Enthusiastic Cruiser

Crown Princess Travelogue #7 - Sydney Nova Scotia - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-12-08T11:03:00.000-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England Cruise on Crown Princess
Day 7 – Sydney, Nova Scotia

The Crown Princess arrived once again under gorgeous blue skies, today in Sydney, Nova Scotia. As we entered port, the sun was rising on the horizon and was an extraordinary color of brilliant pink. We each had breakfast delivered in our cabin by room service as we had to be ready to leave the ship and tender into port by 8:30 a.m.

On the pier in Sydney is an enormous fiddle and bow. The city wanted something to commemorate their Scottish heritage. We boarded our coach for our tour of Sydney as well as a coastal drive and the tour guide began to tell us of the history of Sydney and its coal and steel industry. We drove past the “company store, where he told us a story of the men working in the mines during the week. When they needed to purchase something from the company store, they would go here and sign a ticket. By the end of the work week they “owed their souls to the company store” – remember that song? Each section of town that we passed through was dedicated to a certain sector of workers in the mines. The first was for the company leaders, the second for the white collar workers and then one of the regular workers. You had to have one man in the house working in the mine in order to live in one of these houses. Each of these houses today is well kept. There are no fences in Nova Scotia. The homes sit on probably about ¾ of an acre surrounded by mowed lawns and colorful gardens. I saw several people out mowing their lawns with regular, gas powered mowers – no ride on tractor mowers here! Behind the homes was a forest of trees. And they were all turning colors of red, gold, yellow and everything in between. This was the most changing of the colors that we have seen on our cruise so far. What was truly unfortunate was that once again, the driver would not stop for us to take pictures. The pictures Nola and I have taken have been distorted by the reflections through the coach windows. But, we have the memories – blurred but beautiful.

Our first stop today was at a Jewish Synagogue which is a lovely museum now, The Whitney Pier Historical Museum. Nola got to ride upstairs in a chair lift. At the top, we were greeted by very friendly locals all very welcoming. The hall was full of all sorts of period collectibles including sewing machines, old stoves, dolls, and thousands of other items. The ladies were dressed in long dresses with white aprons and matching bonnets. They served us coffee, tea or lemonade along with an oat biscuit. And, I got the recipe!!

Joan’s Oatcakes Recipe
Provided by the Whitney Pier Historical Museum
1 cup shortening
1 cup butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in 4 tablespoons hot water.
2 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups rolled oats
Directions:
Cream first four ingredients. Add soda mixture. Add dry ingredients and mix. Chill for 15 to 20 minutes. Roll out to desired shape and thickness. Bake at 350 degrees until light brown.

As I walked outside after enjoying a cup of hot tea and biscuit, I was greeted with the sound of music coming from across the street. As I walked up to the gingerbread house, a gentlemen came down the steps and greeted me. Casimer Siepierski (Cas for short) was all smiles. He told me he had lived in this house all his life. His mother built it from the basement up and worked in the steel plant. He is 78 years old and said he plays music for the synagogue. One of the songs that played while we talked was “Good Night Irene”. On the side of the narrow steps leading up to his porch was a flat wooden plaque with a horse and covered buggy. When I left, his hands were both waving in the air and he blew me a kiss!

We traveled from there out along the coastline to the Fort Petrie Historical Museum. This was dedicated to the men who fought in World War I and World War II. The building is right on the waters’ edge and very picturesque. From there we moved on to New Waterford and Colliery Park, a memorial to the coal mine explosion that closed the mine. Off in the distance at the tip of the island, we could see Low Point Lighthouse. We then passed by the Lingen windmill farm where there were several windmills turning around and around. Each one supplies electricity to about 6,000 homes. Marconi Point is where Alexander Graham Bell’s friend sent the very first telegraph signal to Great Britain. The road was windy and full of beautiful color in the trees.

Our 3 hour tour came to an end all too soon. Once back at the cruise pier, we tried to catch a taxi, but because today was the Canadian Thanksgiving and a good number of the businesses in town were closed. We did walk up into town and past a church where they were having a Craft Fair. We made a full circle around and eventually walked along the main street along the water back to the pier. The breeze really picked up and by the time we got back to the pier, it was really blowing. Once inside, we grabbed a light lunch and then Jim and I walked through some of the shops while Nola took advantage of the free wi fi in the terminal building and caught up on her emails.

We caught our tender back to the ship and then came upstairs to the buffet and enjoyed our window table overlooking Sydney. There is a heavy chop on the water below with white caps. The skies remained clear all day with just a few puffs of white here and there. What I find so charming about this area is that the islands do not have large mountains but are rather low rolling hills. As the hills gently reach the ocean, the houses follow the mountain up to the ridgeline. You can see the large lawns and each distinct farm. It is a charming area and one I hope I can return to someday.

Tomorrow we shall be on Prince Edward Island and we’ll be in Charlottetown – the home of Anne of Green Gables. Till then…

Crown Princess Travelogue #6 - Halifax, Nova Scotia - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-12-08T10:56:00.001-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess
Day 6 – Halifax, Nova Scotia

After arriving in Halifax at about 9:00 a.m. we disembarked the ship and boarded our motor coach for our trek out to Lunenburg and Mahone Bay, quaint fishing villages to the west of Halifax about 60-70 miles.

Unfortunately, our tour guide and bus driver had a specific agenda and time schedule. Because of this, our time in this beautiful area was quite brief and felt very rushed. Though we drove through Mahone Bay, the bus driver did not even slow down to take in the picturesque landscape along the babbling stream that had colorful trees lining its banks. He did not slow down to even allow us to take a picture of the Three Sisters churches across the bay. On our previous cruise a couple of years ago to Canada, our tour was longer and we were able to stop and enjoy these delightful little seaside communities. We passed by so quickly that we barely got a glimpse of the Victorian style homes and cottages along the seashore. This was truly disappointing to both Jim and me and to Nola as well because we had talked so much about our anticipation of returning to this area. Oh well…

Continuing on we came to Lunenburg about 10 minutes later. The bus driver drove to the top of the hill and dropped most people off near the Lunenburg Academy – once the home of an elementary school and now being turned into a museum. The walk down the hill is very interesting but quite steep – so Nola and I chose to stay on board and meet everyone at the bottom of the hill. As luck would have it, the bus driver took so long reaching the bottom of the hill because of having to make sharp maneuvers around the corners of the narrow streets that we literally met the walking group as they reached the bottom of the hill.

What we so enjoyed about our previous time here was that each of the wooden sided homes in Lunenburg and Mahone Bay are painted different and unique colors. There is a red one, next to a green one, next to a purple one, etc. In Lunenburg, each of the doorways is distinctly unique as well – and as such, they have created a postcard of the doorways of Lunenburg.

Lunenburg is on a small bay filled with numerous sail boats and water craft. The waters were sparkling in the sunshine on this warm day in October. Several of the boats were gliding gently across the waters with their sails billowing in the breeze.

Our time in Lunenburg was cut very short and we only had a total of about 45 minutes – which included the time that it took for the “walkers” to walk down the hill with the tour guide. Jim, Nola and I walked up a block or so and down the street so we could show her some of the ambience of this quaint seaside town.

After we returned from our 3 hour tour and were back in Halifax, we hailed a taxi who took us to the Blue Nose II restaurant where we enjoyed a bite to eat for lunch. Once we finished, we took off on foot and walked past several buildings marked as “historical” with oval plaques on the front of each of them indicating the original business that was in the building as well as the year it was built. We passed by Province House which is the oldest government building in Nova Scotia. Outside and to the right of the massive stone building was a monument and memorial to the Boer War in 1898. Winston Churchill fought in that war. To the left of the building was a statue of Joseph Howe. We don’t have any idea of who he was – but it must have been significant enough to honor him with this bronze statue.

We walked down to the waterfront and along a wooden planked walkway called Harbourwalk. On one side was the bay and on the other occasionally were small wooden shops with local vendors hoping you would go in and find the treasure you had been looking for! There was an ice cream shop and those that indulged were definitely enjoying their sweet treats in the warm sun. A pirate ship sailed by in the bay and scared us all when they blew their cannons. The Halifax lighthouse came into view about half way down the walk. We passed a large open area where about a dozen or so white Adirondack chairs were set on the lawn. Several people were enjoying the sun and sat in the chairs facing the bay or towards a large area full of red sand where children were playing on the swings and playground toys.

We walked about a mile down to the Halifax Seaport Farmers Market where we went inside to get out of the sun for a bit. This was very reminiscent of the Saint John Market or Pikes Market in Seattle. Vendors were there with fresh fruit and vegetables as well as others selling homemade soap. There was a lavender vendor selling anything lavender that you could want – including lavender ice cream!

From there we walked down to the Cunard Cruise Terminal. Out in front was yet another bronze statue of Mr. Cunard. In the background through the black wrought iron fence stood the Halifax lighthouse across the shore on a tiny island.

Nola and Jim found the Genealogy Center in the cruise terminal where she actually got a copy of a wedding license from one of the Dunbar’s in her family tree.

Once we were all back on board, we all went up to the Lido Deck for sail away. It was a warm evening; and we were treated to a spectacular sunset of brilliant pinks and oranges. We passed two more lighthouses before turning north out of the bay and sailing on to our next port tomorrow of Sydney. We all were pretty tired, so we turned in early. Till tomorrow…

Crown Princess Travelogue #5 - Saint John, New Brunswick - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-12-08T10:51:00.000-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess
Day 5 – Saint John, New Brunswick

We arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick at about 8:00 a.m. to glorious blue skies up above once again! We are so blessed with the weather on this trip!

New Brunswick is a small province in Canada that links Nova Scotia to the rest of Canada. Saint John is perhaps most well-known for have the highest tide range in the world because of the Bay of Fundy’s funnel shape.

Our American Revolution history lesson has continued here. After the American Revolution, there was an influx of colonists in 1783 when 14,000 Loyalists fled the United States. Samuel de Champlain discovered New Brunswick in 1604 and the French settled the area around 1625. In the 1930’s there were 34,000 farms – in 2011 there are only 2,600 farms.

We left the boat around 10:00 a.m. and grabbed a taxi up to town to the top of the Saint John City Market. Similar in concept to Pikes Market in Seattle, vendors set up their stands with fresh produce, baked goods and the like hoping to have a good day selling their things. In addition to the fruits, vegetables and other food items, there is also one stand that we have always visited in Saint John and that is Pat, the linen lady. Her tablecloths and napkins have decorated our holiday table since we first came here in 2005. She is a very friendly and warm woman. This year we purchased new placemats and a runner for our Thanksgiving table.

After we walked through the market we meandered across the street to Barbour’s General Store which is an authentic country store. Inside, it is much like a museum with the original wooden floors and cabinetry that we were told was stained with goat’s milk. The shelves are filled with authentic merchandise of the Victorian era including a delicately handmade Christening gown along with a top hat and several pairs of ladies shoes.

From there we walked back to the pier and caught our tour at 12:30 p.m. We enjoyed our riverboat ride down the Saint John River. The weather was outstanding. We found bench seats along the starboard (right) side of the boat up front near the bow. It was the perfect place for us to be as it was out of the sun. The day was warm and we did not need our jackets, though we had them with us just in case.

The Saint John River is where you will find the reversing rapids. Twice a day at high tide, the bay forces the river to churn through the gorge and the sight is quite remarkable. After we left the small dock, we headed up stream and soon passed our first lighthouse – Greenhead Lighthouse – which is the largest on the river. The guide did not know how many lighthouses were on the river, but during our adventure, we passed three – Greenhead, Kemnebecasis’s and the Bayside.

The river freezes in the winter and becomes an ice road in the dead of winter. The banks of the river are full of maple and pine trees. The natural color of the maple trees is orange, red or yellow. The leaves are overcome by photosynthesis and chlorophyll in the summer which turns the leaves green. The leaves return to their “natural” color in the fall. Again, we saw some bits of color along the shore, but not much.

Our ride down the river was so peaceful and pleasant under the blue skies and warm 72°. Homemade cookies were served on the boat; and you were asked to “leave a donation” for the lady who had baked them. You could purchase bottled water, coffee or soda if you wished. We were on the river for about 2 hours.

As we made our way back to shore near the end of our time on board, the Captain took us down to the bridge where we had begun and we could see the tide coming in and the effects of the reversing rapids. At that exact point the waters became very turbulent with waves crashing and spray flying high above. We only observed it from a distance as it is quite dangerous to negotiate through with the currents and rough waters. It was a great way to end our day on the river.

We were up on the deck 16 for sailaway around 5:00 today. The air was still warm and quite enjoyable. Dinner tonight for us was dinner in the Crown Grill. Nola treated us to a lovely evening. We enjoyed our table by the window in the corner of the restaurant which is located on the Promenade Deck 7. Every once in awhile we would see some people walking past the window, but for the most part the decks were empty.

After dinner we took in the show in the Princess Theater. Tonight we were entertained by Mark Preston, a member of the Lettermen. He has not lost his voice at all though he has been singing with the Lettermen for 45 years. He sang many familiar songs and we enjoyed him. He did a medley of Lettermen hits including Put Your Head on My Shoulders and Summerplace.

Crown Princess Travelogue #4 - Bar Harbor - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-12-08T10:46:00.000-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess
Day 4 – Bar Harbor, Maine (pronounded: Baaaaa Haaaa baaaaa)

We are continued to be blessed with glorious weather here in New England. We arrived in Bar Harbor early at 7:00 a.m. and enjoyed breakfast in International Café before we got off the ship. We took our time as we didn’t have an excursion until 12 noon. We disembarked about 9:30 so we could walk through some of the shops near the waterfront. Unlike many other cruise ship ports, the New England cities have been able to retain their quaintness and individuality without the plethora of jewelry stores. There are many souvenir stores, don’t get me wrong, but they carry local merchandise and are just trying to make a living like you and me.

There are only 5,000 year-round residents in Bar Harbor. The coastline of Maine is rugged and dramatic; and, as you know, Maine is known for its lobster fishing. As we entered the small harbor, hundreds of buoys dotted the waters marking each individual spot where someone had put down their pots. Bar Harbor itself is nestled back in a small cove and is a tender port because the ships cannot negotiate the tiny islands and narrow passages. We anchored out and the tenders were lowered to begin carrying all of the passengers into town.

Once we got off our tender, we took our time walking through several of the shops. Nola and I each purchased a couple of beautiful Pashmina scarves in one boutique. We stopped by a local deli to grab a bite to eat before our tour began.

Today, we were being taken to the Cranberry Islands and to Acadia National Park and Cadillac Mountain. Arthur (pronounced Aaaathaa) was our guide for the day and he was delightful. He told us about some of the history of the area including how Samuel de Champlain discovered Mount Desert Island in 1604. Champlain originally named the island “Barren Mountain” because of the barren peaks worn smooth by the erosion of centuries. We heard stories of how Maine became a state in 1820, even though the northern border was still disputed by the British and Americans. Toward the end of the 1870’s, Bar Harbor attracted some of the wealthiest families in America because of its stunning beauty. John D Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, Joseph Pulizer and the like all had mansions here. Most were destroyed in the fire of 1947. Rockefeller promoted the preservation of the island as well as establishing Acadia as a National Park in 1919.

Arthur guided our motor coach driver through the area out to a small cover where we boarded a small tour boat that took us out to Little Cranberry Island. The scenery was incredible in that only a few puffy white clouds dotted the skies above. The waters were calm as we glided across the water passing Sutton Island out to a small island where the sea lions were found basking in the sun. A few bald eagles were seen flying high in the pine trees. Our guide on the tour boat was a National Park Ranger named Betty. She was about 5’4” tall and very slender. She wore the standard olive green park ranger uniform along with her hard, wide-brimmed ranger hat. She wore no make-up. You could see her brown short hair just under the brim of her hat. She was incredibly knowledgeable about the area and gave us a lot of history about the glaciers and how they formed the fjords around us. Interestingly, we learned about the difference between a fjord and a fjard. The fjard has a narrow opening that was shallow and that is what we were in. The cliffs are dramatically straight up layers of granite dotted here and there with plants and trees. The impressive thing about what we saw were all of the huge homes. Each sits on acres of property – some with manicured lawns that I hoped they had a ride-on lawnmower to keep it groomed.

We stopped at Little Cranberry Island and were given the opportunity to walk about the tiny town of about 75 residents. It was up quite a hill so we got off and admired it from a distance. There were several apple trees along the path. There were also the remnants of an old wooden footbridge just sitting alongside the road that had seen better days. Residents on Little Cranberry are for-the-most part summer residents and quite well set monetarily. These are mostly second and third homes for them. There are two EMT’s on the island; but if you have a real medical emergency, you must be air lifted off by helicopter to the mainland.

After our cruise tour of Cranberry Islands, we once again boarded our coach and set out on a quest to Cadillac Mountain, the highest point on the Eastern seaboard. The view from the top was (as Nola says) “brilliant”. We could see forever it seemed. The coastline is jagged and rugged and the horizon was dotted with small islands. It was late afternoon by now, and rather brisk on top of the mountain, so we enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate when we left. Every so often you could see some color in some of the trees. We’ve been told that full cover will be in about 10-15 days from now due to their lack of rain this year. Throughout the vegetation were low mountain ash trees full of red berries. Several of the sugar maples were beginning to turn to yellow and bronze that added to the beauty and gave the opportunity to see some beginnings of the fall colors across the valleys.

The Crown Princess pulled away from Bar Harbor at sunset. The skies were brilliant shades of pink and orange and the three of us enjoyed it from our balcony while we toasted another beautiful day.

We continue to be blessed by the incredible weather we have had. Tomorrow is to be another such glorious day that we’ll spend in Saint John, New Brunswick. Till then…

Crown Princess Travelogue #3 - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-12-08T10:40:00.000-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess
Day 3 – Boston, Massachusetts

We cruised into Boston harbor later than the originally scheduled time of 10:00 a.m. After a VERY rough night at sea where we were shakin’, rockin’ and rollin’ we were happy to get inside protected waters where we had smooth sailing for about an hour.

Our tour today was an all-day tour out to Lexington and Concord, then back to Quincy Market for lunch, then on to the Old North Church and finally out to Cambridge and Harvard University.

Ernie was our driver and Steve was our tour guide for the day. As we drove out of Boston, Steve began to give us the history of Boston and its’ ties with the American Revolutionary War.

Boston was founded by a group of Puritan colonists from England. It was the location of several major events during the American Revolution including the Battle of Bunker Hill, the Boston Tea Party and you can walk along the historic path on the Freedom Trail in Boston proper. You can also take the tour that we took out to Lexington and Concord to hear again the story of the midnight ride of Paul Revere.

The drive out to Lexington takes about an hour. The rolling hills were full of trees beginning to change color; but we were told we were about a week early for the peak of the “changing of the colors” in New England. It was still beautiful. The roadways are green with manicured grasses that back up to acres and acres of multi-colored trees. The trunks of many of the trees were white which gave way to a dramatic color change once you looked up to the tops of the trees which looked like puffy pillows, each a different color of green, yellow, gold and a few had turned to rust. There are numerous varieties of trees including hemlock, spruce, sugar maple etc.

When we arrived in Lexington, Steve continued with our history lesson and took us to the Lexington Visitor’s Bureau where there was an incredible miniature diorama protected by glass inside that depicted the events of the Revolution. It also serves as a souvenir shop. Outside was a memorial to the 78 Minute Men who battled the British. Across the street was a beautiful white steeple peeking out through the trees which belonged to the Congregational Church. The church steeples are quite prevalent in the landscape as you gaze across the valleys and hillsides. There are memorials in many places indicating where soldiers lost their lives (British and American).

From Lexington we continued on to Concord and through the quaint New England town out to the Old North Bridge where the first shot of the Revolution was fired – “the shot heard round the world”. We got off the coach and walked down a path lined with rock fences indicating where the farmers had portioned off their property. It was these very same rock walls and barriers that the colonists used to hide behind when the British were coming.

The path had a slight incline and at the crest of the hill, we could see down into this beautiful valley with a small river running through it. Across the river stood a beautiful arched wooden bridge with handrails. The original bridge was washed out by rains and floods many years ago; but this new one was built and is a replica of what once was there during the Revolution. The trees along the river had more reddish color to them than did the trees in the surrounding acres. Nestled off to the left of the bridge was an old wooden boat house. The wood was old and grey, but it had so much charm to me; and I knew that it had many stories to tell if the walls could only talk.

There is a memorial to the commemoration of the “event” and the fact there had been bloodshed there so many years ago. It was an obelisk and stood about 20 feet tall. It marked the death of two American militia men and two British soldiers. As we walked across the bridge, the river waters were moving but very calm, and the reflection of the trees was beautiful in the blue water. Across the bridge was another memorial, this one was to the Minute Men.

After this, we traveled back into Boston, to Quincy Market where we had lunch and were able to walk around a little. From there we went over to The Old North Church which became famous back on April 18, 1775 when the colonists (including William Daws and Paul Revere) came up with a signal to alert John Hancock and Sam Adams who were out in Lexington and Concord, that the British were coming! Two lanterns were hung up in the steeple of the Old North Church for only one minute on that night – and that is all that was needed to let the Minute Men know the British were crossing the river by boat because it was shorter.

The Old North Church is on the Freedom Trail in Boston and well worth seeing. Behind the church in the courtyard is a bronze statue of Paul Revere on his faithful steed. Our tour guide recited the entire poem by Longfellow as we stood around the statue. From there we walked up towards the church where we passed a memorial to the men and women who have lost their lives in Afghanistan. Trellis type frames were built behind a lovely garden of flowers. On each rung of the trellis hung hundreds of blank military dog tags. When the wind blows, the tags make an incredible wind chime.

Inside the church we sat and listened to a docent tell us once again the story of that faithful night. It was quite interesting as she told the history of that story and several others after that.

From there we walked down the street past an old cemetery and also could see Old Ironsides in the harbor. Then we were back on the coach and on our way out to Cambridge and Harvard. Harvard University was where several of our President’s went to school including John F. Kennedy. It is also the school where some rather famous people dropped out only to make millions on their own – including Bill Gates, Matt Damon and the founder of Facebook.

Harvard Yard is an area inside the campus that is surrounded by many old, brick and granite buildings and now where the students gather to study under the trees on the lawn. The granite library with its tall columns and massive steps were the inspiration for the Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC. We saw the dormitory where JFK once lived. Several of the buildings originally were the home of military officers.

It was a long day, and once we were back on ship we enjoyed a slice of pizza for dinner onboard and then it was off to sleep for all of us. The weather was beautiful and about 65 degrees. We couldn’t have asked for anything better. Tomorrow we are off to Bar Harbor. Till then…

Crown Princess Travelogue #2 - Boston - Canada/New England Cruise October, 2012

2011-11-25T14:51:00.001-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess
Day 2 – Newport Rhode Island

We arrived at our first port-of-call, Newport, Rhode Island at around 7:00 a.m. The sun was just beginning to rise in the east as the Captain anchored the Crown Princess in Newport Harbor. The tender boats were lowered and began transporting passengers to shore. We went ashore about 9:00 a.m. and found the group for our tour of a drive through Newport along Ocean Drive out to The Elms and then back to town around noon.

After boarding our motor coach, our tour guide Steve began his narration and off we went traveling through the small town of Newport. Steve pointed out Saint Mary’s church steeple where John and Jacqueline Kennedy were married. We passed many of the pre-colonial houses along Thames Street. As we traveled further along, we passed the boat harbor and on the far side of the boat harbor is the Ida Lewis Boat Club. She was the lighthouse keeper there and was credited rescuing 18 people during her service. Just past that was the summer home of the New York Yacht Club. They are the club who used to conduct the America’s Cup race here in Newport.

From there we went over to Fort Adams which is where Jim and his family used to live back in 1958-1959. Where his home used to be has now been turned into a large grassy knoll. Since Newport was captured by the British in the Revolutionary War, Fort Adams was built in the early 1800’s from further British Conquest. There was never a shot fired from the Fort in anger. It is now the home of the Newport Folk Festival and Newport Jazz Festival.

Next we drove down towards Hammersmith Farm, the childhood home of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. It is on a sprawling, meticulously manicured numerous acres of land with stone fences facing Newport Harbor. It is a large, two-story grey colored home. On the grounds we saw a black and white striped cow. We were told that the current owners raise exotic animals such as this. The Kennedy’s had their wedding reception here.

Next door is a large yellow, two-story home that President Dwight D. Eisenhower frequented during his presidency. It is called the Eisenhower House now, but once used to be the home of the Navy Admiral.

Off in the distance across the bay was the Beavertail Lighthouse. After Castle Park we began entering the homes of “the Guilded Age” and we began to pass the summer “cottages” of the Vanderbilt’s, Morgan’s and Astor’s. We passed one mansion that was the home of Klaus von Bulow who was accused of murdering his wife, Sunny. Then came the Marble House that was estimated to be worth $17.9 million. We passed the Beachwood Mansion that was owned by Larry Ellison, of Oracle Software – the third richest man in America. We passed Rosecliff Mansion and eventually came to The Elms.

The Elms Mansion was owned by Edward Berwin, a coal magnate from Pittsburgh. His coal fueled all of the Navy ships of the day. As we entered the off-white granite mansion, we were given headphones and a recorder with a pre-recorded self-guided tour of the mansion. It is hard to believe that the wealthy only lived in these homes six weeks out of the year. Their servants would arrive prior to them and would set the house up. At this particular mansion, there were 43 servants. It is said that the women changed clothes approximately 7 times a day. Can you imagine? The bedrooms were smaller than what you would imagine for this size of a home; but the living areas were quite large and ornately decorated. There were paintings on the ceilings surrounded by crown molding. Each room had its own fireplace. Every room was wallpapered. Marble tables were a centerpiece in several rooms. The outside grounds were manicured perfectly. One of the things I enjoyed most of all was a huge tree in the backyard that would have been perfect for climbing.

After The Elms, we traveled back into Newport where we hailed a taxi that took us to the Newport Casino (Tennis Hall of Fame) where we enjoyed a lobster roll for lunch overlooking the grass tennis courts. We walked back through town and down to the pier where we eventually stood in line to get our tender back to the ship.

The ship left port about 4:30ish. It was very windy out on deck, but we were out there trying to take pictures of the Rose Island Lighthouse and Beavertail Lighthouse. It was beautiful. We enjoyed dinner in Michaelangelo Dining Room. Nola and I had Cornish Game Hens served with snow peas and baby corn and Jim enjoyed his Tornedos of Beef.
Till Boston tomorrow…

Canada/New England Cruise October 2011 - Travelogue #1

2011-11-25T14:50:00.001-08:00

Our Travelogue
Canada/New England cruise on Crown Princess October, 2011
Day 1 – Embarkation – New York City

4:00 a.m. came very early for us on October 3rd, but we were up and at ‘em and ready for our adventure. We loaded up the car and off we went to the airport. We grabbed our Starbucks once we were checked in and got through security at Lindbergh Field/San Diego. Our flight was on time and before we knew it we were in the air and on our way to New York City.

Our flight was very smooth and uneventful. The views out of my window on the left side of the plane were extraordinary. I could see the Grand Canyon as we passed over into Arizona – then east over landscapes of red clay and dramatic mesas in Arizona and on to the White Sands of New Mexico. Then we were flying over hundreds and hundreds of miles of farmland across mid-America. Each farm was significantly different from the air, I suppose because of the variety of crops being grown on each one. Some of the parcels were square and some were circular. We crossed over the Missouri River and then to the Might Mississippi and up towards Chicago and Lake Michigan. The skies were clear all this way. Lake Michigan was enormous and quite interesting to see all the cities around the shore. Soon after we passed Lake Michigan the clouds filled the sky and remained that way to New York.

After gathering our luggage and finding the Princess Cruise representative in Baggage Claim, we were directed to our ten passenger shuttle to the Intercontinental Hotel on 44th Avenue between 7th and 9th near Times Square in Manhattan. We checked in and found our friend Nola who had arrived earlier in the afternoon. After saying our hellos and freshening up a bit, the three of us meandered out onto the streets of New York for a quick bite of dinner. There was a light misty rain which made the streets damp. We found ourselves at Smith’s Bar and Grill. It was a very noise “joint”, but we found a booth in the back and were able to catch up on Nola’s adventures.

We turned in rather late but were up fairly early to begin our day. Our luggage had to be ready for pick up and transport to the ship by 9:00 a.m. After asking one of the Princess reps where we should go to find a good local place for breakfast, the three of us headed out of the hotel which is right down the street from the Majestic Theater where Phantom of the Opera is playing, and turned left on 9th street where we found The Westside Diner. The place was bustling busy with people at all of the tables and booths – most of them texting on their iPhones or Droids or the like. Some people actually had a newspaper in hand too! We got a booth near the back and enjoyed sitting down in a little quieter place than dinner last night. Nola and Jim enjoyed their pancakes while I enjoyed my cheddar cheese omelet. I must say though, the New Yorkers cook omelets a little differently than I am used to. Their omelets look like two eggs that were cooked separately and then put a slide of cheese in the middle and put another egg on top. Wholla! Omelet!!

Once our tummies were full we had some time and wanted to show Nola Times Square; so we walked up a couple of blocks and there we were in the heart of Manhattan! We could see all the neon lights of Broadway and the ticker neons on all of the billboards around Times Square. The street was busy with hundreds of taxi, honking horns and people scurrying off to begin their day. There were numerous New York City Police Officers everywhere – some in cars – some on horses – and others on foot.

We ventured in to the huge Disney store and picked out a couple of souvenir sweatshirts and t-shirts for our special grandkids then we walked around a bit more down to where Dick Clark used to host the New Year’s Eve show. There is a bronze statute there of George M. Cohen and also one of Father Duffy. Behind them are the grandstands and the stage for New Years. It is a permanent set there.

Once we got back to the hotel, we got our things together then had to gather down in the lower ballroom to wait for our motor coaches to shuttle us to the ship. By now, it is about 12:00 noon. We finally boarded our coach about 1:30 p.m. and our trip took us through Manhattan down past Chelsea Market which is the home of the Food Network, then on past the Holland Tunnel then past Ground Zero. It was a somber moment. Two huge American flags hung flat on the side of one of the buildings. There are police cards and security everywhere. We could see in to where the Memorial was but could not actually see it. We passed by all too quickly. About ten minutes later we were entering the Port of Brooklyn where we met our ship.

Now is where the story turns to humor. YOUR travel agent – yes, that would be me – made the biggest bad decision of her life this morning when I decided to go ahead and send one of our carry-on bags to the ship and not take it with us. I wasn’t thinking – I don’t know WHAT I was thinking!!! That bag had our passports in it!!

We got up to the check in counter a little after 2:00 p.m. and we couldn’t go any further. Nola was all checked in and ready to board and we were instructed to sit in some chairs and wait until they could send someone onto the ship to find our luggage and bring it to us. Well, time marched on and on and on. Supervisors were talking to the ship on their walkie talkies. Supervisors were talking to us. And, all the while, all the rest of the passengers for the Crown Princess passed by us one by one. Finally – and I mean finally – after 5:30 p.m. Monika came walking towards us with our bag! We dug for the Passports and went right to the counter and checked in. (I only broke down twice in the three hours we were there waiting).

We finally made it on board the ship about 6:00 tonight. We ran to our cabin then scurried down to Nola’s cabin and all three of us went up to the Lido where we were directly across from Miss Liberty in the harbor and could also look back at Manhattan and the gorgeous skyline. We could see the new building going up at Ground Zero. It was a magnificent sunset. Then we meandered down through the Lido Buffet where we decided to have dinner. We finally got to our cabin about 10:00 and then unpacked. It made for a long day – but we were so happy to even be on the ship at that point it didn’t matter!

So – chalk this one up to the travel agent who didn’t follow her own advise!!

Saturday was Family Day This Week - July 30, 2011

2011-07-30T21:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday was Family Day this week – July 30, 2011

Our adventure today began by picking Mom and Dad up and getting everyone settled in the car for our adventure about 11:30 a.m. We headed out East of San Diego towards Lake Cuyamaca. This is an area where Mom and Dad spent a lot of time as teenagers with Dad’s Boy Scout Troup #67 and both of them with their youth group at Asbury Methodist Church.

The temperature was about 85° and the humidity was high with the tropical storm clouds gathering above us from the Southeast. We drove out Interstate 8 and almost immediately Mom and Dad started reminiscing about things that they remembered. There was talk about Old Highway 80 and how it paralleled what is now Interstate 8.

One of the things I remembered from our travels to San Diego from Tucson, was traveling along Highway 80 and in the desert, being able to see the remnants of what was once the wooden plank wagon wheel road that crossed the desert. I read an article in a magazine within the past few months that mentioned those wooden planks; and from what I understand, there are still signs of that when you cross the desert today – even though there is now a freeway. Back in the 1950’s and 1960’s when we crossed the desert, we came across at night because of the heat. We did not have air conditioning in our car back then. We did have burlap bags that hung in front of the radiator on the car to keep the engine from overheating. And, if the unfortunate did happen, you would have the water in the burlap bag to help cool down the engine! I remember Mom always used to pack our dinner for the road – peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on rye bread (because that would not get soggy), Fritos and Kool Aid to drink. And, of course, NeccoWafers! They would not melt!

When we turned on to the road for lake Cuyamaca the topic of conversation turned to all of us wondering if there would still be any evidence of the Cedar fire that burned through this area four years ago damaging so much. As we continued past Descanzo Junction and on out the windy road, evidence of the fire was still around. There were groves of burned trees in many areas. But, what was so nice to see was that tough they were charred, many of them had new growth coming from within. They were not dead as one would imagine. They were still full of life and proudly sporting their new growth. The ground was now covered with green underbrush and the once burned and devastated area was alive and thriving. There were bushes of wild yellow daises along the side of the road along with patches of what looked like wild alyssum blooming as well. The valleys off both sides of the road were green from our winter of plentiful rain. The campgrounds were full of tents. People were riding bikes along the paths and we could see others in groups hiking. There were turn-outs full of trucks pulling horse trailers behind them – so we knew there were others out horseback riding.

It was a beautiful day. The blue skies were scattered with the huge, white billowing clouds. We pulled in to Lake Cuyamaca Restaurant and parked the car. Somehow the building was miraculously saved in the Cedar Fire. The wooden structure remains as it always has, with an uneven concrete sidewalk in the front where you enter the building through the wooden screen door that of course, squeaks when you open it. It just had to be! We got a table right next to the window overlooking the huge oak trees lining the lake. There were a few small skiffs on the lake with fishermen out trying their luck at making the catch of the day. Some people were enjoyed the ambience out on the deck outside.

Lake Cuyamaca Restaurant is owned by Franz from Austria. There are several Austrian pictures, posters and other memorabilia around the restaurant indicating the Austrian heritage. There is even Schnitzel on the menu and potato pancakes if you like. We all enjoyed our meal and talked more about other memories Mom and Dad had – then we got back in the car and headed to Julian for a little dessert.

Julian is a quaint community in the foothills that is known for their delicious apple pies. We parked in front of the Julian Pie Company and found a nice table out on the front patio under the trees. Mom, Dad and I enjoyed a warm piece of Dutch Apple pie and Jim had caramel apple pie. We also got Mom and Dad a scoop of cinnamon ice cream to go with their pie and coffee. It was just delicious! The apples were a bit bitter but the sweetness from the crumb topping gave it a perfect balance and just melted in my mouth! On the sidewalk next to us there seemed to be a parade of big and little dogs out enjoying the day with their owners. Down the center of the street passed a couple of horse-drawn carriages taking people through the middle of town and pointing out interesting sights. It was just so enjoyable and relaxing.

From Julian we headed south and took the Sunrise Highway through Mount Laguna. We passed more areas that had been burned in the Cedar Fire; but once again, the new growth made me smile. The wildflowers added a bit of color along the way. Dad talked about when he and Bob Sexton (his best friend growing up and Best Man at their wedding) used to come up to a cabin that Bob’s family owned and they would hike around the area. They both talked about how they used to take Sunday drives with Aunt Mary (Mom’s sister) and Uncle Eugene and would drive up to Descanzo Junction, Pine Valley or Lake Cuyamaca for dinner on occasion. They pointed out the area that is good for sledding when the snow falls in the mountains. And, Dad talked more about when they would go exploring all around the area. It was just a nice trip for all of us down memory lane.

As we traveled further down the mountain and out towards Interstate 8, we saw lightening strike once and we got a few big rain drops on our windshield. The ground was wet, so we knew that the rain had come through there before we got did. But we really did not get “rained on” much at all. In the back seat, Mom dozed off and Dad sat there looking out the window talking with Jim about different things he remembered and places could see out the window. They talked about the various lakes and reservoirs we passed and a little more about Old Highway 80. Part of the old highway is still visible off to the right of the Interstate.

Five hours later our adventure came to an end. It was just a great day on many different levels.

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #11 Sitka, Alaska June 7, 2011

2011-06-09T22:42:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #11

Sitka, Alaska

June 7, 2011

Last year when we were in Sitka it was rainy and foggy. Today, when I opened the curtains to our balcony, I was greeted with bright sunshine and not a cloud in the sky! This weather has just been a Godsend!

Cruising in to Sitka, you pass hundreds of tiny islands. When we were here last year, the islands were covered in fog and we could not see much of anything. Today we could see the houses that are on those islands; along with the lighthouse across the harbor and the totem poles from the Totem Village that we visited last time with Mark and Debbie. Seeing everything clearly put an entirely different perspective on where we were and where things were located.

Sitka is a tender port; and because we had booked the Rain Forest Hike as our shore excursion today, we were among the first to get off the boat and onto a tender to go into port. One of the reasons we chose the Rain Forest Hike was to add this to our list of places to do our JDRF Walk for the Cure for our grandson Landon’s Rockin’ Walkers. We wore our JDRF denim shirts today. It was very cool.

It was a short ride; and the ocean waters were as calm as could be. Our tour guide, Catherine met us at the top of the ramp. There were only four of us on this hike today – a very small group. After passing out a Sitka chocolate bar and bottled water, we boarded a small tour bus that took us out to Mosquito Loop Trail at the north end of Sitka and the end of the road.

Neither of us had any idea that this hike was going to be as strenuous as it came to be. We had been told it was a mile and a half through the rain forest. Almost as soon as we started down the path, we began our climb up and up and up. The path had some wooden plank bridges over marshy areas and small streams; and steps were put in as the trail inclined. Doing this while having bronchitis was tough – but I did it! Granted, I brought up the end of the group; but they were all patient and waited for me when I had difficulty.

Our guide, Catherine, has lived in Sitka for a number of years and was full of all sorts of information not only about the history of Sitka, but also about the rain forest flora and fauna. She told us which plants were edible and which were not. We even got to taste a spruce tip – which is very high in Vitamin C. Boy is it bitter! The Alaska Beer Co. actually makes a spruce tip beer that is supposed to be quite good. We saw a lot of Devils Club; which is a plant with spiky leaves. The natives make this into a cream which is good for arthritis. Catherine also told us that they make a tea out of the leaves that is known to reduce symptoms at the onset of diabetes.

The forest we hiked through was thick with moss – several inches thick in many places. There are nurse logs that are trees that have fallen and have been the basis for new trees to grow from them. The path, though up and down and up and down, was gorgeous. It is maintained by volunteer caretakers who live in a log home at the entrance of the trail.

Eventually, the trail led us out to the rocky coastline, where Catherine showed us hermit crabs and other sea life living under the rocks along the shore. The small inlet of water was calm and still and you could see the waterline around the edge. We continued our hike on the other side of the little bay; again climbing up and down through the forest. The views of the Sitka harbor were beautiful through the trees. There were Sitka spruce and Western hemlock trees, alders and yellow cedar trees. Each has a different bark and different needles adding to the multitude of shades of green before us.

Through the woods you could hear birds chirping. The only bird we saw was a red breasted sap sucker (woodpecker). I tried to get a picture of him as he flew past us.

The hike took almost two and a half hours. When we reached the trail head, Catherine continued our trek across a small bridge over the river where the salmon will be running in a few weeks. There is a bird sanctuary there; and a sturdy wooden walkway through the muskeg. The grass is tall in this meadow area with the winding river flowing out to the ocean.

As we ended our hike, Catherine took us down to the beach which was the location of the Clash of the Cultures hundreds of years ago. Here the Russians fought the native Tlingits and were eventually driven back to Russia.

After our hike, we walked back into Sitka downtown and enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Victoria’s Restaurant which is just down the street from St. Michael’s Russian Orthodox Church. The food was delicious and we enjoyed the quaintness of the restaurant and sitting at our window table as the ship passengers passed by.

We walked down past the church and went into a few stores and a bookstore where I found a book on “Amazing Alaska Women” that included a chapter on Alaska Nellie – the pioneer woman we had heard about on our Alaska Railroad trip in Anchorage a few days ago.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Sitka and hated to leave. As we sailed out through the channel and turned south, it was sad, as we were leaving Alaska and our trip is almost over. Only two more days and then we’ll be heading home.

Tomorrow we have a day at sea and Thursday we will be in Victoria. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #10 Hubbard Glacier, AlaskaJune 6, 2011

2011-06-09T22:39:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #10

Hubbard Glacier, Alaska

June 6, 2011

When we left Kodiak, Alaska yesterday, we sailed in to the Gulf of Alaska heading south. The seas were a bit rough again, and the dining room guests seemed somehow to be fewer than normal.

The snow capped mountains of the Wrangell-St. Elias Mountain Range could be seen off of the port side of the ship. This is the side our cabin is on. So, we had unobstructed views right from our balcony. We could see several large tidewater and piedmont glaciers out our window – the largest of which is the Malaspina Glacier, a tidewater glacier. We could also see Bering Glacier which is a huge piedmont glacier (its glacial ice does not meet the water but is instead land locked). Mt. St. Elias stands an impressive 18,008 feet tall.

Once again, we have been blessed with another gloriously sunny day! There were a few clouds over the mountains, but visibility was excellent. As we approached Yakutat Bay, the Amsterdam slowed down to board a couple of U.S. Park Rangers and three Tlingit natives. They gave several presentations during the day about this area, its history and native culture. When the natives arrived up in the Crow’s Nest on the Amsterdam, they were wearing hand-beaded vests with their native tribal sign delicately and intricately beaded on the back with several other native symbols on the front. One appeared to be an eagle, one was a whale and the other could possibly have been the symbol for the raven. They never told us what they were. I tried to take pictures of them through the crowd of people, but only was able to get one good one before someone moved in the way.

The natives were Tlingit and lived about 25 miles south of Hubbard Glacier. Hubbard Glacier is the longest tidewater glacier in Alaska and is within the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park that encompasses 13.2 million acres. It equals six Yellowstone National Parks. Wrangell-St. Elias, Kluane National Park in Canada and Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve along with theTatshenshini Provincial Park in British Columbia are a World Heritage Site and encompass 24 million acres of protected land. Though Mt. Wrangell is still considered an active volcano, it has not erupted since 1990.

Hubbard Glacier is located in Yakutat Bay. As the Amsterdam approached the entrance of the bay, we could not help but notice Hubbard Glacier at the end. It is six miles wide; and with the sunshine that we were blessed with, we could see not only the glacier and the mountains of the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park beyond it. The snow capped peaks were magnificent against the blue sky above.

Yakutat Bay was full of small bergie bits and so our Captain and the local Pilot proceeded very cautiously and slowly into the area. The waters of Yakutat Bay were calm and still. Most everyone onboard the ship was out on the upper decks to be able to see this extraordinary venue. And, yes, most of us had a camera or binoculars around our necks. The reflections from the mountains in the waters we passed through were like a mirror. I do not believe that I can even describe how spectacular this experience was; and I doubt that my pictures will do it justice either. There are times when things are almost indescribably; and that is how I felt about visiting Hubbard Glacier today. We have all read poems or heard song lyrics that describe the beauty and majesty – but sometimes nothing will do it justice because it is so incredibly beautiful and astonishing.

There was a mama seal and her pup floating on a nearby iceberg. Mama was asleep and the pup lay next to her. Seagulls flew above us and a few bald eagles were also seen.

From the entrance of Yakutat Bay, the valleys of fresh green grass filled the valleys with pine trees dotting the landscape. Eventually the tree line could be seen further up the mountain that gave way to purples and blues and then the snow began to fill the crevices to the mountain tops. All of this was on our way into Yakutat Bay. To the north, Mount St. Elias could be seen standing proudly.

The last time Jim and I visited Hubbard Glacier, the Captain would not venture in any further than six miles from the face of the glacier. That was quite disappointing. It was beautiful – but difficult to really experience the glacier in all of its glory from that distance. Today, our Captain took us to within about 4 miles from the face of the glacier. The further and further we cruised into the bay, the better we could see the detail of the grand vista before us. This time, we were actually able to see the glacial rivers of ice flowing to the head of the glacier from either side up the mountain valleys. And, we could see the small island that is about 2 miles from the face of the glacier. Last time, we had no idea there was even an island there.

Once the Captain and pilot took us in as far as they felt we could go, they stopped the ship and maneuvered the ship first to the starboard side and then to the port side facing the glacier. When they did this, Jim and I were up on the Sports deck along with several hundred other passengers. Many of us climbed up onto the railing around the Plexiglas wind barriers so we could have an unobstructed view. It was a lot of fun up there because everyone was so excited to see Hubbard Glacier.

Eventually, and all too soon for most people, the Amsterdam turned around and headed back out towards the Gulf of Alaska. As we left, one lone orca whale came into the bay and was seen in the distance. We all expressed our concern for the mama seal and her pup that we had seen earlier on the iceberg and hoped they stayed safe atop their ice float.

As the day ended, everyone on board was commenting on how truly lucky and blessed we have been to have such exceptional weather during our cruise to Alaska. We headed down south along the Fairweather Mountain Range where Mt. Fairweather stands tall. We have not had many sunsets along our way; but tonight when the sun set, the skies had a pink hue that cast a very peaceful hue on the snow capped mountains.

Before dinner most evenings, we have gone up to the Crow’s Nest to play evening trivia. Along with our teammates, Jim & Mary and Andie & Joe, we have managed to win several of the games. Some nights are more challenging than others; but it is fun, and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.

Tomorrow we’ll arrive in Sitka. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #9 Kodiak,AlaskaJune 5, 2011

2011-06-07T10:52:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #9

Kodiak,Alaska

June 5, 2011

First thing today I want to wish my daughter Stephanie a very Happy Birthday! Time goes by so quickly – your baby is born and before you know it, she is a grown woman with three sons of her own; and I am a proud Gramma! I hope you have a wonderful day!

Kodiak Island is one of the largest commercial fishing ports in the United States. MS Amsterdam pulled into the city of Kodiak around 9:30 a.m. It was partly cloudy and there was a crispness in the air; although the wind was not blowing as it was yesterday in Homer. Our ship was moored at the only place large enough to accommodate a ship this size and was about ¾ of a mile from town. We could see the rugged coastline out of our port side window. Kodiak Island did not appear to have any snow capped mountains on it from our vantage point. It did, however, have some elevated hills that were home to several large windmills that were turning regularly. They look strong and efficient against the green grass on the hills with the blue sky beyond.

Shortly after breakfast, we got word from the Shore Excursions staff that our tour had been cancelled due to engine problems on the craft we were scheduled to be on. Knowing that we did not have much time in Kodiak today (we were leaving at 2:00 p.m.) we scurried down to the Purser’s Desk to find out what other options we might have. From there we were told to disembark the ship and find Michelle of the Shore Excursions staff on the pier. Michelle was easy to find with her red windbreaker coat and walkie-talkie in hand. The only option we had we another similar marine wildlife tour. As luck would have it, they only had two seats left – and so we booked it right then. We went back to our cabin to gather our things and headed out once again.

There were eight of us in our group; and we were shuttled down to the marina in a taxi and greeted there by our Marine Biologist Swengard, from Germany. Our vessel was about a 45 foot cabin cruiser with an enclosed portion housing the wheelhouse up front, the galley to the right and a bench seat and table that wrapped around the left side from the front to the back door. On the table was a nice variety of munchies including chocolate chip cookies, potato chips and homemade salmon spread and crackers. There was coffee, tea, soft drinks and bottled water for us to drink if we were so inclined.

After our safety talk, Captain Chris maneuvered the boat out of its slip and we were on our way. There was another one of the Deadliest Catch boats in the marina. Swengard said that several of the boats used in that TV series have come in and out of Kodiak. As we moved slowly inside the breakwater, we saw another sea otter and a young bald eagle. The sun was starting to really break through the clouds giving way to another glorious day to be in Alaska and see an area we have never traveled to before.

One of the things that Jim and I had so hoped to see in Kodiak was the bears. But, we were told that of you want to see the bears, you must hire a bush pilot or sea plane who will take you about 200 miles and towards the southeast end of the island or out to Afognak Island with is northeast of Kodiak. Swengard also said that the bears do not come out of hibernation until the end of June and July when the salmon are really running. After we got beyond the breakwater, Captain Chris took us out between Woody Island and Long Island out in the Chiniak Bay. These two islands had significantly different topography than that of the other islands we have seen before here in Alaska. Most often, the islands are rugged rocks with jagged cliffs and lots and lots of trees, Woody Island and Long Island have long, black sandy beaches and many areas that are flat like valleys and acres of green grass.

Long Island is a rookery for sea lions. We were able to get quite close to hundreds of them as they were basking in the sun and yelping. Above and around them were hundreds of puffins. Gull Island out of Homer was a rookery to gulls, red legged cormorants, common murres and only a few puffin. This was quite the opposite. There were “logs” of puffins in the frigid waters along with some black legged cormorants.

What I found fascinating about Long Island and Woody Island, however, were the remnants of World War II gun mounts and concrete bunkers. Captain Chris said that during WWII, three Japanese submarines were actually spotted from those bunkers. Today when we passed, there were two bald eagles perched proudly on the grassy roof as if they were there keeping a watchful eye.

I spotted another young bald eagle or golden eagle sitting alone on top of some jagged rocks at one part of Long Island.

As Captain Chris turned the boat to head back to the marina, the deckhand grabbed a fishing pole and through his line over to see if he could get something to bite. Sure enough, about 15 minutes later, he began to reel in a large rock fish. After Swengard showed us how to hold him and talked about the different fish in the area, she threw him back in and he quickly disappeared under the water.

Our excursion ended back in the marina. Six of our group wanted to go into town and do some shopping. Jim and I were met by Captain Chris’ wife who gave us a short personal tour of Kodiak taking us by the Russian Orthodox Church and the seminary – both of which are quite distinguishable by the round blue domes and gold crosses on the top. We passed by the Kodiak Museum which is housed in one of the oldest buildings in southeast Alaska and then were driven back to the ship.

We enjoyed a lazy afternoon and evening. We joined Jim and Mary up on the Crow’s Nest for Team Trivia – and we won! - not because Jim or I had anything to offer. The topic was 80’s music and songs and neither of us knew more than one or two answers. Jim and Mary, on the other hand, were the brains of the group and carried us to the winning circle!!

Tonight I enjoyed some Hazelnut crusted salmon and some beef tenderloin along with a shrimp cocktail and a very small Caesar salad. The maitre’d made some crème bruleé for our table for dessert. Jim and I both said that my recipe is much much better. But, it was kind of him to indulge us in a special dessert.

We sailed out of Kodiak and in to Prince William Sound heading for Yakutat Bay and Hubbard Glacier tomorrow afternoon. There were lots of whale spout sightings but none were close enough to get any good pictures. I went out on deck at one point to try to take a picture and the cold air and wind were too much and I quickly retreated inside. Till tomorrow…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #8 Homer, Alaska June 4, 2011

2011-06-07T10:50:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #8

Homer,Alaska

June 4, 2011

I visited Homer, Alaska about 15 years ago and went halibut fishing with friends from Anchorage. What I remembered as a small fishing village with a few wooden businesses built up on wooden pilings with wooden walkways and the Salty Dawg Saloon has now become a developed harbor with breakwater and condos down at the end of the “Homer Spit”. I was saddened to see that commercialism had begun to take away the quaintness of this area known as “land’s end” since I had last visited it.

The skies were overcast and the wind was blowing briskly outside. We bundled up with several layers to keep us warm along with our jackets. I wore my black, furry knit hat to keep my head warm; and several women commented saying they wished they had a hat like that to keep them warm.

We met our group in the parking lot of the marina where we walked across the parking lot and down a very steep steel ramp with treads to keep us from slipping and out to our boat where Captain Bob greeted us. Our guide today was Janet Klein – a Homer local who has written several books on the history of Homer. Both of them were delightful and shared a lot of information and stories about the area.

Leaving the marina we passed The Time Bandit – one of the fishing boats used for the TV series The Deadliest Catch. A couple of the men on board with us were elated and took several pictures. It meant nothing to us as we’ve never seen the show.

Our first destination was 60 foot rock. It was named the men who discovered it because it stood 60 feet out of the water at high tide. While we were there, we saw dozens of sea otters playing in the frigid waters. There was even one up on the shore. I have to say that I was surprised to see this mammal out of the water. I have only seen these mammals in the water – never on land. Before me sat a furry animal with a small beige head and a black, round and quite plump body with two little hands and two little feet. I could not get over how big and round the body was. My perception has always been that sea otters have a lean body and that their fur was all beige like their head! Boy was I wrong!

Several of the otters were swimming in the waters around the boat; and one got a little closer to the boat than most of the others and was quite inquisitive. It was almost as if he stopped and pulled himself up out of the water to look right at us and said to us “okay, so take my picture!”

From 60 foot rock, Captain Bob showed us Grass Island – and yes, it was named by the men who discovered it because it has grass growing on it. Our guide, Janet, also explained that many of the glaciers around Alaska are named by the people who discovered them and perhaps lost their lives on them. There are over 100,000 glaciers in Alaska; and only 600-800 of them are named.

After leaving Grass Island and 60 Foot Rock, Captain Bob took us to Gull Island, a bird rookery that is home to thousands upon thousands of birds who come there to nest. As we approached Gull Island, there were hundreds of birds flying in flocks through the air and landing either on the island or in the waters below forming a bird “log”. There were seagulls, kittiwakes, puffin, cormorants, common murres all habituating Gull Island or flying around it. Janet said that later in the year, the stench from Gull Island is quite noticeable and unpleasant when you approach. But, if you want to see this incredible sight, you must cover your nose and tolerate it somehow.

We saw more sea otters swimming around the shoreline of Gull Island. At one end of the island, there is a huge hole almost in the shape of a heart that can be seen from both sides. It was quite picturesque. There are several grassy areas on Gull Island; and this is where the puffins were nesting. Puffins burrow in to those grassy areas to hatch their eggs while the kittiwakes and others nest on the rocks and in the crevasses.

Captain Bob turned the boat to head back in to Homer and three Japanese Navy ships passed by us on the port side. We were told that they had been doing exercises with the U.S. Navy somewhere in the area and were going to anchor out near Homer for the night. I must say, it was odd – and we did not understand why they were so close.

After our excursion was over, we were dropped in town to walk around Homer Spit a little. I was lucky enough to find one of Janet Klein’s books at a small souvenir shop; and I quickly bought it as a nice memento after meeting her and spending a few hours with her on the boat. Our day on the water in Homer was quite enjoyable and informative. Our tour guides have all been extraordinarily well versed in Alaska history and culture and quite informative. They have shared their humor with us as well which makes for some nice memories.

Our departure time from Homer was at 6:00 p.m. The staff kept paging two passengers who obviously did not make it back to the ship in time. We eventually left port around 6:30 p.m.; and we have no idea if the passengers actually missed the boat. But, it was a big topic of conversation around the ship in the evening.

We played Trivia up in the Crow’s Nest before dinner. After dinner we stopped by the casino because they were having a free raffle – and guess who won two of the prizes?! You got it! We did! We won a DVD of the cruise and also a mini-facial from the spa. The catch on the facial is that it is only for port days – and we have things booked – so I probably will not be able to enjoy that one.¬ But, we won!!
ull
Tomorrow we will be in Kodiak, Alaska. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #7 Anchorage June 3, 2011

2011-06-05T15:12:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #7

Anchorage

A week goes by so quickly when you are on vacation! It is even days since we boarded the ship in Seattle and now, our cruise is already half over. I can honestly say that this has been a wonderful respite for me and I am completely and totally relaxed. I love Alaska – oh – but then you know that already don’t you!?

Last year the city of Anchorage dredged the channel in the Knik Arm of the Cook Inlet and made way so cruise ships could actually call on the city of Anchorage now. Before this, they had to either stop at Whittier or Seward and the passengers would have to either take a motor coach or the train up to Anchorage. The port is downtown and virtually 5 minutes away from the Alaska Railroad terminal. This is where we caught our train for our all day adventure on the Alaska Railroad today.

We boarded car D and soon were heading through the port district along the Cook Inlet. The tide was low and therefore the mud flats were exposed. Though it appears that you could walk far out, these mud flats are like quick sand. You must be very cautious when venturing out there, because there is a 20-25 foot range in tide; and if the tide starts coming in, you could get stuck out there.

The train began to travel adjacent to the Sterling Highway along the Turnagain Arm. When Captain Cook came here in search of the Northwest Passage, he sailed his boat into this inlet of water and because of the tides, had to turn around and try to come back in again and again. Thus, Captain Cook named it Turnagain Arm. Across the water from the mainland is the Kenai Peninsula with its snow capped mountain peaks and thick forest of green.

We passed Potters Marsh, which is a wildlife and bird refuge with wooden walking platforms throughout the area for viewing. We continued on to Girdwood, the home of Alyeska Ski Resort. This area is also known as Glacier Valley. The turnoff for Girdwood is an area where there is still visible evidence of the results of the devastating earthquake on Good Friday on 1964. The ground dropped 6 feet and was immediately covered with the salt water for the Turnagain Arm which in turn killed all of the trees. There are three wooden roof tops that you can see from the side of the road – that is all that remains along with the grey tree trunks from all the trees that were submerged and died shortly afterwards because of the high tide from the tsunami.

The train went all the way to Whittier, although I do not understand why. We were not allowed to disembark the train to even take pictures. Nonetheless, it gave us a glimpse of Whittier – a small port south of Anchorage in the Chugach Mountain Range. The train changed direction and we began to go backwards to Portage, where we changed tracks and started out towards the Kenai Peninsula. We passed Spencer Glacier to our left about a mile away. While we were climbing the mountain to Grandview a large black bear was off to our right foraging through the bushes – probably looking for fresh berries. We were so far away that I could not get a clear picture – but I do have the shadow of the bear amongst the brush.

The further and further up the mountain we climbed, the more and more patches of snow were around us. From the bright green baby skunk cabbage and fresh ferns to the new spring shoots on the low lying brush that grew into aspen and cottonwood trees with the tender leaves blowing gently in the wind and then patches of tall pines, the valley below us was a patchwork of colors and textures because of the diverse landscape. Every now and then I saw a purple lupine sprouting up amongst the grasses. In the distance was a glacial river that meandered through the valley floor that was grayish turquoise in color from the glacial silt. It was so picturesque!

The train passed by Trail Glacier and Bartlett Glacier finally up to Grandview where we made a brief stop. By now, there was a misty rain falling from the clouds that somehow made everything fresher to me.

Every time I am in Alaska I am in awe of this spectacular great land. Seeing the snow capped mountains above the tree line is so beautiful to me and I know that I am truly in a very special place and when I visit it, I am somehow at home. Alaska is so incredibly magnificent. Each time I am here I am lucky to see new places and more astonishing views and vistas. My heart is happy here.

As I sit on the train now and jot down my notes, I cannot believe the view out my window. The clouds are high enough that I can see the sweeping rise from the valley floor to the mountain tops with the crevices of the mountain packed with snow that is now melting off with warmer weather and creating cascading waterfalls down the mountains. We saw a huge eagle nest with an eagle inside; but the train whisked by so quickly that I did not have enough time to get a clear picture. We also saw a moose in amongst the brush.

I wish I could explain how pristine and beautiful this is. I try to convey that in my journal notes and with my pictures; but somehow I do not feel even that gives it justice.

Our Alaska Railroad guide was a young man in high school and working as a guide for the summer. We spoke with him several times when he passed through the train car. The guides told us a story of Alaska Nellie who made her home in Grandview in the early 1900’s. It was quite interesting and I hope to be able to find the book about her in one of the book stores. They said that her husband was the man who held the key that unlocked her heart to love.

There have been a few people we have met on our cruise who have complained about the cold weather here. Some have said they are bored. Some have said they wanted to get to Anchorage so they could go shopping – at Walmart! To me – that is a shame and a travesty. The air may be brisk; but I think it is invigorating. It is clean and fresh and without pollution. The stars on a clear night seem so close you think you can reach out and touch them. Most of us who live in the lower 48 states have no idea how bright and spectacular the Milky Way truly is. Up here, it is larger than life. And with the Star Walk app for my iPad, I can go out on my balcony at night and hold it up towards the sky and I can see all the constellations right before my eyes. Technology is mind-boggling to me.

As we approached Anchorage on the way back to the ship, we spotted some Dahl sheep high on the jagged cliff above us. After we returned to the ship we enjoyed a light dinner in the Lido buffet and then called it a day. Tomorrow we will be in Homer, Alaska. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #6 Day at Sea June 2, 2011

2011-06-05T15:10:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #6

Day at Sea

June 2, 2011

Thursday was our second relaxing day at sea. And, that is precisely what we did – relaxed. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast up on the Lido and then began our activities. We were under partly cloudy skies and relatively calm seas. I did hear a couple of people complaining that they were getting seasick – but not nearly as many as the day the seas got to me at the beginning of the cruise. I seem to have my sea legs now and am doing okay – knock on wood – except for seeming to have developed a nice case of bronchitis. Yep! It got me! Luckily I brought lozenges and some cold and allergy meds along with us.

We enjoyed another culinary demonstration down in the Culinary Arts Center. This time our Cruise Director, Jimmy from Australia made crab cakes. Now mind you – this was supposed to be funny, and it was; but Holland America also gave us the real recipe. Jimmy’s version included lots and lots of Tabasco sauce. In fact, he put so much in the crab cake mixture that it would have been spicy hot anyways; but then proceeded to pour it all over the cake once he placed it in the pan full of hot oil. As if that wasn’t enough, when he turned the cake which was now almost crispy black because he said he liked it crispy, he poured the other half of the bottle on the other side. Needless to say he did not get many volunteers to taste his masterpiece! However, he tried it himself and said his tongue was on fire! How odd!

We stopped by the Explorations Café and had Josalito make us a warm coffee latte and Jim read the New York Times condensed version that they provide daily to the passengers and I came down to the cabin for awhile for do a little journaling.

The day continued by attending a Microsoft Techspert hour where you could go ask your questions for the computer guy. The comedian, who performed the other night, gave a talk later in the afternoon on the Secret of Comedy which was interesting and then we stayed for BINGO. And, I won the second game! Had I been the only winner, my jackpot would have been $200 – but I split it with one other lady and so we each walked away with $100.

Before dinner we wandered up to the Crow’s Nest and played Trivia with Jim and Mary from our zip adventure and we won! We got Holland America pins. After that we headed down for dinner in the dining room and then went back up on the back of the ship to enjoy the sunset as the Amsterdam proceeded north up along the Kenai Peninsula on to Anchorage where we will be tomorrow. After not seeing much but open ocean for most of the day, around 9:00 p.m. we could start to see the white tops of the mountains. Spouts from whales could be seen far off in the distance from our table at dinner. We are still waiting for them to be closer and give us a real dinner show!

Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #5 Icy Strait Point, Alaska June 1, 2011

2011-06-03T23:47:00.001-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #5

Icy Strait Point, Alaska
June 1, 2011

One of the ports that we have been looking forward to on this trip to Alaska is Icy Strait Point near the Tlingit Indian village of Hoonah. Hoonah boasts the largest population of Tlingit Indians – 875! What once was a community built around the fishing industry and canning, has now transformed itself into a popular cruise port and home of the tallest and longest zip line. And, yes friends, I am going to do the zip line today at Icy Strait Point!

Icy Strait is a tender port – meaning that the ship must anchor out in the bay of Port Frederick and shuttle passengers to and from the ship to the pier by way of the ship’s tenders. We had an early breakfast in our cabin and then gathered our things to meet our fellow zippers in the lounge for our tender. There were many sea lions swimming in the waters around the ship before we got underway.

Once on shore, we had to sign a waiver and release form and receive our wrist bands showing we had paid and were approved to board the bus that would take us on a 45 minute ride up the sea level to about 1,800 feet where we would then zip down the mountain in about 90 seconds!

The bus ride was quote enjoyable with our Tlingit driver, Jimmy Dalton. He said he was a native of Hoonah; and we therefore found it peculiar that he had to read his welcome in his native language instead of actually knowing the language. Nonetheless, he was quite delightful and full of interesting tidbits about the area and his Indian heritage. The panoramic views along the way were breathtaking. Looking down on the Spaska River Valley and Port Frederick was beautiful; but after a while, we found ourselves up in the clouds with no view at all.

Jimmy let us off at the top of the mountain where we had to then hike down about 5-10 minutes to the zip line platform. There was a nice, crackling fire burning in a clearing nearby; and while others chose to go out onto the platform and wait their turn to zip, we chose to stay with Bev and Bob and Jim and Mary around the fire. Ours was the last group of six zip riders to experience the thrill of this adventure. And, let me tell you – it was a thrill!

We each had our own canvas seat where we were harnessed in tightly and instructed to put our feet out in front of us on the door of our respective gates. I was at Gate No. 5 and Jim was at Gate No. 6. I had my little camcorder in my hand and wrapped around my wrist and held up tight against the strap of my harness; and when the countdown began, it was filming! The gates opened and I was out of the shoot like a rocket! We were in the clouds for about the first third of our way down the mile cable; and then we were greeted with a spectacular view across Icy Strait over towards Glacier Bay. Incredible! Exhilarating! Exciting! I was going 60 miles an hour flying through the air but it did not seem that fast to me! 90 seconds goes by too quickly; and our ride was ended abruptly at the bottom of the mountain where the brakes grabbed and jolted us all to a stop. I did it! And, we indulged in the traditional Zipper Shot afterwards with Jim and Mary – a combination of vodka and orange liqueur. It warmed us up and felt good on my throat. I became almost instantly hoarse after my ride.

After walking through the museum a bit afterwards and making a couple of purchases in one of the local shops where I got a gorgeous Tlingit Indian silk scarf with colors of black, red and a bronze, we enjoyed some good fish and chips out on the deck overlooking the bay. The clouds above gave way to warm sunshine and we were blessed again with another glorious day in Alaska!

I am trying to figure out how to upload my 2 minute zip line video complete with screaming out of the gate! Once I do, I’ll share with all of you!

We caught a tender back to the ship and we decided to take advantage of the laundry where we did a couple of loads of wash and got that all taken care of before most of the passengers got back to the ship. That worked out really well. It costs $2.00 in quarters per load of wash with no charge for the dryers.

At 4:00 p.m. MS Amsterdam left Icy Strait Point and began our voyage up to Anchorage. Jim and I played afternoon Trivia today - the topic was Alaska. Guess who won! You got it! I guess it would be pretty bad if an Alaska Destination Specialist didn't win Alaska Trivia huh? We won Holland America coasters! Tomorrow will be at relaxing day at sea. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #4 Juneau, Alaska May 31, 2011

2011-06-03T23:07:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #4

Juneau, Alaska
May 31, 2011

Once again we woke to clear, blue skies and felt so lucky and blessed to be able to enjoy Juneau on such a gorgeous day. We cruised down the Gastineau Channel towards Juneau and arrived there about 7:00 a.m. Our hot coffee was delivered to the room by 7:30 a.m., and we began getting ready for a very special day. We had no idea how truly incredible the day would be; but as it greeted us, we welcomed it with arms wide open!

It is not often that I actually get to meet my clients. Because most of my clients come from the internet, they live all over the world! Today, however, was different. I had arranged a custom trip to Alaska for Rick & Mary from Minnesota – and as luck would have it, they arrived in Juneau to begin their Alaska adventure yesterday – and when Jim & I got off the Amsterdam this morning, we met them! Rick & Mary and their son Matt met us in front of the Red Dog Saloon and after hugs all around, we wandered over to the Paradise Café for a little breakfast.
We discovered Paradise Café with Mark and Debbie last year on our Cruise West Inside Passage cruise from Juneau to Seattle. They served delicious food then and they did not disappoint this year either! I enjoyed a delicious and light homemade frittata while others had breakfast burritos or quiche. Rick bough “breakfast dessert” – a heavenly piece of berry cobbler. While that was passed around the table so we could all indulge, we sat and talked for quite awhile and enjoyed getting to know each other. Then we took off on our adventure in Juneau.

As we walked up Franklin Street (the main street for souvenir shops), we passed an old building marked Juneau Laundry. It was concrete and 1917 was stamped into the front face of the building. Franklin Street has quite a dramatic incline. Our destination was up to 5th Street and St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church. As many times as we have been to Juneau, neither of us could ever recall visiting this church. It is a small white octagon shape building with a sky blue roof and painted gold trim and cross on top. She faces downtown Juneau from her perch on the hill and has a beautiful view. The church holds 75 standing parishioners on Sunday mornings.

After visiting St. Nicholas, our next destination was the Alaska State Capital building. It is a mighty building of solid granite and also stands near St. Nicholas Church facing downtown Juneau and the Gastineau Channel. We went into the lobby briefly and saw two handsome wooden carvings on both sides of the entrance on the walls. They depicted life during the Gold Rush era. About half a block away in front of another government building, is an enormous bronze statue of a bear.

We met up again with Rick & Mary and Matt for lunch at the Twisted Fish Restaurant near the tramway building for Mount Roberts. While we enjoyed our lunch, the conversation and company was better; and before we knew it, it was time for Rick, Mary and Matt to be picked up for their Photo Safari by Land & Sea of Juneau. Meeting my clients and actually getting to know them and spend a little time with them on the trip that I had put together for them was an incredibly special thing for me. Thank you Mittelstadts for giving me the opportunity to help you with your Alaskan adventure!

Our afternoon continued with our river float on the Mendenhall River. A motor coach picked us up near our ship at 4:00 p.m. and we were taken out to Mendenhall Glacier Lake which is about 15 miles north of downtown Juneau. Mendenhall Glacier is part of the Juneau Ice Field – the fifth largest ice field in the U.S.

After putting on our yellow, rubber overalls and knee high rubber boots and life jackets, we were all assigned to our raft and guide. After the 10 of us climbed into the rubber raft, our guide, Kevin shoved us offshore and away we went. The wind was blowing strongly; there were white caps on Mendenhall Lake ¬ and for the life of me, I do not understand why they put the rafts in the water on the far side of the lake making it necessary for the guides to paddle backwards to cross the lake and enter Mendenhall River! Crossing the lake in these conditions took about 45 minutes; and we never got to see the face of the glacier!

Once we reached the head of Mendenhall River, the four guides waited for all to catch up and begin the journey down. The glacial waters were now calm and the river was quite peaceful. There are homes all along the river with large decks and spectacular views. Many people were out in their yards today and waved as we floated by. There were a couple of places on the rover with Class 1 rapids, but nothing large or dangerous.

The highlight of our river float was one of the people in the front raft spotting a bear cub in the water along the river’s edge. It was a brown bear with a spot of beige on the chest. The cub scurried up the embankment and disappeared too soon for us to get any really good pictures. But! The mama bear was nearby, and came meandering through the brush along the river and followed the edge to a clearing about 25-30 feet away from our rafts. She stopped when she got to the clearing, almost as if she was posing for us and saying she gave her approval to take her picture! We floated by all too quickly; but I guarantee you that those cameras were clicking away as fast as those shutters would let us click them! Not too much farther down river, someone else spotted a bald eagle resting on a piece of driftwood right along the river embankment. He had his back to the river and so the pictures I got did not show the handsome face of this majestic bird.

At the end of our 5 mile river float, we landed in a clearing under the bridge of the highway. We took off our rain gear and were treated to some reindeer sausage and salmon dip with crackers and hot cider to warm us up. The motor coach took us all back to the Amsterdam around 9:00 p.m.

Jim and I had dinner that night in the Canaletto Italian restaurant onboard the Amsterdam because the Lido buffet was already closed. He enjoyed Chicken Marsala while I indulged in some bowtie pasta with fresh seafood in a light olive oil and garlic sauce with freshly grated Parmesano cheese on top. I somehow feel obligated to have the fresh seafood while I am in Alaska. It was delicious!

The Amsterdam left Juneau after 10:00 p.m. while the sun was just setting in the west. The lights of the city were just starting to come on and twinkle in the twilight. We had a spectacular day from beginning to end!

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #3 Tracy Arm Fjord and Twin Sawyer Glaciers

2011-06-03T21:59:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #3

Tracy Arm Fjord and Twin Sawyer Glaciers
May 30, 2011

We woke early Monday morning – Memorial Day – and began our day with room service bringing us some hot coffee. When we opened the curtains, there was not a cloud in the sky and the waters of Frederick Sound were calm and still; and the snow capped mountains reflected in the mirrored waters below. It was glorious! This is one of God’s Greatest Majesties! We “trekked the deck” for our Landon’s Rockin’ Walkers then went back to our room to grab the camera and we were off to the Crow’s Nest – the area up on the top deck with plate glass windows and nice chairs for viewing.

This area is a rich feeding ground for the humpback whales; and several showed up to say hello as we glided down the channel towards Tracy Arm Fjord and Sawyer Glaciers. The whales kept their distance from the ship; but every now and then we could see a tale as one would dive down to feed. The other passengers up in the Crow’s Nest had their binoculars out and ready to spot anything that surfaced. We were between Kuiu Island and Baranof Island in the Chatham Strait when we saw several whales. The waters remained completely calm with not even a ripple from a light breeze. As we passed The Brothers Islands more whales were spotted in the distance; but none ever came close enough to photograph.

As we entered Tracy Arm Fjord, the travel guide on the ship, Jeannette began her narration offering lots of information about the area’s history, geography, topography and wildlife. There were waterfalls everywhere you looked that were cascading down from hundreds of feet up the steep cliffs of the fjord. The striations on the cliffs (lines on the cliffs almost like the circles of a tree trunk) showed where the glaciers had been hundreds of years ago. Every so often an iceberg would float by indicating we were getting close to the Sawyer Glaciers.

It took almost 3 hours to cruise slowly back into the “S” curves of Tracy Arm where the glaciers were. The icebergs became thicker and thicker. Some were white and some were deep colors of blue and turquoise. The ice is so dense that it reflects everything except blue. Unfortunately, the ship’s Captain and pilot did not feel we could safely cruise any farther back than the last turn before you go right to the South Sawyer Glacier. We could see it off in the distance; and we were so close – but still so far away. The river of ice was too thick; and the Amsterdam slowly turned around and retraced our route through the fjord. We saw one baby harbor seal on a bergie bit resting peacefully as its mama swam around the edge keeping a watchful eye out for safety.

We talked with several different people out and about on deck during our time in Tracy Arm and enjoyed getting to know them. It is always interesting to hear their stories of coming to Alaska and where they are from. The passengers are from as far away as Holland and all over the lower 48 states and Hawaii.

Tomorrow is Tuesday and we will be in Juneau. Till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #2 - Ketchikan

2011-06-03T21:49:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue #2

May 29, 2011 – Ketchikan

We were still under cloudy skies when we arrived in Ketchikan this morning. Lucky for us – no rain! The sidewalks were crowded with passengers from the three cruise ships that were in Ketchikan today.

One of the things I want to do on this cruise is to go revisit some of the places that we visited 10 years ago on our first cruise to Alaska. So, in Ketchikan we went out to Totem Bight Park. It is one of three places where you can see totem poles – both original and ones that were duplicated to preserve the originals back in the early 1930’s.

Ketchikan is on Gravina Island and only accessible by water or air. Ketchikan’s first salmon canning facility was built in 1887; and it is now known as “the salmon capital of the world”. It is also known as “the first city” – not because it was Alaska’s first city, but because it is usually the first city that cruise ship passengers visit on their way north through the Inside Passage. It is the jumping off point for Misty Fjords National Monument. Though we have not been there, I understand the glacial valley is full of waterfalls and sheer granite cliffs where the glaciers were during the Ice Age. Ketchikan gets approximately 130 inches of rain each year; and they proudly display a larger-than-life rain gauge near the cruise dock indicating how much rain has fallen as of that date.

Totem Bight Park is approximately 10 miles north of downtown Ketchikan; and Saxman Village is approximately 13 miles south of downtown. A bight is a small inlet of water or bay. Totem Bight is home to 13 native totem poles facing the Tongass Narrows. There are 22 poles at Saxman Village. The largest collection of original poles is at the Totem Cultural Heritage Center.

Our visit to Totem Bight Park was interesting. We heard stories of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes and that there are two clans – the raven and the eagle. The other native tribe is the Tshimshian. There is a clan house where the tribe lived. On the outside of the clan house are the carvings indicating which clan lived there. The Tlingit women wove beautiful blankets and baskets from the wool of mountain goats and cedar bark twine. There is a huge fire pit in the middle of the clan house with wooden platforms around all four walls where the families slept. Clan houses are rectangular in shape and most have totems on the edges of the front corners. We saw the tallest totem in Ketchikan at Totem Bight Park and several others that were carved at the bottom then uncarved wood for two-thirds of the way up and a large animal carving at the very top.

One of the other things both Jim and I were looking forward to was indulging in some fresh crab legs at our favorite restaurant in Ketchikan, Steamers. Unfortunately, Steamers did not survive the recession and is no longer in business. The new restaurant was good - but not the same. Sitka Tex sang and played the guitar and fiddle to entertain us while we were there.

After lunch we walked over to Creek Street which is the former red-light district. The wooden houses were built along the Ketchikan Creek and legend has it that the prospectors and men of the town would take the back way in along “Married Men’s Path” to go to be entertained by the ladies in the brothels. The wooden plank walkway curves and the brothels of the Gold Rush era are now home to art galleries and souvenir shops. There are a couple of Tlingit art galleries that have nice handmade Indian crafts.

Ketchikan was under cloudy skies until about 5:00 p.m. when the Amsterdam got underway. We cruised south along Gravina Island down through Nichols Passage and past Metlakatka on Annette Island. The salmon derby opened in Ketchikan today; and we were told that a king salmon larger than last year’s winner had already been caught. We passed several skiffs with the anxious fishermen all standing hoping to catch the winning fish. The waters of Nichols Passage and Clarence Strait were so calm at one point that I thought we just gliding on a mirror. The reflections of the trees on the islands glimmered in the still waters. It was low tide and therefore many of the normally submerged tiny islands were visible in the distance. The snow capped mountains of Price Wales Island jaggedly jutted up against the blue skies. Eventually, a light breeze began to blow and the mirrored waters were replaced with a little ripple. The waters remained calm throughout the night – which made dinner much more enjoyable for me!

Tomorrow – Tracy Arm Fjord cruising – till then…

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue - Day One

2011-05-31T23:47:00.000-07:00

Holland America MS Amsterdam Travelogue

May 27-28, 2011 – Embarkation Seattle and day one cruising Inside Passage

The anticipation of a vacation is sometimes as exciting as the actual time away. One thing that made this departure especially fun and exciting for me was a surprise I had arranged with our friends, Rob & Christie who live in Portland. We surprised Jim at Seattle/Tacoma airport! As Jim and I made our way through the terminal and on to Baggage Claim where we were to meet our Holland America representative for our transfer from the airport to the ship, Rob & Christie were there to greet us and yell out “Hey Melvin – need a ride?” The look of surprise on Jim’s face was priceless and immediately turned to smiles and lots of hugs all around. We made our way from Sea/Tac Airport up to the Space Needle in downtown Seattle, where we enjoyed lunch with an incredible 360 degree view from the top! The restaurant rotates every 47 minutes and offers an absolutely beautiful view of Seattle and area.

We flew into Seattle under very cloudy skies and a light misty rain when we disembarked the plane. Miraculously the storm clouds vanished and gave way to the sun and blue skies. It was absolutely glorious! We could see out west to the snow capped Olympic Peninsula and mountains; but Mt. Baker and Mt. Rainer remained hidden behind the thick clouds to the east of Seattle.

Our lunch was delicious; and we enjoyed a glass of wine and toast to dear friends. Each of us ordered something different from the wide variety of offerings on the menu; and we were all happy with our respective choices. After lunch, we walked up to the observation deck of the Space Needle where we could see not only our ship, the Holland America MS Amsterdam in port, as well as Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas, Celebrity Infinity and Carnival Spirit. After taking a few pictures of the incredible views, Christie managed to find us a table up in the snack area where we sat and played a game of Euchre – our favorite card game – and the gals got lucky today and won! Whew hew!

Our time with Rob and Christie was over all too soon; and we all felt the same about our time together – it wasn’t enough – but we loved it. They drove us to Pier 91 and after more hugs and thank you’s, we checked in and boarded the ship. There was no one in line in front of us or behind us, for that matter – so checking in a little later definitely has its’ advantages! Many many thanks again for Rob & Christie for our surprise at the airport, delicious lunch and private car transfer to the ship!

The whistle sounded loudly at 5:00 p.m. as we left the port of Seattle and headed north through the Puget Sound and up along Vancouver Island and the Inside Passage. We had a few sprinkles on the windows as we left port; but that was it for the rain! Knock on wood! Though it remained cloudy Friday evening, we could see for miles and miles and it was beautiful.

Our cabin is a “standard” verandah cabin. There is a full couch along with our bed and plenty of closet and storage space. We enjoy our balcony with the chase lounge, chair and small table – but most of the time we are standing up to see what there is to see. Our dinner companions are a mother and daughter (Mamie and Stephanie from Texas and another couple, the Andersons – also from Texas). Our table is right next to the aft windows and we have a glorious view of the wake of the ship and where we have been during the day.

Our first day was spent at sea, getting to know where things are on the ship and meeting our dinner companions and other people along the way. The skies above were solid clouds but no rain. We passed several white lighthouses with red, tile roofs at Scarlett Point and Pine Island before leaving the Queen Charlotte Strait and heading out into the open ocean of the Queen Charlotte Sound. And yes, we did see some of those magnificent black and whites gliding smoothly through the waters along Vancouver Island! It was a small pod. Not everyone on the ship saw them; so we felt lucky to have been looking out off our balcony when they passed quickly by heading south.

We joined “Darren” the fitness guy on the ship at 7:30 in the morning to walk a mile in our quest to Trek the Deck for our precious Landon’s Rockin’ Walkers for Walk for the Cure for the Junior Diabetes Research Foundation. We wear our denim JDRF shirts every morning and walk 3 ½ times around the deck for a mile. It is enjoyable. I walk at my own pace (slow walker here!) and the others walk more briskly than I – but we are all out there! There are several dozen walkers on the ship every morning. There’s still time to sign up to sponsor us if you go to the JDRF website!

Unfortunately, towards the end of the day as we headed out into Queen Charlotte South, the seas became quite rough and it was uncomfortable – so for a good number of passengers on the Amsterdam (me included) we suffered a bit with seasickness. Jim went to dinner without me. We ordered some room service for me; and he also was very kind to make sure I had an ample supply of ginger ale and saltine crackers. Though I have still not tried it yet; on the menu for room service for “rough sea days” you can order green apples and saltine crackers. I’ve heard this is helps but haven’t indulged as of yet.

Tomorrow is Ketchikan – I’ll be in touch when we have internet service. I am finding as I did last year, that internet service is not always available. Till next time…

April 2011 Newsletter

2011-04-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

April 1, 2011

Hello Everyone ~

This month, I am going to divert a bit from our cruise to Canada/New England. Instead, I would like to share with you an article that I wrote several years ago about cruising with my parents. I’ve been thinking how much this trip meant to us and thought it would be nice to reminisce with you. This newsletter is dedicated to my parents—Harvey and Frances. I love you Mom and Dad.

Three weeks ago our lives changed dramatically. We think my Dad had a stroke. I say “think” because we do not have that definitive diagnosis yet – but all indications are that is what happened. During these past few weeks as I have sat at the hospital and at the convalescent care facility with my Mom, brother and my husband, I have been reminded how precious our time together is. And, it has reminded me that we never know what tomorrow will bring and to take advantage of every moment that we have together. Today is my birthday; and I got the best present of all – my Dad stood up by himself and took a step! It doesn’t get better than that! We take so much for granted and sometimes it is good to step back and remember.

Barb

Harv and Fran – Then and Now

Don’t Let Your Parents Tell You “No”Have you ever said to yourself that you wished you had asked your parents or grandparents more about what it was like for them growing up?

Several years ago, my husband and I asked my parents to go on a cruise with us. We thought that going on a cruise would be a perfect opportunity to get away for a few days and spend some quality time together. But, we had to sell them on the idea.

I’m a Baby Boomer; and if your parents are like mine, you have probably heard that they feel that they cannot travel anymore. My parents told me that it would be too difficult. My Mom has Parkinson’s disease and my Dad has every kind of arthritis known to mankind. Getting around is not easy for either one of them. But, Mom wanted to see Glacier Bay – and so it was, we booked a cruise to Alaska! Once we boarded the ship and unpacked, our wonderful journey began.

This ended up being one of the best cruises we’ve ever been on. Not because of the itinerary, not because of anything other than it was a chance to spend some quality time with my parents.
My Dad had done some genealogy research and so we had some basic information. We knew that there would be time during the cruise to bring this up in the conversation. And, so it was…Once we sat down and asked them the first few questions, we were greeted with smiles and all sorts of stories. One story would trigger another memory and another and another. They enjoyed sitting in their deck chairs; and I couldn’t write or type fast enough. We talked about their childhood, their memories of growing up during the Depression, and memories they had of their parents or grandparents. The stories we heard were fascinating. After the first time when we sat down they started asking us “What time are we going to do this again?

Think about doing something like this with your parents or grandparents before it’s too late. Don’t let your parents tell you “no”. Plan that family reunion or 90th birthday celebration! Dance one more time with your Mom or Dad or Grandma or Grandpa. Take one more picture. Live, laugh and love each other. Take advantage of your time together and find the time to sit down and ask them those questions that you’ve been telling yourself that you have been meaning to ask. Bring a thick pad of paper and plenty of pens and enjoy what is about to unfold before you.

Post note: In 2011 we started having Sunday is for Family Day. We lost Jim’s Dad last summer. Since then, we have tried to spend our Sundays with Jim’s mother, my parents or our children and grandchildren. We have heard fascinating stories of how our parents grew up during the Depression and World War II. We have celebrated the birth of our newest grandchild, Jacob (born on Super Bowl Sunday!), and we have made a point of being with our family on Sundays. Now, more than ever, we can see how precious our Sundays are. Please don’t wait to do this with your family. Get out your picture albums and laugh and reminisce – and enjoy each other. You never know what tomorrow may bring.

Believe me – you’re gonna love it; and so will they. It will be the memory of a lifetime!

Sunday is Family Day - February 6, 2011 - Welcome Jacob Morgan!

2011-02-08T21:36:00.000-08:00

SUNDAY IS FAMILY DAY, February 6, 2011

Today was a glorious day and especially extraordinary because we welcomed the newest member of our family, Jacob Robert Morgan! Jacob was born while most of us were still asleep – 12:52 a.m. on Sunday, February 6, 2011. He weighed in at seven pounds and was 21 inches long!

It was foggy and a very cool 41 degrees in San Diego when I began my drive up to Monterey to meet our newest grandchild. With my Starbucks in hand, my day began. It was dark and foggy; I could barely see 100 feet in front of the car for quite a ways up the highway. The fog began to lift as I drove further north above Temecula. At about 6:15 a.m. the daylight broke, the sky was a bright baby blue with pink clouds lacing the horizon. It was beautiful. As the sun rose in the east, I couldn’t help but notice the top of Big Bear in the San Gabriel Mountains all covered with snow.

My eight hour drive seemed to pass by quickly. I generally drive north on I-15 then take Interstate 210 west through Pasadena and the San Fernando Valley over to I-5. The portion of my drive north of Los Angeles over the Grapevine was so peaceful. The hills were covered with thick green grass from the winter rains with a yellow glow from the dandelions covering the ground. It almost looked like velvet.

I stopped a few times to get a warm refill on my coffee and continued my drive. I saw some herds of cattle grazing on the hillsides while others lay alongside the road as if they were not quite awake. When I drove by, they lifted their large heads as if to say “Good morning – don’t bother me I haven’t had my coffee yet”. I passed herds of sheep and Billy goats as well as pastures with horses meandering around. The world was waking up. Along Highway 46 from Lost Hills going over to Paso Robles and Highway 101, there were several large flocks of black crows sitting on top of the barren almond trees. Then, several times I saw something larger in the trees right alongside the highway, and there were several owls perched on the bare branches keeping a watchful eye out as the few cars that were on the road at that time of the morning, passed.

My drive up was really enjoyable with all the animals and birds that I passed along the way. I never knew what I was going to see next! During the next few days, little did I know that I would be greeted in the mornings by majestic blue herons and white egrets standing tall at the waters’ edge of the small lake near my daughter’s home.

When I arrived in Monterey, I met my daughter Jackie at her house and unloaded the car and within half an hour, we were off to the hospital to greet the newest member of our family. We walked into the hospital room and there was my daughter Steph, husband Jason and our precious new bundle of joy! I know I was as proud and happy as any other Grandma I know. And, like all of the rest of you, I think my grandson is perfect and beautiful in every way! That is our God given right! Jacob was wrapped all snug in a hospital blanket and had a tiny little cotton knit cap on his head. His tiny little hands were inside of the onesie t-shirt that he wore. His cheeks were rosy and glowing; and he was very content to be held by his Daddy. Steph looked beautiful; and it was hard to imagine that she had just given birth a few hours before I arrived.

Jacob – welcome to our family. You are loved.

SUNDAY IS FAMILY DAY – January 23, 2011

2011-01-23T22:07:00.000-08:00

SUNDAY IS FAMILY DAY – January 23, 2011

Earlier this week my Mom showed me my Baby Album. Inside of it were some letters that my Dad had written to my Mom while he was out of town working on insurance claims right after I was born. In one of those letters, ironically, he talked about coming home and going out for a drive on Sunday afternoon “because Sunday is Family Day”. It really brought a smile to my face when I read that. So, this Sunday drive tradition has been a part of our family ever since I was born!

As we got Mom and Dad into the car this afternoon, their eyes were sparkling and they had already started reminiscing about some of their memories of growing up in San Diego in the 1920’s and 1930’s. Though they lived several miles from each other back then, they actually attended the same schools. Grammar school was at Central Grammar School which was located at Central and Polk. They both had Mrs. Harrelson as their 6th grade teacher. They both attended Woodrow Wilson Middle School and Herbert Hoover High School.

The weather here in San Diego this weekend was absolutely gorgeous. There was a Santa Ana wind blowing which cleared out the foggy marine layer and blessed us with an unbelievably clear view of the Coronado Islands off the coast of San Diego past Point Loma to the north and the Hotel del Coronado on Coronado Island to the south. The waters of San Diego Bay glistened as we crossed over the Coronado Bridge. There were dozens of sailboats out on the waters with their spinnaker sails full and gliding across the water. In the distance up towards where the USS Midway is permanently docked, there was a Carnival Cruise Lines ship in port. We could see the huge red fan tale from the top of the bridge.

Our first destination today was over to Coronado in hopes of finding my Mom’s grandparent’s home. Unfortunately, we could not find the actual address before we left home (we did find it later). So – we’re just going to have to go back and find it on another Sunday afternoon drive! We found a picture of the house after we got home today.

We took a leisurely drive back through Coronado and past the Hotel Del looking at all of the beautiful homes. There were many people out riding their bicycles and we saw several people playing golf on the municipal golf course as we headed back to cross over the bridge and continue on our adventure.

Our next destination was to go by the first house that my Dad lived in here in San Diego on Fairmont Avenue. The house still stands today. It is a nice looking two-story home north of University. He pointed out which room was his on the second floor and which one was his brother Carl’s. Dad does not recall having any pictures from this house when they lived here; but we’re going to go through some of the photo albums that he still has from his Mom (my Grandma Ro) and we’ll see if we can find one.

Mom and Dad were full of memories of the way things “used to be” back in their younger days. The Inner City Children’s Clinic used to be the home of Kerrigan Jewelers on University. The University Theater used to be where the Payless Shoe Store is now; and the building at University and Euclid was once a skating rink. There is a tall very vibrant colored building across the street. That was where the end of the street car line once was. The buildings back then were all one story. Mom recalled walking home from Hoover High and stopping to buy donuts – two for 5 cents! She said they had an orange long john that just melted in your mouth.

Dad told us that El Cajon Boulevard used to be Route 80; and that is what we drove between Tucson and San Diego when he got transferred to Tucson back in the late 1950’s. When he lived in the Fairmont house, he and his brothers would ride their bikes down to Adobe Falls to swim. Mission Valley at that time was not developed as it is today. Rose Toyota was at the bottom of Fairmont. John Rose was a friend of Dad’s; and he had the Rose Toyota was the first Toyota dealership in the United States.

We also drove by where my Dad lived on 56th Avenue just north of El Cajon Boulevard. Where their house used to be now stands an apartment building. My grandparent’s property was quite wide and had avocado trees in the back yard. It was one-story home with two bedrooms and a bath. Along the right side of the house was a single car driveway that sloped down to a detached garage behind the house. Along the driveway was a small pond with goldfish. We have been told that though the original house was moved away and replaced with the apartment building – the pond is still there behind the fence. We weren’t bold enough to try to peak over the fence today – maybe sometime in the future.

As we left Grandma and Grandpa’s Ro’s old neighborhood, we turned right onto El Cajon Boulevard and drove west. Mom and Dad would point out where certain businesses used to be.

Our afternoon continued with an early dinner at the Chicken Pie Shop. This is a San Diego tradition. It was once located on Fifth Avenue in downtown San Diego; but has been at its present location for years and years. When you step inside the glass front door, you are greeted with the smiling faces of well-seasoned waitresses. Mom and Dad recognized several of them as having been there for as long as they could remember. On the walls surrounding the large open dining room are large pictures from menus offering a chicken pie dinner complete with mashed potatoes and chicken gravy, coleslaw and vegetables AND pie for dessert for only 45 cents! You could have a cup of coffee or a glass of buttermilk for 10 cents! There were pictures on the walls from the early days of the Pie Shop as well as dozens of ceramic chickens and roosters lining he shelf near the top of the walls all around restaurant.

Our meals were served with warm rolls and butter. Mom and Dad and Jim all had the chicken pot pie dinners; but I had to order their fried chicken just to see how that was. My dinner came with a nice little side salad, vegetables mashed potatoes and gravy and three nice pieces of breaded fried chicken. It was moist and good – though I have to admit I’ve never had fried chicken dipped in bread crumbs before. We all had leftovers to bring home including our pieces of pie that were included with our dinners.

After that, we drove home and called my cousin and her husband and my Aunt Mary (Mom’s sister) who just live down the street from Mom and Dad. The three of them came down after we got back to Mom and Dad’s. We enjoyed a piece of pie and some decaf coffee. The best part of that was to bring out some of the old family photo albums and sit around the table and look at old pictures. Mom and Aunt Mary sat on one side of the table with Mary Jean and me on the other side. I cannot even begin to tell you how much fun it was to sit there with our Mom’s and go through pictures of when they were newlywed’s and new parents. The pictures are priceless to us. My Uncle Eugene passed on a few years ago; and oh how we miss him. But Mary Jean and I so enjoyed looking at the pictures and watching our Mom’s reminisce about how things used to be.

I cherish these times with my parents. It is so much fun for me to hear the enthusiasm in their voices when they talk about their memories and walk down memory lane. And, to be able to share that with my cousin and my Aunt was extra special. In the next few weeks, we are planning on all of us getting together for an afternoon picnic down on Harbor Island. We’ll sit and enjoy the stories because “Sunday is for Family”. Till next time…

SUNDAY IS FAMILY DAY - January 16, 2011

2011-01-16T21:01:00.000-08:00

SUNDAY IS FAMILY DAY
I wrote an article in 2007 entitled “Don’t Let Your Parents Tell You No”. It was about spending some quality time with my parents. Since that time, my parents’ health has been declining; my Mom has Parkinson ’s disease, my Dad had to have a rather sudden quadruple bypass, and as of last week they have given up driving. This past summer we lost Jim’s Dad. His Mom is still with us and we are blessed that at 90 years young, she is in relatively good health and doing well. We visit her in Huntington Beach as much as possible and are grateful for our time together.
One thing that has become increasingly important to me is to make sure I ask those questions that I’ve always said “someday I have to ask my parents about that”. Well, now is my “someday”. We have decided that “Sunday is Family Day”. Having said that - we decided that we will make plans to do something with either Jim’s Mom or my parents every weekend.
Our weekend began on Saturday when we drove up to Huntington Beach for a Celebration of Life for one of Jim’s longest friends. We picked up his Mom and the three of us were on our way to a wonderful afternoon of memories. In addition to hearing some touching stories about our friend Jan who left us all too soon, we also enjoyed our time with Jim’s Mom and talking with her about some of their early days in the Navy. We talked about their homes in Newport, Rhode Island – Taiwan and Charleston, South Carolina as well as Long Beach. She also shared with us some family history about the silver tea set she proudly displays on the sideboard in her dining room and a couple of chairs that were in her family home in Washington, D.C. She told us the story of a small covered chair that sits in her entry-way. It is now upholstered in a soft pink stripe fabric. It is quite a short chair and has no arms. In this small chair, she began to knit a baby blanket when she was pregnant with Jim. She said she didn’t finish the blanket but that her mother did and presented it to her so she could keep her baby warm when he came home from the hospital. She also told us the history about a couple of tables in her living room. We have many more questions about things in her home and other memories that we will pursue on another visit. We spent time with her for a little while after we returned from the Celebration of Life; and then we had to be on our way home. Driving back home to San Diego, both of us kept remembering things she had mentioned during our day with her. Off to the west, just after 5:00 p.m. the sun was setting. As the brilliant, flaming sun set on the horizon, the reflections on the glassy Pacific Ocean waters was breathtaking. The water was so calm, there was hardly a ripple. The colors of the sunset were amazing bright pinks, oranges and purples. What a fabulous way to end such a nice day!
On Sunday, we began our “Sunday is Family Day” with my parents. We got Mom and Dad into the car and off we went down the road in search of some of their early homes in San Diego and some of our relatives’ homes. Before we got too far down the road, Mom began telling us that their first apartment was on 30th Street here in San Diego. They were newlyweds; and Mom put an ad in the San Diego Tribune that read something like “Veteran just married looking for place to rent”. The apartment on 30th Street in North Park still stands today. Their apartment was in the back of the main house. It was hard to see their apartment in its entirety – but we could see the corner of the back building where they began their life together. Their toilet had a pull chain. They had an “ice box” where the ice man delivered a 25 pound block of ice once a week to keep their food cold.
Our next stop was to go by their apartment on Iowa Street which is also still standing today. It is much the same set up as the first apartment on 30th Street with the apartment behind the main house. The main difference with this apartment is that Dad’s Mom, my Grandma Ro, thought this was a much nicer place and she “approved”. I was born when they lived on Iowa Street. Mom and Dad have a picture of both of these apartments in a frame of pictures along with pictures of all the homes they have lived in.
After Iowa Street, Mom and Dad really took a giant leap and bought their first home on Hannah Street here in San Diego. My Dad worked for a large insurance company; and his territory covered all of San Diego County as well as El Centro and down to the border in Tijuana. I remember the dress he brought me from Mexico that had the white top with ruffles on top and the multi-colored ruffled skirt. My brother was born when they lived here.
Our afternoon continued by driving by the Columbia Street home that my Aunt Cassie and Uncle Ralph used to live in. It was a small house on a hillside that had an absolutely breathtaking view of the planes, trains and ships in San Diego harbor. On a clear day they could see out to the end of Point Loma and out to Coronado Island. Their house had one very distinctive feature – they had one of the first elevators in San Diego. I remember as a young girl going to visit them. The entrance to their home has a small courtyard. The back of the house is a plate glass window with this stunning view. But my brother Rob and I were fascinated with that elevator; and we couldn’t wait to visit Aunt Cassie and Uncle Ralph just so we could go in the elevator!
¬My Mom is a San Diego native. Her Dad was a master printer. His first shop was in the Hotel del Coronado where he perfected his craft. He then moved to a shop on the first floor in the building at 5th and Laurel. This is the same building that is the home of the famed restaurant Mr. A’s that is on the rooftop. Back in the early 1930’s Mom’s family lived on 10 acres of land on Rosecrans Blvd. Her Dad had the opportunity to buy this land for $865 in back taxes. But, it was during The Depression. It was all her Dad could do to pay the rent – there was no way he could scrape together enough money to buy the property.
That property today would be worth millions upon millions of dollars. They actually had two houses back then – a day house and a night house. They had their meals in the day house and slept in the night house. Mom tells stories of her and her two sisters, knowing every inch of that property. They would run and jump down the hill right down to the waters’ edge. Today, this area is known as Playa Point Loma. Where their two small houses once stood on an empty ten acres of waterfront land, today there are hundreds of private residences with San Diego Bay as their backyard. They have views of Point Loma, Shelter Island and Harbor Island as well as out to North Island and Coronado.
We actually found the location and address of the original two houses, but standing there today is a very modern two story stucco home that must be well over 5,000 square feet. We drove down to the street below Rosecrans (which was not there when Mom’s family lived there); and at the end of the street we found a waterfront access and walking path along the waters’ edge. Mom wanted to get out and go down so Jim got the wheelchair out of the trunk and while Dad chose to stay in the car, the three of us walked down to the path and meandered down a ways. Mom was telling us stories about how she and her sisters knew every inch of that property and would jump down to gather clams. They would stomp down the tall weeds that filled the property and would pretend they were in a huge house. As we were going down the path, we came across a lady whose Golden Retriever was romping in the water as she walked on the path. When our paths crossed, she said hello and Mom asked if she lived in the area. She said yes, and Mom told her she used to live there back in the 1930’s. The woman knew some of the names of the people that used to be nearby neighbors; and amazing as it was, she said some of those families still own homes there. Before we parted, she took Mom’s name and was going to show it to some of those people. Mom was thrilled and you could see the pleasure of the afternoon in her face.
Our day continued as we proceeded to Anthony’s Fish Grotto on Harbor Drive for an early dinner. They seated us at a wonderful window table where we had a view of the Bay. Because it was an incredibly clear day today, we could see all the way out to Point Loma where The Old Point Loma Lighthouse proudly stands. Mom’s mother’s sister, Aunt Nel, married Rollie Israel – the son of the last lighthouse keeper of The Old Point Loma Lighthouse.
While Mom and Jim and I enjoyed our soup and salad, Dad enjoyed his Huevos Rancheros and the conversation continued. Dad talked about only paying 5 cents to take the passenger ferry from San Diego over to Coronado back when he was a young boy. He also recalled riding his bicycle down to the Bay when Old Ironsides – yes the U.S.S. Constitution – was in port. He was about 11 years old. He and his friends who were in the Boy Scouts together would go to the Postmaster and have envelopes stamped “Old Ironsides” on special holidays such as Washington’s Birthday and Lincoln’s Birthday. He also used to come down to the Bay to go duck hunting.
After Pearl Harbor was bombed, Dad told us he joined the Navy at the 11th Naval District offices at the base of Broadway in San Diego. The building is still there. He said that his Dad had taught him the Morse Code; and because of that, he did not have to go to Boot Camp. Once his enlistment papers were signed, he reported directly out to Point Loma.
Sunset was just after 5:00 p.m. While we were getting ready to leave, a rowboat with about 8 scouts and their parents passed in front of the windows of Anthony’s. We imagined these young boys were out earning their “Rowing Badge”. The waters of the bay began to calm as the sun set in the West. The wispy clouds in the sky above began to turn yellow and orange, then pink and purple. The waters shimmered with the beautiful, colorful reflections from above; and the small scouts rowed away and became just a silhouette on the water.
It was the perfect ending to a perfect weekend. We talked about where we were going to go next Sunday as we drove home. We have lots of possibilities; but nothing was determined. But you can rest assured that I’ll be writing about our adventure – because “Sunday is Family Day”.

My Wish for You -

2010-12-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

I hope you open up much happiness on Christmas morning. And my wish to the New year ---- may the best day of your 2010 be the worst day of your 2011.

This year as with all years, we are enjoying our time with family and friends. It seems that sometimes we get so caught up in our everyday lives that we don't keep in touch as much as we should to let those we care about truly know that they are special in our lives.

We have been very blessed through the ten + years that we have been together. Our families have grown and our families have blended well. Though we lead separate lives here in San Diego, in Huntington Beach, Monterey, San Francisco and Vancouver, WA, we do our best to get together during the year and enjoy each other.

After losing Jim's Dad this summer, it made me stop and realize how lucky we are to have had him as long as we did. He was 90 yrs. old! What a grand life! And, Jim's Mom, who is also 90, is still with us and going strong. We will drive up to Huntington Beach the day after Christmas to be together with his Mom along with his sister and brother and sister-in-law and their exchange student from Germany, Leoni.

On Christmas Eve, we will enjoy babysitting Katelyn and Ryan during the daym then spending a wonderful family evening together at their house for our Christmas with them. On Christmas Day, we will pick up my parents and bring them back over to the where we will enjoy a good pork roast, with mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, apple sauce and cranberry sauce and some good pumpkin pie for dessert!

After we visit the family in Huntington Beach, we will head north to Monterey where we will have Christmas with my daughters and son-in-law and two grandsons, Joseph and Landon.

Our daughter Jennifer will be in Vancouver, WA enjoying a turkey dinner with friends and will notbe able to get down for Christmas this year. But, we have enjoyed several good visits with her during this past year and will definitely do the same in 2011.

I know there is no Santa Claus in reality - but, like Virginia, his spirit lives in me and always will. The spirit of giving and doing for others makes me happy. "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" is one of my favorite books of all time.

And so, this holiday season - I hope that spirit will find a place in your heart as well.

I hope you open up much happiness on Christmas morning. And my wish for you for the New year ----

May the best day of your 2010 be the worst day of your 2011.

December Newsletter

2010-12-08T17:02:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!

The Holidays are upon us once again! I don’t know about you, but this past year has gone by incredibly fast. We were able to travel a lot this year and visit family and friends along our way. Those moments are really special to us; and, as many of you know, I usually share those times in my Travelogues. Some of you receive them via email and then I post them on my website and on my Blog. I started writing the Travelogues when we were away so that our parents could know what we were doing and seeing.

December greeted me with a wonderful surprise. I have been named one of the “Top 50 Travel Agent Bloggers in the United States”! Here is the link to the website. I am one of the Travel Agents Who Love to Travel - that’s me – Enthusiastic Cruiser! http://www.onlinemarketingdegree.org/the-top-50-travel-agent-bloggers-of-2010
As I often do at the end of the year, I reflect back and think about how lucky I am. Sometimes when the world is so busy around us, we forget to take time to thank those who have made a difference in our lives. This year, Carpenter Travel has grown because of all of you. If I have not told you before, I will tell you now – I realize that you have many choices today when it comes to making your travel plans; and I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to help you with yours.

The holidays are a very special time for many of us as we will be traveling near and far to spend time with family and dear friends. Many of us have special traditions; and this month I thought I would share some German family traditions that I’ve learned about from the German exchange student that our brother and sister-in-law have had the pleasure of having join their family for this school year.

Leoni is 16 years old and her family lives in a small village about 200 miles south of Frankfurt. She is quite a talented young lady who not only sings but also plays the flute and the piano. She speaks excellent English and has blended into our family very nicely. She has beautiful rosy cheeks and her eyes seem to light up when she speaks about Germany and her family. Jim and I have been really enjoyed getting to know her and learning more about Germany and their culture and way of life.

In Leoni’s family, their holiday celebrations begin on December 5th when each of them sets one of their boots outside their bedroom door. When they awake in the morning, their parents have filled their boot with special treats including some candy or something sweet. On December 6th, the neighborhood children will walk door-to-door and either say a poem or sing a song and the neighbors will give them a treat (very reminiscent of our Halloween except they do not dress up in costume).

Leoni has told us that her family does decorate for the holidays, but not nearly to the extent that people decorate here with all the lights and festive garlands and trees. Their decorations will be a beautiful table setting that will always include four candles – one to be lit each week during Christmas. They celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve.

We have talked about special foods that her family prepare s for the holidays and she mentioned red cabbage or Rotkraut. My Grandma used to make this for every holiday – and my Mom has continued with that tradition. The recipe we have is over 100 years old from my Great Grandmother Hoffman. So, I thought I would share that recipe with you this month. If you have any recipes you’d like to share with me – I would enjoy receiving them and giving them a try in my kitchen. I know that you will all be cooking some wonderful things in the kitchen – and your holidays would never be the same without them. Those special aromas and flavors are distinctly familiar and make our holidays very special.

Grandmother Hoffman’s Red Cabbage –“Rotkraut”

1 – large head of red cabbage – shredded fine
2 – Tablespoons Crisco shortening
2 - Tablespoons Canola oil
1 – Red apple cored, skinned and shredded
3 – Tablespoons light brown sugar
½ - Teaspoon salt
¼ - Teaspoon pepper
3 – Tablespoons Vinegar

Stir well. Simmer at least 2 hours. Put lid on tight. Stir often. Serve warm.

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May your holidays be filled with special memories.

And, As Always,

Safe Travels

Barbara
Your “Enthusiastic” Excursionist

P. S. Whodunit?

Whodunit?
You all know I LOVE cruising! But did you know that I love a good mystery as well? Ever since my childhood when I read the Nancy Drew books (“The Secret of the Old Clock” – “The Hidden Staircase”), I enjoyed trying to solve the mystery. When I came across a company called Whodunit Mystery Cruises, my curiosity was peaked. In 2011, I am becoming a “Partner in Crime”!

What better way to get the best of both worlds than on a Whodunit Mystery Cruise! Enjoy an elegant experience at sea, while MYSTERY and MAYHEM LURK all around you, and even INVOLVE YOU! As the clues unravel, you try to solve the spectacular mystery of "whodunit" - before it's too late! Whodunit creates a Live Mystery aboard the most beautiful ships in the world that you become a part of ... as well as try and solve. There are times during the mystery cruise that you will be following the deadly saga and other times when you are free to just enjoy the cruise ... They don't want you to have to look over your shoulder for the entire time aboard the ship.

If you book the cruise and choose to be a part of Whodunit, when you board you will be given your own deadly role to play. Don't worry, if you are on the shy side you can just sit back and watch the plot unfold. But if you are not shy, then you can use your character to find out as much as you can. You see, the actors will be mixing among you and in character for the entire mystery cruise!!! The hilarious story begins to unfold on the opening night where you will first meet all of the very M Y S T E R I O U S Characters. Then during the week there are mysterious notes slid under your cabin door, secret rendezvous set up for you ... all kinds of suspicious happenings!

On the days we are in port, nothing will happen aboard the ship at this time, so you won't miss any important clues. But be careful.... Captain's Night is bound to be a beautiful, elegant but- a D E V I L I S H night, for sure!

Just think...mutiny and...mayhem... gambling...all the grub you can handle...intrigue...laughter...star laden skies...and Mystery on the High Seas!!!! On May 20, 2011 Jim and I will be on Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas sailing out of Seattle to – where else? ALASKA of course!! (Now, come on – you knew that was coming didn’t you?)

So - Supersleuths! Grab your magnifying glasses, deerstalker caps, and life vests as Whodunit heads from Seattle to Alaska on a 7-Night Alaska Sawyer Glacier Cruise! There are bound to be clues around every iceberg as we cruise the inside passage to Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm Fjord and Victoria BC.

In addition to the May 20, 2011 sailing on Rhapsody of the Seas for 7 nights from Seattle to Alaska – there are other mystery cruise opportunities for 2011:

1) September 3-8, 2011 on Enchantment of the Seas for 5-nights from Baltimore to the Bahamas

2) October 28-31, 2011 on Monarch of the Seas for 3-nights from Port Canaveral to the Bahamas

3) December 3-10, 2011 on Voyager of the Seas for 7-nights from New Orleans to the Western Caribbean.

Pricing starts from $997.53 including taxes, port fees and Whodunit Murder Mystery per person based on double occupancy.

Silversea Cruise Lines Ship Inspection

2010-12-08T16:34:00.000-08:00

Ship Inspection December 4, 2010 – San Pedro, CA

Our ship inspection was scheduled for 11:30 a.m. for the Silversea Silver Cloud in San Pedro, CA. We left San Diego mid-morning under cloudy skies after stopping by Starbucks for a yummy and warm eggnog latte’. Yes, this is one of my favorite holiday indulgences!

Driving up I-5 was an easy commute this morning as the traffic was light with no traffic back-ups at all. After we merged onto the 405 Freeway in Orange County and proceeded north to the Long Beach Freeway, the heavy clouds above us began to drop large rain drops on our windshield. As we drove along the water’s edge, Jim commented that this was where his Dad was stationed and they lived in naval housing. What was once an active Naval Base is now redeveloped and none of the old buildings remain. Now, tall palm trees and landfills and huge cranes for loading cargo stand where the Naval Officers’ Club and other buildings used to be in the 1950’s.

We continued on over the Vincent Thomas Bridge and turned off to get to the port. The Sapphire Princess was in port and majestically took her position at the end of the inland waterway. Up a bit further, we could see the top of the Silver Cloud, but there were several tents in the parking lot that blocked our view of the entire ship. This was disappointing as I only could get a picture of the top insignia on the stack of the Silver Cloud.

It was still raining when we parked the car. We proceeded across the street and through the Port Authority security check-in to an area inside a building where folding chairs were set up in several rows. Our guide for the day, Iona, greeted us and introduced herself as the Cruise Consultant on the Silver Cloud. She guided us to the gangway where we climbed the steep, steel steps and were greeted at the top by several very well dressed crew members. They were dressed in business attire of Navy blue and off-white.

The central lobby of the Silver Cloud is a circular designed area with offices in the area housing Guest Relations, the Silver Shore Concierge available for booking your shore excursions; and the desk of the Cruise Consultant (our Ivonna). A table was set up in one area full of champagne glasses waiting to be filled from the bottles of champagne two young men had waiting on ice for the new guests when they arrived.

The décor is elegant with navy blue and gold carpeting and finished with subtle wallpaper and trimmed in brass. There is a wide variety of art work on board the Silver Cloud ranging from paintings to bronze statues and incredible, intricate tile mosaics.

The Silver Cloud carries approximately 296 guests with a crew of 222. This is a “luxury” liner with all staterooms being “suites” (not cabins or staterooms). This stop in San Pedro today was their only stop in Southern California for the rest of 2010 and 2011; so we were very lucky to have the chance to visit her while she was in port for such a short time.

Ivonna took is to a “Verandah Suite” first. It is 295 sq. ft. including the verandah. I would compare this to the size of a mini-suite on the Sapphire Princess. This suite was beautifully appointed with plush Egyptian linens on the bed and in the bath. There was a bottle of champagne on ice wrapped neatly in a white towel in an ice bucket on the coffee table along with two champagne flutes waiting to be filled. Each suite is also graced with stunning fresh orchid plants. Each bath has a tub and shower and a fabulous walk-in closet with tremendous storage space. The bath is large and had plenty of mirrors above the elegant marble counters and sinks. All suites have internet access and flat screen TV’s. You also have your own personal Butler at your service 24/7. The Butler can arrange your dining reservations as well as make your shore excursion reservations. They are also available to run any errand you may need them to such as picking up your laundry or purchasing a candy bar from the store.
Each suite has a teak verandah with nice patio furniture. The size varies depending on the type of suite you have and your location on the ship. As you can imagine, if you have booked one of the larger suites, you will also have a larger verandah.

Our next visit was to the Owner’s Suite which is mid-size with Bedroom #1 being approximately 829 sq. ft. and Bedroom #2 being approximately 587 sq. ft. With the two separate bedrooms, there is also a living area with a couch and chairs and coffee table with champagne waiting; a writing desk and mini bar with table. Again, the bath was quite large with a larger walk-in closet. This suite bath also had a toilet and bade.
The Grand Suite was the largest suite that we visited with Bedroom #1 is 1019 sq. ft. and Bedroom #2 is 1314 sq. ft. The bath in this suite had a whirlpool tub. There was a very large living room area with couch and chairs along with two other round tables, a mini-bar and an antique looking writing desk in the corner. There were two entrances out to the verandah. Every suite offers the luxurious, plus Egyptian linens in the bedrooms and baths.

We visited the handsome Library furnished with over-stuffed dark brown leather chairs and hard cover books behind the glass doors of the bookcases. There were audio listening stations. You could also find your favorite magazines or newspaper here.
The Card Room had several square tables suitable for playing card games or table games and could also be used for a conference room if necessary.

La Terraza (The Terrace Restaurant) was one of my favorite areas on the ship. It offers an ala carté menu with a buffet breakfast in the morning or al fresco dining on the outdoor patio. In the evenings, La Terraza becomes an ala carté Italian Restaurant. The outdoor patio is on the aft of the ship and would be a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the scenery as you sail along.

Another great gathering place would be The Panorama Lounge where you can enjoy the scenery as well as complimentary cocktails. There is a piano in here along with nice tables and comfortable chairs. At the Pool Bar¸¬ you can enjoy your favorite cocktail by the pool during the day; and in the evening it turns into Dining Under the Stars offering grilled steaks and fish and fresh pizza.

Le Champagne would be an intimate place where you could indulge in a six course meals including fine wines paired with every course.

We passed quickly through the Salon and Spa where you can make arrangements for facials, body wraps or massages and afterwards enjoy some quite time in the men’s or women’s steam and sauna rooms. The Casino is small, but has a roulette wheel, blackjack table and about 15 slot machines neatly placed in cubbies along the port side of the ship. We did not see the Fitness Center, but understand it is equipped with treadmills, elliptical machines and free weights. They also offer aerobics classes, as well as yoga and Pilates – which are all complimentary.

Our tour ended in The Restaurant (dining room) elegantly set with silver and crystal and candlelight. We had a fixed menu with an appetizer of a small crab cake topped with a guacamole and garnish. Our “salad” was a base of steamed spinach topped with sliced artichoke hearts and a nice piece of grilled swordfish. The main course was a serving of Polenta topped with two small slices of veal. Dessert was also served which consisted of a fluted pastry shell filled with fresh blueberries and crème freshe. Two different wines were also served during lunch – both Italian, one white and one red.
The Silver Cloud was the flagship of Silversea Cruise Lines and was launched in 1994. She was renovated in 2004 and again in 2006. This luxury liner offers personal service at every point and being “all inclusive”, a passenger feels they are receiving true value for their vacation experience. We thoroughly enjoyed our time on the Silver Cloud and thank Silversea Cruise Lines for giving us the opportunity to visit her.

Travelogue from Cannon Beach, Oregon

2010-10-14T11:47:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES FROM OREGON
Cannon Beach, Oregon
THURSDAY, October 7, 2010

One of best things in life for us is getting together with good friends. This weekend is very special to us because we are with the friends who introduced us to each other (Clayton & Natha) and the friends who got married the night before we did (Rob & Christie) 10 years ago! Through the past 10 years, our friendship has grown into a very special one. Rob & Christie moved up to Portland, Oregon area a couple of years ago; and when they did, we felt a big void. When we get together, it is as if we’ve always been together and not so far apart – it is a wonderful homecoming!

When we can, the six of us get together and enjoy good friends, good food, good wine and lots of laughs! Last year we all drove up to the San Juan Islands to Friday Harbor and rented a house facing Hairo Strait. We spent the weekend exploring the island, enjoying the lavender festival at Pelindaba Lavender Farms, wine tasting at the San Juan Vineyards, hiking out to Lime Kiln Point to the lighthouse and enjoying some delicious food up at Roche Harbor. The other infamous pastime that all six of us enjoy is playing a card game called “Euchre”. Last year, the Gals won the trophies and the Guys received the Crying Towels. The trophies are now once again on the line – and the tournament has begun!
Clayton & Natha and Jim & I flew out of San Diego on Thursday morning and arrived in Portland shortly after noon. Rob & Christie were there to greet us with open arms and lots of hugs! It was so good to see them again! They rented a 6 passenger van so all of us could travel around together; and we were off to meet our daughter Jennifer (who lives in Vancouver, WA) for lunch at Henry’s Tavern at 12th and Burnside in the Pearl District of Portland. Henry’s is a two story, rustic tavern with open beams and booths and tables upholstered in black naugahyde. We had a nice visit with Jen before she had to leave for work and then the six of us walked back to the car and took off for a little tour of Portland.

Downtown Portland is a maze of one-way streets and lots of hills. Rob was our chauffeur and took us by the Oregon Hospital School of Nursing¬ so Clayton & Natha could check out the campus for their son Cory who is interested in continuing his education there. The campus is high on a hill overlooking Portland. The view from the top is breathtaking as you can see the many bridges crossing the Willamette and Columbia Rivers below.

After that, our “driver” drove us to the Portland Rose Garden. The Rose Garden is maintained by volunteers and is meticulously manicured and well-kept. It is on the side of a hill also overlooking Portland. You enter the garden under the high arch ways full of miniature roses and before your eyes is a beautifully terraced rose garden. As you can imagine, each of the roses has a small plaque stating its’ name and type of rose (i.e. hybrid or floribunda, etc.) We all had to “stop and smell the roses” along the way – and some of them were scented and some were not. Though it had no fragrance, my favorite rose was the Burgundy Iceberg. This was a deep burgundy or maroon color and just different than anything I had ever seen before. And yes, I did take a picture of it!

From the Rose Garden we traveled along the windy road of the park which also is home to the Portland Zoo and the Japanese Tea Garden back down the hill on to Tigard where Rob & Christie now live. I could not help but notice that the sides of the roads were all green with grasses and ferns followed by thick groves of pine trees and other deciduous trees that have begun turning their colors as the cooler weather approaches. Because of the cooler climate here in Oregon, we are actually going to be able to see some “fall colors” without going back east to enjoy them!

Once we unpacked the car and got settled, the first glass of wine was poured, the Euchre cards were on the table and the games began! Christie made us a delicious dinner of homemade enchiladas, Spanish rice and green salad; and after the Gals losing the first two games of Euchre, we called it a night.

FRIDAY, October 8, 2010

Around 9:00 a.m. everything was packed into the cars and we all piled in and off we went. The Gals were in the minivan and the Guys were all in Rob’s truck – which carried our plethora of luggage, food and drink. We drove down Highway 26 south - and as soon as we left “the city”, we were surrounded by miles and miles of countryside rich for farming. Many of the homes were ranches where horses lazily grazing in the meadows. We crossed over several small streams as we drove along the green roadway. Many of the trees were turning colors of yellow, gold and red; and the ground was already starting to fill with golden leaves that had dropped off the trees.

We drove about an hour before we reached our breakfast stop at Camp 18. There is a huge log cabin style restaurant here with a lot of old rusted logging equipment from days-gone-by when I’m sure the area was bustling with loggers. There is also a Logger Museum on the property. As we went inside, you couldn’t help but notice the high, two-story, ceiling built from huge log beams; and there were ceiling fans turning high in the rafters. Around the room were several animals that had been placed on display – one was a huge mountain lion along with a moose head and many others. There were several wood carved statues of animals or figures about 4-5 feet tall apparently carved from large timbers with the use of a chain saw. Many of the tables were flat sections of enormous trees that had been cut and placed on top of a wooden base. One of the most spectacular tables was in the center of the main dining room – one long table that could easily sit 24 people. All of the tables were set with cloth napkins and glassware. In the center of each table were small green crocks holding creamers or your choice of jams and jellies. As you can imagine, our meals were served on large plates and everything was delicious from the biscuits and gravy to the omelets and the French toast.

After our tummies were sufficiently full, we walked through the gift shop and then down to the small stream that was passing by below the restaurant. The water in the stream was shallow and the fallen leaves were catching on the rocks of the babbling brook. Looking back up to the restaurant there were several dozen bird feeders and houses were hanging from the beams full of blue jays feeding to their hearts content.

It was only about 20 minutes from Camp 18 until we reached the small, seaside town of Cannon Beach. We drove to our rental house first to drop off our food and then we headed out as the owners were not quite ready for us. Our first stop was down to the beach near Mo’s Restaurant and the Tolovana Inn. There is a large parking lot there with easy access to the beach. We piled out of the car with cameras in hand and headed north on the beach towards The Haystack monolith. We walked about a mile down the beach. It was high tide. The 5-6 foot waves were crashing as they reached the shore. The sand along Cannon Beach is quite firm, so when you are walking along, you are not slipping and sliding in soft sand. This makes cleaning up much easier and quicker. There were sea gulls feeding on the sand crabs as the water rushed up on the beach. Dozens of people were enjoying the day walking hand in hand along the shore. Off shore, you could see The Haystack which is the largest of the monoliths along with several other smaller ones – and in the far distance looking north - out on a rock island all by itself stood Tillamook Lighthouse.

After walking for a couple of miles, we piled back in the car and drove into town where we walked around a few of the quaint shops and art galleries before we grabbed a few items at the local market and then headed “home”.

We rented “The Cannon Beach Big House” which is on Hemlock Drive one block from the beach. It is a rustic home and very quaint inside. White wooden paneling lines the lower half of the walls downstairs with the wainscoting trim painted in a deep forest green color dividing the wall. There is a large bay window in the front of the living room covered with sheer, white curtains that are pulled back onto hooks that forms a soft frame around the window. Three large upholstered chairs are in front of the window making it a cozy place to curl up and read a good book with the gas log fireplace along the other wall. A couch faces the three chairs on the opposite side of the living area with a dark Persian throw rug bringing the area together. Behind the couch is a large dining table and the kitchen is directly behind to that.

There are four bedrooms in the Big House – the master and one guest room upstairs with one bath and then two bedrooms downstairs – each with its’ own bath. The front bedroom is handicapped equipped with twin beds and an “accessible” bathroom. The home is very quaint and cozy and quite comfortable.

So - the Euchre cards came out and the games were on. The Guys are ahead now 5-1. Christie made us delicious Rachel Ray Weeknight Two Sauce Lasagna Bowls pasta dinner, salad and garlic bread. More Euchre games followed dinner – and the Guys are ahead at this point 5-1.

SATURDAY, October 9, 2010

We woke up Saturday morning to the sound of gently falling rain outside and brisk winds. It was a leisurely morning with everyone coming together in the kitchen eventually for a light breakfast. Jim and I took off for a walk down the beach. Though it was rainy, it was not cold at all. We bundled up and walked down to the waters’ edge and really enjoyed the beautiful scenery. We were out walking around 8:30 a.m. and there were already some brave souls out in the waves. There were not as many seagulls looking for food along the water this morning. The clouds were low and that led to a foggy appearance along the monoliths that jutted out of the water. We headed back to the house when the rain started coming down harder.

Once we were all ready, we piled into the car and our chauffeur, Rob, safely drove us into town to first go to the Visitor’s Center where we picked up a couple of local maps – and then we were off driving south towards the small town of Tillamook.

Highway 101 follows the coastline here and it is quite curvy. There are many pull-outs along the roadside as the coastline is so dramatic. There are many monoliths that jut out of the ocean surf along the edge but nothing as large as The Haystack in Cannon Beach itself. Some of the monoliths have caves in them that years have carved from the salt water crashing waves against them. You are compelled to pull over every chance you get, because the scenery is so beautiful and breathtaking – and you don’t want to miss a thing. We did that several times. Unfortunately, because of the low clouds and foggy conditions, our views were not as spectacular as they would be on a clear day. However, I have to say that I love this weather and seeing things as they are most of the year because of all the rain that Oregon receives, seemed very appropriate to me.

For some reason, I feel different up here. I feel comfortable and “at home”. Perhaps it is because I enjoy being with our friends – and it doesn’t matter where we are. Or perhaps it was because I grew up in Tucson, Arizona and through the years I’ve come to appreciate cooler weather. Even when it rains in southern California, I feel differently and it makes my heart happy.

So now that I have my happy heart, we are still driving with Rob at the helm. As we travel along Highway 101, we noticed that there are wild berry bushes all along the side of the road. At one point when we stopped to take in the view, we picked a few berries and tasted them. They were bitter tart – but I bet that if you mixed them with the right ingredients – perhaps even a splash of Grand Marnier liqueur that you would have one delicious cobbler or pie for dessert! And, I’m sure the house would smell heavenly while you were cooking it with the aroma of all of the ingredients blending together.

We drove through quaint seaside towns along our way including Manzanita, Nehalem Bay, Rockaway Beach and Garibaldi. Garibaldi is on the Tillamook Bay near Crab Harbor. We could not help but notice the dozens of small personal watercraft that were out on the water in the lagoon and along the coast as we drove by. Fishing must have been good, because these fishermen were all wearing their orange or rain gear and standing in the rain with their fishing poles in the water – I’m sure hoping to catch the next big one so they could come home and tell their stories.

There were some house boats along the river inlet south of there. Many of the homes up here are small cottage style vacation homes with rental contact information on the front of them. Then others were definitely private homes proudly standing on the waters’ edge with breathtaking views of the Oregon coastline. Some of these homes had to be well over 5,000 square feet.

As we approached the city of Tillamook on the north end, we saw a couple of large chain stores and of course, McDonalds. We were definitely in a larger community than what we have been driving through to get here.

Tillamook is the home of the Tillamook Cheese Factory and also the home of the delicious and creamy Tillamook Ice Cream. There is a huge complex that is open to the public where you can tour the plant and see the process of making cheese. The Tillamook Cheese Factory only makes a few varieties of cheddar cheese. As we proceeded through the tasting line, there were small cheese cubes to sample of the different varieties. My personal favorite of the samples of cheese was the small squeaky curds. These bite size yellow morsels actually do squeak when you bite down on them for the first time. They are yummy! And – a small package is coming home with us, because I’ve never seen them before in any of our stores in southern California.

After that, the path directed us into the ice cream parlor. The smell of fresh-baked waffle cones was heavenly and it is definitely a positive selling point on their part. We each chose our flavor of choice; and then with smiles on our faces, we proceeded to walk through more of the building. We climbed the stairs to the second floor which is lined with huge plate glass windows for observation of the works below. Below us were long conveyor belts with employees at different stations performing their tasks for the day. One person was cutting, one was stacking, another was slicing and others were performing quality checks at particular points. Eventually the blocks of cheese would be pushed on the conveyor belt into a plastic bag that would automatically inflate at just the right time so the cheese would slip easily into its’ packaging. Further down the conveyer, the package would be sealed, then shrink wrapped and ultimately continued on its way up and out of the large packaging room into another where I’m sure it was boxed up and would be shipped to a store somewhere for us to buy!

When we walked out of the Tillamook Factory to leave, the heavens had opened up and the rain was pouring down. The wind was also blowing quite briskly. Rob very kindly ran out to bring the car over to where the rest of us were, and we all piled in. We drove a little further into the heart of the city of Tillamook where we found Fat Dog Pizza. We ordered a combo pizza and sat by the front window in the small restaurant and enjoyed our lunch. The crust was thin and hand tossed. The sauce had a bit of spiciness to it and was covered with cheese, pepperoni, bell peppers, sausage, onions and olives. It was just perfect on this rainy day. Not too much for any of us. In fact, we even wrapped up several pieces to bring home and possibly have for leftovers or appetizers if we want.

Because it was raining much harder now, we decided not to go out to Cape Meares Lighthouse. Rob and Christie said from the parking lot, it is quite a hike to get to the lighthouse; so we opted to stay dry and head back north to our home for the weekend and play a few hands of Euchre.

When we unlocked the door of the house and went inside, we could all smell our dinner. I had been slow-cooking a pot roast on the stove all day. You just wanted to take a big whiff of the comfortable smell and let out a big sigh.

This weekend has definitely not been in the Gal’s favor as far as the cards go. I think at this point, we are down 7-1. The Guys are enjoying the fact that they have been able to back-up their partners with their hands and win their bids. Not only that, but Rob has “feathered” over five times! When you “feather” in Euchre, it means that you have successfully won every trick after you said that you would in the bidding process. The Guys have done well.

Our pot roast tonight was served with whole new potatoes, fresh baby carrots and the most delicious Brussel sprouts that I’ve ever tasted. Christie made the sprouts; and I must say, until now, I have never liked these tiny cabbages. I doubt that my palette has changed – it was because she is an excellent cook and prepared an incredible side dish.
After dinner the Guys cleaned up the dishes while the Gals went and spruced ourselves up for our night out on Clayton and Natha! They treated us to “A Talent for Murder” by Jerome Chodorov and Norman Panorama at the Coaster Theatre Playhouse in downtown Cannon Beach. The theater will seat about 175-200 people in a very intimate setting. There were three sections of seats terraced down to the stage. The theater has huge open beams above that house the lighting for the production. There is a small entry area with a tiny booth at the end of the parlor area where you can purchase a fresh cookie or coffee or tea during intermission. According to our program, “A Talent for Murder is a suspenseful drama about an internationally famous mystery novelist whose relatives would consider doing anything to get their hands on her money. Her money is in the form of an invaluable art collection, which, to the horror of her heirs, the novelist has considered donating to the Museum of Modern Art.” The entire evening was thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining. We came home and had a nice champagne toast for our anniversaries and played another game of Euchre – which the Gals again lost. The score of the Euchre Tournament is now 8-1 in the Guy’s favor.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Sunday morning was another leisurely morning. We enjoyed a wonderful quiche that Natha made along with lemon, poppy-seed muffins and fresh fruit for breakfast. Coffee brewed and the house smelled wonderful.

After breakfast, we all piled in the car and headed into Cannon Beach downtown to do a little shopping. The Guys took off to find a local tavern where they could take in one of the Sunday football games; and we Gals started our tour of all the boutiques and shops along Hemlock Street. There is a wide variety of choices to choose from including boutique clothing stores to antique stores, a Christmas store, and several art galleries including Jeffrey Hull, a well-known local artist.

We all met up together at the Driftwood Restaurant and decided to head to Mo’s Restaurant at Tolovana for lunch. I think we had one of the best tables in the house – a round table for eight right in the middle of the restaurant and next to the large, plate-glass window giving us a perfect view of the crashing waves on the beach outside. To the north was The Haystack and to the south was the rugged Oregon coastline complete with huge boulders jutting out of the water from the pounding surf along the shore.

After lunch we again piled into the car with Rob in the drivers’ seat and we headed north to Ecola State Beach. From the turn off on Hwy 101¸there is a narrow, two-lane road that winds in and around the thick forest for about three miles until you reach a large parking lot and grassy picnic area. High on the cliff above the ocean, we could see down the coast to the south for miles. It was the same looking north. The surf below was at high tide with waves that appeared to be about 10-15 feet tall. The waves came rolling into shore in perfect sets; and once they reached the jagged rocks along the bottom of the cliff, they crashed and threw spray high into the air. There was a slight wind blowing from the north; and as the waves began to crest and tumble and fall, you could see the wind blow spray for several feet above the wave throwing a mist the opposite way the wave was falling.

We walked down to a new observation deck that was recently built to the south of the parking lot which gave you a beautiful view of the beach below, Haystack Rock and then the rest of the foggy coast. Around 4:00p.m. the tide began to recede and the rush of water from the waves began to give way to more and more beach area to walk on. There is a nice walking path from the observation deck on out to Ecola Point where you have an even more breathtaking view of the Oregon coast in both directions. You can see huge pieces of driftwood that have washed up on the shore and are now piled along the waters’ edge. There were several small streams and a waterfall making their way from the forest behind us to the shore where they met the ocean.

After walking around Ecola State Beach, we ventured on back to the Big House and Christie began preparing a delicious dinner of red beans and rice complete with homemade cornbread. While dinner was simmering on the stove, at sunset we grabbed some wine with cheese and crackers and walked down to the beach. We gathered near several driftwood logs and had a toast to good friends and enjoyed the sunset. As is often along the Oregon coast, there was a light fog which gave a gray hue to the horizon. We chased a couple of the waves washing up on shore. It was getting cool as the sun finally set in the west, and so we wandered on back to the house where we enjoyed our fabulous dinner.
After dinner the Euchre slaughter continued and finally ended with the Guys plucking the Gals feathers” and winning the Euchre Fest 10-1. It was late after that last game and we all headed off to bed.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Our long weekend was coming to and end, and this morning we woke up and had to pack our things and be on our way home. We left the house by 9:00 a.m. and headed north on Hwy. 101 towards Astoria. It took us about 1 ½ hours to reach Astoria and make our way across the two-mile long, green steel Astoria Bridge from Oregon over the Columbia River to the state of Washington. Our destination was Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.

Cape Disappointment Lighthouse is set out on a bluff high above the ocean near the mouth of the Columbia River. After we parked the cars in the parking lot, we made our way up the concrete sidewalk towards the visitor center. As you reach the top of the incline and turn left Cape Disappointment Lighthouse comes into view. With hundred foot tall pine trees behind it, this white and black spiral concrete spire stands proudly on this grassy knowl. Atop the black and white spire is the beautiful glass dome and brass railing. On the walkway around the visitor center you will find several plaques with dedications to those who have lost their lives during inclement weather coming across the treacherous currents at the mouth of the Columbia River.

Being the adventurous ones today, Natha and I took off down the path marked “this way to the lighthouse”. While we thought that everyone knew where we were, we were mistaken; and they began diligently looking for us. We walked further and further down the dirt and rock path that was only about 2 feet wide and line on both sides with the thick forest floor covered with moss and ferns and pines. Eventually, Natha and I began to question actually where we were going. We wanted to get out to the lighthouse, but the directional signs were misleading with one stating it was .75 miles to the lighthouse and the next saying it was 1.2 miles and then another saying .5 miles. When we came upon a beautiful peaceful lagoon, we decided we’d better turn around and head back as none of the rest of our group had apparently followed us. Thus was our trek for today. As we got about half way back up the path, here came Jim and Clayton, Rob and Christie hoping to find us. We left together, laughing at our adventure on the path less traveled to Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.

From Cape Disappointment, we drove around to North Head Lighthouse which is just a few miles away from Cape Disappointment. The walk to North Head Lighthouse is much easier and all paved. The first building that you come upon at North Head is the lighthouse keepers’ house. This is now offered as a B & B and can be rented through the State of Washington. The dwelling is made of concrete to withstand the harsh weather. It is painted white with red trim. As you walk past the keepers’ house, the path takes you along another cliff and in about half a mile you are looking at a statuesque tall lighthouse also painted white with red trim. There are historical markers painted on the side of the lighthouse indicating the longitude and latitude and also the date it was built – 1898.
From North Head Lighthouse we headed back into Astoria and drove across the bridge and up the other side up to the Astoria Column. This dramatic concrete column was erected to commemorate many significant dates in Oregon history from “before the white man came” through the Lewis & Clark Expedition. There are twelve different scenes depicting these historical events; and they start at the bottom and wind upwards to the top of the 124 foot column. Jim, Rob and Clayton went inside and climbed to the top where they came out on a small observation deck.

After our sightseeing of the lighthouses and The Column, we enjoyed a wonderful lunch at The Bridge Water Bistro. Housed inside a barn red building directly underneath the Astoria Bridge, is this wonderful restaurant facing the Columbia River. Our lunch was delicious and came to an end all too soon as we had to get back on the road in order to get to the Portland Airport in time to board our plane.

We drove down I-5 south towards Portland and could not help but notice more beautiful farm country, slow moving rivers winding through the green pastures and magnificent Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens far off in the distance.

Our weekend ended all too soon. Our five days had come to an end; and we found ourselves saying our goodbyes on the curb of the airport terminal. I always hate this part. No matter how much time we have with our friends, it is never quite enough. The scenery was breathtaking, the food was delicious, and the memories are priceless. Thank you to Rob & Christie and Clayton & Natha for celebrating our 10th anniversary with us and for making more special memories. And, to my Jim – the past 10 years have been wonderful. Thank you for coming into my life and letting this butterfly out of her cocoon.

Fundraising on a Cruise!

2010-09-27T14:49:00.000-07:00

Fundraising on a cruise! Where does your non-profit group want to cruise to? Increase your donor interest and giving and have more fun! Give your donors something to get excited about! It is possible to earn thousands of dollars for your non-profit organization on a 7-day cruise!

Your "Enthusiastic" Excursionist, Barbara at Carpenter Travel will help you make all the arrangements to offer your guests a great time on a cruise for a great cause. We can start with a Cruise Night to generate interest - then follow it up with a cocktail party and information about your ports of call. We can arrange for a silent auction on board the ship, special awards dinners, etc. - all at no cost to your non-profit organization.

Many cruise lines will match profits! Carnival Cruise Lines will match funds raised by your non-profit organization in the amount of $5 per day per person. If you designate $50 per person and you book 100 people that is $5,000!

Call me and let's discuss the possibilities of fundraising options for your group! Call Barbara, Your "Enthusiastic" Excursionist at (866) 963-0546 toll free today!

You choose which cruise line and which destination you want and leave the rest to me!

World's Largest Cruise Night Promotion Coming Soon!

2010-09-23T09:40:00.000-07:00

Did you know that October has been designated National Cruise Month by Cruise Lines International Association? And, October 13, 2010 is the World's Largest Cruise Night!

Cruise Lines will be offering special reduced deposits, onboard credits and amenities, onboard coupon books and other special savings!

PRINCESS CRUISE LINES
Reduced deposit of $100 per person and onboard value booklet worth up to $325

CELEBRITY CRUISE LINES
$50 onboard credit for ocean view cabin
$100 on onboard credit for verandah cabin
$150 onboard credit for Concierge Class, Aqua Class or Suites

DISNEY CRUISE LINES
$75 per cabin onboard credit for 7-night Mexican Riviera cruises departing from Los Angeles, CA between September 25, 2011 – December 11, 2011

HOLLAND AMERICA, ROYAL CARIBBEAN, NORWEGIAN and CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES offers to be announced soon!

Call Your "Enthusiastic" Excursionist, Barbara to take advantage of these specials! (619)592-4628 or toll free (866) 963-0546

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 11 - FRIDAY HARBOR, SEATTLE AND DISEMBARKATION

2010-09-14T21:24:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 11 - FRIDAY HARBOR, SEATTLE AND DISEMBARKATION

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

FRIDAY HARBOR, SAN JUAN ISLAND, WASHINGTON

The Yorktown actually arrived at Friday Harbor earlier than expected and so we had to pass some time cruising around the islands before we were permitted to pull into the harbor. We had our last lunch on board the ship and then took off on our adventure to explore San Juan Island.

We rented a car and took off heading east across the island over to Pelindaba Lavender Farms in the middle of the island. The fields have a variety of lavender species growing – all with bumble bees busy buzzing about from blossom to blossom. In the middle of the back field, there is a rugged old wooden wagon with one broken wheel strategically located in the middle of the beautiful purple rows of lavender. It adds a unique dimension to the garden and offers some great photo opportunities. On the other side of the one-lane road is a small pond with its water so clear and still that the reflections from the surrounding trees and shrubs appear to be like that of the image in a mirror.

As you walk away from the fragrant purple fields, there is a small house that serves as a gift shop where you can purchase everything from scented sachets to lavender cooking products. Did you know that lavender is very versatile and not only can be soothing for a sun burn or itching skin but is also an all-natural cleaner and disinfectant and a potent insect repellant? I think it is as versatile as using vinegar or hydrogen peroxide.

When we left the beautiful lavender farm, we headed west towards Lime Kiln Lighthouse in hopes of seeing some of the J pod orcas. The trail down from the parking lot at the lighthouse heads down to the waters’ edge to the viewing area and then on around to the lighthouse. It is about a half a mile down the heavily trodden trail and well worth the hike. You can see across Hairo Strait over to Victoria from there. Jim and Mark hiked all the way to the lighthouse; Debbie stayed at the viewing area and I walked down to one of the tide pools and saw the jelly fish floating in the waters there. There were no whale sightings while we were there; but about an hour after we left we heard that Granny and Ruffles and several more orcas from J pod did show up for a visit.

After the lighthouse we drove back into town and visited The Whale Museum and then walked around the town going in and out of several shops. Friday Harbor is very reminiscent of Bar Harbor, Maine. The area is very hilly and lined with restaurants and shops. We enjoyed a delicious ice cream cone near the harbor from the Friday Harbor Ice Cream Co. on Spring Street before we headed back to the ship late in the afternoon. We sat on the benches near the circle at the bottom of the street and watched the people passing by. Then we ventured back across the street to a small shop and did a little more shopping before we headed down the dock to our ship. We couldn’t help ourselves when we passed by a small shack at the top of the dock selling fresh shrimp and crab cocktails. It was soooooo delicious!

The Yorktown sailed out of Friday Harbor late that afternoon alongside one of the Washington State Ferries that was transiting between there and Anacortes, Washington. Off in the distance towards the mainland we could see Mount Baker standing majestically and proud. Snow covered the top of the mountain.

Our last dinner on board The Spirit of Yorktown was he Captain’s dinner. The crew was all dressed in full uniform and complimentary wine was served to everyone. Desert tonight was served up in the lounge where the pastry chef had prepared a wide variety of caloric delicacies for our taste pallets. From white chocolate brittle to cream puffs to bread pudding and carrot cake – everything was displayed beautifully on the buffet table. People lined up immediately upon entering the lounge to make sure they were able to taste everything. We sat amongst those we had gotten to know during our cruise and enjoyed the photo presentation that David had put together of pictures he had taken and some from our fellow passengers (Yes, some of mine were included). Afterwards, they recapped our voyage and recalled what we had seen and experienced during our ten days on board.

SEATTLE AND DISEMBARKATION

The Spirit of Yorktown cruised into Seattle and into the Ballard Locks to travel from sea level into Lake Union where we would end our cruise. Many of the passengers were out on deck to watch as we made this journey. Because we had just experienced this earlier this summer, we finished our packing and enjoyed one last cup of coffee in the lounge before we grabbed our things and left the ship. We headed down the gangway and were greeted by all of the crew standing in line saying good-bye. Our bus to the airport was nearby and we said our last good bye to those we had met and were on our way back home.

To sum it all up in a nutshell – we have some wonderful memories from this cruise. Many thanks go to Mark and Debbie for traveling with us on this journey and for sharing this with us. We thank David and Alyssa for being so passionate about what they do as Exploration Leaders and for sharing that passion with us. Thank you to our server Scott and to Mark our bartender for giving us very special attention. And, as always I give my love and appreciation to Jim for a wonderful cruise to celebrate our tenth anniversary. Here’s to another terrific ten years and more! Happy Anniversary honey!

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 10 - CRUISING NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA'S INSIDE PASSAGE

2010-09-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

CRUISING NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA’S INSIDE PASSAGE

When we awoke to Alyssa’s gentle voice over the intercom this morning, we got ready with our morning ritual and headed down to the lounge for a little breakfast and coffee. The seas were calm with barely a ripple on them. The skies above were clear and cloud free. It was another beautiful day!

As we passed Gil Island through Whale Channel we were greeted by more humpbacks! These were a very playful pod and were rolling and fin slapping along with diving and showing us their beautiful tails. At one point, one of the larger fins came up out of the water along with a very small one – it was a baby! The Captain was not able to stay for any longer than a few minutes because we had to make sure we got through a certain part of one of the channels south of us before the tide went out – so we had to keep moving. Even though we weren’t there long, it was still another fabulous “whale tale” for us to tell from this cruise.

After we cruised past the whales we entered Princess Royal Channel and traveled along the eastern side of Princess Royal Island. David, our Exploration Leader, had told us to be on the lookout for the elusive Kirmode bear – also known as the “spirit bear”. One in 20 black bears are born white; and there are between 35 and 40 Kirmode bears on Princess Royal Island. While we all sat in the lounge looking at the thick forest, salmon were jumping out of the calm, glassy waters – but no one spotted a Kirmode.

There is no logging permitted in this area and so the forests are thick and plush because of all the rainfall. There were people up on the sun deck enjoying the peacefulness of the beautiful scenery while they read their books, knitted or crocheted or stood at the railings taking pictures. Word passed quickly when someone said they saw either a bear or a moose swimming in the waters behind us – but neither of us saw anything. I did see a harbor seal basking in the sun all alone on a huge knotted and gnarled log just floating along the channel waters. It seemed very content and had no intention of deserting its comfortable ride. A bald eagle was spotted in a tree along the shore; and several more humpbacks were seen in the distance. This was extremely relaxing and enjoyable just enjoying this incredible scenery.

After lunch David announced that we would be coming into an abandoned cannery called Butedale where a caretaker lived alone amongst the dilapidated and weathered buildings. The Yorktown sounded her whistle several times to send a signal to the caretaker to come down to the dock to receive a small care package from us. Unfortunately, no one ever showed up. We all commented that we hoped he was just out for a walk and was safe. Soon after leaving Butedale the weather changed. The clouds thickened and became darker and soon it began raining. It was rather nice being warm and cozy inside The Yorktown in the lounge. Several of us indulged in a warm “adult” beverage of Kahlua, Baileys Irish Crème and coffee – topped with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles, of course! Yummy!

As the afternoon passed on, we passed several more abandoned canneries. There was one where only a rusted smoke stack remained. This was a very relaxing day. After dinner¸ there was a talk about salmon and the different varieties found in the waters of British Columbia and Alaska. We passed Ivory Pt. Lighthouse and were treated to a full moon rising at sunset.

EXPLORING VANCOUVER ISLAND AND THE SUNSHINE COAST

When we woke on Monday morning, we were almost at the northern tip of Vancouver Island. The Yorktown cruised into Johnstone Strait and continued south towards the Strait of Georgia. The skies above us were a bright blue with a thin cloud cover hiding the sun. It was cool and very “brisk” outside with a gentle wind blowing north as we cruised south. In the lounge after breakfast the passengers and crew began to gather in hopes of seeing some of the northern resident orcas.

There were more pleasure craft and private boats in this area as opposed to all of the fishing boats we saw up north. The salmon continued to jump high out of the calm waters all around us. Vancouver Island is 300 miles long and 80 miles wide. In 1792, George Vancouver and Peter Puget mapped this area by canoe looking for the Northwest Passage. We traveled into the Nodales Channel and to an area called Big Bay. The Big Bay area was populated with very large homes overlooking the waters of the channel. There were several large resorts in the area including the Sonora Resort where President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev supposedly met once during their summit meetings during The Cold War.

We were treated to a visit by a another small pod of orcas and some white sided dolphins along with several Dall’s porpoises who enjoyed swimming quickly in the waters as The Yorktown broke water and moved south. We were not permitted to stop in this area, so we had to take our pictures quickly if we saw something. I was leaning so far over the railing at the bow of the boat trying to get a picture of the porpoises that my ribs hurt – but I got the picture! It was well worth it!

The Yorktown continued south through Discovery Passage and Seymour Narrows. This is where the tide currents change swiftly and safe passage is only possible every six hours. The Captain navigated us safely through the narrow passage passed all of the small islands dotting the landscape in the Desolation Sound.

Though we did not see any more whales or much marine life from this point south, it was still another beautiful day. We will arrive at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island just after noon tomorrow. The sunset tonight was incredible. I cannot honestly ever remember seeing the sky so yellow before. It was as if it was on fire.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 9 - METLAKATLA, ALASKA

2010-09-14T21:06:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 9 - METLAKATLA, ALASKA

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

METLAKATLA

After Alyssa came over the intercom system and said “Wake up Yorktown, we will be passing Ketchikan this morning on our way to Metlakatla”, we got dressed and went down for breakfast and coffee in the lounge. It was interesting approaching Ketchikan from the north past the lighthouse on the north end of Gravina Island. Being in a small ship gives you an entirely different perspective of the area around you because you are so close to ground level. When you are on the larger ships, you are hundreds of feet in the air and looking down on everything.

There were no large cruise ships at the dock in Ketchikan as we passed by, so it was easy to find Creek Street and our favorite restaurant “Steamers” which is right along the dock downtown. As we were going by, many of us realized we were traveling very slowly. .

As soon as the ship was tied down and secured to the dock, the passengers were guided to buses up the hill where we were taken to a Tshimshian Clan House for a native cultural dance presentation. Metlakatla is home to both Haida and Tshimshian natives. Their Clan House includes groups from Raven, Eagle, Humpback and Wolf clans. Metlakatla’s main source of income is fishing; and there is a beautiful small harbor near the Clan House full of fishing boats and personal boats as well. This is a self-governing community because they opted to retain their reservation status rather than to incorporate with the Alaska Native Claims Settlement.

We entered the Clan House and instructed to sit on the wooden steps that lined the edge of the interior. A young Tshimshian man dressed in full native clothing came out and began telling us about their culture and introduced the rest of the dancers. This dance group travels all over the lower 48 states performing at schools and different cultural events – including performing at The White House – to share their traditions with others. There are eight different coastal tribes – Tlingit, Tshimshian, Haida, Northern Kwakiutl, Bella Coola, Southern Kwakiutl, Nootka and Coast Salish.

The dance group is composed of babies to elders. Each person makes their own costume. The beading is extraordinary with the detail they incorporate into the patterns. Beads made from shells were used by several of the women. The patterns on the back of their costumes represented the specific clan they were from (i.e. humpback, raven, etc.). One of the older women wore a beautiful red, full-length cape with a whale appliquéd on the back. The band around the entire cape was about 4 inches wide of ¼ inch shell beads that she had meticulously sewn on in perfect alignment with several other bright colored beads interspersed to add color. She had long black hair that fell softly to below her shoulders. She wore wire rimmed glasses and smiled when she danced showing her love and passion in her soft facial expressions.

The Tshimshian people are very proud and very willing to share their culture with you. During the performance of song and dance we were encouraged to get up and dance with them. We were told beforehand that if you did not accept their invitation to dance with them it would be an insult. So, when one of the dancers held out their hand to me, we quickly stepped down onto the floor and moved around the dance floor with our arms outstretched as if we were eagles and then brought our hands together and motioned up and down as if we were whales. It was fun and we were joined by about 50% of the people with us, so there was a large group on the floor.

We wandered through their small shops down the hallway from the Clan House where the women were selling their homemade items. There was everything from jewelry to hand-woven baskets to handmade moccasins. As we went outside, we noticed a totem pole facing the small harbor that was carved of several figures, one of which was holding a Holy Bible. After our allotted time for shopping had come to an end, we were scurried back on the buses and transported back to the ship. We all boarded and went to the dining room for lunch where it was then announced that we only had one working engine and that a crew had been flown in with parts to make the repairs. It was about 12:30 at this time. We were given the opportunity to leave the ship again if we wanted and go explore the town. Jim took off exploring and I took a nap! We finally departed Metlakatla about 5:30 p.m. that evening. At dinner they announced that we had the all-clear from the Coast Guard and were good-to-go. Because of this engine trouble, however, we would not be able to go into Misty Fjords National Monument as originally planned. I think the majority of us were just happy that the ship engine was repaired and we were underway.

So we traveled out of Metlakatla into the Chatham Sound heading south along Porcher Island and Pitt Island.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 8 - LECONTE GLACIER PICTURES

2010-09-14T20:58:00.001-07:00

This glacier was so beautiful that I just have to share more pictures from that fabulous experience. I hope you enjoy them.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 8 -FIVE FINGER ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE & PETERSBURG

2010-09-14T20:41:00.001-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 8

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

FIVE FINGER ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE & PETERSBURG

Thus far on our cruise, we felt we have truly been blessed with unbelievable gorgeous weather and incredible memories. When I woke early again this morning, I had no idea what an incredible day was about to unfold before us. We wandered downstairs to the lounge before 6:30 a.m. when Alyssa quietly woke up the passengers of The Yorktown saying “Good morning Yorktown – it is now 6:30 a.m. and this is your wake up call. Come out on deck as soon as you can as we are amongst a pod of humpback whales.” Within minutes the lounge filled with passengers and their cameras. The incredible experience we were about to have was nothing short of a miracle and truly a blessing.

As we approached Five Finger Lighthouse we began to see a lot of humpback whales spouting and blowing in the distance. The further we traveled, the closer they came and within a short few minutes, we were amongst a pod of about 18 humpback whales ready to put on a fabulous show for us! We weren’t sure where to look for fear of missing something that was happening. On one side of the Yorktown five or six humpbacks would surface and blow then bellow amazing noises much like elephants, and then as if that was their cue, they would each hump their backs dramatically and up came those gorgeous tails! The Captain stopped the ship and we stayed there for over an hour or more. There were whales breaching off behind the ship and off the starboard side. There were whales right in front and right beside us. The cameras were just clicking as fast as they could and all of the passengers were gasping and clapping and yelling in joy at the fabulous performance.

Yes, we had an incredible experience on our Photo Safari by Land & Sea in Juneau and had seen humpbacks and orcas, but not this many! This was one of the most memorable experiences for us and we are so lucky to have been in that area at that time. And Alyssa, well, she was beyond excited – she was just plain ecstatic! She did not stop smiling for the rest of the cruise!

We finally had to leave the area, but not before the whales breached in the distance and said good-bye to us. We continued on in to Petersburg, Alaska; but soon became aware that we were traveling quite slowly. An announcement was made that we were having engine trouble and only had the use of one engine. Several minutes later, a large black and yellow tug boat appeared on our stern and began following us very closely. No announcements were made and we thought it was just protocol for a tug to guide you into Petersburg because it was such a small town

Petersburg, Alaska is on the northern tip of Mitkof Island and has a strong Norwegian heritage. It was founded in 1897 by a Norwegian fisherman named Peter Buschmann and his son August. The population of Petersburg is only about 3,200. As we disembarked the Yorktown the majority of the passengers were directed to buses that took them into the town to enjoy a traditional dance at the Sons of Norway Hall. Not only did they have a nice tour of the small, quaint town, but they were also served some traditional and decadent Norwegian pastries.

Those of us who had signed up for the jet boat excursion to LeConte Glacier (about 24 in all) were directed to two small buses and driven down about two blocks from where the ship was docked to another dock where we boarded our jet boats. The jet boats had an enclosed area where we all sat comfortably and listened to our guide, a history teacher, tell us about the area and what we were about to see. The LeConte Glacier is the southernmost glacier in Alaska.

As we traveled across Wrangell Narrows, we were told that this area is only accessible for smaller cruise vessels and the Alaska state ferries. Petersburg has the largest halibut fishing fleet in Southeast Alaska; and so you see many fishing boats on the waters here. When we left Petersburg we headed east towards the mainland. The closer we got to LeConte Bay the more icebergs we saw. These icebergs were larger and much deeper colors of blue than any other glacial ice we have seen before. Some of the “bergs” were seemingly carved out from where they were in the water and appeared to almost look like mushrooms. Because there is a shelf of glacial soot at the entrance to LeConte Bay, the glaciers get hung up there; so there is a big accumulation of icebergs in this area. The shelf is shallow; and with only 10% of the glacier being above the water, the majority of the mass is underwater and gets stuck on this shallow shelf.

After having been to Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm Fjord to visit the Sawyer Glacier, we had no idea what a treat we were about to experience. The further we traveled down the narrow inlet, the more icebergs appeared. There were small ones and there were some that were almost a hundred feet tall. Some of them appeared to be two separate icebergs – one of top of the other – the bottom being smoother and rounded; and the one perched on top was rectangular and just resting there.

At one point on our journey back to our ultimate destination of LeConte Glacier, we passed aquamarine colored icebergs with dozens of harbor seals resting on top of them. Our jet boat got so close that we could look right into their eyes and see the beautiful patterns of their skins from ones that almost looked like leopard skins to solid colors and everything in between. One even decided to slide down the iceberg he was on and dive into the icy waters when we got close! I’ve never been so close to marine wildlife as this - Not even at Sea World!

Seeing the harbor seals so close was amazing, but when we finally arrived at LeConte Glacier, we all just stood there for a moment on the rear of the boat and just gasped. We were about 150 yards from the face of the glacier and among thousands of small icebergs. Up on one of the mountains to our port (left) side were mountain goats grazing. As we looked into a valley off the starboard (right) side we were told we were looking into a small valley that had been described as the Yosemite of Alaska.

We got to stay at the glacier for almost an hour and a half; and during that time, we witnessed several calvings.

We were so close, that when the glacier calved, we could feel the ripple of the water as the waves moved across the small bay. The deep colors of blue in the glacier were stunning. At one point, I almost felt like I was Superman on his planet Krypton with all the ice spires and columns before me. We could hear the glacier crack and moan. LeConte Glacier moves forward at the rate of 3 feet an hour – so there is a lot of calving. Our guide brings his students up here once a year to take measurements and to record the glacier activity. LeConte Glacier sometimes recedes, but other times it grows. There is approximately 100 feet of snow that falls on the ice field.

We knew our time here was limited – but we were all thrilled to have been able to see such a magnificent glacier and all of the wildlife up so close. When we arrived back in Petersburg, our bus driver took us on a quick tour of the quaint city to show us a few landmarks – and then dropped us off at the dock to board the ship.

As The Yorktown left Petersburg we headed into the Wrangell Narrows towards our next destination, the small native town of Metlakatla.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 7 - TRACY ARM FJORD AND TWIN SAWYER GLACIERS

2010-09-14T18:00:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. y

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

FREDERICK SOUND, TRACY ARM FJORD & TWIN SAWYER GLACIERS

Knowing that we were traveling into an area that we have never been before, we both got up early and headed down for our light breakfast and early morning coffee. We were greeted by a lounge full of fellow passengers all with the same thing in mind. We had multiple humpback whale sightings while we traveled along Kupreanof Island through Holkham Bay and in to Tracy Arm Fjord. Tracy Arm Fjord consists of two fjords that are each about 30 miles long and is home to the Twin Sawyer Glaciers - North Sawyer Glacier and South Sawyer Glacier. Today we traveled to the South Glacier.

We had our first sighting of a goat on a hillside high above us. There are so many beautiful waterfalls that we passed along the way it was incredible. Two of the most beautiful falls were Icy Falls and Hole in the Wall Falls – both of which the Captain maneuvered the ship right up to the face of and everyone on the bow of the boat got wet from the mist. As we traveled further back we passed the Carnival Spirit and Cruise West’s Spirit of Discovery. Passengers from all three vessels were waving to each other as we passed each other.

We began to see several large icebergs floating in the waters around us and then when we turned the final corner before us was an amazing wall of ice. The face of South Sawyer Glacier is about half a mile across with spires hundreds of feet high in the sky. The brilliant deep blue of the freshly exposed ice on the glacier was nothing short of spectacular. I have never seen such blue ice nor had I ever been that close to a glacier before. The Captain stayed at the face of the glacier for quite a long time, and then David told us that if we looked to our right we would see hundreds of harbor seals basking in the warm sun on all of the “bergie bits” in the waters below the glacier. Because the water was so thick with icebergs at this point, the Captain had to keep his distance from them.

When it was time for us to leave, we traveled down the fjord to the place where we had finally turned and could see the glacier and the Yorktown stopped. They announced that Alyssa was going to go off the ship with two other crew members to bring us a sample of a “bergie bit” and that it would be on display in the lounge. She took off in a rubber dinghy and brought back two samples for us to see. They were both about 24” thick. You could actually see the ice crystal patterns in the dense ice. It was amazing to see this so close. They looked almost like a pattern had been stamped into them. Common sense told you that wasn’t possible!

After dinner David told us we would travel through the Wrangell Narrows early tomorrow morning and would pass Five Finger Island Lighthouse. We would be in Frederick Sound, one of the best feeding grounds for humpback whales – and then we would travel on to Petersburg. Guess who was getting up early again in the morning?!

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 6 - SITKA

2010-09-14T17:55:00.000-07:00

SITKA

I woke up early this morning and let Jim sleep in. I got dressed and went downstairs for some coffee and to enjoy the scenery as we cruised into Sitka. We have only approached Sitka from the Pacific Ocean into Crescent Bay on past cruises, so I was anxious to experience gliding on the glassy waters into Sitka Harbor from the north into this small Russian village this time. There was a low lying fog hugging the islands as we passed through. Along the way we passed several fishing boats that had their cranes working hard spreading their nets in the water to gather their fresh fish that day. The fishermen would wave as we went by them. It was a very nice greeting so early in the morning. I stood out on the bow of the Yorktown with my coffee and my camera until Jim finally joined me and we went inside for our light breakfast.

Sitka is the oldest non-native settlement in Southeast Alaska. It is full of Russian and Tlingit history. Sitka means “behind the island or by the sea” in Tlingit. Sitka as we know it today was founded in 1804 by the Russians and was the capital of Russian America for 63 years. It was known as the “Paris of the Pacific”. Once Alaska was sold to the United States, most of the Russian residents left and returned to Russia.

Our included “shore excursion” in Sitka was a tour of Totem Heritage park. When we disembarked the ship, the heavens opened up on us and the rain poured down. Even though we all had our umbrellas and hats on, we still got soaked. But that didn’t stop us from enjoying our time here. Inside the visitor center there were many original totems on display that are now protected from the weather and harmful elements they would normally be exposed to. Among the displays inside were also Tlingit blankets woven from goat hair with very intricate black and white native patterns. There were baskets that had been hand woven by the women in the tribes and samples of beautiful items that had been sewn meticulously interweaving beautiful beads and fur into the patterns. As I walked outside, I noticed an island across the channel with a white and red lighthouse on it. And, yes, I had my camera in hand to capture the moment.

After our tour, we were given the option to be taken back to The Yorktown or to be dropped off in town. We opted for the second and were dropped off near the Heritage Visitor Center where we took off with our umbrellas above our heads to explore the city. We had a very enjoyable lunch of crab melt sandwiches at the restaurant inside the Westmark Hotel up the street from the Visitor Center. After lunch we walked down through some of the local shops and passed the St. Michael’s Russian Orthodox Church in the center of town. St. Michael’s green dome was graced by a bald eagle perched proudly on the cross on the top of the dome as we walked by. Across from the heritage Visitor Center under a wooden cover was a Tlingit ceremonial canoe, painted in bright red, black and white on display.

Alyssa gave a talk on humpback whales after dinner. Her enthusiasm is contagious when she talks about whales in general. She is ¬studying marine life at Western Washington University and also working on a 3rd and 4th grade curriculum on orca whales for the Whale Museum in Friday Harbor, WA. When both David and Alyssa talk in the evenings, they have fabulous examples to share with us and actual specimens of their topic for the day. We saw everything from baleen from inside a humpback whales’ mouth to grizzly bear claws to the fur of most of the wildlife. Their talks in the evenings were very interesting and informative.

When we left Sitka, we followed the same path we had traveled in the early morning hours through Peril Strait around Baranof Island and west into the Chatham Strait where we would then turn west into Frederick Sound and travel to Tracy Arm Fjord and the Twin Sawyer Glaciers tomorrow.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 5 - GLACIER BAY

2010-09-14T17:50:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 5

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

GLACIER BAY

The next morning we awoke to heavy fog and rain. We pulled into Bartlett Cove to the ranger station to bring on board our forest ranger and Tlingit Indian at 5:45 a.m. and then began our way into Glacier Bay – an excursion that would take us 60 miles back into see Marjorie Glacier and the Grand Pacific Glacier. One of the interesting places we passed on our journey into Glacier Bay National Park was the Marble Islands. This is an area that is designated to protecting nesting birds. As we crept closer, we could see the boulders covered with stellar sea lions near the waters’ edge. Then, as the fog lifted a little, we could see black cormorants and white kittiwakes – nesting birds – all perched on the higher rocks of the islands. We could hear the sea lions barking and could see some of them jumping into the frigid glacier waters below. Further on, we came upon our first sighting of puffins. These plump little birds were floating in the icy water proudly. They have a black neck and back with white sides of their head and breast. Their most noticeable feature is their bright orange bill. The puffins we saw were tufted puffins because of the yellow tufts of feathers that curl back from each side of their head.

There were a few sea otters in the distance, but we never got close enough to get decent pictures of them. At one point, one of the crew members pointed out several of them swimming together almost forming what appeared to be a log. These furry mammals were almost hunted to extinction by the Russian fur traders in the 1860’s. They were given full protection in 1911 under the Fur Seal Treaty that was signed by the United States, Great Britain, Russia and Japan. We also saw a humpback whale in the distance.

There was a misty rain falling for most of the morning. The Captain took us into a cove at one point on our journey back into the park. The fog was almost lining the curves of the mountains as they gently met the ocean waters. The aquamarine color of the water was incredible as well as how calm and still the water was. There was not a ripple on it. It was so peaceful and serene and I could not help just stand there in awe of the entire majestic wilderness before me. This beautiful place will forever remain just as it is today thanks for the preservation efforts of people like John Muir.

Later in the morning, our Tlingit (pronounced Klingit) native Alice Haldane spoke to us about her heritage. She is the grandchild of the Wolf clan, the original people of Glacier Bay. Tlingit means “the people”. The Tlingit natives were run out of Glacier Bay because the Grand Pacific Glacier was moving forward. It destroyed all of their homes and artwork. Glacier Bay was the Tlingit homeland and now means “the bay in place of the glacier”, according to Alice. The Tlingit tribe moved to Hooneah or Icy Strait Point on Chichagof Island to wait for the ice to release in Glacier Bay. Unfortunately, that did not happen soon enough and after the turn of the century and the formation of the National Park in 1925, much of the Tlingit homeland was incorporated in the park land and thus prohibited activities of the Tlingit there. Hoonah means “village by the cliff” in the Tlingit language and Hooneah became Hoonah in 1901. The Tlingit tribe did not return to Glacier Bay for many years. The National Park Service maintained relations with the Tlingit and recently has encouraged them to return to the park where they can carry out some of their traditions. They have also been encouraged to return on boat trips for the children and the tribe natives to come back and learn about how this all figures in to their spirituality. Alice seemed genuinely appreciative that she was “allowed” to return into the park on our Cruise West boat and to share her heritage with us. She ended her talk by saying “Gunalchéesh” (Thank you) and “Tsoo Ye Lek’waa sa Teen” (Until we meet again). Alice was very interesting to listen to, and we thoroughly enjoyed hearing her speak about her people.

Around 1:00 in the afternoon, The Spirit of Yorktown arrived at the face of Marjorie Glacier and Grand Pacific Glacier. Because of the fog and rain, it was difficult to see the massive ice mass before us. The green glacier waters below had a few icebergs floating in the glassy waters here and there. Because of the weather conditions, it was difficult to see the glacier face all at the same time. We were encouraged when the fog would lift for a moment and we would get a glimpse of the towers of ice – but we never got to see the truly incredible river of ice as we have seen before on earlier cruises. We were further disappointed when the Captain left Marjorie Glacier after only being there for about half an hour because The Spirit of Yorktown only moved at 12 knots, and we had to be out of the park by a certain time. On our way out of Glacier Bay, the Captain did slow down at one point to show us a faraway glimpse of Lampugh Glacier; but those were our only glacier sightings for the day. We stopped at Bartlett Cove to drop off our ranger and Alice before we headed west between Baranof and Chichagof Island through Peril Strait to Sitka which would be our next port-of-call.

That evening after dinner, David talked about Sitka and its’ Russian heritage. When we returned to our cabin after his talk, we were surprised to have received a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries from the crew of The Yorktown in celebration of our Tenth anniversary. We shared the champagne the next evening at dinner.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 4 - SKAGWAY

2010-09-14T17:45:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 4

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

SKAGWAY – JEWELL GARDENS AND GLASS BLOWING

Skagway is a small town at the very end of the Lynn Canal and is well-known for being the jumping off point for the Gold Rush of 1898. The thousands of hopeful prospectors came to Skagway and then found themselves having to hike the treacherous Chilkoot Trail up the mountains to the Yukon Territory and Dawson City where gold was found by Mr. George Carmack. Back in the late 1800’s, thousands upon thousands of people converged on this small town increasing its’ population almost overnight from a mere 500 natives to a city where 1,000 people were passing through it every week for several years. The population grew to almost 20,000 during the Gold Rush. There is a lot of memorabilia around Skagway from that period in tine. There are many pictures of the unbroken chain of people hiking four miles of the steep trail and climbing the last 1,500 steps that were carved out in ice because of the weather conditions then. It is hard to imagine what they endured in hopes of striking it rich.

Today, the year-round population is only about 300 people and increases to about 800 during the summer. When the mega cruise ships come in to port, the town has an influx of almost 2,000 people or more instantly.

We cruised down the Lynn Canal early in the morning and arrived in Skagway about 7:00 a.m. It was clear but windy outside. We disembarked the ship around mid-morning to go explore the shops on our own then returned to the ship for lunch.

Skagway is known as “The Garden City of Alaska” where the long days of summer considerably increase the growing of the flowers and vegetables. It is a city where giant cabbages and tomatoes grow seemingly overnight because of the continuous sunlight during the summer. On this visit to Skagway¸ we thought we should explore this phenomenon a little more and chose to go visit The Jewell Gardens. Our group gathered at the end of the pier, and we were taken by shuttle buses to the gardens. As we drove into the parking lot, we saw a small building not more than 75 feet wide with a window on either side of the door with a painted wooden sign “Jewell Gardens” above it indicating we had arrived at our destination. Off to one side there was a gazebo where we were instructed to gather and begin our tour. There were a few flowers out front in planters or pots but once the gate was opened and we walked inside, it was like walking into a floral fairy land. The flowers were every color of the rainbow and with the lush evergreen bushes and trees as a backdrop, the dimensions of the landscaping became apparent. At one point as we were walking along the path, I looked across the small acre of land focusing on the beautiful colors and as I brought my head up the majestic, snow-capped mountains were off in the distance against a sky of blue. I just had to stop and take in all the beauty at that moment.

The begonias were stunning. These flowers do not grow well in Southern-California where we live. The flowers at home are only about 1 inch in diameter. The flowers we saw before us were magnificent and almost 4 inches in diameter. The colors were beautiful; and I wanted to just stand there and admire them because I had never seen a begonia like that. We continued on along the path where the gardens were meticulously manicured and landscaped. Then, when we reached the middle of the area, we realized there was a miniature train running through the area. The train set was also landscaped, complete with snow capped mountains and the main street of Skagway. As we stood there, a train whistle blew and here came The White Pass and Yukon Railway train right through the city. It was adorable and quite authentic after being scaled down as much as it was.
From here we ventured on into the vegetable garden where we found plush growth with cabbage heads twice the size of any I’ve ever seen in a grocery store before. The zucchini and yellow squash were double size as well. And, the artichokes were larger than the giant artichokes I purchase from Monterey, CA area, still standing tall on their stems. It became immediately apparent that the myth of Alaska growing larger vegetables because it is “The Land of the Midnight Sun” is very true indeed. These vegetables that we saw were proof positive.

After we finished our tour of the gardens, we were directed into a barn where we sat on long wooden benches and treated to a demonstration of glass blowing. The final product was a stunning red, white and blue decorative glass bowl. As we left, the bowl was placed into an oven where it would cure for 24 hours and then be available for purchase. Yes, our next stop was the gift shop where incredible pieces of blown glass from vases and bowls to wine glasses and miniature Christmas ornaments were available for you to purchase. Each of us in the group chose something special and carried it gently and carefully out of the building.

To our surprise, our afternoon was not over yet. We were taken into a lovely garden tea room with picture windows on one side of the room overlooking the Jewell Gardens. The room had a tall ceiling with white fans gently turning to keep the air moving. There were square tables for four set up with white linen table cloths and pastel pink floral napkins placed inside adorable silver tea pot napkin rings on each table along with white china and tea cups. At the end of the room on a table were beautiful old-fashioned ladies hats complete with feathers, lace and ribbons; and we were told to pick one out and wear it for our “tea party”. The hat I chose was a small black calico print with black ribbons and tulle netting with a wide brim and soft, puffy top. It was gorgeous; and I wish I could have purchased it. We enjoyed our tea (many of us were warm and chose iced tea) along with our tray of traditional tea edible delights like cucumber sandwiches, a slice of carrot cake, scones and English shortbread cookies.

After that we were shuttled back into Skagway where we opted to stay in town for a little longer to wander through some of the quaint shops before we walked back to our ship. On our walk back our path took us along a street where pyracantha trees were growing along the sidewalk. Their red berries were bunched together; and it looked almost as if it was a tree already decorated for Christmas. We also passed an old wooden skiff alongside one of the buildings near the dock that had been filled with dirt and transformed into a gorgeous planter of bright purple lobelia and white alyssum. The flowers were so thick and plush that they were flowing over the edge of the old wooden boat; and it was gorgeous just sitting there on the ground.

That night after dinner, Exploration Leader Dave talked about the three different species of bear in Alaska – Polar, Brown/Grizzly and Black bear.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 3

2010-09-14T17:39:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 3

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

EMBARKATION AND SAILAWAY ON THE SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

We could see The Spirit of Yorktown from our hotel window at the Goldbelt Hotel in Juneau as she pulled into the harbor in Juneau on August 15, 2010 early in the morning around 7:00 a.m. Though we could not begin boarding her until 3:00 p.m. we were all still anxious to get the cruise portion of our vacation underway.

The shops along Juneau’s waterfront were all open early in anticipation of the cruise ship passengers converging on their town in hopes of finding that one special souvenir that they can’t do without before heading home. We joined all of the tourists and visited the shops one more time before we left.

We decided to take the Glacier Express bus out to see Mendenhall Glacier one more time before we boarded the ship and left in hopes of possibly seeing a black bear feeding on the salmon in the river or getting a better picture of Mendenhall Glacier. There is a very informative and interesting Visitor’s Center at Mendenhall; and we walked up to that and spent time going through the exhibits inside and watching the film that is presented by the National Park Service. After that, we headed down to the walkway that is along the river overlooking the glacier. The walkway is raised about 10-12 feet above ground and is built with sturdy wooden planks to walk on with a nice railing and thick fence wire underneath to prohibit anyone from falling. There are rangers at several points along the way to explain to you what you are seeing. The main attraction for everyone at this time of year is to see the salmon running. The river was thick with red salmon. The unfortunate thing about walking on this path at this time of year is the stench from the dead salmon on the edge of the river. Thus is the circle of life.

The passengers of The Yorktown all gathered in one room at the Goldbelt Hotel in Juneau at 3:00 p.m. We sat at round tables for eight and began chatting and getting to know some of the 130 other passengers who would be joining us on our journey from Juneau to Seattle for the next ten days. On the walls in this gathering room were poster pictures of Alaskan wildlife; and we all looked at them hoping that we would be able to get the chance to experience these animals up, close and personal on our cruise.

From the Goldbelt, we were bused in four buses across the bridge over the Gastineau Channel to Douglas Island where we arrived at the Perseverance Theater. This small theater was founded in 1979 and its’ mission is to entertain people with Alaska Native work.

Today, we saw a production of “Cedar House” that was written and produced by Ishmael Hope, a Juneau storyteller of Inupiaq and Tlingit heritage. He and another actor told five different native stories. The stage is simple and made of cedar planks. There are a few native Indian props that are used during the performance strategically located around the stage.

The two men began by telling us “The Origin of Mosquitoes” then continued with “The Clan Migration”, “The Birth of Raven”, “The Salmon Box”, and ended with “The Raven and the Brown Bears”. There was some dancing and beating on drums, but really not much music. The entire performance was about 30 minutes long.

After the performance, we were finally back on our bus and headed to The Spirit of Yorktown to board and get underway on our cruise! When we arrived at the dock a good portion of the ships’ crew were standing at the foot of the gangway to welcome us as we boarded – including the Captain! Once we were onboard, a crew member took us to our cabin and then we were on our own to explore and meet up in about half an hour for our mandatory safety drill.

Because the ship only carriers 130 passengers, there is only one dining room. There is a lounge area with couches and comfortable chairs which is where we would gather each evening after dinner to hear a talk on wildlife, whales, native culture and many other interesting topics. There were two Exploration Leaders on board, David and Alyssa.

The Yorktown has three decks – the Sun Deck with four balcony cabins and the bridge, the Promenade Deck and the Main Deck. It is 17 laps around the Promenade deck to complete one mile. The Sun Deck is partly covered with white Adirondack chairs and small round tables with white wooden chairs around them. Many people spent time hear reading their books as we cruised the waters of the Inside Passage. The Sun Deck is also the only place where smoking is allowed on the ship. From the Promenade Deck, if we climbed down one flight of stairs we would be on the Main Deck where there were inside cabins and the lounge towards the front of the vessel. The lounge looked like a very large living room filled with vinyl covered, curved bench seats that were on both sides of the room with marble topped round tables. In the middle of the room were love seats and chairs all placed in groupings to encourage groups of six or eight to get to know one another. There was a bar at the back of the lounge – mid ship – and the buffet station at the very front of the room under the floor to ceiling picture windows overlooking the bow of the boat.

Casual breakfast was served in the lounge at the buffet station. That consisted of English muffins, toast or bagels that you could toast yourself, a variety of dry cereal, one hot cereal such as oatmeal or cream of wheat, yogurt and a few different breakfast pastries served along with a beautiful platter of fresh cantaloupe, honeydew melon and pineapple. Coffee, tea and hot chocolate were available 24/7 near the bar. A more “hearty” breakfast was served in the dining room where you could get an omelet, waffles and the like.

In addition to a full lunch served in the dining room every day, a lighter fare was also offered in the lounge at the buffet station. There was always some sort of meat carving from roast beef or turkey to corned beef and pork. In addition, there was always a green salad with three types of dressings as well as a special salad such as a Caesar or Waldorf salad. Along with hot soup, there were also platters of quarter size sandwiches. Warm, homemade cookies were put out every afternoon around 3:00 on the bar for anyone wanting a snack.

Happy Hour began at 5:30 p.m. every afternoon with hor’sdeouvres brought around by the wait staff.
Dinner was served at either 6:30 p.m. or 7:00 p.m. depending on our schedule for the day. Even though dinner was “casual”¸ the tables were set with white linens, china and crystal along with a bud vase with fresh flowers in the center. You had a choice of four entrées for dinner (fish, chicken, meat or vegetarian), two choices of salads and one special desert like peach cobbler or chocolate or vanilla ice cream and a mango sorbet.

Nonetheless, at about 7:00 p.m. on August 15, 2010 the lines were tossed from the dock in Juneau and our journey through the Inside Passage began. As we left port the skies to our north glowed with a brilliant sunset of pinks on the lofty clouds in the sky. We were on our way!

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 2-JUNEAU

2010-09-14T17:24:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 2

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

JUNEAU PRE-CRUISE

JUNEAU AND HELICOPTER AND DOGSLEDDING ADVENTURE

¬¬After our delicious breakfast of fresh bagels and warm coffee at Silverbow Bakery in Juneau, we took off to explore the town. We walked all the way from one end of town to the other and back again several times searching for different items we couldn’t leave behind. We enjoyed going into the different gift shops to see the different offerings. Many of the shops are owned by the native locals and offer native Tlingit art from wooden bowls carved, shined and polished to a beautiful gloss out of birch wood to detailed totem poles or canoe oars.

Lunch today was at Roma’s Pizza located in the blue wooden hangar building near Marine Park. All of us had a slice of pizza with a salad and iced tea. It was delicious margarita style pizza with a nice sauce and lots of cheese. Our salads all had vinaigrette dressing.

Once we went back to the hotel to freshen up and grab our cameras we were off on our helicopter dog-sledding adventure with Coastal Helicopters. The van came and picked us up from the lobby of the Goldbelt Hotel. We were driven out to the heliport which is near the Juneau airport. We were all given special glacier boots to put on over our shoes and given our safety talk and then walked out to the helicopter. There were six of us on this trip – Mark & Debbie, me and Jim and another couple of Australia. Mark and Debbie were seated in the small front bench seat of the helicopter and the other four of us were in the small back bench seat squished in between the two helicopter doors.

As we lifted off the ground from the heliport, it seemed very calm, almost as if we were floating in a balloon above the ground. We never felt any turbulence. We gained altitude and flew over the southern part of Mendenhall Glacier over to Herbert Glacier which is to the northwest and adjacent to Mendenhall Valley. The weather in downtown Juneau was a bit cloudy, but once we rose above the clouds, the sun was shining and it was an absolutely glorious day. The suns’ rays shined down onto the glaciers below and they glistened brightly.
We flew further back into the river of ice that the Herbert Glacier has formed until we reached a large open area where we eventually saw the dogs and the mushers’ camp. The helicopter gently landed and the door was opened by Jake Berkowitz, our musher. Jake has red hair and freckles and has competed in the Iditarod four times. He has seventy dogs altogether, but only forty were with him on the glacier today. The dogs are transported to the glacier on the same helicopters that we were flying in except they remove the seats and put the dog kennels in their places.

Jake took us up to introduce us to the dogs. We slid and sloshed through the mushy, glistening snow. Even though we had on our glacier boots, it was still very slippery. There were two sleds hooked up to our team of 14 sled dogs. Mark and Debbie rode in the first sled with Jake as their driver standing behind them. A rope tied our two sleds together; and I sat down on our sled with Jim standing behind me as our driver.
And off we went! The initial start is a jolt for those sitting because the dogs suddenly begin running; and I found myself holding on for dear life. Once we were underway, we glided over the snow. It was not a smooth ride as there are many different bumps and areas thicker than others with the glacial snow that caused ruts. There were times when we were gliding along where we would pass thick clear frozen ponds that were a deep blue or deep turquoise color and absolutely gorgeous.

To our surprise, our ride was extended by Jake; and we continued on our venture for 5 or 6 miles instead of the 1 or 2 that we had anticipated. We traveled in a circle 8 configuration and kept traveling closer and closer to the face of Herbert Glacier. After our ride was over, we were taken to meet the dogs and to visit with some of the dogs in their kennels. We saw the cooking tent where things were set up for cooking for the two mushers. They said they ate a lot of chicken. There were some very large shallow holes dug into the ice where they said they would gather the dog hair after brushing them and then scoop them all up and fly it down back to Juneau for waste.

Our helicopter ride back to Juneau took us back up over Herbert Glacier and then across the face of Mendenhall Glacier and through the valley back to the heliport. It was a calm flight and as we always say, over too soon.

JUNEAU AND OUR PHOTO SAFARI BY LAND AND SEA

I think what we all want most is for our vacation experiences to live up to our expectations. Our Photo Safari by Land and Sea that was offered through Gastineau Guiding did not disappoint us in any way and gave us memories we shall cherish forever.

Our afternoon began around 2:00 p.m. when our group gathered and we met our guide, Adriane. We were taken by a shuttle bus out to the Mendenhall valley. On our way there, Adriane asked about our photo experience and explained that we would be hiking for about a mile up the back side of one of the mountains to where we would have beautiful views of Mendenhall Glacier. After our hike, we would then be taken down to Auke Bay where we would board a whale watching boat and head out to find some marine wildlife.
Before you reach the entrance to Mendenhall Glacier Visitor’s Center, there are several hiking paths leading from Mendenhall Valley Road. We gathered on a bridge that crossed a small river full of spawning salmon. The salmon were turning bright shades of red and were very easily seen through the clear, shallow water of the river. Everyone once in awhile, one of the salmon would jump and splash in the water creating a lot of commotion. This was seeing the “circle of life” come full circle as these salmon were swimming back to where they were born to lay their eggs and be fertilized before they quickly died.

As we walked up the trail, Adriane would point out different interesting aspects of the forest from trees that had fallen because beavers had gnawed on the trunks, several varieties of forest mushrooms, different berries that were ripe for the picking of the 17 black bear that live in the area to the beautiful mosses, ferns and wild-flowers that blanketed the forest floor. The mushrooms were all different with some being in clusters and some standing alone. Adriane also offered suggestions on settings for our cameras to take certain pictures and was helpful to several of us who did not have as much experience as some of the others in the group.

There were ponds of water still and clear as a mirror with dozens of mosquitoes flying above. As we climbed higher, we crossed several streams that were gently flowing down the mountain. You could hear the babbling of the water as it flowed softly over the rocks. The forest floor was thick with moss and ferns and lichen gently falling from some of the tree limbs indicating that the air at that point in the forest was the purest air there is, thus allowing the lichen to grow. We all stood on the trail and took in deep breaths. Most noticeable to me was the pine scent from the trees surrounding us. There were several rock markers along the trail that indicated the ice from Mendenhall Glacier had been there at one time in the past.

As we crested the trail and started down, Mendenhall Glacier appeared in the distance. The views of the glacier were spectacular. The sun was shining which added a deeper hue of blue to the cracks and crevices of the glacial mass. We hiked on down to ground level, where we went out to the edge of Mendenhall Lake and were able to see icebergs floating in the frigid waters within a few feet from us. Icebergs are also known as “bergie bits”. There was one bit floating near the shore that was completely transparent. You could see the ice crystals in it. Others were much larger and were beautiful shades of turquoise or deep blue – and yet others were still white on top from just breaking off the face of the glacier.

After we left Mendenhall Glacier, we headed to Auke Bay which is north of Juneau about 15 miles and the harbor where most of the fishing boats call home. Adriane introduced us to our boat captain; and after our safety talk, we were off and gliding across the calm waters of Auke Bay into the Lynn Canal in search of marine wildlife – hopefully – whales!

We traveled up along the coast for about half an hour or so along Shelter Island and Lincoln Island with Herbert Glacier off in the distance to the east. As we reached the northern tip of the island to our west, we came upon a pod of humpbacks who were feeding in the plentiful waters of the small ocean inlet. We have never been so close to whales before. Our captain turned off the engine which allowed us to just ¬float quietly amongst these gracious mammals and watch as they would crest the water then dramatically hump their backs and dive down for their feast. As they would dive down, their tails would glide out of the water so majestically. They were within about 50 feet of the boat, and everyone was clicking pictures as fast as they could to be able to get the succession of pictures from each whale as they began feeding below. There must have been about half a dozen humpbacks around us. It was an incredible experience; and when the captain told us he was going to leave, we all moaned and groaned – until he told us he got word there was a pod of orcas about half a mile ahead of us. We all quickly went to our seats and off we went!

The sight we came upon was nothing short of spectacular! There were about four other whale watching boats already in the area when we arrived. Each of the boats had their engines turned off as we did once we came within 100 yards of the whales. There was a group of about five or six orcas who were diving up and down in quick succession and all staying very close to each other.

After we had been there for several minutes, it appeared that the whales became curious about the boats and they began swimming to each boat as if to say hello. The passengers in each of the boats were screaming with such excitement as the orcas would get closer and closer to them. When the orcas came over to our boat, they began diving right under us! One spouted close to us and some of us got wet from the spray. Other than seeing Shamu at Sea World, I’ve never been so close to an orca before! It was thrilling and incredible and absolutely the experience of a lifetime for me. I couldn’t take pictures fast enough.

These majestic black and white mammals swam around and graced us with their presence for several minutes. They seemed very gentle and playful; and I never felt in danger of them being so close. When they swam away from our boat and swam on to the next, we were all so disappointed. Though they were only a few hundred yards away, it seemed like miles compared to having them diving right next to us a few moments before. We stayed in the area for quite awhile watching this spectacular show, but then had to leave to head back into Auke Bay as our tour time was ending.

The waters in Auke Bay were calm and serene and like a mirror when we entered the harbor. The sun was just beginning to settle in the west and a light pink hue was on the clouds. There were a few sea lions on one of the buoys as we entered, and as we passed one of them barked like he was saying hello. We pulled into the dock and saw several fishing boats that had fishermen proudly showing off their catch from the day. The salmon derby was being held in Juneau the weekend we were there – so all of the fishermen were hoping to catch “the big one” and win the trophy.

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE NO. 1

2010-09-14T17:21:00.000-07:00

CRUISE WEST TRAVELOGUE No. 1

SPIRIT OF YORKTOWN

GOLD RUSH INSIDE PASSAGE – JUNEAU TO SEATTLE

August 15, 2010 to August 25, 2010

Pre-cruise in Juneau

We flew from San Diego to Juneau on August 12, 2010 (three days pre-cruise) in hopes of being able to explore Juneau a bit more than we have been able to do on past cruises. Our weather could not have been better. We had clear skies and 75 degree weather. It was spectacular in every sense of the word.

After we dropped off our bags and checked into our room, we headed out for a bite of lunch and then a trek out to Mendenhall Glacier. We enjoyed some halibut fish tacos outside on the deck at The Hangar. The Hangar is a small building that houses several restaurants and boutique shops along with Wings Alaska which is where we took our float plane trip out of last month. Around the corner is Marine Park, dedicated to the gold miners. There is a very large octagonal cover made of huge wooden timbers and concrete bench type seats underneath. It provides much shade and a nice resting place after walking the city.

The city bus system in Juneau only costs $1.50 to ride from downtown Juneau out to the drop off point at Mendenhall Glacier; so we decided to give that a try rather than do an organized tour. The bus is a regular city bus with many stops as you pass through town. After about 30 minutes we were dropped off on Glacier Loop Road where we began our hike into the glacier. On the surface, a mile and a half did not seem that far – but believe me – this was a l-o-n-g hike in to get to the glacier. There is a paved walking path along the road to keep you out of harms’ way of the oncoming cars. We passed thick, dense forest with the ground covered with several different kinds of moss. Not only was it growing out of the dead trees on the ground, but it was also hanging from the trees above.

We trekked over a small bridge with crystal clear mountain water and red salmon spawning and swimming upstream. As we walked on, we came across a small pond of standing water with barren grey tree trunks standing in the water. In the distance, however, was the beautiful Mendenhall Glacier. The water in the small pond was so still that it was mirror-like; and the reflections were unbelievable.

Once we finally arrived at the entrance to Mendenhall Glacier, we found a small nature trail that is built of wooden planks over the babbling brook below. The salmon were swimming upstream, splashing and jumping up through the incline of the stream. The walkway has short wire sides with wooden top rails for your safety. This is bear country. Although there are 17 bears that live in the area when the salmon are spawning, we did not see any of them.

As you walk through this area, there are several places where you have spectacular views of the glacier itself.
Mendenhall Glacier is the only known glacier to be within city limits in the United States. It is part of the Juneau ice field and a very popular destination. There is a beautiful round visitors’ center above that offers several exhibits and a nice movie about the glacier and how it has receded.

We grabbed a taxi back to town and walked around a bit before stopping for a hamburger at The Mesa Grill. The Mesa Grill is a little orange shack on a side street just up from Broadway (the main street in Juneau). The wooden building is painted orange and a Tlingit Indian woman owns it. She told us that she used to have an actual building that was burned down several years ago. She was told she had to build another building to replace it; but she chose to go smaller and build this small shack instead to cut her expenses. She specializes in grilling Angus burgers, reindeer sausage and chicken kabobs. Our burgers were very tasty and quite juicy. We sat outside at a small round table and enjoyed our burger along with a local man who sat there chatting with us for a bit about the area and what there was to see and do. Our friends Mark and Debbie arrived in Juneau that evening and after meeting them in the lobby of the hotel, we all headed off to our rooms with much anticipation of what was before us in the coming days.

During our few days in Juneau we enjoyed a lot of fabulous local food. In addition to The Mesa Grill we had a delightful light lunch at Romo’s Pizza in the Hangar building where we had a piece of pizza, a small salad and a glass of thirst-quenching iced tea. We also ate at The Hangar and enjoyed some halibut fish tacos one afternoon. Another afternoon we had lunch at The Twisted Fish – which was the nicest of all of the restaurants we visited in Juneau. For breakfast we enjoyed bagels at The Silverbow Bakery and pastries one day at The Paradise Café. Dinner one evening was delicious at the Goldbelt Hotel where we stayed. We ate at their restaurant “Zen” and filled our tummies with some delicious Chinese cuisine. Another one of our favorite places to grab a bite to eat in Juneau is at Tracy’s Crab Shack next to the dock in downtown Juneau. She won Third Place for her Seafood Chowder this year on the East Coast. It is delicious!

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 9

2010-07-31T13:03:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -
9. MAKE SURE YOUR FAMILY KNOWS HOW TO CONTACT YOU. Leave a copy of your itinerary along with contact info for any cruise ships, hotels or homes you will be at.Put your cell phone no. and e-mail address on there also.This came in extremely handy for us on our last trip when we had to be in contact with family because of an emergency.A good travel agent will provide a list for you.

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 8

2010-07-31T13:02:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -
8. CONFIRM YOUR TRAVEL TIMES AND CHECK-IN 24 HOURS IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR FLIGHTS. Check your travel docs and make sure you have everything you need.Make sure your flights are on time and your connections are too.You can check-in online early and guarantee your seat. Many airlines "overbook".Better to be safe than sorry.

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 7

2010-07-31T13:01:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -
7. THE DAY BEFORE YOU LEAVE, WATER ALL YOUR HOUSE PLANTS AND FERTILIZE.If you do not have a house sitter, gather your plants and set them in a bath tub or shower.It will be cooler, especially in the summer and it will be like a greenhouse.I also put in a plastic bucket of water and a lamp on a timer.

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 6

2010-07-31T12:59:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -

6. DOUBLE CHECK YOUR RESERVATIONS AND MAKE SURE THERE ARE NO LAST MINUTE TIME CHANGES ON FLIGHTS. Sign up online to receive any changes to your reservation. Alternatively, call your travel agent and ask them to check on everything for you. It's better to be safe than sorry! 15 minut...es can make a huge difference!

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 5

2010-07-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -

5.COUNT YOUR PILLS AND MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH OF YOUR MEDICATION TO HAVE YOU WHILE YOU ARE GONE. If not, contact your pharmacist and/or doctor to get a little extra for the vacation. Then, pack your pills in your carry-on and keep them with you in their original bottles. You don't want to take any chances of loosing those!

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 4

2010-07-27T07:59:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -

4. TALK TO YOUR CELLULAR SERVICE PROVIDER IF YOU ARE GOING OUT OF THE COUNTRY. If you are traveling to Canada or Mexico you can add Nationwide plus Canada or Nationwide plus Mexico to your plan and no roaming charges will apply. The cost is minimal and you'll have access in a fore......ign country!

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 3

2010-07-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -

3. CALL YOUR BANK AND CREDIT CARD TO LET THEM KNOW YOUR TRAVEL PLANS.
Most banks and credit card companies keep track of spending patterns. They may interpret your out of town or out of country purchases as possible credit fraud and freeze your card. Notifying them ahead of time will save a lot of embarrassment and stress on your part.

10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 2

2010-07-27T07:56:00.000-07:00

2. TAKE CARE OF "STOP" ORDERS and ADVANCE PAYMENTS. -
Once your travel is booked, place a "stop" order on any regular deliveries to your house like newspapers and mail. Sometimes this can be done online. This should be done at least 3-4 days before you leave to ensure the message gets to the proper place in time.

10 THING TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL - No. 1

2010-07-27T07:55:00.000-07:00

‎10 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TRAVEL -

1. CONTACT THE KENNEL AND/OR THE HOUSE SITTER - Once your travel date is confirmed, give a quick phone call and "reserve" your space. People are traveling more, which means pet sitters and kennels are busier!

Dedication to my Father-in-Law

2010-07-12T22:25:00.000-07:00

I dedicate my Travelogues through today to my Father-in-Law, Mel. He was my biggest Travelogue fan and really enjoyed reading about what we did each step along the way of each journey we took. He looked forward to our Travelogues and was always so complimentary when he read them. The last day of his life, he was reading our Travelogues and knew we were going to be in Fairbanks. I know deep in my heart that when he passed on July 10th and we were on the train from Fairbanks to Denali - that was no coincidence. We were where we were meant to be. "Fairbanks" was the code name for the ship that both he and my Jim served on. And, he loved trains. I know he's on a great train ride now - and he's the Conductor!

Melvin James Carpenter
January 16, 1920 to July 10, 2010 - (90 years) A long life well lived

DAY TWELVE - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - DENALI TO ANCHORAGE

2010-07-12T17:04:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY TWELVE – JULY 11th – DENALI TO ANCHORAGE
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

We woke early this morning to the pitter patter of water dripping from the roof. It was raining. This was the last day of our trip. After we gathered up everything, Jim and I headed over to the Denali Park Visitors Center to look at the exhibits. I found a nice cozy corner near a massive stone fireplace where I was able to catch up on a couple of my Travelogues and look through some of my pictures. Our group began to gather around 11:30 in the lobby of the Visitors Center, and then we all walked over to the Alaska Railroad Depot where we caught our southbound train at 12:00 noon.

It continued to rain outside, which made going out on the platform behind our rail car to take pictures not a real pleasant experience. As we pulled away from Denali, the car got quiet for awhile as we all realized this was the end of a great adventure with Holland America. By the time we reach Anchorage, we will have traveled over 5,250 miles together through some of the most beautiful and scenic wilderness on earth. We passed Summit Lake at 2,368 feet which is the highest point on the Alaska Railroad. From here, the rivers will flow south towards Anchorage.

The ground up above 2,500 feet is known as Tundra; and below 2,500 ft. it becomes Tiaga (pronounced Tiga). The trees are beginning to get thicker and bushier and the ground cover is also thicker. The railroad parallels the highway with flat marsh lands with countless pools of water dotting the vast landscape.

There is a deep deep gulch that the railroad passes over that is known as Hurricane Gulch because of the hurricane force winds that have been known to pass through there. The trestle bridge is quite impressive as it spans the gulch. From here we traveled south into “bush” country. Those Alaskans who have chosen to live in remote locations in the “bush” only can access it by plane or train. The Alaska Railroad is the only railroad that will actually stop to pick up and drop off passengers along the tracks.

Our ground cover has now changed from the thick brush bushes to Fiddle head ferns that are completely edible and cow parsnip that looks much like Queen Anne’s lace and is very toxic. There are meadows of the ferns and cow parsnip, so thick you cannot see any dirt on the ground. About 3:00 p.m. the rain stopped and the clouds began to break up to give way to the sunshine.

The train moved at a slow pace of about 15-20 mph while passing through certain areas; but most of the time, it moved along at about 30 mph. Several in our group took short cat naps while the rest of us were still constantly looking out the windows of our domed cards not wanting to miss anything.

The reflections of the trees in the mirrored ponds looked like mirrors because they were so calm. As we passed by the Indian River which is crystal clear, we could actually see the red spawning salmon as they swam upstream. The next river we crossed was the Susitna River. “Na” is an Athabascan work meaning running water. Today we actually will cross five rivers: 1) Nenana 2) Chiquitna 3) Chulitna (4) Susitna 5) Talkeetna. The Susitna River is quite wide with many islands in the middle of the running waters. The Susitna River is a glacial fed river and is cloudy and grey from the glacial soot. The river was moving at a good pace. You could see the currents swirling around on the top of the river; but there were no rapids.

The banks of the rivers have rocky shores with numerous very large boulders that have traveled downstream thousands of years ago on icebergs as the glaciers melted. The calm, waters of the ponds dotting the meadows were home to several Trumpeter Swans. They are solid white with dramatic long necks. Their babies are called cygnets.

The “bush” area comes to an end in Talkeetna. We arrived here around 4:45 p.m. Talkeetna has a population of 840 and was the backdrop for the TV show “Northern Exposure”. Our young guide on the train was Jason. He told us the story of the Alaska state flag and its meaning. It was designed by Benny Benson in the 1920’s. The stars are in the shape of the Big Dipper because you can see it so clearly in Alaska. The North Star symbolizes the northern most state of the United States.

Wasilla, the next city on our itinerary, really came to be known as the home of Sarah Palin. South of Wasilla we entered the low lands of the Knik Arm and the Cook Inlet near Anchorage. After eight hours on the Alaska Railroad today, our journey was coming to an end. Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska with a population of 275,000 permanent residents. To the west was a large mountain range known as “The Sleeping Lady”. As you look at the mountains, you can see a woman lying on her back with her head facing south and her legs pointing north. To the east is the Chugach Mountain range with its snow capped mountain peaks. Just before we entered into Anchorage we spotted a moose, but it quickly disappeared into the trees before we could get any pictures.

As we pulled into the Anchorage Rail Depot, our tour guide, Gabe stood up and thanked us all for coming along on this cruise tour. Unfortunately, our group dispersed all too fast once they disembarked the train, and Jim and I were not able to tell many of them good bye. We will leave early tomorrow morning before the final group gathering at breakfast with the Alaska Visitors Bureau.

We did enjoy a final get together with new friends Sam and Melinda from Palmdale and Denise and Erik from Texas at The Brewhouse. The Brewhouse is a microbrewery directly across the street from The Westmark Hotel where we stayed our last night. At 9:00 p.m. in a Sunday evening, the wait was 45 minutes! It is a very large restaurant and bar that could easily seat over 200 people. Luckily as we were about to leave and go somewhere else when the hostess told us they had a cancellation and within ten minutes we were seated at a table for six. We enjoyed one last toast to a great adventure and new friends.

And, so it ended – fourteen days – cruising from Vancouver up the Inside Passage to Skagway; traveling into the Yukon Territory and learning about the gold rush and then enjoying the “interior” and Denali. It is truly a “great” land. I think perhaps one of my favorite parts was talking to some of the permanent residents when we visited their cities. The Alaskans love sharing their state. They are proud of its heritage and history. One thing that is obvious to me is how much they enjoy living in the wilderness. They are a very friendly people and willing to help you in any way they can.

Thank you to Holland America, Joanie, Kyle and Gabe for being terrific hosts and guides all along the way. To all those in our group that we weren’t able to say good bye to – it was a pleasure getting to know you. And, thank you Alaska. We enjoyed getting to know you and hearing your stories. We’ll be back!

DAY ELEVEN - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - DENALI NATIONAL PARK

2010-07-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY ELEVEN – JULY 10th – DENALI NATIONAL PARK
TUNDRA WILDERNESS TOUR
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

Did you know that wildlife seekers are far more certain to see animals than baseball fans are to see home runs? This is true – and our Tundra Wilderness Tour into Denali National Park today was actually a grand slam.,

McKinley National Park was established as a game refuge in 1917. In 1980, Congress more than tripled the size of the park and renamed the area Denali National Park and Preserve. The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) enlarged the park by an additional four million acres of wilderness frontier.

This expansive area is habitat to caribou, moose and grizzly bears, along with wolves, Dall sheep, Ptarmigan, eagles, ravens and countless other species of animals and birds. There are more than 650 species of flowering plants along with mosses, fungi, algae and lichens that cover the slopes inside the park.

In 1972 the National Park Service started a bus system to protect visitors and reduce threats to the wildlife. The buses used for our Tundra Wilderness Tour look much like old school buses painted a light tan color to blend in with the landscape – but on the inside, the interiors are plush and comfortable like the motor coaches we have been traveling on during this tour.

The alpine tundra covers the ground in Denali and provides a fast food supply for the resident wildlife. Our first wildlife sighting for the day was a caribou feeding on the top of a hill to the right side of our bus. When someone on the bus spots an animal, they are to yell out and give an approximate location based on the face of a clock. So, this first sighting of the caribou, someone yelled out “CARIBOU! 10:00!!” Then, everyone tried to get a place at the window to click off their pictures before the animal moved on or went behind the bushes.

The bus has drop-down video screens that display the real-time video the bus driver is filming of the animal spotting. What we did not know, but were not surprised either, is that the DVD is available to us to purchase once our tour was over. Ours will be mailed within 2-3 weeks.

The road into Denali is not paved, but is compacted bedrock. Though the windows on the bus can be opened when animals are spotted, they are generally closed to minimize the dust coming back into the bus while the bus is traveling.

Our tour today began at the McKinley Chalet where we were picked up and traveled to the park entrance. We passed the Stony Overlook and stopped for a photo opp and continued on our way for 62 miles into the park. The scenery is as dramatic and colorful as the Grand Canyon with every color imaginable in the mountains and valleys. As the clouds moved overhead and cast shadows down below, the colors changed. It was simply breathtaking.

There is a very nice Visitors Center near the entrance along with a great book store offering a wide variety of books on the animals and history of the park.

As we traveled into the park, we passed several mountain peaks – Mt. Margaret at 5,509 ft. – Double Mountain at 5,899 ft. – Igloo Mountain at 4,800 ft. – Sable Mountain at 6,002 feet – Divide Mountain at 5,195 ft. and Polychrome Mountain at 5,790 ft. Polychrome Mountain was by far the most magnificent of them all with its multi-colored rock of Rhyolite and basalt. It is a dramatic pointed mounted with every color of brown and red tones imaginable.

After our first caribou sighting, we saw several herds of Dall sheep high on the rugged cliffs of the mountains, strategically located to protect themselves from their predators, the wolves.

While golden eagles soared above us, black ravens were also spotted along with one bird that actually had some small animal clinched tight in its talons – probably flying back to enjoy it for dinner. Though the wolves remained elusive and out of sight today, I did get a picture of a den on the side of a mountain. There are three packs of wolves that inhabit this portion of the park but dozens more packs throughout the entire 6,000 acres.

The animal that most everyone hopes to see when they enter Denali is the phenomenal Grizzly Bear. Though its fur is actually a light golden color, the grizzly is also known as the brown bear. We had three separate sightings of grizzlies today; but, by far, the one where we spotted two bears as they ate their way down the hill next to our bus was a definite grand slam!

With their fur of light golden brown, these two bears were easily spotted amongst the green grasses and tundra on the hill. They were enjoying several plant roots along their way down. As they got closer and closer to the bus, the more spectacular each picture was. We were told to be quiet as them came closer and closer to the bus so as no5t to frighten them or disturb them. But even though “we” were being quiet as told, our cameras were constantly clicking those shutters in hopes of getting one phenomenal picture. After we drove away and the windows again were closed, everyone sat back down in their seats and had a huge smile on his or her face. It was truly splendiferous!

We had two other grizzly sightings¸ but they were farther off in the distance. Some smaller animals were sighted as well including the pika (a small bunny), squirrels and a beaver; a gyrfalcon was perched on the top of a rock outcropping but was far enough away that our pictures could not pull it in close enough; and many birds.

The breathtaking scenery was everywhere you looked; and we couldn’t take our eyes off of it – even though we could have used a little cat nap as this was a 7 hour tour. We didn’t want to miss a thing – and we didn’t. It was a glorious day. While the skies above us were overcast, it did not hurt our experience in Denali National Park.

After our tour, a group of us headed over to the Alaska Salmon Bake for dinner and put our glasses together with much delight for such a fabulous day.

Tomorrow we will head south on the Alaska Railroad and McKinley Express as we end our tour of this “great land” in Anchorage.

DAY TEN - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - FAIRBANKS TO DENALI

2010-07-12T00:02:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY TEN – JULY 9th – FAIRBANKS TO DENALI
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

I start today’s travelogue with a heavy heart. Jim’s Dad has been ill for the past few months, and we got word yesterday that he was not doing well. We tried to get a flight out of Fairbanks before our tour left, but we could not do that; so to ensure we could continue moving south and try to get an earlier flight home, we left early in the morning with our tour group on the train headed for Denali.

When we got into Fairbanks, we were talking about Jim’s Dad, and Jim shared a story with me. Both Jim and his Dad served in the Navy on the USS Edson – but at different times. The code name for the Edson was “Fairbanks”. We think it was ironic that we were in Fairbanks on this particular day. Jim’s Dad also loved trains. We boarded our train in Fairbanks and headed south to Denali. Unfortunately, while we were on the train, we received word that Jim’s Dad has passed away. So, we dedicated our train ride today from Fairbanks to Denali to Jim’s Dad.

Two engines pulled our train of four Holland America domed cars and three from Princess along with several others for the Alaska Railroad. We passed by the University of Alaska as we left town. The University of Alaska is home to a fabulous museum; and if you get the chance, you should go visit that.

We continued south for our five hour ride on the rails through absolutely gorgeous country; and we were all lucky enough to become official members of the “30% Club”. We are among the 30% who actually have seen Mt. McKinley.

It was a gloriously clear day outside with very few clouds in the sky. It was a bit cooler than it was yesterday. Today we hit a high of about 60 degrees. The tour guide on our rail car gave us a few minutes notice that the “Great One” was going to be coming into view. Many of us went downstairs from our domed car seats and stood out on the platform in between the rail cars so we would perfectly clear views of the mountain. And, we were not disappointed in any way, shape or form. Through the low brush alongside the rail tracks appeared this magnificent mountain – snow capped and standing proud all alone off in the distance. What is so fabulous about McKinley is that it is the highest peak on the continent at 20,320 feet. McKinley reigns supreme in the Alaska Mountain range; and because of its height, it creates its own weather.

We continued on our journey passed through the meadows full of Alaska fireweed, lupin, along with many other dainty, low wild flowers that could be spotted all over the ground. We passed by rivers and troughs of glacial waters that were a dramatic contrast to the low brush and evergreens. Along the way, we were lucky to spot a moose off to the left side of the rail cars.

Once we arrived in Denali at the McKinley Chalet Resort, we were given our room keys. Our luggage was brought to us, so we didn’t even have to collect it and get it to our room. We found our room and then took of to explore the area. Because the McKinley Chalet’s are so spread out over several acres, there are shuttles that will pick you up at either the Moose stop, Bear stop, Caribou stop, etc. and transport you up the hill to the main lodge. This was especially nice for us as we were in the furthest room complex from lodge which is along the highway – our room was only about 50 feet from the trail along river below.

We walked across the highway and walked along the wooden plank sidewalks that are home to a plethora of gift shops and restaurants. While we were walking along, we met up with more people from our group and so we all enjoyed a light lunch and just explored the area. The McKinley Chalets are just north of the Denali Park entrance and the Denali Visitors Center. On one side of the highway is a dramatic mountain and as you turn and face the other way, you face a beautiful, vast wilderness of hills and mountains as far as you can see. Several people from our group either took white water rafting trips down the glacial river or did a helicopter flight up to a glacier.

At 5:30 p.m. our group met for a Cabin Nite dinner at the Chalets for a family style dinner and show put on by the waiters and waitresses, bartender, etc. The show was a musical all about the discovery of Denali and one “Fannie Quigley”. There was participation from the guests as well. It was very well done. The piano player was playing music from the early 1900’s and getting everyone to join in for a sing-a-long at one point. Dinner was served family style and included delicious and tender ribs, baked salmon, baked beans, whole kernel corn, homemade biscuits and was absolutely delicious. Dessert was a mixed berry cobbler with whipped topping. Those who enjoyed the dessert all proudly displayed their newly dyed “blue” teeth – thanks to the berries in the cobbler.

After Cabin Nite, several of us enjoyed going up to the Crow’s Nest, where we all went out onto the deck and enjoyed a cocktail and toasted Jim’s Dad and our train ride from Fairbanks to Denali today.

So, though it was a sad day for us, we know that Mel was with us on our train ride in spirit; and we know that we were in the right place because of the coincidences of the day. We cherish our memories and know that every day is so precious. Good night…

DAY NINE - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - TOK TO FAIRBANKS

2010-07-11T23:58:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY NINE – JULY 8th – TOK TO FAIRBANKS
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

This was to be another day of motor coach travel for us as we moved more inland from Tok, Alaska to Fairbanks, Alaska along the Alaska Highway. We traveled along the Wrangell-St. Elias Mountain range, the third youngest mountain range in the state. The “younger” mountains have very jagged and dramatic peaks at the top as opposed to older mountain ranges that have been worn down with time and are smoother and more rounded. The second youngest mountain range is the Alaska Range and the first is Denali.

As we were moving along the highway, someone spotted a moose. Moose are in the deer family. They can get up to 1200 pounds. The hair of the moose is actually hollow which gives it a natural built-in heating and cooling system. The antlers of the bull moose fall off every season.

Construction began in 1942 on the Alaska Highway and when finished was 1,500 miles long. Every person who worked on the highway received a Purple Heart and there is a stretch of the highway that is named the Purple Heart Trail after those men. We were shown a documentary about how the Alaska Highway was built and constructed. It was a PBS film that Jim and I have seen before; nonetheless, it was interesting to see that again while we were actually traveling on it.

The landscape and the scenery is as majestic and beautiful as anything I have described to you before. Today the weather was noticeably warmer as we got closer and closer to Fairbanks and the interior of Alaska.

Our first stop for the day was at Ricca’s Roadhouse which was a charming roadside stop with several buildings and a fascinating story of how Ricca was hired by a gentleman to help him at the roadhouse and she would cook for the guests. While the owner would go out trapping or fishing, Ricca would perform repairs around the property and maintain it. At one point the owner left for three years; and by the time he returned, Ricca had
added on several other buildings and greatly improved the property. She had not received her wages the entire three years he was gone and was not real happy when he returned. She wanted compensation for what she had done to maintain his property and keep it running all that time. So, for $10 the man sold it to her and it was hers from then on. It is refurbished now and maintained as a tourist attraction. The main house has been decorated and furnished as it was back during the Gold Rush. There is a blacksmith’s cabin and several other buildings along with a new building that is home to the restaurant and gift shop (there is not one place in Alaska that does not have a gift shop attached to it in some way, shape or form).

After enjoying a warm cup of coffee and walking around the property, we were off again on our coach. With the Alaska Mountain Range to the left and the Tenana River to our right, we were again traveling down the Alaska Highway. There were many troughs as we looked down in the valley and could see the Tenana River. Troughs are just like little fingers running in the river bed. When the waters runs high with the snow melt, there are fewer troughs. The rolling hills climbed up to the majestic, snow-capped mountain peaks in the distance.

What is interesting is that when you look out over this vast land, it appears that there is a blanket of green grass covering the hillsides. In reality, it is a thick brush about 3-4 feet high with taller trees standing out. There are black spruce and white spruce. The black spruce looks like a pipe-cleaners standing tall with a very dark trunk and no limbs to speak of. The white spruce is fuller and more like the trees that I am used to seeing with more branches towards the base of the tree narrowing to one at the top.

We spotted seven moose along the highway today. The driver told us that is one of the highest number of moose sightings in one day that he was aware of. We passed by Birch Lake, a beautiful mountain lake and we traveled through the town of North Pole, Alaska. You all know who lives there!!

When our coach finally arrived in Fairbanks after our five our trek on the highway, we were taken to Gold Dredge No. 8 for lunch. Gold Dredge No. 8 was a working Dredge from 1928 to 1959 when it became too expensive to operate any longer. We were taken inside to a huge dining room with dozens of long tables all set out in family style dining. We enjoyed some hearty beef stew and delicious homemade biscuits along with a blueberry muffin. After lunch we walked over to the gold dredge and had a tour through that then we boarded the coach and were off to the El Dorado Gold Mine up the Elliott Highway about five minutes or so.

The El Dorado Gold Mine is where we all were able to pan for gold. Before we did that, however, we took a train ride through a tunnel where we were shown where the gold was actually found in the “bedrock” under the permafrost; and we saw how they transported the rocks and dirt out in the rail cars. Once we traveled through the tunnel, we saw a miner’s cabin and then watched a demonstration on how they actually panned for gold at this mine using different grates to ultimately sift out the rocks that would allow the gold (which is heavier than rock) to fall below the cracks and catch in a carpet like material.

After the demonstration, we were all taken inside to pan for gold ourselves. We were each given a bag of “pay dirt” and directed to sit along troughs of water where we found our own gold pan and we panned for gold. Whatever we found in the bottom of our pans once we were done with all the swishing and flushing of the rocks and dirt, was gold! We got to put what we had found into small, black plastic containers that we took inside the “gift shop” where it was weighed and we could purchase a locket or earrings where the employees would transfer our own gold into the jewelry. Jim actually found a nugget worth $8 which we put in a small locket by itself; and the rest we put into another locket.

We stopped by the Alaska Pipeline along the side of the road where we could actually get up close to it and touch it and see an example of what the inside is actually like and how it works; and then we finally arrived in Fairbanks at our hotel, the Westmark Fairbanks.

Now, I know this next part is not going to surprise any of you, but Jim and I signed up for the tour going to where else? The North Pole! We could NOT travel all the way here and not visit our favorite guy!! Our coach to The Santa Claus House picked us up and drove us back down the highway from where we had just come about 11 miles to North Pole, Alaska. And, on Santa Claus Lane is The Santa Claus House. It is a year-round Christmas store – complete with reindeer out back and that jolly man with the white beard and the big round belly! Santa sat in a huge chair in the middle of the store where anyone could go have their picture taken with him – free of charge – and the kiddies would receive a big candy cane. Jim and I did have our picture taken; and yes, we had to buy a Santa there! It is being shipped home.

The real highlight of the day was a surprise dinner that we did not know we were getting on the tour. We were taken over to The Pagoda – which is one of the restaurants Guy Fieri from the Food Network visited on his show “Diners, Drive-ins & Dives”. We were given a choice of Mongolian Beef, Sesame Chicken or Shrimp with vegetables. We chose the beef and the chicken and they were both delicious along with our egg drop soup and egg roll and rice.

We did not get back to the hotel until about 10:30 tonight and we were exhausted. But, it was a fun day. Amazingly, the sun was still high in the sky at 10:30 p.m. – so we once again pulled our black out curtains across the windows and fell asleep.

DAY EIGHT - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - DAWSON CITY TO TOK, ALASKA

2010-07-09T02:19:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY EIGHT – JULY 7th – DAWSON CITY TO TOK
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

The Holland America motor coaches have all been designed to carry only 44 passengers now as opposed to a standard motor coach that carriers 52. This is definitely the difference between flying coach and first class as far as space in your seat and leg room. These coaches have all leather interiors and are extremely comfortable.

This definitely was a nice feature on today’s long ride to the interior of Alaska from Dawson City to Tok. Our day actually started, however, on a catamaran ride on the Yukon Queen II on the Yukon River. We boarded our boat early in the morning before 9:00 a.m. for a three hour ride up the Yukon River. We passed the paddle wheel graveyard where several turn of the century paddle wheel boats were broken up in the swirling currents of the Yukon and went aground; we passed the Athabascan native village of Moose Hide; the mouth of the Forty Mile River; Old Lady Rock and Shipwreck Rock.

As with all of the other scenery we have passed in Alaska so far, this was no less spectacular and majestic than any other. There were small rivers and tributaries around every turn in the river. The banks of the river were dramatic granite cliffs and then meadows of beautiful green. We did see one moose along the river bank near the home of a year round resident on the river; but the noise of the boat engine scared it off and it quickly ran into the woods. Many of us stayed out on the back deck in hopes of catching a glimpse of more wildlife; but that was all we saw.

The crew of the Yukon Queen served us a nice sandwich for lunch along with tea or coffee to drink before we reached our destination on the river of Eagle, Alaska. Eagle is a small town on the river where we were able to get out and walk around for about an hour as our luggage was transferred from the boat to our new motor ¬coach. The Eagle “Mall” was a series of banquet size plastic tables set up under tarps alongside the dirt road; and the local women were selling their jewelry and handmade items to those who wanted something “authentic” Alaskan. In the small white Court House, the school children put on a mock trial; and some of our passengers played roles of the villain and the judge.

We walked down to the Visitors Center and around the town to take it some local flavor and get a feel of what life in Eagle is like. It seems to be a simple life. One elderly resident was sitting on the front porch of his cabin as we were all walking around. We waved to him as we walked by and he waved back while rocking in his chair. He looked much like Santa Claus with a big round belly and a beard of white.

The most intensive driving of our trip started in Eagle as we began an eight hour trek across the Wrangle, St. Elias Mountain Range to Tok, Alaska. We passed mile after mile of burnt forest with breathtaking patches of brilliant magenta fireweed being the first thing to grow back after the devastation. It was a surreal landscape to see. Tree trunks that resembled black pipe cleaners stuck out of the ground every few feet, charred black from the fire. But on the ground was green grass growing and the breathtaking Alaska fireweed. I cannot tell you how many miles of forest we passed that was like this, but it went on for hours.

At times we paralleled the Tenana River and the American River. The road was rough as it was not paved at all and full of large potholes in many spots. We had to have a pilot truck ahead of us about ¼ mile with a sign on the front telling oncoming motorists that the pilot truck was being followed by two motor coaches. We bounced and were jostled about for about 8 hours.

We did have a couple of stops along our long journey into Alaska. One of the funniest was “Chicken”. Yes, there is a town called “Chicken” in Alaska. It was actually a large gold mining area and the remnants of the old gold dredge are still there on site. Along with the dredge however, we three buildings for tourists – a gift shop, a bar and a bakery. We were told that the chili and the homemade chicken noodle soup were the best – so we opted for a cup of chili before we got back on the road for another three hours. As we left town, the tour guide made sure we all used the restroom facilities – better known in Chicken as the “Chicken Poop”. They have a university here called Kluck U; and their airport is known as the Chicken Strip.

It was a very long day to say the least. The skies were blue with a few spotted clouds and the temperature was beginning to rise the further north we traveled. We eventually found the end of the Taylor Highway and began driving on pavement when we reached the Alkan Highway.

We finally arrived in Tok after 8:00 last night and everyone headed over to the hotel restaurant because we heard they had some delicious Mexican food and margaritas. And after that day of travel, we all really could quench our thirst on a delicious Margarita. After dinner we headed back to our room and organized our luggage a little, took a shower and hit the hay. It had been a long day. And, tomorrow we still have more motor coach travel from Tok to Fairbanks – although it will not be as much! Yeah!

Till then…

DAY SEVEN - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - DAWSON CITY

2010-07-09T00:32:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY SEVEN – JULY 6TH – DAWSON CITY
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

With unpaved streets and wood sidewalks, Dawson City is definitely going to make you feel like you are back in the Gold Rush in 1898. Many of the original buildings from that time are still standing and part of the Unesco Heritage Site. They each have a green steel plaque on the front telling about the building which makes them easy to identify.

Dawson City “proper” is actually about 12 miles from Bonanza Creek and the original Discovery Claim when George Carmack found gold.

We have had perfect weather except for one downpour here in Dawson City when we arrived here. This morning we enjoyed a leisurely morning and enjoyed being able to sleep in a bit. There was a small coffee pot in our room which was nice and convenient to help start our day.

When we left the hotel, we walked down the dirt road about 5 blocks down to the Klondike Trail along the waters’ edge of the Yukon River and the Klondike River. The two rivers meet here and merge to become the Yukon. The waters of the Yukon are brown and cloudy (almost muddy looking) with glacial silt. The Klondike River is fresh water that started from the top of the Olgilvie Mountain Range. When the two waters meet, there is a definite distinction when looking at the river once it has merged; and it is not until about a half a mile downstream when they waters have finally merged that they actually become one.

Along the river, there is a beautiful wooden sidewalk with wildflowers and the beautiful Alaska fireweed on both side of the sidewalk. Further down the sidewalk and down about six steps made of railroad ties that are grey with weather, we found a bronze memorial statue dedicated to the miners. There were also three huge quartz boulders over three feet in diameter with bronze plaques dedicated to George Dawson, Mr. Olgivie and Mr. McQueston who were the surveyors during the turn of the century.

At 12:30, we met our group of fellow river floaters for our journey down the Klondike River. We put our red safety vests on and then did the “sit and spin” to get into our yellow and grey raft. The Klondike River meanders and winds through pile after pile of “tailings” (huge piles of rocks that have gone through the gold dredge and been sifted from one end and out the other in hopes of finding gold). There are tailing piles for miles and miles and miles. What is interesting is that because this is now a Unesco Heritage Site, no one can touch the tailings to look for more gold, even though they are sure it is there. The gold dredges would throw out anything larger than the size of a quarter – so the chances of some pretty good sized nuggets still being buried in those piles is very good.

There were 9 passengers on our raft and Mike L. as our guide. He was from Quebec and is a hospitality and tourism major. He had a very lean build with light brown hair as long as his neck but covered neatly under his wide brimmed hat. He looked as if he had not shaved for a day or so and had the beginnings of a scruffy beard and mustache. He was a very good looking young man with a beautiful smile. He spoke with a heavy ?French accent.

We slowly floated down river in the Class 1 rapids (not rapids – more like ripples). We were greeted by several young eagles as they stood on the driftwood at the edge of the river and watched us pass. They will be continue to have all brown feathers for four years until they reach maturity and will shed those feathers and they will then graduate proudly with their white heads.

We passed by Bonanza Creek where the gold was discovered some 10 miles up river from where it meets the Klondike.

This float trip took us out to the mouth of the Klondike River where it meets the Yukon. We passed by several old relic gold dredge buckets that were just laying on the shore of the river rusting away. They will stay there as no one can remove them now. We also passed a river house that is owned by a Canadian gentleman who rents it out for the summer. The shack is so small, you cannot imagine anyone living in there for the summer. It appears to only be about 6 ft. by 6 ft. It has a very small deck on the back of it.

The Yukon River completely freezes over in the winter; and the local residents here just drive on it to get from point A to point B in the snowmobiles.
Tonight for dinner we had the best dinner of our trip. We ate at the Drunken Goat. As odd as it sounds, it is a fabulous Greek restaurant on Main Street in Dawson City. We enjoyed dinner with two other couples from the group. We each enjoyed the combination plate that included grilled shrimp, lamb chops, chicken and ribs along with rice pilaf, spanikopita and tatioli (which was a five cheese filo dough pastry), along with pita bread. It was the most delicious dinner we’ve had on the trip so far. It would be hard to beat this. Good food and good company. A fabulous way to end another day of our adventure.

Tomorrow we are off to Tok and further into the interior. Till then…

DAY SIX - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - HAPPY 4TH OF JULY - WHITE HORSE TO DAWSON CITY

2010-07-06T16:28:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY SIX – JULY 5TH – WHITE HORSE TO DAWSON CITY
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

Another early morning for us from White Horse. We had to board our motor coach at 8:00 a.m. so before we did that we walked down two blocks to a Tom Horton’s to grab some breakfast and then went across the street to Starbucks for that first cup of coffee of the day to get us going. White Horse has a population of 23,000 people and is the capital of the Yukon Territory. White Horse was a big port in “the day”.

When gold was discovered in Dawson City by George Carmack news quickly flew about Gold! Gold! Gold! And the rush was on.

We departed from the hotel on the plush motor coach furnished by Holland America and passed the large white paddle wheeler, The Klondike. This was one of the only ways to get from Skagway to Whitehorse back in the Gold Rush Days. The Klondike was built in 1898 and is now a museum. We traveled along the Alaska Highway for about 20 miles to the intersection of the Klondike Highway. The Yukon River is 2,200 miles long and flows south to north and empties into the Bering Sea. The Raven is the territorial bird of the Yukon. In White Horse, they experience 6-7 hours of daylight in the winter months and 21 hours of daylight on the longest day of the year, June 21st.

Skagway was the gateway to the Klondike. The trek from Skagway began with your first destination of Whitehorse and then ultimately to Dawson City. By the time the prospectors and hopeful gold miners finally had traveled all of the trails, they would have traveled over 600 miles in all.

100,000 came through Skagway – men and women alike. Their either climbed up the Chilkoot Trail or the White Pass Trail. They say that no matter which one you decided to take, you always wished you had taken the other trail. The “Chilkoot” means the “meanest trail”. Schools do not have snow days but they have “bear” days. When the grizzlies decide to come visit, the parents keep the kids home.

We crossed the Tahini River which was very reminiscent of driving through the mountains in northern California with a two lane road with gravel and dirt shoulders and about 209 feet off the road begins the forest. We learned that when there happens to be a forest fire up here, they let it burn They do not fight it unless it is threatening homes.

This has been the first time that we have seen the famous Alaska fireweed. It is about two feet tall with delicate magenta colored flowers at the top. It is fully edible and the first flower to grow back after a fire. Then the birch, aspen and cottonwoods return and then the pine trees.

We stopped at the Braeburn Lodge for the largest cinnamon rolls made in the Yukon Territory. These humongous rolls are at least 2-3” tall and are at least 8 or more inches in diameter. The Braeburn Lodge is a small log cabin wit a large front deck with hanging baskets full of purple and pink petunias and small pansies.

Animals that you will find in the Yukon include elk, moose, raven, black bear and grizzly bears. Polar Bears are only about 100 miles north of Dawson City and are the most violent.

Holland America is not letting us go hungry by any means. We have a stop every two hours. Today’s lunch stop was at Carmacks – another small village along the highway We had lunch at the Hotel Carmacks – a rich tomato base, turkey vegetable rice soup with our choice of sandwich. I opted for the veggie wrap which was in a green tortilla with only lettuce and cucumber inside – not the best choice taste wise. I would have enjoyed a salad more.
The Hotel is a wooden structure painted in a light blue base with white trim. There was actually a little mini-mart near the front where they had a good supply of goods offered for the travelers that stop by.

After our tummies were all full, we headed out again down the highway and across a new steel bridge over the Yukon River.

We had a picture stop at Five Finger Rapids about half an hour after lunch. Originally there were four islands in this very narrow channel which made navigating through the rapids quite a challenge in the old paddle wheel boats and other boats the prospectors had built for the journey. Now, there are only two islands and three fingers of the river – but it is still a dangerous area to pass through and quite a challenge in any boat.

Looking across the valley out the window of our motor coach I saw a beautiful forest that appeared to look much like a gorgeous green patchwork quilt of every color of green against the rolling hills. The groves of birch trees or cedar trees stood out against the darker pines and so thick that it looked smooth as if sewn together like a quilt.

The Yukon River meandered through the low meadows. As we continued on, every once in a while we would see more evidence of forest fires. Though there was much evidence of mew growth on the forest floor, the evidence of the fires was obvious with the dark, burned barren tree trunks standing tall but with no branches – just like sticks stuck in the ground. There were also many areas where the trees had fallen and the trunks were laying on the floor of the forest next to each other, grey from the weather.

All along the highway there are signs for campgrounds for those being adventurous and driving through this magnificent area. There are small road stops with a one-pump gas station if you are in need of gasoline. Gasoline is quite expensive here at about $1.18 per liter which computes into about $5.00 per gallon in the US. Ouch!

The closer we got to Dawson City, I noticed yet another change in the landscape. The thick forest changed to groves of birch and cedar trees with their branches gently moving in the wind. Their white trunks are straight and tall and they have an umbrella of leaves on their top branches of a light grayish green color.

Dawson City was where the original gold was found that started the stampede to the Yukon in 1898. George Carmack staked his claim on August 16, 1898 at “Discovery Claim” in the Klondike River Valley. As soon as news spread about the gold discovery, Dawson City saw an influx of thousands. The Gold Rush lasted only a couple of years, but the legend will live forever. It is said that there is still a lot of gold in them thar’ hills. Of the 100,000 who trekked over the mountains, only about 30,000 actually made it to Dawson City.

Our afternoon stop about 2:30 was at Moose Creek Lodge – just a little roadside log cabin painted red. Their claim to fame is their homemade tarts. We tasted a raspberry one – and they ARE very tart.

Tintina Trench was our final picture stop of the day. It is a fault line in a glorious valley of spectacular panoramic views of the majestic mountains and valleys of the Yukon Territory. It is 45 miles from here to Dawson City.

The forest has now changed once again to pines that are only one straight truck up standing tall with no branches. The highway is lined with patches of bright pink wild sweet peas that grow to about 6 inches tall and are not edible. The landscape seems to change at almost every turn, and it is more beautiful than the last one. The sky is so blue it is incredible. The skies have cleared with only a few puffy white clouds dotting it making it look even much deeper blue.

One of the other things that we have been able to experience first-hand on this trip is the infamous Alaska mosquito. They are about ½ inch long and unfortunately several have decided my forehead is a nice place to have a little snack. They are pesky little creatures.

We enjoyed dinner last night a Sourdough Joe’s for fish and chips. I had grilled salmon and Jim had the cod. We ate with two other couples from our group and enjoyed getting to know everyone a little more.

After that, Jim decided to partake in the infamous “Sour Toe” drink at the Gold Rush Hotel. Honestly, I thought it was gross and disgusting – but there were actually seven people from our group that got in on the festivities. They have this big ceremony and if you put this frost bitten toe in your shot of Yukon Jack you have to drink it and the toe has to touch your lips. Jim has his certificate along with the others.

Once that was over, we walked outside and the sun was shining high in the sky, not a cloud in the sky and it was 10:30 p.m.!! Such is the land of the midnight sun! Tomorrow we actually get to sleep in and we will enjoy that! We have a small coffee pot in our room – which we will also enjoy while we are getting ready. There are “black out” curtains on our windows, so when we shut them, literally no light comes through and it is easy to get to sleep.

Talk to you tomorrow!

DAY FIVE - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - HAPPY 4TH OF JULY - SKAGWAY TO WHITEHORSE

2010-07-06T16:24:00.001-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY FIVE – HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

Happy 4th of July from Skagway, Alaska! As with all the rest of our days, we were up early again and headed to Starbucks for a quick cup of coffee before we were off for the day. Today we will venture from Skagway up the White Pass on the White Pass & Yukon Railway ultimately arriving in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory.

We boarded the “passenger” train – which is an entirely different train than the “shore excursion” train that is offered through the cruise ships as a shore excursion while you are in Skagway. This is an actual working train that transports passengers up the mountain for a purpose as opposed to the shore excursion train that just takes you up the mountain and back down again.

As the train slowly climbed from sea level departing from downtown Skagway at 8:00 a.m., we traveled along the Skagway River as it tumbled over the rocks and down through the glacial valley. The valley above Skagway is full of mountains full of smooth granite boulders wet with the runoff from the snow capped mountains above. In between the granite boulders are crevasses filled with brush and trees. We climbed higher and higher across a tall trussle that at first glance appeared to be hanging on the side of the mountain. It was amazing as we traveled along and eventually rode over it and through two mountain tunnels.

The White Pass 7 Yukon Railroad is a narrow gauge railroad. Construction began on it in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush. There are 110 miles of track between Skagway and Whitehorse. The track rises to 3,000 feet at the summit in just 20 miles.

The higher we traveled the thicker the clouds were; and our visibility was completely lost towards the top of the mountain. However, all of a sudden, through the fog and dense clouds magically appeared an old wooden trussle that was shrouded in the fog. It is no longer a functional track, but is quite impressive to see.

Even though the Conductor said we were traveling parallel to the Trail of 1898 where the prospectors climbed up the mountain shoulder to shoulder carrying then heavy supplies, it was difficult to see it through the clouds. The prospectors were required to bring in one years’ worth of supplies in order to enter the Yukon Territory. In order to accomplish that feat, the prospectors had to make several trips up and down the mountain.

As we crossed the summit from the US into Canada, we arrived at Summit Lake. This lake is the head waters of the Yukon River. It is 2,200 miles long and ends in the Bering Sea.

As the top when we crested the White Pass, the landscape changed dramatically. Rocks that appeared to be volcanic were everywhere. It almost looked like something out of a movie set from Star Trek. The rocks and boulders were square with jagged edges. This is where we saw our first tundra which is a thick spongy ground cover that is growing among the rocks and in the flats. Scrub pines grow here. They only have a root system of a couple of inches because of the permafrost beneath; and they only grow a few feet tall.

The Yukon River cascades through the jagged rocks and forms calm pools of water in the flatter areas. There was no wind today, but it was quite cool at about 40 degrees.

At Fraser, British Columbia, the Canadian customs agent boarded the train to check our passports. We literally had to hold our passport up next to our face as he came through. A Canadian tour guide was also boarded here. .

After we received clearance from Canadian Customs, we continued on traveling down the mountain following the Yukon River as it flowed from the summit.

At 10:30 a.m. we arrived at Lake Bennett, B.C. which was our lunch stop. It occurred to me now that the Canadians eat their meals “early”. Inside of the red and white Yukon dining room, long banquet tables set up with blue cast iron kettles full of homemade beef stew. It was hot with big chunks of tender beef in thick, dark gravy and filled full with corn, carrots and potatoes. Everything was homemade including two kinds of bread sliced thick for dipping up the stew. We also had some delicious coleslaw. There was hot coffee and hot tea to drink and homemade, deep-dish apple pie full of cinnamon and nutmeg which made it especially tasty.

After lunch we ventured off with a group to hike around the area in hopes of spotting some wildlife. That didn’t happen, but the views of the First Presbyterian Church just off the Chilkoot Trail were absolutely spectacular. This area is so majestic and dramatic and spectacular no matter which way you turn. One way you are overlooking a gorgeous mountain lake, another way you are gazing at the mountains. The mountains rise up progressing above the very obvious tree line and then continuing up to dramatic granite cliffs where there is no vegetation. Some of the granite even gave the appearance of being gigantic fish scales with curved ridges. These sections appeared to be separated by areas that had obviously avalanched. All of a sudden, the sun burst out from behind the clouds and the lake began to turn hues of green and blue and deepened as the sky got brighter.

We walked around the lake over to the Chilkoot Trail where we hiked along the rivers’ edge. There were several places were old rusted antique relics were just scattered on the ground. There were many old rusted cans, but also an old wash tub, a show next to what appeared to be an old rusted eating bowl of some sort and several other interesting items. They are all protected as this area is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

At the top of the north end of the lake is the First Presbyterian Church. It was built after the gold rush in 1899 by railroad workers out of tree limb and trunks. The logs on the bottom were horizontal, the next layer was angled and the next level was vertical. When I got to the top of the hill behind the church, I was greeted with a picture postcard of the church and the glacial valley and lake below. It was nothing short of inspiring and left me in awe of the magnificent beauty. I’m struggling to find the right adjectives to be able to describe everything to you. I hope when you finally see the pictures that you’ll recognize things from the descriptions in m Travelogues.

At 3:00 p.m. we arrived in the small town of Carcross, B.C. We took our belongings off the train and boarded Holland America motor coach 888 with Clarissa at the wheel. She is living in Washington D.C. and just here for the summer working as a motor coach driver and will return to D.C. once the summer season has ended. Carcross has a population of about 3,000 permanent residents. They only have school for grades 1 through 6. After that, the teenagers mist be transported to Whitehorse and boarded during the school week. As we left Carcross in our motor coach, we passed the Sahara of the Yukon Territory at the Carcross Desert. It is about one square mile right in the middle of the Yukon Territory that is rolling hills of white sand just like we have in southern California. We also had a photo stop at Emerald Lake – known as the Jewel of the Yukon. The deep emerald green and blue waters are caused by glacial silt and something called marl.

We arrived in Whitehorse around 5:00p.m. and enjoyed dinner with another couple in our group. I had a chicken quesadilla and Jim enjoyed a prime rib wrap. After dinner the whole group enjoyed the Frantic Follies which was like a good old vaudeville show complete with girls dancing the can-can, banjo players, opera singers and the like. It was fun, but we were tired and after that, we went back to our room and crashed. Tomorrow is going to be another early morning….

DAY FOUR - TRAVELOGUES NORTH TO ALASKA - SKAGWAY

2010-07-04T19:47:00.000-07:00

TRAVELOGUES – DAY FOUR - SKAGWAY
HOLLAND AMERICA MS VOLENDAM
13 DAY CRUISE/TOUR
“NORTH TO ALASKA”

Our day began early again with our breakfast being delivered to our cabin at 6:30 a.m. because we had to be in the Frans HAL lounge (showroom) no later than 7:45 a.m. to disembark the Volendam in Skagway. This was the end of our cruise. We enjoyed our time on the ship, but were anxious to start the land portion of our tour. All of the cruise/tour groups gathered together to start their land tours this morning. Once we were directed off the ship, we boarded our motor coach and met our tour director, Gabriel. He is a young man in his 30’s, I would guess. He has a fair skin complexion which compliments his short red hair and neatly trimmed and groomed red beard. He is very pleasant and seems to genuinely enjoy his job.

Our coach left the dock and traveled through the small town of Skagway for a short tour out to the Gold Rush Cemetery where we saw the grave stones of several of the infamous gold rush characters from the late 1890’s and early 1900’s. The cemetery is small and nestled back on the side of a hill facing the Skagway River about half a mile out of town. After that, we continued on across the Skagway River to a viewpoint where we had a gorgeous view of the city of Skagway and the Lyn Canal. The Lyn Canal ends in Skagway – so there is only one way in and one way out.

After our short tour of the city, we were dropped off at our hotel, the Westmark of Skagway; and we took off to explore downtown and enjoy lunch in the Red Onion Saloon where one of the “ladies” from the upstairs brothel served us. The ladies will also give you a guided tour of the infamous brothel for a small fee – but we did not opt for that.

The weather outside was quite brisk and a fine, misty rain began to fall. Our only regret was that we left our umbrella in the main suitcase that was sent directly to the hotel and we did not have access to. But, we were fine. After lunch, we ventured over to Starbucks – yes, they even have a Starbucks in Skagway, Alaska! And then we walked back towards the cruise dock where we met the group for our Haines Eagle Preserve float ride.

Once everyone was checked-in and accounted for, we boarded our catamaran, the Fairweather Express with Captain Molly at the helm. Molly appeared to be in her late 60’s with a round face full of wrinkles that gave her the appearance that each wrinkle could tell a fabulous story. Her eyes sparkled and you could see her smile as she steered the catamaran away from the dock and headed down the Lyn Canal to Haines. She maneuvered the catamaran so smoothly that you could barely feel any motion.

Haines is a small town 14 nautical miles from Skagway. It has a population of about 2500. As soon as Molly pulled into the dock, we were escorted off the boat to meet our tour guide, Tom Lang. Tom was quite a character. He had a vibrant personality and in addition to being a tour guide on the river in Haines, during the winter months he travels to Bali and writes books and gives talks and lectures on communication.

We were driven through the small town of Haines up to a flat area in the Tsirku River where there was a large opening and flat area to “put in” on the river. Our rafts were there along with the other tour guides. There were three rafts for the 23 of us. Jim and I were with Dan in the last raft or “safety” raft. Our raft was the one that had the communication to base camp and some first aid supplies that the other rafts did not carry. We were asked to exchange our shoes for tall rubber boots, a green rubber rain poncho and our life jackets. Once everyone was snug in their new found fashions, we each sat on the edge of our respective rafts and swiveled into the raft where we took our places. Jim and I were in the front of our raft.

The Haines Eagle Preserve encompasses several miles along the Tsirku and Chilkat Rivers. This is where the bald eagles come in the winter to mate and to feed on the salmon left over from the salmon run of the late summer. All in all we counted 43 bald eagles on our trip. Some were soaring above us with their 7 foot wing spans and gliding effortlessly through the air. Others were sitting on branches in trees along the river watching with their eagle eyes for the perfect fish to dive down on and have for their next meal. And others were perched majestically on pieces of driftwood as we floated by. I think they were all laughing at us when our rafts became stuck on the glacial silt and we had to get out of the raft and walk through the water a bit until deeper water could be found.

From the Tsirku River, we traveled to the Chilkat River - both glacial rivers that were that indescribably grayish aquamarine color that is so spectacular. The rapids we floated through were no more than a Class I and very mild. There was never any white water at all. As we came to the intersection of the two rivers, we saw a small Tlinket Indian Village called Kwaklu (?). Their homes were log cabins along the river and their smoke houses were right on the rivers’ edge and appeared to look more like dilapidated and abandoned shacks than anything with a real purpose like smoking fish.

All along the rivers’ edge you could see the accumulation of large amounts of driftwood that was twisted and knurly. Several of the ladies picked up small pieces and are taking it back home for souvenirs.

The misty rain continued for most of our trip down the river, but was never heavy enough to be a problem. Captain Dan skillfully paddled our raft down river and eventually pulled us out in a small opening 7 miles from where we began our day. We were greeted by the pick-up team for the rafts who had brought us sandwiches, Sun chips, fresh fruit and homemade chocolate chip cookies along with hot chocolate to drink. We took off our gear and put back on our regular shoes and made our way back to the transport bus where we were driven back down the mountain and through the small town of Haines.

Captain Molly was happily greeting everyone as they re-boarded the Fairweather Express and off we went to return back to Skagway through the Lyn Canal. The mist had stopped by now, and it was nice to go out onto the back deck of the catamaran and take a few more pictures of this glorious country.

Once we returned back to Skagway, we finally checked into our hotel and changed into some dryer clothes and took off to find a little dinner. We found the Bonanza Bar & Grill right around the corner from the hotel and one of the only places open at that time of night and so we ducked in there and enjoyed a cup of seafood chowder and a burger. It was about 8:00 p.m. and the Volendam had departed for Glacier Bay with a new group of passengers who had just finished their land tour. The street was deserted with only a few people out enjoying the evening. The campgrounds here in Skagway appeared to be full of campers who had driven in and were staying for the 4th of July.

Skagway celebrates the 4th of July at 11:00 p.m. on the 3rd of July by having a fireworks show over the harbor. We were so tired from all of the day’s events, that we decided to just go relax back at the hotel and try to get a little shut eye as our day tomorrow will begin by everyone meeting in the lobby of our hotel at 7:45 a.m. We need to find coffee before we leave on the train tomorrow – and Starbucks had a sign on its’ door that it would be closed on 4th of July – so we need to find a local alternative. Tomorrow will be another early morning for us. We are off on the White Pass & Yukon Railway tomorrow headed for Whitehorse. Till next time...