We had several strokes of really good luck as you will see throughout this post. Our first was the weather. Southeast Alaska, and in particular the Inside Passage where we mostly spent our time, is typically rainy, cloudy, overcast, and somewhat cold, even in the summer; but our weather the entire week was like this:
Every day was in the mid 70's, sunny, and no humidity. Couldn't have been better.
We did the usual stuff while on the ship, we sunned, we ate, we played bingo, we ate, we watched entertainment, we ate, we went to nature lectures,we ate, and between meals we snacked. One night Danny showed his stuff in a Karioke competition and did very well:
But unlike a lot of cruises, a cruise to Alaska is all about the ports, the scenery and the chance to see wildlife in the wild. Our first stop was Ketchikan; Leah and Danny went ziplining in a rainforest while Ruth and I walked around the town, which is a big center for salmon fishing and spawning. Leah and Danny had a great time, both walking on suspension bridges high in the air and going through a series of 9 ziplines.
Ruth and Alan, being older and wiser, skipped the zip lining and toured a Native American museum featuring salvaged totem poles; a salmon fish hatchery, and a part of town that used to be the "red light district" in the bawdy days but is now a group of "quaint" shops for the cruise industry.
Imagine our surprise when we saw a bunch of people looking straight up at one of the stores in the former red light district and there, directly above us, was a beautiful bald eagle perched in a tree!
As we left the Ketchikan dock, an announcement came over the PA that we were passing Gravina Island, where Ketchikan International Airport (which apparently is only allowed to be called an international airport because a Canadian plane landed there once) is located:
Why should any of us care? Because the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" was going to be built between Ketchikan and Gravina Island so the citizens of Ketchikan wouldn't have to wait for a ferry that leaves every 15 minutes to cross over to the Island and use the airport. Truly a master boondoggle- see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravina_Island_Bridge.
The next day we went to Juneau, the Capital of Alaska. It's an unusual city for a capital in that it can only be reached by boat or plane; no roads lead to Juneau. The city itself is not extraordinary; here is the State Capitol and the Governor's Mansion (where Sarah Palin lived for two weeks before moving back to Wasilla)
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| Governor's Mansion |
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| State Capitol |
The thing about Juneau, though, that is extraordinary is its proximity to incredible natural wonders. Juneau is close to glaciers, rain forests, whale watching, and a host of activities that can be found throughout the Inside Passage. We elected to go on a very popular tour; it involves helicoptering to Mendenhall Glacier and then spending an hour actually walking on this incredible natural wonder. Here was our second stroke of luck; the sky was so clear and blue that the pilot spend extra time flying us to the Glacier so that we could enjoy the views of the terrain as it changed from green and lush to frozen and barren.
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| a few minutes after we took off |
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| enjoying the ride |
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| about ten minutes into the ride |
Once we landed on the Glacier, we were given crampons for our feet and hiking poles and walked around for an hour; we saw very deep crevasses and other formations; we were especially struck, though, by how much melting occurs over a summer and how quickly it occurs.
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| The deep blue comes from the compacted ice forming the glacier underneath this water; the glacier crystals absorb all colors in the spectrum except blue which is reflected back |
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| extremely deep |
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| A moment to contemplate before hopping back on the helicopter The helicopter ride and walking on Mendenhall Glacier were truly highlights of a great trip. Next post: Skagway and the rest of the week. |
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