5/29/15 Solstice to Alaska

My parents had been to Skagway before and done the railroad, so I had to find something different to do. I found the “Glacier Point Wilderness Safari” offered through both the cruise ship and bookable through a private company. By March, the private company (with a $40 pp savings over the cruise ship) was booked, and we wanted to do this enough that we booked though the cruise line. We had the choice of 7:30 am or 10am, and obviously I picked 7:30 to have more time in Skagway afterwards. Realistically, after our very busy day in Juneau, the 10am may have been better. Hindsight is always 20/20!

We met the shore excursion at the end of the dock (which was long. Plan for walking time.) The excursion also had people from other ships on it. We took two boats over to Glacier Point, which was about an hour away. We saw wildlife, waterfalls, and great scenery along the way, but the boat could have been more comfortable. There were about 18 people on each boat, which was max comfortable capacity. The seating was on a padded bench around the outside of the boat. Compared to the boat for Tracy Arm which also held 20 people, this had no bathroom, no food or drinks, and far less comfortable seating. But it was still sufficient for a 1 hour trip.

Upon arrival at Glacier Point, we walked up from the beach and boarded a school bus. Keep in mind that when John Muir was here (1880’s or 1890’s), the glacier extended all the way to the shore where the boat landed! This bus took us up to the dressing area, where we were all given rubber boots, a life jacket, and an extra layer if desired. The mosquitos here were TERRIBLE, but as soon as you started hiking they seemed to stay behind. The hike was advertised as ¼ mile, but it did feel a little longer. It was generally downhill, but not too severe. It was over an uneven, but well-worn trail (rocks, tree limbs, etc.). My dad with his two replacement hips and bad knees did trip and fall, but he was ok.

We were divided into large canoes with 8-10 people per canoe plus a guide. There were four or five canoes, but once in the lake took different routes so it seemed reasonable private. We paddled for about 200 yards, and then the guide turned the small motor on! It was a lovely trip with a great guide, but if you really wanted to canoe, this may disappoint you. We went up to the newly created land from the receding glacier leaving slit behind, and exited the canoe. This is why you are in rubber boots. We walked through small streams of cold glacier run-off. It was so neat to be that close to the glacier, and the guide’s narration was fantastic.

We repeated the journey in reverse, and ended with lunch on the shore before getting back on the boat. Lunch was trail mix, a turkey sandwich, applesauce, and maybe something that I’m forgetting. Not gourmet, but enough to tide you over until dinner. I had really high expectations for this excursion, so I was worried that I would be disappointed, especially after the last awesome two days. I was pleased with the excursion, especially the part where we got to walk through the glacier run-off.

When we got back, we walked around Skayway for a little while. We watched the video about the gold rush in the visitor’s center, and made it down the main strip to the Skagway Brewery. We had the “Spruce Tip” beer, which is actually brewed with the new growth of spruce trees. They are apparently high in vitamin C, so this was an old seafarers recipe to ward off scurvy. Healthy beer! The bar and restaurant were crowded, but there is an upstairs game room and a back patio. Food was not served here, but both places had ample seating. We bought a few postcards and ambled back to the ship about 5 to continue to enjoy our drinks package.

Approaching the glacier. Notice the canoe at the bottom of the photo

Davidson Glacier

Dad, Mom, me, husband

Walking through the glacier run-off

The Canoe

Mountains outside of Skagway

That ends Alaska! We had a sea day, then a stop in Victoria at 6pm the evening of the second day. The sea days are relaxing, but busy at the same time. I think I saw another Brent Nixon talk, enjoyed the pool and hot tub (ok, the pool was a little chilly, but we were cooling off for the hot tub). I saw the last glassblowing show, but sadly didn’t get chosen in the raffle for a piece. Later my dad almost won a piece for me in the auction, which was SO nice of him, but he was outbid after “going three times.” I’m sure I sat in the sunshine and read my book for a while. My parents went on a tour in Victoria, but my husband and I stayed on the ship for one last dinner in the dining room and an evening on the ship.

We had a great last evening at the Martini bar, but be warned that because of Canadian laws, only one bar per floor is open. That meant that all my favorite bars (Cellermasters, Molecular, Ensemble, Sky) were all closed. The Passport bar, Martini bar, café al bacio, pool bar, and oceanview café bar were all open. This made the Martini bar packed, which was actually really fun. They had a DJ and we were dancing until 1:30 in the morning or so (which is among the latest I have ever been up on a celebrity ship!)

Disembarking was easy but sad. The line for a taxi was about ½ an hour. We took Uber and it got there in under 15 minutes. I’ll post on Seattle next.

Any Questions? Ask away!!

Your pictures blew me away! Special camera? My other question concerns the Tracy Arm excursion. I am traveling on a budget, and I am wondering if the add on is really a must, as you indicate. Can one see ANYTHING from the ship without an extra add-on?

Thank you for the great review and super pictures - can't wait to be doing the same trip at the end of the month! Thank you for posting.

Your pictures blew me away! Special camera? My other question concerns the Tracy Arm excursion. I am traveling on a budget, and I am wondering if the add on is really a must, as you indicate. Can one see ANYTHING from the ship without an extra add-on?

Thanks. The pictures are a combination of mine (Nikon point and shoot with 10x zoom), my husband's (Samsung Galaxy S5 cell phone), and my dad's (a fancy Canon that we affectionately call "the baby" since it weights 16 pounds with the lens on. At my wedding, the photographer joked that if his camera breaks he will use my dad's as it was as good as his was). The very close up photos are my dad, but the rest of them are just with the point and shoot or cell phone. My favorite picture with the waterfall and mist in Tracy arm was taken with the cell phone!

We typically get inside rooms. For Alaska, economized at home so we could get a balcony, and splurge on our excursions. If I had to pick one or the other, I would get the cheapest possible room and spend the money on excursions. Even with our lovely balcony, we found that we liked to be out in the social bar areas like the sunset bar more than sitting on the balcony by ourselves. Then again, I travel to see and do cool stuff and meet interesting people, not relax.

You can definitely see the beauty of Tracy Arm from the ship. What you likely lose is close-up glacier and wildlife views. We were on our balcony from 6 am - 7:15 am when we had to go meet for the excursion. We turned on the bridge channel (I think) so we could hear the naturalist Brett narrating. I heard him talk about a seal and a bear, but both were on the other side of the ship so I couldn't see how close. All the seals we saw were very close to the glacier. We probably saw over 30 of them. You would have a hard time seeing any close-up on the cruise ship. This photo was taken from the cruise ship while sailing into the fjord.

If you use googlemaps and search for Tracy Arm, look for the little island near the end of the arm, where the arm appears to form a Y to north sawyer and south sawyer glaciers. This island is approximately where the ship turned around during the May 29 cruise. Based on the time stamp, this is the first photo that I took once I was on the excursion boat. So if you stayed on the cruise ship, and the ship turned around in the same place, your view would be no closer than this.

Thanks for this exciting review. We are on the Solstice later this summer.

 

I notice you used Pier 91. When I asked the X travel agent at their toll-free number, she said we left from Pier 66. Does X use alternate ports or was she just wrong?

 

Thanks and looking forward to more.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Forums mobile app

I don't know think they alternate. According to the port of Seattle webpage, Solstice homeports at Pier 91. You can double check when your cruise documents come, as it is listed on them.

Your pictures are glorious and the review outstanding! Thanks for taking the time to post!

I know you didn't get off in Victoria, but could you see if there is a nice waterfront to just stroll around after dinner?

Thanks again!

Thanks!

Your pictures are glorious and the review outstanding! Thanks for taking the time to post!

I know you didn't get off in Victoria, but could you see if there is a nice waterfront to just stroll around after dinner?

Thanks again!

Thanks!

It would be a 20-30 minute walk to downtown Victoria. The port area looked fine, it's wasn't a really industrial area. If you go on the port of Victoria website, they had suggested walking paths. That was our plan, until we decided to stay on and enjoy the ship. This fisherman's wharf area looks kind of cute, and that was maybe only a 10 minute walk away.

That ends Alaska! We had a sea day, then a stop in Victoria at 6pm the evening of the second day. The sea days are relaxing, but busy at the same time. I think I saw another Brent Nixon talk, enjoyed the pool and hot tub (ok, the pool was a little chilly, but we were cooling off for the hot tub). I saw the last glassblowing show, but sadly didn’t get chosen in the raffle for a piece. Later my dad almost won a piece for me in the auction, which was SO nice of him, but he was outbid after “going three times.” I’m sure I sat in the sunshine and read my book for a while. My parents went on a tour in Victoria, but my husband and I stayed on the ship for one last dinner in the dining room and an evening on the ship.

 

We had a great last evening at the Martini bar, but be warned that because of Canadian laws, only one bar per floor is open. That meant that all my favorite bars (Cellermasters, Molecular, Ensemble, Sky) were all closed. The Passport bar, Martini bar, café al bacio, pool bar, and oceanview café bar were all open. This made the Martini bar packed, which was actually really fun. They had a DJ and we were dancing until 1:30 in the morning or so (which is among the latest I have ever been up on a celebrity ship!)

 

Disembarking was easy but sad. The line for a taxi was about ½ an hour. We took Uber and it got there in under 15 minutes. I’ll post on Seattle next.

 

Any Questions? Ask away!!

Great review , amazing photos!

We are counting the days till 9.11.15

thanks

I love your bald eagle pictures! I took so many shots of eagles, but sadly none of them turned out that well. Yours could be postcards!!

Thanks! I think my husand and father deserve all the credit for the eagle pictures. I was too busy enjoying the moment to take pictures!

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

Per our travel philosophy, we booked a private whale watching trip for the four of us. This was terrific as it was only 30 dollars more total than the cruise ship excursion would have been! If we had invited two more people from our role call, it would have been much cheaper than the cruise ship. We used “Lost in Alaska” with Captain Kevin. After our very late tender, we had some difficulty finding a taxi (but it really only took about 10 minutes). We went to Mendenhall glacier for about 30 minutes. It was disappointing not to have time to make it to nugget falls, but it will just be a reason to go back! Captain Kevin had given the taxi driver my cell phone number, and five minutes before the assigned pick-up time, the taxi driver had arrived and called to say that he was waiting for us in the commercial section of the parking lot. Kevin texted while we were in the taxi to make sure that we had no trouble meeting up.

 

Kevin’s boat was exactly as pictured, and comfortable for four people to be inside or out. He had snacks and water, but we didn’t need anything. I was delighted that he even had a deckhand on board for the sole purpose of helping him spot the whales for us! The captains all work together, so Kevin already knew the location of some whales and took us straight there. We watched a mom and baby for a while, and another adult. All we saw was backs and one tail, so we moved onto a more playful whale, who was rolling in the water and sticking up his giant pectoral fins which were over ten feet long! Kevin and the deckhand were great about pointing out whales and describing their location - “Whale up – 2 o’clock” Sometimes we had whales on both sides of the boat and couldn’t decide where to look! Kevin also does a photo cruise a few times a year, and tried to position the boat on the correct side of the whales for the sun direction! I was impressed by his extra effort to get my dad great pictures. Brent Nixon’s presentation on humpbacks really helped us understand more about these creatures and appreciate them. Kevin offered a 2.5 hour or a 4 hour whale watch. When I was researching, I felt like 4 hours would be very long, but after being out for 2.5 hours, I would seriously consider booking 4 hours next time! This time, the 2.5 hour is what fit into the schedule, and I would not hesitate to book the shorter time if that’s what you have time for.

 

We headed back to the dock, not realizing the best was yet to come. Near the shore, Kevin pulled the boat over and told us to take our cameras out. He started making this “hooting” noise – he was calling the eagles! In a few minutes, we had more than 30 eagles circling the boat and dipping down in the water to go fishing! It was totally magical to be surrounded by so many eagles!

 

Kevin took us back to the dock, and had a taxi waiting for us to take us back to the cruise ship. We got back to the ship about 8:30. It was a less than a 5 minute line to get on a tender back to the ship. We quickly changed for dinner and were seated about 9pm. We loved our waiter that night (I wish I had written down his name!). We literally shut down the dining room. Really. We were the last people there. They were cleaning and re-setting the tables, but our waiter kept chatting, and we were enjoying it!

 

It was a VERY long day – but a fantastic day! For those looking for clothing guidance, I wore leggings and pair of thin travel pants in the morning, with a t-shirt, a thin fleece, a thick fleece, and a waterproof shell, and a fleece hat and gloves by the glacier. (My husband was in jeans, one fleece, and a waterproof shell) As soon as we were away from the glacier, I didn’t need the hat or gloves. In the afternoon on the whale watch, I was just wearing one fleece, which I may not have even really needed.

 

More photos tomorrow!

How did you find Lost in Alaska and Captain Kevin? Do you have info?

Thanks in advance! Honeymooning from Solstice July 2016, and already have Tracy Arm small boat booked. I've been looking for a whale watch tour in ?Juneau- this sounds great

His website is: http://www.lostinalaskaadventures.com/

Kevin was very responsive to e-mail. Making arrangements was very easy. Congrats on the wedding! We honeymooned on the Equinox three years ago. It was terrific!

Wow, you have me pumped for our Alaska trip in May! I hope I can take awesome pics like the one's you posted.