Mitch2016

We sail Enchanted Princess tomorrow so needed to test on Tuesday the 28th.  Luckily for us, there is a clinic in the DSM airport so we tested prior to checking our bags for flight.  If it was positive, we’d just have to go home.  The results came back in 15 minutes to my email and a text message.  That was longest 15 minutes of my life!  Glad to have that done prior to flying as it was a long day with freezing rain in Des Moines ( de-ice plane twice and runway) which delayed us about 45 minutes….then when we got to Chicago, it started with a wintry mix of freezing rain/snow….so that plane was de-iced.  By the time we got onboard….it was snowing pretty heavy and we were lined up on runway over an hour for our plane to depart (waiting our turn).  
 

Florida never looked better then when we got here.  Was glad that was all done and we could relax.  This morning, it was 6 degrees back home, but 77 here!

The Hammond Castle and Museum may be interesting for you.  Also, the Cape Ann Museum has new exhibit of Winston Homer paintings.  You can check out the Crows Nest bar.....The Perfect Storm was filmed in Gloucester and lots of photos from the movie, and the crew of the Andrea Gale that was lost at sea.   The Rocky Neck Art Colony...lots of artisans and shops.

We are planning to go to Montgomery Falls and I want to visit a sugar shack, see some of the countryside our first day (disembark day), then spend the next day touring around the city....the Citadel, Norte Dame, museums, boutiques, restaurants....  On our return flight day, we don’t need to be at airport until 3:00......so I think we’ll go to the Aquarium that day.....

I purchase magnets everywhere we go.....attractions, towns, excursions if available.  In Alaska, I got one in every port plus stops like Red Dog Saloon, Taku Lodge and Juneau Ice Fields tour etc....  This is everywhere we go on vacation....frig is getting covered!  It's fun to look back on!

4 hours ago, Sailor Taylor said:

I will have 3 nights after disembark in QC before I have to fly back.  Montreal has a well timed direct flight and QC only a poorly timed indirect flight.  

 

Trying to decide if I should spend all 3 nights in QC or split and spend one or two nights in Montreal?  Never been to either for any meaningful amount of time. 

 

Any opinions? 

 

And do hotels in QC normally let travelers put luggage for half a day if they arrive before check in? 

We are staying in Auberge Place D’Armes post cruise.  Our flight home leaves Quebec at 5:45 p.m.  They told me they have a specific room designated just for luggage.  We can drop it that morning we disembark, go play and see things before check in time. When we leave, same thing just leave luggage in the morning and go play before we have to leave for the airport.  No additional charges for this service.

On 4/20/2019 at 10:23 PM, ericosmith said:

Check out Blue Thistle Tours.  They gave a very nice tour last year when we were there.  

We are booked with this tour in early October.....so personable on the phone reserving, and really a good price $107 Canadian.  Can’t wait!

2 minutes ago, Ashland said:

We've booked a junior suite also...we won't be there until October...and you ?

We will be arriving on October 11th and not leaving until Sunday, late afternoon.

On 2/22/2019 at 11:26 AM, virginiacruisin said:

Do any of the "boutique hotels" have elevators or do you have to walk up steps to get to your room?

Of all the hotels that I researched, the boutique hotels are stairs only.  Hard to put an elevator in some of these old buildings. 

We are staying at the Auberge Place D'Armes and have a junior suite that is on the first floor. 

We're also staying at the Auberge place D'Armes for our port cruise hotel.  The rooms all have their own character, and the location looks so close to everything.  Also comes with free breakfast if booked through their web site.  We'll be there in the fall and have heard it is absolutely stunning!

Unfortunately, we aren’t going to Portland.  We are doing the Arcadia Park in the afternoon, but found a tour that took us to 5 lighthouses and views of the park from sea (Thuderhole, Otter Cliffs, Sandy Beach).  Anyone done this tour?

Hello everyone!  We are starting to book our excursions and activities for our cruise Boston to Quebec, October 4th.  I love lighthouses, the stories about the lighthouse keepers.  If you have seen the movie  or read the book, “The Light Between Oceans”, you know what I mean.  Has anyone done any lighthouse tours before?  Specifically looking at tour in Bar Harbor.  If anyone has information, reviews it would be greatly appreciated!  

Hello Dave from Marshalltown, IA!   Have thought of you and Kathy since our fantastic tour June 2017.  Kathy was the perfect host and gave us a wonderful tour.....breathtaking scenery and just a perfect beautiful day.  I hope you find that your scan shows healing and that you are winning this battle.  Thoughts and prayers continue for a full recovery.  Marshalltown took a blow this year.  We took a direct hit by a F3 tornado this past July.  Right through the heart of town and historical Main Street.  Over 1000 homes damaged,  over 150 having to be torn down....15 historic buildings have to be taken down In the downtown business district.  Beautiful Courthouse sustained 15 million in damages....everyone cried when the Cupola at the top came crashing down.  Horrible damage, and we lost approx. 2000 big beautiful trees.  Lennox Mfg. had 750 employees in factory and tornado leveled it.  Incredibly no fatalities and only minor injuries sustained across town.  Will be a long time recovering.....still so much to fix and rebuild.  

Just wanted to let you to know what happened here, as I know you have been here several times.  Yes, the Taylors Maidrite had some damage, but is still going strong!  

Take care and prayers for continued healing!

Michelle Peterson

We went down to the Marina and touched base with Kenai Fjord Tours on what we needed to do when we arrived the next day, where to park, what time to be there etc....Then we wandered around the Marina for a bit and decided to eat at Rays Waterfront right by the Marina. We were down there about the time the charter fishing boats were coming in.....that was interesting to see everyone's catch! Next time we go to Alaska, we'll plan on a Halibut/Salmon fishing charter!

Cleaning the catch.....

This gal from South Carolina caught this 80# Halibut. You should have seen the fillets coming off of it!

Our view from our table at Rays Waterfront....was a beautiful night after a very full day.

I did it again, as I was starving! We hadn't eaten since this morning! This was the Halibut Fish & Chips at Rays......very, very good! The perfect ending to the perfect day!

We ate dinner and then went back to the cabin to settle in....there was a fire going in the fire pit when we got back. We did visit for awhile with others staying in the cabins, but we had full tummies and were tired babies after another full long day and went back to the cabin to settle in. It was so cool drifting off to sleep listening to the dogs howl.

Resurrection Bay, Seward

Beautiful condos/townhomes.....I could see myself living here with a fantastic view of Resurrection Bay

We arrived in Seward and dropped off our luggage before we went to explore the town. We had booked cabins at the Seavey's Ididaride Cabins just outside of town. These cabins were perfect for what we needed. What was so neat about this location, we were about 1/4 mile away from the Seavey's Iditarod champion racing dogs and base. You could hear the dogs barking and at one point they all started howling....was so cool to hear!

Our cabin.....had a king size bed, frig/microwave, table. It did not have a TV which was kind of nice, but it did have WiFi which was also nice to keep in touch and so we could check in for our return flight back home Friday night.

Throughout the cabin were pictures of Mitch Seavey and his dogs. He won the Iditarod and 2004, 2013 and in 2017 at the age of 57 became the oldest person to win. His son, Dallas won in 2012, 2014, 2015, and 2016. I would say that this family and their dogs know their stuff!

We were ready to take off and head down the Seward Highway onto Seward....wanted to stop and get an ULU knife and thought the factory would be the best place to do that. Was really neat to see the process and how many they produced. Picked ours up and headed on down the highway!

As you can see, the tide is out on the Turnagain Arm and nothing but mud as far as the eye can see.

Starting to see some breaks in the clouds!

This is a rare sight....only ones on this highway. The busiest highway in Alaska.....

Here are the same train tracks we rode on just 2 days earlier....

Loving your review!! Trying to convince the hubby to take more work off to do the land portion but not successful so far. That just means we'll have to go back!

 

 

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We've already talked about going back, but doing just a land portion with an RV rental...going to Denali for a few days, and spending more time on the Kenai! It was an incredible trip for us, one we will never forget!

This is Dolly their buffalo. She wasn't too interested in us.....she was liking her grass. If you know anything about buffalo, you respect the buffalo. They have been known to have a temper and charge at you. Dolly was just fine over there doing her thing.

Here are a couple little guys that were born this past year. Did you know that they start growing their antlers soon after birth, and usually have them by the time they are 2-3 months old?

A bull elk and his harem.....

Meet Rocky.....he is a 3 week old orphaned moose that belongs to The State of Alaska, but was given to the Reindeer Farm to raise. He will never be able to live in the wild on his own....

He is just 3 weeks old.....look how long his legs are and how tall he is. They aren't sure what happened to his mama....hit by a car or maybe she just decided she didn't want to be a mama and abandoned him. Kind of sad.....

Rocky is starting to get hungry....he's suckling on her fingers. Susie says he eats just like a newborn human, about every 2-3 hours around the clock. This time next year he'll weigh well over 500 pounds. He was so cute frolicking around the paddock....would occasionally do a head butt into Susie. Bet it won't be so cute a year from now! Will have to follow the Reindeer Farm on Facebook to see how he is growing!

We really enjoyed stopping here...learned a lot about the Reindeer. This is still a working farm, and the patriarch of the family, Tom Williams passed away this April. So glad they are keeping his vision alive....

This ride reminded us a lot of Northern Minnesota, especially with this birch stand.

And our ride is coming to an end.....

One final group shot before we left.Hosanna was a great guide and we learned so much about living in Alaska. She told us how her family moved to Alaska, and lived in a cabin middle of nowhere, no running water or electricity. Lived off the land....was so interesting to hear about her growing up. We sure had a good time and glad we did it....just wish those nasty clouds hadn't been there!

Our next stop was the Williams Reindeer Farm in Palmer. It wasn't far from where we had been riding and was going to be just a quick stop on our way to Anchorage.

And here we are feeding the reindeer.....as you can see, they hadn't shed their winter coat yet. When they eat, they scoop up the food with their bottom lip. I was surprised by the texture of their fur....you would think it was soft and thick but it was quite coarse. We learned not to touch their antlers when they were now covered with velvet as they are extremely sensitive during that time. Oh...they also make a clicking sound when they walk....pretty cool!

I went over to share the last of my feed with some of those grouped together. The fur under the winter coat was really soft and silky....some of them I just wanted to take a brush and get rid of it for them.

Look at that face..doesn't it say "Can I have more?" Just want to brush that winter fur off. Look at the color difference between the winter coat and summer coat.

We come out of the woods, and see this. We're riding on glacial silt now and ahead of us is the Knik River.

Knik River and Knik Glacier in the distance. I wish the sun would have been out, it would have been an absolutely incredible

to see this with blue skies

This would have been a great picture if someone would have told me to fix my jacket!

Getting ready to cross the river.....

And....were across.

After the river crossing and short ride through a wooded area we came out onto this huge marsh area. I was hoping we would have seen a moose, but no luck.

Wednesday June 14th - Hatchers Pass to Seward

Today is the day, we are relocating back to Seward. We made several stops along the way there. It was still pretty cool and overcast around the Palmer area but the weather did improve the further south we drove.

This picture was taken about 2:30 in the morning. It is not dark....just very dusky looking, like the street lights are just coming on. Not the best picture as taken in low light through window with screen, but wanted to give you an idea of just how "dark" it gets in Alaska in the summer.

Heading down the highway on our way to our first stop....Alaska Horse Adventures. If only the sun had been out...this would have been a beautiful picture. The mountains are just so majestic!

Here are our horses and for our trail ride, it was just us and our guide, Hosanna. How private and personal is that! We were scheduled for a 1 1/2 hour ride, but she actually took a little more time, and did whatever we wanted to do. If you are in that area and have time for a trail ride, check them out. We always like to horseback ride if we can when we go on our big trips and this one was beautiful, in spite of the clouds!

Heading out on the trail into the woods. Did you know that there aren't any ticks, fleas or snakes in Alaska. Good to know when going through dense trees and bushes.

There were wild rose bushes everywhere...if only you smell this. It was incredible!

After lunch, we walked around town for awhile. Did go to the museum, small but really neat history of the town. Stopped at more stores. There was one merchant I did not get a picture of but absolutely loved her store.....Aurora Dora. She is a professional photographer and all she does is take pictures of Aurora's. Breathtaking images....we're going to get a print and frame it from her website. http://www.auroradora.com Check it out!

The Roadhouse has a bakery/cafe and we stopped to have a diet coke and rocked on the front porch for awhile people watching.

This has to be my favorite moose that I saw.....so colorful!

We had been in Talkeetna quite awhile, walked all over town, and bought way too much stuff.....the perfect tourist! After awhile, things were getting better in Talkeetna, blue skies breaking through the clouds so stopped back at K2 Aviation to check on status. They told us they could get us to the lower elevations about 8,000-10,000 feet but that was it. We chose then to not fly....but did purchase a neat 20 minute video of what we would have seen if we had flown! Consolation prize I guess! We needed to head back to Hatchers Pass.....even though we were on vacation, we needed to get some laundry done! We had a super fun day, met a lot of folks and had a lot of fun! Someday, we would like to return to Alaska and do a RV trip with a stop here for a couple days....really liked it here and it gives us a better chance to fly if we have more days.

I want to show you one more purchase I got in Talkeetna....

How perfect is that!!

On our way back to the car, we stopped here and got a Blueberry Shake....perfect treat to have as we drove back to Hatchers Pass. The little John Deere engine churning the ice cream sure reminded us of home and Iowa!

We arrived back to our cabin in Hatchers Pass and right across the street is Turners Corner, a gas station, convenience store small cafe that made pizza's, had scoop ice cream, etc...... Well, it also had a very clean and nice laundromat! We had laundry detergent/dryer sheets provided at the cabin and we just needed a bunch of quarters to get a couple loads done.

We didn't try the ice cream as we were way to full from Talkeetna, so can't confirm or deny whether it was the best. I will say, with the traffic and number of people coming and going, walking out with ice cream cones, I bet it was pretty good.

There were so many different places to eat, and it was really hard to decide but we chose West Rib Pub and Grill. It had been featured on Man vs Food, and we wanted to try their Caribou Burger. It was really really good!

It was really nice out, we chose to eat outside. Our server was a lot of fun!

This is the Seward Folly. It has 2# of Caribou, 1/2 pound of ham, 12 slices of bacon, 6oz. of American Cheese, 6 oz. of Swiss Cheese and 1# of Fries. If you can finish this by yourself in 1 hour, you get a free Seward Folly t-shirt. We did not get this....

This was our lunch and after eating so full, decided our supper. John had the Northern Lights Burger and I got the Stubbs Burger. Both excellent and so filling!

We stopped at the Talkeetna Ranger Station and got educated about Denali. What these guys go through that climb the mountain is amazing. There is a short film, about 20 minutes that describes the process of what the climbers go through....from the moment they check in here saying they want to climb, to when they reach the summit. Definitely stop here if you are in Talkeetna.

Different flags that have reached the summit.....literally from all over the world.

Different boots for climbing over the ages....

It said showers in Talkeetna, but actually there weren't any, the skies were starting to clear and we actually had blue skies later in the afternoon. Look at the temps up on the mountain.....brrr!

Stopped by K2 Aviation to touch base....the weather was starting to clear north of Talkeetna, but still not flying. Will check back later, but right now.....it's time for some food!

Isn't this guy cute!! There were lots of these moose all over town in different colors and designs. This is one K2 Aviation sponsored.

Tuesday June 8th - Talkeetna

Today was the day we had planned to head to Talkeetna and hopefully fly around Denali with Glacier landing with K2 Aviation. Talkeetna was a fun little quirky town with yes, a lot of gift/souvenir shops but it also has a lot of history. There is a great museum there talking about the history of Talkeetna, with different locations you can walk to that are part of the tour. It is also the staging area for anybody that wants to climb Denali. Was very informative going to the US Park Rangers office and hearing what all is involved for those wanting to climb.....it's quite the process and it takes 3 weeks to reach the summit. We had a fun day and beautiful scenery along the way from Hatchers Pass.

The weather in Talkeetna was overcast when we first got there, but it was clearing from the north to south. The weather on the mountain however was another story....we checked in frequently with K2 Aviation to see if we would be able to fly, and unfortunately they were only able to reach the lower elevations so we did not go We were a little disappointed, but we were on vacation and we were in Alaska, so it was all good!

This image shows the damage from the Sockeye Fire in 2015. It destroyed about 6500 acres, ruined 5 homes and other structures. There was literally miles and miles of burnt forest between Willow and Talkeetna along the Parks Highway.....but promising new green brush growing underneath the burnt out trees.

Small town, easy to walk around. We found a perfect parking place by the historic Fairview Inn, which is for sale if anyone is interested!

Nagley's Store......this is where the mayor lives.

This is Stubbs, the Honorary cat Mayor of Talkeetna. He was 20 years old and did pass away about a month after

we were here.

This was one of my favorite stores we stopped at....Mostly Moose. Around back is a walkway that takes you to the Talkeetna Historical Museum.