Well I apologize in advance, because this is going to be a long post and waayyy over due! Back in May, Mom, Alex and I took a cruise from Seattle to Alaska. There were lots of firsts for all of us, the first being that only Alex had ever been on a cruise before! We lucked out with amazing weather for most of the trip and beautiful sunsets every night. We drove from Portland the morning of embarkation, one thing that we weren’t really prepared for was the 2 hour wait in line to check in. Seems like there should be a more streamlined way to do that! The first day we were at sea and Alex and I decided to explore the “gym”…we decided that the Alaska cruises must be the ones where all the athletes go because it was packed! We tried the treadmill for awhile and kept scanning the horizon looking for whales…but no luck. It was warm enough, with the blankets provided, to “layout” by the pool. We had a lovely time just relaxing! First stop was Ketchikan. We had a morning tour that took us on a nature walk and we got to see lots of totem poles, including one currently being carved. There was a bird sanctuary where we got to see a handsome Bald Eagle up close. Since we had more time in the afternoon, Alex and I decided to add on another first…a Seaplane ride. Our captain took us up and over the Misty Fjords, and even landed on a lake up in the Mountains and let us get out on the pontoons. It was so amazing!! The next morning, very, very early, we woke up to experience the glacier at Tracy Arm Fjord. We kept looking for a calving to take place, but only saw a couple of very small ones. It was beautiful, especially in the early morning light. From there we headed to Juneau. We took a tour that included a visit to the Mendenhall Glacier, which was fairly crowded and not quite the majesty of the glacier we’d seen earlier in the day. From there, we were taken our Whale Tour boat. They served us a lovely buffet dinner while we all scanned the water looking for whales. The captains did a great job of finding an Orca pod and we got to see the whales surface a few times. Toward the end of the tour, they did find one humpback that we saw breach once…pretty cool! Our last stop in Alaska was Skagway, the gateway to the gold rush. We took the old train up to Fraser, Canada just like the prospectors did all those years ago. Then we headed down to a replica Gold Rush camp called Liarsville. They served up a delicious camp style lunch with grilled salmon, chicken, baked beans and the most delicious cornbread! Then we were treated to a Vaudeville style presentation on the history of the Gold Rush camps before getting to pan for gold ourselves. Kinda silly, but so much fun! Last, but not least, in Skagway was the Red Onion Saloon, one of the most famous brothels during the Gold Rush. With champagne in our hands, we wandered through the rooms of the “working girls” and learned a couple of ghost stories. Leaving Skagway, we started the long cruise to Victoria with another full day at sea. There was lots of reading and sleeping done on this day! We had a short time in Victoria, but just enough for another visit to the Butchart Gardens and for Alex to experience the “high tea!” One of the absolute best things about the cruise was the food served in the dining room (I was not a big fan of the buffets). I loved being able to choose from multiple offerings each night and try new things every day….it was all so well presented and delicious! As I mentioned before, some of the most beautiful sights were the sunsets we were blessed with from our private balcony.
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