Andi the Tour Guide

It’s just after 6am when the MS Noordam passes under the Lions Bridge and officially arrives in Vancouver. Docking at Canada Place makes for a spectacular finish to our cruise and the disembarkation process is surprisingly efficient. I guess they know what they’re doing!

By 10am we are off the ship, our luggage is on the way to the airport and we are boarding the Sightseeing trolley bus to take us around Vancouver for the next couple of hours. The Park Route of the Hop On/Off Tour takes us to Stanley Park, where we get off to walk around a little, check out the Totem Poles before re-boarding and finishing the route through the various parts of the city.

By 1pm it is time to head to the airport and get everyone checked in, and after another bite to eat we say Goodbye to Tina & Charly, who are leaving to FRA on their first leg home. Our flight to SFO is delayed this evening, leaving us here at YVR for a few more hours before the vacation really comes to an end and reality grabs us again.

Relaxing on the deck

Soon after leaving Ketchikan we are crossing into Canada, and with that set our clocks an hour ahead overnight. The sea gets a little rough at times, but we have a beautiful sunrise anyways. Thereafter however clouds take over and the rest of the day is pretty gloomy.

We will be at sea all day today, but still keep our eyes open for any wildlife as we sail through the Inside Passage, hoping to spot a whale or two as we approach Johnston Narrows and Vancouver Island. And just after 2pm – there is one! Now we’re looking for more.

This is our last day on the ship, and that means getting our bags packed up again, and everything ready for tomorrow morning’s disembarkation. We can’t believe our two weeks are coming to an end already – what a trip this has been.

When it’s time for dinner, the Chef has a special surprise on the menu: Wiener Schnitzel! Of course we’re all having that for our main course! Time to say farewell to our service crew, grabbing a couple of last drinks and shows and then it’s time to put the packed bags outside the room! How come the suitcases seem to be so much heaver than when we first arrived in Alaska? Hmmm.

Great Misty Fjords flightseeing

Beautiful sunshine welcomes us as we cruise towards Ketchikan, today’s destination. From our cabins’ balconies we watch as the ship docks in the harbor, and soon after we disembark for our excursion, the Misty Fjords Flightseeing trip!

Joined by a couple from Arkansas, we meet our pilot Kevin at Southeast Aviation. Kevin’s dad is from Livermore, so we immediately feel like we picked the right tour! We hop on board the seaplane – Kirk in the back, with windows on both sides for the best camera access, me one row up, and Tina & Charly right over the wings, behind the pilot. After a two minute safety briefing, we are off to our 1 1/2 hours adventure. The weather could not be any more perfect that what we experience today, and Keith takes a flight path slightly off the usual trek, to show us his favorite route which is even more spectacular than I had anticipated.

Misty Fjords National Monument is southeast Alaska’s most popular saltwater fjord, located 20 minutes by air from Ketchikan, offering views of soaring cliffs, saw-toothed ridges, sky-blue lakes and plunging waterfalls, which are especially grand after the heavy rains from the last few days. While we don’t get to see any bears or mountain goats, we do see a big group of harbor seals on a rock island, and even spot an orca swimming in the water below.

After about 45 minutes Kevin lands the plane on the water in the middle of nowhere. It is quiet around us, and breathtakingly beautiful. We get to step off the plane and stand on the pontoons for a few photos, before re-boarding. We take a different route on the way back to see even more of the beautiful scenery, before landing back at the dock.
This was hands down the highlight of our cruise trip!

We head back onto the ship by early afternoon, to shed some of our layers as it has gotten pretty warm in town, and also to grab a bite to eat.

Soon enough, we are off the ship again, this time to explore Newtown and Downtown Ketchikan. The waterfront is very touristy, much like the other towns, but just a few blocks away from the harbor we find the Ketchikan Creek, and the salmon ladder that allows the fish to get up and over (or past) the rocks and roaring waters right here. We watch as hundreds of salmon attempt to jump up the waterfall (and fail), while only one or two actually find their way up the ladder. The fun never stops.

As we continue our stroll through town, Kirk finds the only local brewery (Bawden Street brewery), where we stop for refreshments, before slowly making our way back towards the ship before departure and dinner aboard.

Mt. Roberts Tram

After leaving Haines just before 9pm last night, our ship has reached Juneau just before 8am this morning. Forecast calls for another day of rain, so the gear remains at hand. The extremely high water levels (flood stage) and strong winds have resulted in the cancellation of our Mendenhall Glacier Kayak Tour for today – bummer. We opt to make up our own walking tour of Juneau instead, as we have until 5pm before we need to be back aboard.

First off to the Mt. Roberts Tram, to get a great view over Juneau and its surroundings while it’s still clear (aka no fog). The Raptor Center showcases Mrs. Baltimore, a bald eagle with a damaged wing and eye, who cannot be released back into the wild. 90% of injured eagles however can be released from here after being taken in. A short loop trail provides additional view points in various directions, and one even offers a glimpse of Mendenhall Glacier, where we were supposed to go to today.

After a video on Tlingit culture in Juneau, we take the tram back down to town and explore downtown including all the very touristy parts and stop by the State Capitol. By now it is pouring rain again and soon we put an end to our shore excursion. Heading back aboard we get to watch a few late comers running towards the ship at 5:30pm, before a relaxing evening including a whale (back) sighting on our way towards the next port.

Young bald eagle

Official arrival time for our ship here in Haines is 6:30am, but when I look out the window at 6am, we’re already tied up to the dock. It’s chilly, blustery and a little rainy again this morning, but we’re still looking forward to our Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve Raft Float today. Time to get the day started!

First off to exploring the town of Haines (population 2,000) with its former military fort (Ft. Seward) and downtown sights, including historic buildings, a hammer museum (1,600 hammers from around the world!) and the American Bald Eagle Foundation.

By early afternoon we meet up with our guide from Rainbow Glacier Adventures, who takes us to their headquarter office (a shack) up the hill to get “booted up”. Rain-gear already on, we now add rain-boots to our outfit, to stay as dry as possible in the continued rain and wind. A short ride up the river on the Haines Highway (the only road in and out, and really not leading to anywhere near), we reach our drop off point. While our driver Byrne will stay with the bus, river guides Ashley and Steve will float our boats down the Chilkat River.

The 4 of us sit with 3 others in Steve’s boat. A many with many years of experience on this river keeps us afloat for the hour and a half that we spend on the overly full river. Rather than easing up (as weather forecast predicted), winds and rain actually got stronger by the time we’re on the water. Despite the poor weather (or “perfect South-Alaskan weather” as they call it here), we get to see several bald eagles – sitting in the trees, flying overhead or taking off right in front of us.

We all make it back (mostly) dry, but still looking forward to warming up again when back on the ship!

Tonight’s dinner is at the specialty restaurant Pinnacle Grill, where the menu is a little fancier than in the main dining room. Steaks and Lobster galore! After this much fresh air and food, there is barely room left for a last drink at the Piano Bar before we call it a day.

Seal hanging out near an iceberg

Tidewater glaciers are great rivers of ice that flow to the sea and calve large chunks of ice into the ocean. The bay boasts seven such tidewater glaciers, including famous Margerie Glacier – one of Alaska’s most photographed features and one of the state’s more active glacial faces.

To start the day off, a group of Park Rangers joined us on board, to provide an overview of our route, what to expect we might get to see and provide general information about the National Park. The park is accessible only by boat or by (water) plane, limiting tourism to mostly cruise ships.

While watching the bay, surrounding mountains and glaciers from the front of the boat (Crow’s Nest), from our stateroom’s balcony or from the Lido restaurant, we got to see mountain goats, a tiny second worth of humpback whale and multiple displays of the thunderous crack of a calving tidewater glacier.

All in all, a nice relaxing day on board with great views to enjoy on our way into the bay and back out.

On the Noordam

My anti-motion-sickness patch helps, because the ship, as big as it is, still sways in the waves of the open water non-stop it seems. Onward through the Gulf of Alaska.

Tina & Charly are served breakfast in the main dining room, while Kirk & I grab a light meal in the Lido Market (self-service). After a stroll through the ship, we all meet up again at the Crows Nest, the bar at the very front of the ship, and relax.

Nothing on the schedule for the rest of the day, until it’s dinner time at 5:30pm. This time we dress up for a fancier gala dinner.

Afterwards, I decide to call it a night as I can barely keep my eyes open. Relaxing is hard work!  Tina, Charly and Kirk instead hit the piano bar for singing and drinks. Oh boy.

Ready for the wildlife tour

Our taxi pick up is at 8am, to get to the Major Marine Tours desk at the 360 hotel at the harbor. After check in and storing our luggage, we are soon boarding the Orca Song vessel, which will take us over and around the Resurrection Bay, looking out for wildlife.

The first bald eagle sits on a concrete post sits the edge of the harbor, just waiting to get his (her?) picture taken. As we get more away from land, we spot sea otters (napping while floating), sea lions and harbor seals. Not to be missed are the horned puffins and the tufted puffins, as well as other critters, mountains and glaciers.

In the early afternoon we walk to the cruise ship dock, where our “home” for the next 7 days is already waiting – the MS Noordam from Holland America Cruise Lines. After check in, we check out our rooms (luggage to be delivered later) and the whole ship. Multiple restaurants, bars, shops, spa and more to fill our time!

Our dinner seating is at 5:30PM, followed by some drinks including night cap.

Sharp Tufted Puffin!

It’s time to move on to our next destination – and the way there will be covered by train. We have to get up early to catch our 6:45am train, but are rewarded with beautiful views from our seats in the panorama car: glass ceiling!

Despite the gloomy weather outside we see bald eagles, a porcupine, a couple of moose, salmon, as well as beautiful nature – mountains, glaciers, lakes and rivers, as well as the open sea.

We arrive at the final stop in Seward just before noon, and catch the free shuttle to the Brass Lantern B&B. After dropping off our bags, we stroll through the few blocks of downtown Seward, grab a sandwich to go (by now it’s actually a little sunny outside!) and relax.

Afterwards we continue walking through town and soon after have seen just about all of it. So we go into the Alaska Sea Live Center, a very nice Aquarium and informational center. Similar to the Monterrey Bay Aquarium, just much smaller.

We then catch the shuttle bus to the small boat harbor to get some drinks, before watching a fishing cruise offload their catches and displaying them all on the pier (and then gutting them there, too). It can’t deter s from eating dinner, but wasn’t a thing to watch for the faint hearted.

After dinner we walk back to downtown, catch one more drink and then head back to the B&B.

Chomping on reindeer sausage

And off we go … back to downtown Anchorage for some more sightseeing.

We’re taking the Red Trolleybus Tour first, and it gives s a great overview of the city, with our tour-guide/driver sharing historical tidbits, funny anecdotes and lots of interesting information. In just under an hour we see various neighborhoods, Earthquake Park, the waterfront with its statue of James Cook, who “discovered” in his search for the Northwest Passage, and more.

After the tour, we grab a quick lunch (Reindeer sausage!) before we walk back out to the statue, as it allows us beautiful views over the Cook Inlet, across some impressive mountain peaks – and another look at the top tip of Denali. Visible only on clear days, we didn’t have much hope to catch a glimpse today, but as the clouds shift, the mountain peeks through for a few minutes.

While Tina and I enjoy the view, Kirk is busy taking pictures and videos, and Charly takes a nap.

After some gift shopping we stop for drinks on the roof top bar at 49th State Brewery. Then we grab dinner at The Hard Rock Cafe, before calling it a day and head back to the hotel.