This was another cruise day. We set off from Ketchikan after 6.30 pm the previous day, sailed all night, then all of Friday and Friday night .This takes us back to Vancover for the morning of Saturday. We were given instructions on packing, where to leave our luggage, or to handle our own luggage. We chose to handle our own luggage, leaving us free to leave on Saturday at the time of our choosing.
Today, not a lot happened, plenty of eating, some drinking, trying to use our 15 drinks a day package. Quite a challenge, even when this includes the purchase of espressos and cappuccinos. In the dining room, the waiters put on a little farewell show. We did listen to some music in the rolling stones lounge. The band there was OK. The couple on the pianos in the other bar not exactly to either of our tastes, and that was not because they did not play our suggestions; just banged hard on the keys.
We also looked at the shops, trying to spend our ‘free’ money allowance, instead we gave some of it away as a tip to our waiter, who came back thinking we had made a mistake in the tip.
The overnight ship trip to Ketchikan has us arriving at 11.00am. Today’s activity was a photo safari, which R and I were booked on. R still under the weather, so did not attend. I misread safari and took my huge lens. The safari was around the town at the sites, being instructed by a photographer on how to take better photos. This included looking at the old brothels which they celebrate, but still continue to persecute whores in the present day. Thankfully I had pocketed the small lens. But that still meant lugging around the useless, heavy birding lens.
The instructor on our trip was Randy Kirby. His photography company is called Bear Paw. For this trip he was guiding, he was working for Ketchikan Photo Safari.
Oh, and it rained.
We also visited a waterfall behind a shopping mall, where there were many mini buses from the ships bringing in staff to buy necessities. Ketchikan is a busy port with up to eight liners there. Most stop to fill up with water.
After the falls, we went on to a museum of Totem Poles.
I did learn from the photo lessons, including some interesting techniques with a mobile phone.
I was up and about early, but still missed the Park Rangers coming on board, although I did hear them talk at the Observation Deck. The Park Rangers remained on the ship for the duration of the visit to the glaciers
At around 9.30 we saw the first glacier, the John Hopkins Glacier. This Glacier filled the inlet where we were sailing up until the 1907. We did not get up close to the ice wall because of baby seals who live on the ice. In the water we saw numerous otters swimming on their backs. Some were carrying babies, others were swimming amongst the ice flows. On the bank a bear and a mountain goat were spotted. I did catch a picture of the goat. It was a very small indistinct picture as the goat was far off.
We got up closer to the next glacier, the Margerie Glacier, where we waited around for here for some time. Unfortunately, we did not see any calving of the ice. This Glacier filled the Tarr Inlet until 1892. I viewed the glaciers from the foredeck, where we were served Dutch Pea Soup. A very thick soup which was to be eaten, rather than drunk.
When we left, there were still otters to catch on camera, when I had the big lens. Some of the pictures show a juvenile otter being carried by the adult. The weather stayed mainly dry, but did have the odd cold shower.
R missed all this, she was laid up in her bed. Steve not wanting to eat on his own, went to the dining room and asked for a shared table. Four others joined him for the evening meal.
We heard the history of Glacier Bay, how that in the 1600s it was farmed, and a river flowed through it. Then a mini ice age occurred and the ice formed and swept through the valley. The whole bay filled. The Glacier reached its maximum extent in 1750. Since then, it has retreated 65 miles to the heads of the two inlets.
As we were leaving, another Holland America cruise ship, the Noordam, came in to replace us, This ship was on an 11-day cruise. The Alaskan Parks limit the number of ships allowed into Glacier Bay, so when we were visiting, we were the only ship there, to be replaced by the next ship. Not all cruise liners get to go to Glacier Bay, so make sure you check the itinerary before booking.
That evening the Koningsdam sailed on to the next stop of Skagway. It left after 10pm and arrived around 6.00am. We headed for an early breakfast on the upper deck, a self-service buffet. Seemed complicated, and if you left your seat to get something else, there was no guarantee your plates would not be cleared away, and someone else would have taken your space. Light breakfast. Oh, and there was a whale in the harbour blowing in the docking area.
Skagway is the port where the gold miners came during the Klondike gold rush in the last decade of the 1800s. We were heading out for the White Pass Summit Rail train trip. Some issues with the audio on the coach taking us to the start, so a stop beside the road to have the sound system fixed. This was the first time the guide/bus driver had taken this trip. We drove up to the border and entered, yet again, into Canada.
The road snow depth indicators are unlike UK and European ones. The European ones are poles on the side of the road, how near to the pole are you able to go before you are off the road. The Alaskan guides have a horizontal section at the top, pointing in towards the road. These are painted with red and yellow paint. The red near the edge, and yellow over the road. This gives an indication as to where the roadside is.
The Canadian customs guy checked our passports at the customs post several miles into Canada. Here we joined our narrow gauge passenger train. The trip was all the way down to the bottom, through gorges, tunnels and across bridges. Oh, and this time we went through American customs, and they didn’t bother checking us face to face. They said all checks had been made.
On the trip down, we saw the cross on the boulder for Maurice Dunn, buried by massive boulder in a blasting accident, while building the railway. There was sign on the mountain, “On to Alaska with Buchanan” this refers to a series of adventure trips organized by George E. Buchanan, a Detroit coal merchant, beginning in 1923.
The line was mainly single track, with a dual track halfway down to allow upcoming and downcoming trains to pass each other.
At the bottom we went onto a BBQ and goldpanning show. Don’t think any of the meat had seen a real BBQ. Chicken and ribs were on offer. There were some lovely spicy hot baked beans as an accompaniment
Met a couple from the US on the trip. They were from Houston in Texas, and had come on holiday to be somewhere where it was cooler. Their first cruise as well.
After the BBQ we did some gold panning, and lo and behold found 1.8 grains, of gold, worth $38. Ha!
Back to the ship. But why the two checks for entry, a facial recognition system, then at the ship, a scan of the cruise card. Oh and bags x-rayed, to check we were not bringing any alcohol on board. So irritating.
We ate in the dining room, again just the two of us, but this time it was upstairs.
We set sail some time in the early evening, on our way to Glacier Bay
Overnight trip to Juneau, where we arrived in the morning. Breakfast at the restaurant. Today we had a trip out to see whales. Bus trip up the estuary, to where it joins the main water which goes on up to Glacier Bay. The weather forecast was poor, but the trip started dry with sunshine. Later it descended into showers, including hail. We were loaded onto a double height boat, and headed out into the bay. There were several other boats out searching for whales. Yes, we had several sightings, blows, and tail shots,plus a seal. Back on the ship, we heard how another trip had seen a calf with the mother making a leap into the air. All their cameras and phones had been put away as they were on the way back to harbour and it was wet! Likely story.
Several drinks followed by a late supper in the main dining room. This time we were on our own table. Next time we must go earlier and get a shared table. So much more fun. Service can be awfully slow,
