/Alaska Adventure

Transcription

Lisa and Andy's
Seattle/Alaska Adventure
September 2004
By Andy Cubbon
With Photos by Andy and Lisa Cubbon
Lisa and Andy's Seattle/Alaska Adventure
Introduction
This is our second cruise this year. We're making up the deficit that occurred during the
remodeling years. We decided to add several days before the cruise to visit Seattle and Lisa's
brother Gino. We could easily do this because we arranged our own air transportation using
the free tickets we got from United for getting bumped at the end of our last cruise.
Those of you who read Cruise Around the Horn trip report may recall that I had some
electronics I wanted for our next trip. Well, I got them.
I purchased a Cannon S1 IS digital camera. It was the only one that met my criteria: 10x
zoom, use AA batteries, and use Compact Flash memory (Lisa found it at the Cannon site
on-line). With built-in image stabilization (the IS in its name), it does a nice job of holding
the picture still even at maximum zoom on a rolling ship. The IS also helps taking pictures in
low light without a flash at slow shutter speeds. Because of this and the bigger zoom it does
go through batteries more quickly than Lisa's camera (3 or 4 days vs. 2 or 3 weeks of regular
use). We brought a charger and lots of extra batteries with us so this wasn't a problem. I
would have liked it to have more pixels. Although 3.2M is OK for most uses, I find myself
doing a fair amount of digital zooming to isolate the good part of a picture, so more pixels
would be better.
I also purchased a GPS unit. It's a Garmin GPSMAP 60CS. It also uses AA batteries (2 of
them) and comes with a fairly coarse North and South America map. You can license more
detailed maps if you want them. I didn't for this trip, but may do so in the future.
Books
In preparation for Alaska I read two books recommended by two of Lisa’s brothers, Doug
and Pete, who both have experience living in Alaska (finished the 2nd one on the cruise):
Travels in Alaska by John Muir gives an excellent picture of SE Alaska in the late 1800s.
The Klondike Fever by Pierre Berton is an excellent history of the gold rush.
I also read a book (with a route map) created for Princess Cruises sent to me by our friend
Charlene who had been on a couple of their Alaskan cruises and had an extra copy; (she also
gave me the journal that I used on this trip):
The Alaskan Cruise Companion by Joe Upton
The latter I highly recommend (if you can get it), especially if you’re doing a true inside
passage cruise on a smaller ship. Joe Upton has written several other books on Alaska that
are available from Amazon.com, e.g. The Coastal Companion: A Guide for the Alaska-Bound
Traveler looks like it may have been the basis for the Princess book.
Picture Credits
Most of the pictures are selected from those that I took on the trip. The ones Lisa took are:
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The Space Needle on the cover
Figure 5. Victoria, BC montage
Figure 7. Butchart Gardens' Japanese garden
Figure 8. Our cabin and the Pool Deck.
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Seattle
Wednesday, September 1
Atlanta to Seattle
I had to get up very early (for me) - 5:00AM!! I need about 2 hours preparation time before
leaving the house including closing up the place. The limo picked us up a 7:00 for a 9:35
flight. Trip to the airport was smooth except for one dump truck that had somehow
managed to skid backwards into the center, dividing wall and a multiple vehicle incident on
the ramp to the airport.
Since this was a domestic flight, we could do curbside baggage checking. After checking the
luggage I realized that I had forgotten to check my knife. Fortunately, there is a post office
in the airport that sold various sized mailers. It opens a 6:00AM. So, I was able to mail my
knife home. This was the knife I bought in Ushuaia; I didn't want to surrender it to TSA.
Our flight left from one of the T-gates (for Terminal) that allowed us to avoid the megasecurity screening for a smaller, less used area. We got coffee at Starbucks and waited for our
first flight to Chicago. It left on time and was uneventful. I determined that the GPS unit will
work in a window seat, but was told that I shouldn't use it, as it wasn't avionics approved.
We arrived in Chicago early, so we had to wait about 15 minutes for our gate to clear. Lisa
had made some sandwiches for lunch. In this new era of frugal flying the only food available
on the flight cost $10/person, cash. So when we got to our departure gate, we had our lunch
while we waited for our flight to Seattle.
This flight was also uneventful (my kind of flight). The movie was Harry Potter and the
Prisoner of Azkaban.
We arrived in Seattle on time. We were among the first to get off the plane (had front row
coach seats). I was able to process all the paperwork for the car rental while we waited for
our luggage. The luggage took longer than I'm used to, but may be normal for Seattle. The
cars are in the parking deck across from the terminal so we didn't have to do the courtesy
bus bit, but it was a longish walk, dragging the luggage, to the car. Lisa got directions to the
hotel from a very helpful Hertz attendant. With this help we drove right to the hotel with no
false turns or backtracking. We stayed at a Hampton Inn & Suites northeast of the Seattle
Center (where the Space Needle is).
While we were waiting for Gino to pick us up for dinner, Lisa went to the hotel's business
center and did her e-mail. After about an hour, Gino came and we went to Pasta Freska for
dinner. If you are in Seattle, I highly recommend this experience.
Pasta Freska
There is no menu at Pasta Freska. You get what the owner decides. First the owner comes
over and asks the table what they can't or won't eat. He then comes back with a bottle of
wine and one more glass than there are guests—it's for himself. He pours wine for everyone
(only a small sip for himself) and chats a bit. In our case it was a nice red wine.
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The appetizer was fried eggplant with cheese and pesto melted on top. This he called
surprise number one. This was yummy (and this from a guy who doesn't care for
eggplant).
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Next he brings a Caesar salad. Lisa asked, "Is this surprise number two?" He responded,
"No, it’s salad." It was very good.
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The third course is pasta (spaghetti tonight) with marinara and sausage sauce; also
excellent.
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The fourth course is spaghetti with chicken breasts stuffed with cheeses and bathed in au
jus. Very nice.
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The fifth course is spaghetti with salmon and shrimp. This was not our favorite because
neither of us cares for salmon and I don't seek out shrimp. However, it was very well
done.
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For dessert he brought out a plate of four treats: spumoni, a chocolate cake/tort,
cheesecake and tiramisu. All quite good.
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Finally, as an added treat he brought us each a small glass of Bailey's Irish Cream.
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Total tab was $130 for the three of us.
During dinner we talked about family and friends and life and stuff.
Gino dropped us off back at the hotel. Lisa and I took a walk around one end of the Seattle
Center, bought a couple of gallons of water at a nearby convenience store, and made an early
night of it because of jet lag.
Thursday, September 2
Pike Market
Due to the time change I was up early, 7:15. Lisa was already up and about. She'd gone to
the gym and done her e-mail while I struggled through my morning routine. Did the
complementary hotel breakfast and was ready to go by 9:30.
Today we're on our own until the evening, as Gino has to work. So we decided to walk to
Pike Market. Along the way, we found an Army Navy Surplus store, so we stopped. I was
looking for a pair of Xtratuf boots for the upcoming Antarctic cruise (January '05) and
couldn't find any in Atlanta. These boots came recommended by Lisa's brother Doug. He
lived in Alaska for several years and says they are the footwear of choice there. It’s not an
attractive boot. They are brown, solid neoprene; ideal for getting in and out of Zodiac boats
in the icy waters and penguin poop caked shores of Antarctica. I tried on several pairs and
found the best size for me. We planned to pick them up on the way back (and did so).
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Figure 1. Pike Market Arcade
Got down to Pick Market and browsed around it and the
surrounding shops. Lisa found some fresh blackberries and
bought a half-pint. Then she found a pair of earrings, blue, that
she liked, so I made her buy them (she tends to get the “cheaps”
when buying for herself). We went to the market's information
booth and got directions to Metsker Maps to look for a map of
the Inside Passage. With a little help we were able to find it (by
the cash register, duh). It's very nice, but proved to be unneeded
as we were to spend so little time in the Inside Passage—more
on this later. Next we stopped at a Seattle's Best coffee shop for
a cup, ummm good. We really miss having one in Atlanta
(unless you have an airline ticket to get to Concourse B at the
Atlanta airport). Lisa found a cheese shop (Beecher’s Cheese)
that makes organic cheeses; some are made right on the
premises. While she was shopping, I took some pictures of the
decorative peppers at a stand in the street.
Lisa got some blue cheese and a small container of mac&cheese that was very good. We'd be
back. Then we went to bakery and bought a baguette. We are now planning tomorrow's
picnic lunch. We needed some lunchmeat, but first back to the arcade market for gift
shopping. Lisa found a collection of lotions for our friend Sha-Ron. Then we found a
luggage store and bought a couple of Everest messenger pouches (can't find these in Atlanta)
that would hold more than the small shoulder bags we were using. Neither of us can wear a
belt bag because prolonged use hurts our backs. Up at the corner we found an Italian
deli/gourmet grocery store where we bought a salad, mozzarella cheese, salami and
mortadella.
We walked back to the hotel picking up the boots on the way. We had a late lunch in our
room using some of the goodies we bought. Then we did e-mail/internet stuff. I needed to
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stay in touch as much as I could because I was the registrar for the dance competition that
would occur in early October and needed to stay on top of questions. This helped a little,
but I still had a ton of work when we got back. Next year we will try not to schedule 12 days
off just before the registration deadline.
Ray's Boathouse
Gino picked us up at 4:30 and we
went out to his house in northern
Seattle. It’s a nice place high on a
ridge with a small yard. The inside
is very 50s-60s décor that goes with
the Packard in the garage. We then
went on to pick up Kim, Gino's
lady friend, at her apartment and
then to Ray's Boathouse for dinner.
Ray's is located at the Puget Sound
end of the Lake Washington Ship
Canal. It’s over the water. The
place was quite full with a 40minute wait for the fancy
downstairs section and 20 minutes
for the café upstairs. We opted for
Figure 2. Sunset from Ray's Boathouse, Seattle
the café. Gino did a little prowling
around and found an empty table
on the outside deck overlooking the sound, which we ultimately got.
We got a Calamari appetizer to share. Lisa and I got salads. I had a glass of Woop Woop
Shiraz; Gino and Kim each got a glass of Merlot (I think). Lisa and Gino had the Ling Cod
and fries (Fish & Chips). Gino had ordered the Red Rockfish but took the Ling Cod that
was brought in error. I had the Red Rockfish and Kim had a Cheeseburger (she doesn't do
seafood). For dessert Lisa and I split a Lemon Twist cake and we all had coffee. The cake
was very lemony and more like a cheesecake than a cake in texture. The food was good but
not spectacular like Pasta Freska, but this place had a better view. The tab for the four of us
came to a little over $120.
During dinner we discussed tomorrow's trip to the Olympic Peninsula and Victoria. We told
them about our picnic purchases and Gino gave us a list of additional things he wanted,
which we would pickup before we left. He dropped us at the hotel about 9:30.
Friday, September 3
Olympic Peninsula
I got up at 7:00AM today. Lisa skipped the gym today, but did her e-mail. She had gotten
several from our Florida friends who were waiting for hurricane Francis to hit. Before Gino
came, we drove to Larry's Market to get the additional lunch items. Made only one wrong
turn on this outing. Got the provisions, a bottle of wine, a knife and a cheap cooler.
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Figure 3. Lisa, Gino and Kim; lunch at the Kingston Ferry
Gino had a morning meeting he had to go to before he came by the hotel. He left his car at
the Hampton (I loaned him my parking pass). We drove the rental out to his house to pick
up Kim. Then we were off to Edmonton to catch a ferry for Kingston. Gino paid our fare
of $16 for one car and four people. We had a 45minute wait for the ferry. We left the car in line, and
walked down to the beach for lunch.
The only company we had on the beach was one family
walking their dog and several sea gulls looking for
handouts.
The ferry trip took about 30 minutes. We stopped in
Kingston for coffee to let the traffic to clear. The trip
to Port Angeles took about an hour. It was not very
scenic until we got close then the Olympic range, which
provide a pretty background
Hurricane Ridge
We had a couple of hours before the ferry to Victoria left, so we took a quick drive up
Hurricane Ridge. The weather looked like it would be good at the top and proved to be so.
It's about a 25-mile drive up the twisting road to the top after paying the $10 entry fee
(which is good for 7 days). The drive is very pretty. We saw one deer, but not much other
wildlife. The views were spectacular. Gino told us about several hiking/camping trips he and
friends have taken in the reserve. He also told us that our son, Ross, had hiked in and
camped for a week in mostly rain when he visited.
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Figure 4. Hurricane Ridge, Olympic Range
While I was outside taking photos, Lisa bought me a T-shirt and herself a hat. Then we
hurried back down the mountain to the ferry terminal. We parked the car in one of the
several ferry lots for $7/day and walked to the ferry. Gino bought the 4 round trip tickets for
$72. The ferry was about 20 minutes late, so we needn't have rushed. It's about a 90-minute
trip, but the weather was fine and the seas only had a small roll. We ate the rest of our picnic
lunch during the crossing because we wouldn't be allowed into Canada with cheese, salami
and an open bottle of wine. We were the envy of those around us who'd gotten sandwiches
onboard.
Victoria, British Columbia
We arrived in Victoria about 7:00PM. Lisa and I breezed through Canadian immigration and
customs. The only tricky question was "When was the last time you were in Canada?" I think
it's been about 30 years. Gino and Kim weren't so lucky. They got the complete treatment. It
may have been triggered because Kim didn't have a passport and hadn't located her birth
certificate, or perhaps they fit some profile. They said there were several other younger
passengers that also got this treatment. Lisa and I waited outside for at least 20 minutes
maybe longer. We watched the seaplanes and kayaks come and go, and one harbor seal
fishing the Inner Harbor.
Once Gino and Kim cleared immigration, we hiked to our lodgings for the night. Gino had
gotten us cheap rooms ($65) at a place called Paul's Motor Inn on the north edge of
downtown on Douglas Street, about 10 to 12 blocks through town. Not a bad walk except
for the toting the luggage. Lisa and I had one large backpack—it’s not the clothes but the
toiletries. We checked in. Lisa and I had no problems but Gino and Kim had some issues
with their room. Unfortunately, our room was a smoking room and had a strong odor of
stale tobacco smoke. So much so, we had to wash some of our clothes when we got back to
the Hampton in Seattle.
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After we settled in we went across Douglas to a convenience store for water and then to a
White Spot restaurant for snacks. Lisa had soup; I had their chocolate cake, very good. Gino
had a margarita, prawns and an alcohol laced milk shake for dessert. Kim passed on food;
cost $35 Canadian. Then Lisa and I went to bed. Gino and Kim took a short walk before
turning in. Butchart Gardens tomorrow.
Figure 5. Victoria, BC
Saturday, September 4
Early Morning Victoria
While I slept on, Lisa got up and went out at 6:15 for a long walk around the area. She found
the local Chinatown, a place for breakfast for us and had a chat with the local constable. She
felt very comfortable and safe.
When the rest of us finally dragged ourselves out of bed and got ready to face the day, we
went to the little "organic" bakery/café that Lisa had found for breakfast. I had an egg &
ham muffin and coffee (strong and good). Lisa had a scone and decaf (also strong). I had a
taste of her scone and it was best I’ve had that Lisa hadn't baked. We then had a
chocolate/coffee sweetie and refills on the coffee.
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At breakfast we decided to take a cab to Butchart Gardens rather than wait for the bus and
have to struggle with our bags in the process. We wanted to get there early to maximize our
time in Victoria. We also wanted time to visit the Royal BC Museum.
Butchart Gardens
We got to the gardens a 9:45AM; it opened at 9:00. The taxi fare was $35 Canadian plus a
$5.00 tip. We checked our bags and backpacks.
There were very few people there yet. As we learned, most of the tours arrived a little later in
the morning. We lucked out by going early. It was more crowded by the time we left. It was
a beautiful day: cool, cloudy but clearing.
Figure 6. Butchart Gardens' sunken garden
The gardens reminded me of Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile, AL, but somewhat better done.
Like Bellingrath, it is on the water with a dock, but this one also accommodated floatplanes.
We really enjoyed our visit. The sunken garden in the old limestone quarry was especially
pretty (see Figure 6). This was probably the best part of the garden, though the Japanese
garden was also very nice (see Figure 7).
The gardens were celebrating 100 years of growth, though in 1904 there really wasn't yet a
Gardens, just the start of a home near the cement plant that made the Butcharts their
fortune. Here is where Mrs. Butchart started gardening. All that remains of the cement plant
is a chimney, which is near the sunken garden.
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Figure 7. Butchart Gardens' Japanese garden
After a couple of hours touring the gardens, we bought the picture book, some postcards,
and a Victoria pin. Gino, Kim and Lisa got a hot dog from a cart (I should have too). Then
we caught the Grey Line bus back to downtown Victoria for $4 Canadian each. We were
dropped behind Empress Hotel a half a block from the Royal BC Museum.
Royal British Columbia Museum
Gino bought the tickets we needed to get into the museum, the special "Eternal Egypt"
exhibit, and the "Mysteries of Egypt" IMAX film. There was a long line. Before starting our
tour, I had a Pepsi and cookie (Lisa insisted). Lisa and I went to the sea and coast exhibit
and did a quick walk through of the First Nations exhibit. Then it was time for the IMAX
where we were reunited with Gino and Kim who'd gone off on their own. The film was a
high level overview of the Egyptian funerary and pyramids history. The best footage was the
over-flight of the upper Nile—the only part that justified the IMAX format.
After the film, it was time to visit the "Eternal Egypt" exhibit. They had issued tickets with a
specific time slot to enter the exhibit as a crowd control method. Much of the exhibit was on
loan from the British Museum in London. They had complementary audio guides for 23 of
the items on display. The problem was there were too many people. It was difficult to get
near many of the exhibits. Lisa and I finished well before Gino and Kim; we actually thought
they had already come out. So we had coffee and a snack while we waited for them to finish.
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The Trip Back
At about 5:00 we went to a nice bar/restaurant, Milestones, on the Inner Harbor for dinner.
Gino had eaten here before and recommended it. It's on the opposite side of the harbor
from the museum. It reminded me of Houston's or TGI Fridays but quieter. I had the
Halibut with chimechurri sauce that was too bland and a glass of Merlot. Kim and Gino
shared a steak and Gino had drink that was like a mint julep but with rum. I didn't write
down what Lisa had.
After dinner we walked around the harbor and watched the street performers and browsed
the stalls of arts & crafts. None of us had any problems with US immigration and customs.
The ferry left late because Canada wouldn't let in one of the arriving passengers, so he
returned with us.
We arrived at Port Angeles about 20 minutes late and retrieved the car. Gino said we should
go to the Bainbridge Island Ferry because it would arrive in downtown Seattle closer to our
hotel and his car. We arrived at the ferry terminal just as the 11:00 ferry was leaving, so we
had to wait over an hour. The ferry left shortly after midnight for its 30-minute trip. With
the drive back to the hotel and moving Gino's and Kim's stuff to Gino's car it was 1:15AM
before we got back to the room—very late for Lisa.
Alaska Cruise
Sunday, September 5
Hotel Check-Out
Lisa gets up and goes to get quarters for the laundry. We need to get the smoky smell out of
the clothes that they’d picked up at Paul's Motor Inn. While this is washing, she does her email.
Around 8:00AM I get up. I'm experiencing some intermittent, though frequent, tingling in
my left shin. This is probably residual recovery or whatever from my back surgery. It lasted
for a couple of days and then subsided (whew!).
After finishing the packing I went down to do e-mail. Handled a couple of dance
competition questions and then joined the weekend hordes for the hotel's buffet breakfast.
Using our map, we searched for a nearby Hertz place, but couldn't find it. Lisa called on the
cell phone and learned that that location had been closed for about 4 years. The Hertz
people also recommended that I drop her and the luggage at the pier and then return the car.
So, we drove down to the pier that was close to Pike Market and Lisa takes the luggage. It
wasn't far as the crow flies, but it took me nearly an hour to get to the Hertz place (lots of
one-way streets), turn in the car and get a cab back to the pier. Lisa was concerned, as we
had no way to contact each other. They weren't boarding yet though they had taken the
luggage. We went down the street a bit for coffee at Starbucks. At 12:30 we went through
the boarding process. It went smoothly because we were members of NCL's Latitudes Club
(previous cruisers). This allowed us to avoid the long line.
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The NCL Star
After boarding we went to the cabin on Deck 9, starboard, amidships. Small but it had a
balcony—our first though we have cruised often (19 times I think). The bathroom was the
usual size for a cruise ship, but they had added a wall between the toilet and sink making it
feel even smaller (it's behind the white wall on the center of the upper left picture below).
The gray thing on the bed is a pad for luggage. The balcony is behind the picture taker and
the other wall is about 6 inches to the left of the cups behind me (I'm there because I
couldn't get out of the way). There is a small desk with the TV above it on the left behind
Lisa and a loveseat and small table on the right (a bit of the loveseat is visible in the bottom
right corner of the picture).
Figure 8. The NCL Star. Clockwise from top left: our cabin, show lounge, atrium and pool
deck.
After checking out the cabin, we took a casual tour of the ship. This is a very large ship. It
holds about 2400 passengers, too big for our tastes. The atrium was quite impressive; though
a bit more show than function. The show lounge was excellent. As we learned later in the
cruise there were few bad seats. There were many bars and music venues, but we did not
avail ourselves of many of these. The elaborate pool area is on Deck 12 amidships with
pools, slides and hot tubs. It was little used because of the cool weather.
We had a little lunch in the Market Café, the buffet restaurant on Deck 12. I had a hotdog
with kraut, beet salad, fries and chocolate mousse cake. Lisa had a burger patty and salad.
Like the other NCL ships and our last cruise, this has what they call Freestyle Cruising.
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There are no set tables or meal seating times. You can eat in whichever restaurant or buffet
you like whenever it is open—there was always something opened. We both like this
flexibility. However, some of the specialty venues require reservations and a surcharge, more
on a couple of these later.
Departure
The weather was cool (60s), clear and calm. While strolling the deck, I saw another seal in
the harbor along with the ever-present sea gulls (probably Herring Gulls).
We went back to the cabin and hung out on our balcony watching the supplies and luggage
being loaded. We were waiting for our luggage and the mandatory lifeboat drill at 3:45. For
the drill we only had to assemble in one of the restaurants instead of lining up by our
lifeboat on deck. There were a very high proportion of first-time cruisers; close to 75%
would be my guess. This is the reverse of what we're used to and was one of the negatives of
this cruise for us. We like to meet other travelers and share experiences.
We finally got all of our luggage. One bag had been delivered to the wrong cabin. Lisa did
her managing thing and got it found.
At 4:00 we sailed northwest from Seattle. We went through the Juan de Fuca Straits between
Victoria Island and the Olympic Peninsula dropping our harbor pilot at Port Angeles. We
were moving at 24 knots, a good clip for such a large ship. Our route took us up the west
side of Victoria Island missing nearly the entire British Columbia portion of the Inside
Passage. It also meant we missed going through the Seymour Narrows. This was a bit of a
disappointment because I'd read about it, and friends had told me that it was not to be
missed even if you had to get up in the middle of the night for it. (On the plus side, I didn't
have to get up in the middle of the night). According to what I read, the tides run so fast in
the narrows that ships, even big ones, can only go through at "slack" tide (when the tide is
turning at high or low tide).
We had dinner at the Aqua Restaurant, a smaller, more intimate, separate section of the main
dinning room. There was no surcharge for this one. I had a shrimp cocktail, Caesar salad,
prime rib, crème brulé, and coffee. Lisa chose an empanada, banana/mango chilled soup,
Caesar salad, turkey, berries and decaf. The chilled soup was very good (I tasted it), the
prime rib was excellent, but Lisa reported that the turkey was not so good. We also started a
bottle of Yangarra Park 2002 McLaren Vale Shiraz (Australia). It was OK but not
outstanding. Like the other NCL ships, they will store your bottle of wine from meal to meal
and restaurant to restaurant. This is a nice service if, like us, you don’t drink an entire bottle
at a meal.
After dinner we took a stroll on deck, but it was very cold with the 24-knot wind. Saw a lot
of birds (species unknown) floating in large groups in the water. Perhaps it was a good
feeding area, but I didn’t notice any feeding activity.
We took our first look-see at the duty free area. Unlike other ships, this wasn’t a small shop,
but a large open room with many counters of goods; sort of like a department store. They
had all kinds of stuff: liquor, tobacco, perfume, gems, jewelry, fancy clocks, clothing, etc. We
wandered through several times during the cruise, but never saw anything we wanted to buy.
Back in the cabin I found that my GPS unit works most of the time from the balcony
despite the steel overhang (at 11:00 PM we were south of the Pacific Rim National Park on
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Vancouver Island just leaving the Juan de Fuca Strait: N 48° 27.485’ W 124° 32.279’). The
tingling spasms in my leg are moving down the shin and getting less intense, but I still took a
couple of 5 mg Ambien (a great prescription sleep aid that doesn’t leave you groggy in the
morning).
Monday, September 6
Queen Charlotte Sound
Got up early as I do on cruises, around 7:00. We’re just sailing past the north end of
Vancouver Island heading into Queen Charlotte Sound. The weather is partly cloudy, calm
and cool with some fog on the horizon. We went up to the Market Café (the buffet) for
breakfast. I had Raisin Bran, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage; Lisa had an egg-white
omelet.
After breakfast I took a turn around the promenade deck (Deck 7) and saw what is probably
Sooty Shearwater skimming along near the ship. Also saw a smaller (Storm Petrel-sized) bird
and something from the Scooter family (I think). The latter were diving birds. They would
run/fly along the surface leaving “footprints” in the water and then dive. All were too far
away for positive identification. I stopped at the Blue Lagoon Café (opened 24/7), also on
Deck 7 forward, for coffee and pound cake. This became one of my favorite snacking places
on board. Lisa went off to clear her e-mail at the Internet Café that is on the same deck as
our room (Deck 9). Then we both vegged out in the room until lunch.
Figure 9. Inside Passage, Principe Channel, BC
At noon we were almost due east of the southern tip of the Queen Charlotte Island at the
entrance to the Hector Strait (N 52° 06.729’ W 129° 48.531’). We went to the main dining
room for lunch and shared a table with two other couples; one from Ashville, NC, the other
from Auburn, AL. I selected the curry beef, salad and an apple fritter; Lisa picked the
vegetarian entrée to go with the salad. None of this stood out as being either good or bad.
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Inside Passage
At about a quarter to three, we got our first look at part of the Inside Passage. We entered
the Estevan Strait between the Estevan Group of islands to the west and Campania Island to
the East (N 52° 54.725’ W 129° 26.364’). There was lots of birds: gulls sitting on floating
logs and the scooter-like birds. We also saw a couple of ferries and fishing boats.
From the Estevan Strait we
sailed into the Principe
Channel that runs between
Bank and Pitt islands (see
the picture in Figure 9
above). At about 4:30 near
the shore of Bank Island I
saw 3 orcas (killer whales,
which are actually more
closely related to dolphins
and porpoises). A little
after 5:00 I saw a pod of
dolphins (or porpoises) of
McCauley Island at the
north end of the channel.
We left the Principe
Channel for the Dixon
Entrance at 6:00PM (N 53°
45.866’ W 130° 45.428’).
This is the curvy line in the
lower right corner of the
map. On our way to dinner
we saw a large group of
whales (probably
humpbacks) a long way off
the port side aft. There
were at least 10 in the
group. Thus ended a brief
visit to the Inside passage.
As we sailed the Dixon
Entrance back out to the
Pacific, we went to dinner
at one of the specialty
restaurants, Le Bistro. This
is similar to the one we ate
at on our South American
cruise; all the NCL ships
have a Le Bistro. I had the
Seafood Timbale (smoked
salmon mostly), mushroom
Figure 10. Southeast Alaska Route Map
15
soup in a bread bowl, spinach salad with goat cheese and sea bass. It was all very good
except the fish, which was just OK. Lisa had asparagus, consume soup, Caesar salad and the
filet mignon. We had the rest of the bottle of Shiraz from last night. For dessert we shared
the chocolate fondue. Lisa wanted this; I think fondue is too much work. It was very good
chocolate though.
After dinner Lisa and I used the Internet to clean out junk. Then we went to the show.
The Jean Ann Ryan Company did a very good Andrew Lloyd Webber medley, especially the
“Memories” and “Music of the Night” solos.
After the show we stopped at the Spinnaker Lounge for one Waltz (this was all the dancing
we did on this cruise, too many people, too small a floor). Then to bed after setting our
clocks back an hour for Alaska Time.
Tuesday, September 7
Up at seven again. Weather is cold, partly cloudy but calm. We are sailing in the channel
between Admiralty Island to the North and Kuiu Island to the South (N 56º 58.211’ W 134º
21.450’). We are poking along at only 11 knots. I think I saw two orcas at a long distance off
the north shore of Kuiu, one of them breached.
Today we decided to try the main dinning room for breakfast. We were seated with a couple
from Texas and two other ladies. I opted for a ham & cheese omelet, link sausage and a bran
muffin (coffee too of course). Lisa went for yogurt and oatmeal pancakes. The guy from
Texas and I talked about cars (can’t remember the details). Like many others this was the
first cruise for the other two ladies.
Figure 11. Mt. Sumdum and Holkham Bay with icebergs
16
After breakfast I went back on deck looking for wildlife. Around 9:30 I spotted what was
probable a humpback whale along the shore of Point Astley in the Stevens Passage (N 57º
40.050’ W 133º 46.284’). Also spotted several other whale spouts, but they were too far away
to identify. As it would turn out this whole area is rife with whales. Once you know what to
look for, you can see one or two spouting every couple of minutes. But, the real whale
sightings were yet to come. We also saw our first icebergs in the mouth of Holkham Bay at
the base of Mt. Sumdum here (see Figure 11 above). The icebergs are the small whitish
things on the line that separates the water and the mountain in the picture.
We arrived in Juneau at about noon. The skies had cleared some, but the wind was very
strong as we approached. It abated once we’d anchored. We had to wait until another ship
left before we could dock. There were four ships already there: Holland America Ryndam,
RCCL Vision of the Seas, Island Princess and NCL Spirit. While waiting we went to the
buffet for lunch. I selected the gumbo, rice and prosciutto (Italian ham); Lisa picked fish,
mashed potatoes, and a selection lunchmeats.
After lunch I went on deck to do some bird spotting. This was one of the rare times I saw a
lot of birds. There didn’t seem to be as many as we saw on the South American cruise. There
were many Glaucous Winged gulls and Bonaparte’s gulls. The Bonaparte’s gull was hard to
identify because it was changing from summer to winter coloring so was in between. Also
saw what may have been a Sabine gull—much bigger black wing patch than the Bonaparte’s
gull. Near the ship I saw a large fish; gray with a double yellow-fringed dorsal fin. It seemed
stunned. Perhaps the ship banged it somehow. It appeared to recover and swam off in a few
minutes.
Whale Watch and Wildlife Quest Tour
This was a smashingly successful
tour; one of the two we took. We
boarded a Grayline bus that took
us north up the coast about 25
miles to Auk Bay, which is at one
entrance to the Lynn Cannel
(N 50º 22.798’ W 134º 40.762’).
Here we got on a large catamaran
(maybe 50 people to a boat) and
headed out looking for whales and
other wildlife. First we cruised up
the Favorite Channel (a branch off
the Lynn Canal) at about 27 knots
into a 20-knot wind. It was a
thrilling ride. Stopped northwest of
Tie Harbor to watch a pod of Dahl
Porpoises. They are very fast and
their time near the surface is too
short and unpredictable for a
digital camera. They were all
around the boat.
Figure 12. Whale and Wildlife Tour Route
17
Our next stop was a short distance further on where we watched a humpback whale rise,
blow and sound. This is where I got my best whale photo, the one on the cover as well as
the one below.
Figure 13. Favorite Channel with Glacier and whale spout (first whale sighting)
After several minutes watching the whale so everyone got a chance to see it and take pictures
we cruised past the tiny Bird Island where we saw a Bald Eagle perched in a tree. The eagle
was in full sun on the end of a branch. It would have made a perfect picture; alas I forgot to
take it.
A bit further on a pair of whales was spotted,
mother and calf. They “decided” to put on a show
for us. First the calf breached several times then
the mother. This went on for a long time. They
must have breached 15 or 20 times. I tried to get a
picture, but either I didn’t point the camera the
right way, or the boat pitched at the wrong time,
or the digital camera delay caused me to miss the
shot. Our guide said she’d been out three times a
day, every day all season and had only seen a whale
breach on10 of those trips and never two or this
close to the boat. Wish I’d had the digital video
camera I now have. Ah well, it’s a great memory.
18
After this show the rest of the tour was a bit anticlimactic. We swung by Little Island, one of
the favorite places for Stellar Sea Lions to “haul out” (see photo above). We spent several
minutes here so everyone got a chance to see them (and smell them when we got down
wind, phew!). There were also a group of Harbor Seals on the tip of the island, but they were
hard to tell from the rocks.
Went back to Auk Bay via the Saginaw Channel. We saw another humpback working along
the shore of Ralston Island and another Bald Eagle on the beach on Lincoln Island. I took a
photo of the eagle, but it’s so blurry, I won’t include it here. They also served a salmon
spread on crackers as a treat—quite tasty.
Our catamaran docked just before sunset. On the bus ride back we got a talkative driver that
told interesting stories about life in Alaska. He’d lived in Juneau since he was three years old
and was quite familiar with the area.
Back on the ship we went to the “English Pub” on Deck 7 for fish & chips and a couple of
beers. This is a nice relaxed venue with a self-serve fish & chips bar. The Fish was pretty
good, but the chips weren’t. The beer was OK: Alaska Pale.
Across the pier from us was the Empress of the North, a four-deck sternwheeler. It looked
like a more intimate way to cruise the Inside Passage, but it also looked a bit more Spartan.
We departed from Juneau at about 10:00PM on our way to Skagway. Again, we were sailing
the Inside Passage at night. We had to sail south from Juneau and go around Douglas Island
because there is a fixed bridge across the Gastineau channel from Juneau to Douglas Island
and the northern portion of the channel is too shallow for large ships.
Wednesday, September 8
The gang’s all here: Island Princess, RCCL Serenade of the Seas, NCL Spirit and a small
ship, Spirit of Columbia of Cruise West. We were up early to be among the first off for the
tours. We wanted to sure to get on the tour bus driven by Lisa’s brother, Pete. Pete lives in
Skagway and is an Alaskan artist. In the summer he’s a tour guide and in the winter he
paints. Several of his works hang in some of the Skagway drinking establishments and are for
sale in one of the shops. His wife, Mickey, manages some of the gift shops.
Yukon Territory Scenic Drive
Although the Scenic White Pass Train is probably the most popular tour, Pete recommended
this one. It takes basically the same route, but has photo stops and goes on into the Yukon,
which the train does not.
Got off the ship about 7:45AM and found Pete waiting by his tour bus. It was chilly outside,
so we got on the bus and chatted while we waited for the others to arrive. There were two
buses taking the tour; the other one going first. There was a small mix-up over the tickets.
Then we had to wait for one lady to go back for her passport (we were going into Canada).
Once it was all straightened out we were off.
We began with a brief tour of Skagway including Pete’s house (it was on the route). Then up
the valley to the White Pass (Route 2 at the top center of the map on page 15). The White
Pass is about 500 feet lower and less steep than the Chilkoot, but longer. Both passes were
the most heavily used for the gold rush. We stopped at the head of the valley for a photo op.
Our next stop, other than at the border, was at the “Log Cabin” for an outhouse experience.
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Not too smelly to me, though others complained. This not a very scenic rest stop, but the
surrounding mountains were very pretty sporting their first snow of the season, called
terminal snow locally because it signals the termination of summer.
Figure 14. Terminal Snow, White Pass, British Columbia
We drove over the 3300-foot pass and passed Summit Lake, one of a string of long, narrow
lakes leading down to the Yukon River and the Klondike. We passed Tuishi Lake
(pronounced “too shy”) that runs parallel to Bennet Lake where the gold rush stampede
camped, built their boats and waited for the thaw to float down to the gold fields.
The geology is U-shaped glacier scoured valleys that are mostly granite with some limestone
and quartz. There is very little soil and what there is is mostly gravel left behind by the
receding glaciers (many, many years ago). There are also many small melt ponds in the bare
rock. The whole area is still rebounding from the weight of the ice at 1 to 1 ½ inches a year.
Downtown Skagway was right at sea level when it was founded in the 1880s but is now 10
feet higher.
The high pass has a sparse alpine flora; very different than the valley near Skagway. Mostly
low scrub, lichen and moss. Some poplar-like trees whose leaves had started to change color
and very slow growing spruce. When we crossed into the Yukon we are at a lower altitude
and the ecology changed again. It is an arid sub-arctic forest of small spruce. Here we saw
what is billed as the world’s smallest desert. It’s maybe 3-5 acres of sand dunes amidst all the
granite mountains and ringed by an open forest of spruce trees. It was weird to see spruce
poking up through the sand.
20
Figure 15. Bove Island, Tagish Lake, Yukon
Along the road there were several 100-year old relics of mining operations. These were
mostly old cable towers (some still had cables on them) that were used to bring gold bearing
diggings down to the lake.
Our next stop was near Bove Island in Tagish Lake. This island was named for an Italian
cook brought along on the gold rush by one well-financed group. Notice the strip of yelloworange foliage on the island. Pete thinks this may be one collection of the poplar-like trees
that are all part of one plant. Apparently, these trees are like aspens in that what appears to
be many individual trees are really just parts of a single plant connected underground.
This was the area where a carbonaceous chrondrite meteorite was recovered in January 2000.
One of Pete’s friends who lives in a cabin way up here knew what it was. Since the lakes
were frozen at the time and snow covered, he figured he should be able to find pieces of it
and did so. He was lucky enough to find a 3-pound chunk. He carefully bagged it with out
touching it so as to avoid contaminating it. He turned a new Ziplock bag inside out and
grabbed it with the bag over his hand and then folded the bag over the meteorite and sealed
it up. It was still frozen from space so it didn’t melt the bag. He hopes to sell it for a lot of
money. Pete says that ordinary meteorites go for about $500/gram (I verified this on the
Internet). Carbonaceous chrondrites are much rarer and this one was as close to pristine as
one could hope for. Found a 1.18 gram one on the Internet that sold for $2500! I suspect
that, like diamonds, bigger ones, being rarer, are worth more per gram than smaller ones.
21
Figure 16. Carcross, Yukon
On to Carcross located on a narrow strip of land the separates Bennet and Tagish lakes with
a short river running between them. Its name is a shortening of Caribou Crossing because
this is where the former caribou migration could get passed the two lakes without a lengthy
and dangerous swim. It is a small town. It has many weathered log cabins and very small
houses plus a general store and tourist center. It only exists because it was a stop on the old
rail line between Skagway and Whitehorse which no
longer runs (this is the same line that the White Pass train
tours use, but they no longer comes this far). I bought a
Yukon pin at the general store and we got our passports
stamped at the tourist center. We also picked up some
lovely brochures here, but I left them somewhere in
Skagway, sigh.
Next is lunch. We drove on a bit farther into the Yukon to
the Spirit Lake Wilderness Resort. This is a rustic-looking
collection of cabins with a main building that serves as a
small store, kitchen and dinning room. They also keep
horses at the resort for guests. Lunch was sandwiches,
soup and homemade pie (we had cherry) with sodas and
coffee. Here is where I got the obligatory picture of
mountain goats (they’re the little white specks to the left
of the dark patch in the picture).
22
Figure 17. Goat dots
Figure 18. Lisa and Pete at Emerald Lake, Yukon
Our next stop was a little farther on at Emerald Lake. It is just a small alpine lake like many
others we’d seen, except it has a white limestone bottom. The light colored bottom causes it
to appear in various shades of green and blue. Since we were lucky enough to be there on a
clear day, the colors were spectacular.
The return trip was faster. We only made two stops. The
first was at the Yukon, British Columbia border so some of
the folks could take their picture with the “Welcome to the
Yukon” sign (we decided against this). The last stop was at
Bridal Veil Falls. These falls were similar to those we’d seen
in Chile on our South American cruise. We also saw some
more mountain goats, but couldn’t find a place to stop with
a good view.
Skagway
Back into Skagway with Pete pointing out more landmarks
and museums. We got off in town to do some shopping
and sightseeing while Pete turned in the bus and did his
checkout procedure. We browsed the US Park Services
museum where we were to meet Pete. He took us on a
walking tour of town while we waited for Mickey to get off
work. Our first stop was at Captain William Moore’s cabin (the founder of Skagway), now a
museum. While we were there, Pete had a discussion with another tourist about the
prescience of the founder. William Moore predicted the gold strike 10 years before the
Klondike strike occurred. He also predicted that the Skagway location would play a key role
in that strike. The tourist thought that Moore made up that tale after the fact to enhance his
claim to Skagway, for if he knew about the future strike why didn’t just go get the gold. Pete
(with a little help from me) explained that predicting a strike and predicting where it would
occur were very different skills. Some gold had been panned in the area for years before the
Klondike strike, so it wasn’t a stretch to predict there would be a big strike someday. He
picked the Skagway location because it is about the only reasonable way into the interior for
hundreds if not thousands of miles. Other routes were attempted and used, but the White
Pass and nearby Chilkoot Pass were the ones the vast majority of the stampede used.
23
Figure 19. Skagway, Alaska (note that the bar is a life-sized model)
After this we went to one of the shops that his wife manages and bought the majority of our
Alaskan souvenirs, then to another shop and then to dinner. We treated them to dinner at
the Stowaway, a small restaurant (really a converted house) on the east side of the harbor
near the train dock. I had Halibut Olympia on onions with a cream sauce—very good. Lisa
had baked Halibut. Mickey chose the spicy rockfish. Pete got a rib steak. Lisa and I also got
soup and salad. For dessert I picked the berry melba on ice cream and Lisa got the flourless
chocolate cake with macadamia nuts, which I finished. We said our good byes and walked
back to the ship.
Pete is an excellent tour guide. He is very knowledgeable about Skagway history and the
area’s geology and ecology. He also has a good way with tourists. He even recited two poems
by Robert Service that were appropriate to the scene. If you, the reader, visit Skagway, I
would highly recommend him to you.
While boarding the ship, a couple of Lisa’s purchases were confiscated as potential weapons.
They were the curved blade ulus. They would be returned to us on Sunday when we left the
ship.
Before departing, an ambulance arrived at the ship and took someone off. According to
another passenger that claimed to have seen the incident, it was a woman and she was dead.
24
There didn’t seem to be any rush. After loading the gurney, the ambulance moseyed over to
a nearby heliport where it waited for a helicopter to airlift the person out. By the direction of
flight they were headed to Juneau, about 100 miles by air.
Figure 20. Lynn Canal departing Skagway
Since it was so clear out, we decided to stay up to see if we could see the northern lights, but
we couldn’t find anywhere on deck that wasn’t lit up like daylight—another shortcoming of
this ship.
25
Figure 21. Glacier Bay map segement.
Thursday, September 9 Glacier Bay
Back in the late 1700s when Vancouver explored the area, Glacier Bay was still filled with a
huge glacier. There was only a slight indent in the shoreline where the current mouth of the
bay is and the Icy Strait was full of icebergs (thus its name). By the time John Muir explored
the area in the late 1800s, the glacier had receded beyond Tlingit Point into the two main
arms of the bay, more on the left arm than the right. The right arm was named Muir Glacier
after John Muir. Then in the early 1900s there was a major earthquake and 15 or so miles of
the Muir Glacier broke up and floated away in just a couple of years. Today there is not
much left. Nearly all the glaciers are still receding quickly. And there aren’t many tidewater
glaciers left (these are the ones that are usually considered the most picturesque and the ones
that “calve” off icebergs.
26
Figure 22. Predawn Chilkat Range from Glacier Bay
We will spend all day at Glacier Bay. I got up exceptionally early, 5:40AM! I was in time to
see the dawn glow behind the Chilkat range as we were entering the bay. The weather was
clear (see picture), calm and cool-to-cold (it was early)—a nearly perfect day.
We picked up a couple of park rangers at about 7:30. The ranger post is near the mouth of
the bay. Another of Lisa’s brothers, Doug, used to work here and was one of the rangers
that boarded cruise ships for their day in the bay.
Enroute to the glaciers, I saw some whales and either seals or sea otters (hard to distinguish
at a distance). As we progressed up the bay, you could see the change in plant cover. At the
mouth of the bay there were trees and a lot of cover as these shores had been exposed for
over a hundred years. Farther up, the plant cover thinned and trees disappeared. These areas
had only recently been uncovered by the receding glaciers.
We sailed up the left, westernmost, arm. When got to Russell
Island we started seeing our first
icebergs. They were small and
most of them were quite dirty
with the accumulation of rock
the glacier had scrapped off the
mountains. Here the channel
split again, one arm, the Tarr Inlet, leading northwest to the Grand Pacific Glacier and the
other leading west and then southwest to the Johns Hopkins Glacier. We took the Tarr Inlet.
The Grand Pacific didn’t look so grand. It was wide, but barely reached the water. Its days as
a tidewater glacier appeared to be over or nearly over. Along the entire width it looked more
like piles of freshly dug coal
than a glacier. It entered the
inlet from the northwest,
straight up the channel (off the
top of the above map). Entering
the inlet from the southwest was
a smaller, but prettier Margerie
Glacier. Aside from a single
27
charcoal gray gravel pile in the middle of the face and some gray gravel dusting the top, it
had the traditional whites and ice blues you expect to see in a glacier. It’s a mile wide, 200
feet high and about 100 feet below the water with lots of small icebergs around the its base
(see picture on cover and below). This is the one we observed for about an hour.
I spent nearly the entire time
here on the promenade deck
(Deck 7) walking around as
the ship turned. Lisa got me
up to the top deck saying the
views were better there.
However, passengers were 3
deep along all the outside
railings and there were salt
specked, glass wind shields
that obscured the view. I
quickly returned to the
promenade deck. Here there
were fewer people, no salt specked glass, and the deck above it shaded out the very bright
sunlight. I was hoping to see a calving event. About 45 minutes into our stay, I started to see
several small icefalls forming a small cave at the water line (dark shallow arc at waterline in
the center of the picture above). There were also a couple of sharp reports from the glacier
as it cracked. Then there was a small calving event that I was lucky enough to have the
camera pointed in the right place at the right time and got a picture of some chunks falling
off. A bit later, I was watching through binoculars when a larger event occurred. A sheet of
ice slid off and crashed into the water. This obliterated the small cave that had formed. It
stirred up a flock of Kittywakes that were feeding at the base of the face. I continued to
watch for additional pieces to break off, but none did while we were there. Shortly we
moved on to our next glacier.
Figure 23. Johns Hopkins Glacier
We sailed back down the Tarr Inlet to Russell Island and turned west up the Johns Hopkins
Inlet to the Johns Hopkins Glacier. At the same time the Island Princess was going to the
Margerie Glacier. They had spent their hour at the Johns Hopkins. The Park Service limits
the number of ships in the bay each day, so we didn’t have to share our viewing sites with
other ships.
28
Our visit to the Johns Hopkins was a brief “drive-by.” It is wider and dirtier than the
Margerie, and according to the rangers, much more actively calving (though none occurred
in the 10 minutes we were there). There were many more icebergs in the water at the base of
the glacier. Because of this activity, we couldn’t get as close to it as we did to the Margerie,
4 or 5 miles vs. ¼ to ½ a mile. Despite the more active calving, the Johns Hopkins has been
advancing unlike most of the glaciers in the bay.
On the way out we passed the Lamplugh Glacier at
the mouth of the Johns Hopkins Inlet. It is smaller
and dirtier than the Margerie. It was interesting
because of the two huge streams of water flowing out
of the ceiling of a growing cave at the water line. The
water coming out was gray-tan with silt and looked
like the outflow of wastewater pipes. While I
watched, several chunks of ices fell from the ceiling
and there was a pronounce sag and outward leaning
to the ice above the cave. It looked like it could have
a major calving event at any time. The park ranger
said that the outflow had just restarted about a week
ago after being shut off for a while.
We were on our way out. I had been out on the
promenade deck since about 6:00AM sustaining
myself on coffee and pound cake from the Blue
Lagoon café, which was conveniently located on the
same deck. It was now about 1:00PM and one of the
park rangers was giving a nature talk in the lounge so I decided to go. Unexpectedly, it was
about the various survival techniques of the sea life in Glacier Bay. It was quite interesting,
though I did doze a little because it was warm in the lounge (compared to on deck) and the
chairs were quite comfortable.
After the lecture I returned to the
promenade deck to look for wildlife as we
were done with glaciers. In the lower, main
part of Glacier Bay, there are no glaciers
coming to or near the water; only ice fields
are visible high in the mountains. I saw
several sea otters. I am convinced they were
otters and not seals because their behavior
was so stereotypical. I also saw some
dolphins. We got back to across from
Bartlett Cove at about 3:00PM and put off
the rangers on the pilot boat so they could
return to park headquarters. Then we cruised out of the bay into the Icy Strait. We turned
southeast. I went back to the cabin and watched the scenery go by. It was quite comfortable
on our little balcony because we were sailing with the wind so it wasn’t windy. About 5:15
we left Icy Strait and entered the Chatham Strait between Admiralty Island and Baranof
Island (N 58º 03.422’ W 134º 55.200’). The place is lousy with whales. Every few minutes I
29
saw one, two and sometimes three whales spouting along the shore of Baranof Island. I also
saw a couple of pods of porpoises, probably Dahl.
For dinner tonight Lisa had made us reservations at Cagney’s Steakhouse, another of the
specialty restaurants. It located on Deck 13 amidships. The theme is based on the Cagney
gangster movies with lots of 20s-30s photos of Chicago. The tables are in two separate
rooms separated by the kitchen/server space. We were seated in the smaller more intimate
area by a window. We ordered a bottle of Chilean D.O. Valle Del Maipo, Santa Rita 2001
Cabernet Sauvignon to go with our steaks. I found it interesting that they had more Chilean
wines on this cruise than were available on our South American cruise. I started with a
shrimp cocktail; Lisa picked the crab cakes, which she said were excellent. We both had
Caesar salad. I got the NY strip steak, medium with mushrooms, rice and creamed spinach.
Lisa selected the boneless rib eye with mushrooms, spinach and asparagus. She raved about
her steak. For dessert we both had the chocolate brownie-like cake covered in chocolate
sauce and garnished with a piece of chocolate—yummy. There was a $20 per person
surcharge, but it was well worth it. This was the best restaurant we ate at on the ship—better
than Le Bistro. It was so good that we stopped at the podium on the way out and Lisa made
reservations for the next evening.
We took a walk around after dinner and then dropped in on the end of the juggler’s act in
the main show lounge. He asked for a volunteer from the audience and got a guy who was
“volunteered” by several of his friends. He then selected three machete-like knives and told
the guy he would juggle them over him, as he lay blindfolded on the stage. After the guy had
the blindfold on and was lying down, he got some lightweight dumbbells to juggle and
dropped one on the guy—ha, ha. His closing bit was what he called “artistic” juggling. He
started with three softball-sized balls that were internally lit. He juggled these on a dark stage
and gradually built up to five balls. It was quite pretty.
We went back to the room at about 10:30. By this time we had reached the end of the
Chatham Strait (N 56º 03.091’ W 134º 19.171’). While we slept, I believe we sailed around
the southern end of Kulu Island, up the Summer Strait, east passed Kupeanor Island and
then southeast down Clarence Strait to Ketchikan. Too bad we did this at night because it
might have been interesting.
Friday, September 10
Ketchikan
When we woke up we were already docked.
We were roused from bed by the sounds of
floatplanes taking off outside our window.
We were docked beside one of the town’s
runways. The floatplanes were taking
passengers on tours of Misty Fiord. Their
docks were just north of us. Flight
operations were interrupted by the arrival of
the Holland America Amsterdam that sailed
across the runway. After it passed, another flock took off, but had to stop again for the
RCCL Serenade of the Seas.
30
After our usual buffet breakfast at the Market Café (though Lisa had oatmeal instead of an
egg-white omelet), we went ashore. The weather was cool and cloudy with the promise of
rain showers, which thankfully held off until we left.
All three ships were docked right next to
downtown. It presented an interesting
image because the ships were so much taller
and bigger than the Ketchikan building.
We browsed in several shops and bought a
couple of trinkets. I had gotten pins from
the Yukon and Skagway, and Lisa had
gotten me one from the park rangers for
Glacier Bay. What I was missing was Juneau
and Ketchikan that I found here.
Figure 24. H.A.L.’s MS Amsterdam
Next, we walked to the Ketchikan Creek
“historic” area. Here the shops were in
former brothels built on pilings over the
banks of the creek. The creek itself still had
quite a few salmon in it in various stages of
dying and decomposition. This gave the area
a pronounced, unpleasant fishy smell. We browsed in several of the shops and Lisa
purchased a couple of T-shirts and some cards done by a local artist.
At the edge of the district we found the Creek Street Funicular that led up to the Cape Fox
Lodge behind the town. The funicular was self-operated like an elevator and about the same
size. It was a short, sedate journey to the top, about 100 feet. It deposited its passengers right
in the lobby of the lodge. Lisa like the lodge and could see staying here and using it as a base
for day trips in the area.
We got coffee at the coffee bar in the
lobby and went out on the deck. I’d
also picked up a couple of brochures
on Ketchikan and Wrangell. I’d like to
visit Wrangell some day because it was
the base of operations for John Muir
when he made his trips to Southeastern Alaska in the late 1800s.
I asked Lisa what she thought about
kayaking. After she stopped laughing
hysterically, she said she’d be willing
to give it a try for me. The reason for
Figure 25. Totem Poles (and me) in front of
Cape Fox Lodge
31
the question was that I felt that it was the good way to do Misty Fiord. She had said she’d
like to do the floatplane trip, but I think it would be too noisy.
On the way back to the ship we wandered
through a hardware store on the dock.
Actually it looked more like an old fashion
general store. In addition to the traditional
hardware items, it had groceries, house
wares, linens and bedding. Its hardware was
clearly targeted at the local needs. There
was lots of outdoor, camping, hunting and
fishing gear plus a large selection of boating
and commercial fishing items.
Back on board we had lunch in the main
dinning room. We were seated with a
couple from San Diego on their first cruise.
I had calamari, gnocchi, a Ruben sandwich
and apple crisp for dessert. Lisa started
with pineapple-banana chilled soup followed with gnocchi, grouper (which she said wasn’t
good) and the apple crisp.
Enroute to Victoria
We left Ketchikan at about 1:45. This was about 15 minutes late because one of the tours
was late getting back. (This is one reason to pay the premium for the ship-sponsored tours, if
you arrange your own tour and it’s late, you’ll miss the boat, literally.) It is now cold and
blustery out with a light rain. We sailed out into Hector Strait heading back to the Pacific and
it started to get a little rolly. We both went to the debarkation lecture, but it was the same old
stuff. The only reason we went was we had nothing else to do and it was too nasty to be
outside.
Dinner at Cagney’s again tonight. We were seated at the same table and had the rest of last
night’s Cabernet brought from the cellar. Tonight I began with the crab cake and Lisa got
the French onion soup. We both had Caesar salads and the boneless rib eye steak. I got the
chocolate dessert again—stick with a winner. Lisa opted for the cheesecake with strawberry
compote. As we were having our dessert the ride started to get rough: 7-12 foot seas,
45-knot crosswind from the east with blowing rain (got the details from the Captain’s Log
station on the TV back in the cabin). The ship slowed down to 19 knots.
After dinner we went to the Jean Ann Ryan Company and Asian acrobat show. The singers
and dancers put on a good show, but I preferred the Andrew Lloyd Webber revue they put
on earlier in the week. The acrobats did well considering that the ship was now pitching
quite a bit—only one bobble. It was rougher now than at dinner.
We got back to the cabin about 10:30. Checked the Captain’s Log on TV and the seas are
now Very Rough, 12-18 foot seas. Winds are coming from the southeast, diagonally across
the ship from front port to rear starboard at about 35 knots. We’ve slowed to 13 knots. We
are technically still in the Inside Passage at the south end of Hector Strait, but this is very
open water.
32
Saturday, September 11, At Sea
I woke up at 3:30AM and checked the TV. Wind is now from the west at about 41 knots and
the seas are still very rough.
Couldn’t get back to sleep because of shooting pains in my leg—this too passed. Finally got
up around 7:30 to clearing skies and a rising barometer but it was still very rough with gale
force cross winds. We went up to the Market Café for a light breakfast.
At 10:20 the captain announced that we
were 6 hours behind schedule because of
the weather and at times our speed had
dropped to 8-10 knots. Therefore, we
were not going to make our planned stop
in Victoria other than to meet the
requirements of a 1876 Jones Act that
requires foreign flagged ships to stop at at
least one non-US port.
The seas remained rough all day. We
spent a lazy afternoon in the inside public
rooms then went back to the room to
pack and shower. Went down to the Gatsby Bar for a Martini and had dinner at the main
dining room. My appetizer was smoked trout. We both had the apple and strawberry chilled
soup, Caesar salad, and roasted rib eye. For dessert I had the chocolate cake and Lisa went
for the banana split. As you can see, the rough seas didn’t effect our appetites (Lisa had
taken a pill).
We skipped the show tonight, went back to finish packing, put the luggage out for the
“luggage faeries,” and went to bed early.
I woke up about 11:30 and we were docked in Victoria going through the required paper
work. I next awoke to loud dock noises in Seattle.
Sunday, September 12, Seattle to Atlanta
I got up about 7:30; Lisa was already up. We packed up our night stuff and went to the
buffet for breakfast. Lisa picked up the ulus that were taken in Skagway and picked up the
bill that wasn’t delivered to the cabin as promised. She called her brother Gino who’ll be
here to pick us up at 9:30 to take us to the airport.
Gino arrived before we could clear immigration and customs and waited for us in the ferry
terminal parking lot. The customs guy was amused by my declaration of $2.65 for the pin I
bought in Carcross. I guess technically I didn’t need to declare it since I had already brought
it back into the US when we came back to Skagway. The only other declarations would have
been for on-board duty-free purchases (if any) since no passengers had gotten off in
Victoria.
Once we cleared customs, Lisa called Gino and we repacked our carry-on items. He picked
us up and then dropped us at Pike Market where Lisa bought some sandwiches for our
lunch, a small frozen mac&cheese to take home and more cheese from Beecher’s Cheese
shop, and I got a Seattle pin. We had coffee at Seattle’s Best and then Gino picked us up and
took us to the airport.
33
Our flight to Chicago was overbooked, but the deals were only for passengers terminating in
Chicago, so we didn’t get a shot at another free ticket. It was a good deal too: free round trip
for the lower 48, first class on the 5:00PM flight or hotel & meal and flight tomorrow. Not
sure we’d have qualified anyway as we were already on a free ticket.
Flight to Chicago arrived 12 minutes early. The flight to Atlanta was from the same gate and
on the same plane but with a different crew. Both flights were uneventful—my kind of
flights. Got home at about 1:00AM.
This was a nice trip. We especially enjoyed our day trip to the Olympic Peninsula and
Victoria, the Whale Watch and Wildlife Quest tour in Juneau, and the time we got to spend
with Lisa’s brothers. We liked Alaska and would like to go back, but on a smaller ship and
with a land package so we could get to other places there like Denali. The ship was OK but
too big for us, though we like having our own balcony. Unlike most of our other cruises we
(Lisa really) didn’t find any other passengers that we clicked with. This was partly due to the
size of the ship (rarely saw the same people twice) and partly the nature of most of the
passengers—first time cruisers. The dinning highlights were Cagney’s Steakhouse on-board
and Pasta Freska in Seattle.
34

Lisa and Andy`s Seattle/Alaska Adventure

Transcription

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