Alaska Photojournal – Coral Princess + DIY Land Tour May 28 – June 9, 2014

[Shazzah]

Great Day on the Kenai Fjords Cruise. Your photos came out great. Thanks for another excellent review of your activities. Definitely putting the cruise on our must do list.

[brookeinmn]

I'm really hoping to do the Kenai Fjords cruise. I hope we catch a good weather day like you did!

[AryMay]

Monday, June 9 – Seward to Anchorage to Minneapolis

 

Our last day began with another big breakfast at the Sunshine House… biscuits, sausage gravy made from homemade chicken sausage, scrambled eggs, bagels with lox (from Mike’s smoked salmon) and cream cheese, tomatoes with mozzarella & fresh basil, fruit, etc. The only negative from breakfast was that I was dreading trying to pack to go home. This time was going to be tough since I had to keep in mind the airline requirements AND the weight of my bag. Ughhh.

 

Once everything was sorted out and packed, we said our good byes and headed to the Sealife Center that was…two blocks away. The entry fee was $20 per person but we had another “buy one get one free” coupon so saved $20.

 

 

The displays were interesting, especially one that had a sign that said “DO touch”. The shallow, open tanks were filled with urchins and other sea creatures and you were encouraged to reach in (with one finger) and feel them.

 

 

 

No touching these jellyfish however!

 

 

A giant sea lion was having fun swimming around his tank.

 

[AryMay]

We spent a long time at a very large open tank that housed all sorts of sea birds. The birds were not caged and would sometimes fly right by your head! Laurel and I both took many, many photos of the sea birds (but mostly puffins!) They were so cute!

 

 

 

 

Doesn't this puffin look like a colorful toy?

 

 

No...it wasn't raining inside...one of the birds decided to do some shaking right next to where I was taking a photo!

 

 

From the level below you could view the underwater portion of the same tank through a window. It was so interesting to see both the fish and the birds as they would dive and “fly” through the water. No photos of that because they went too fast!

 

[AryMay]

A statue in front of the Sealife Center...

 

 

From the Sealife Center we made a quick stop at Subway to pick up some sandwiches and then drove to the Exit Glacier, a few miles outside of town. There are regularly scheduled ranger-led walks, but our timing was off so we just hiked on our own.

 

Part of the trail is paved and wheelchair accessible and leads to an observation point where you can see the Exit Glacier. Continuing on, the trail becomes gravel and gets fairly steep. The National Park Service website describes the trail as “moderately strenuous”. I struggled when the trail began going uphill and debated about going all the way. Bob ended up carrying my backpack for me (along with his!) and I did make it. Bob on the other hand said he would rate the trail very easy and had no trouble whatsoever.

 

The trail makes a loop and is a little over two miles long, but you can not get right up next to the glacier. To do that you must take a much longer and much more strenuous trail to the Harding Ice Field.

 

 

 

Bob waved at me when I wasn't sure I was going to be able to make it all the way.

 

 

Doesn't look so bad, huh? Well this is the same photo taken without the zoom...I still had a long way to go!

 

 

[AryMay]

Some more photos of Exit Glacier...

 

 

 

 

 

 

The toe of the receding glacier...

 

[AryMay]

Following our hike, we spent a short time in the Exit Glacier visitor’s center and then it was time for us to say goodbye to Kent and Laurel. Although our trip was ending, theirs was going to continue on for a few more days. As we left to make the drive back to Anchorage, they were headed to a dog sled tour at Seavey’s Ididaride…just a few miles down the same road as Exit Glacier. Once their tour was over, they were going north…eventually ending up at Denali National Park.

 

We would have loved to have visited Denali, but the two weeks that we had already spent traveling was the most we could do this time. Maybe on a future visit we will be able to see and do more!

 

It was mid-afternoon when we started our drive to Anchorage. Our flight back to Minneapolis didn't take off until after midnight which gave us lots of time…too much time, in fact. Bob was starting to get a cold and we were just tired from the busy schedule. After driving part of the way, we pulled over, reclined the seats in the rental car…and took a nap!

 

 

 

Feeling a little more refreshed, we resumed our travels. Just like the trip down to Seward, we experienced rain and clouds on the way back as well.

 

 

 

We pulled off at a spot that I believe was “beluga point” that we had noticed on the way down to Seward.

 

 

[AryMay]

Bob climbed around on the rocks while I photographed some of the tiny wild flowers I found.

 

 

 

 

Just before we reached Anchorage we pulled off at Potter's Marsh. There is a VERY long boardwalk built over a marshy area...a great place to view and photograph birds.

 

 

 

[AryMay]

I was busy trying to photograph this cute little bird when Bob motioned for me to quietly follow him to the end of the boardwalk.

 

 

A moose!! We watched the moose as she walked through the marsh, munching on the tall grass.

 

 

 

 

After snapping tons of pictures I pulled out my cell phone to text Laurel (mostly to make her jealous that we had seen a moose!) What a surprise when she replied that they were just a few miles away on their way to Wasilla where they planned to spend the night! They arrived shortly...and we were STILL watching the moose! Although they would end up seeing more moose in Denali, it was fun to be able to share the "first" moose together!

 

And one final bonus shot...an eagle!

 

 

After one more round of goodbyes we drove the last few miles to the Anchorage airport.

 

[RNGALNG]

On our land part of Alaska, we arrived in Anchorage sometime after 1:00AM after a very long day of travel. On the ride to the hotel, the driver stopped the bus as there was a moose on the side of the road. We all watched, mesmerized! No one thought to get a camera out - we were so tired! It turned out to be the only moose we saw the two weeks we were there! Your photos are wonderful!

 

Things we learned on our trip:

1. Always have your camera ready with extra sim cards and batteries.

2. Wildlife will not stop and pose for your camera so getting a photo like you see on brochures is hard to get. (But you nailed it throughout your trip!)

3. It takes a day to get from one place to another.

4. Alaska is costly.

 

I could go on, but these are the basic ones. Agree?

 

Thank you again for the wonderful photo filled review of your trip! I am really looking forward to going again later this summer!

[klwigg59]

Thank you for an amazing review & sharing your awesome photo's with us. I am now worried that my camera will be inadequate & I won't have enough memory cards (I have 2 8gb). I can only hope to capture some of these amazing shots to share with my family from my cruise next month.

[1153rsmith]

Thank you for an amazing review & sharing your awesome photo's with us. I am now worried that my camera will be inadequate & I won't have enough memory cards (I have 2 8gb). I can only hope to capture some of these amazing shots to share with my family from my cruise next month.

 

The amount of memory cards you will need will be determined by size of the pictures you take and the megapixels of the camera. I am going to use a Nikon D7100 and I put in on the setting where it takes a normal quality JPG file + a RAW format picture at the same time. So basically, everytime I take a picture, it saves 2 separate files. I can get a little over 500 pictures on a 32 gig card.

 

That same card in a point and shoot will be well over 1,000 pictures. I plan on having the capacity to take 3,000-5,000 pictures during our 12 day trip. I will either have to get some more cards or will have to carry my laptop so I can transfer my pictures and reuse the memory cards.

 

Just remember, you can get memory cards here much cheaper than you can on the ship, or in a tourist port, so my one piece of advice is get them now.

 

Also, look at the write speed of the card. At least for SD cards, that is an issue. The cheaper cards are usually a slower speed and it will take longer for your camera to save the picture and be ready to take another shot. Most of the packaging now will give you recommendations for digital cameras.

 

Now, off to look for a sale on SD cards.:)

[AryMay]

The amount of memory cards you will need will be determined by size of the pictures you take and the megapixels of the camera. I am going to use a Nikon D7100 and I put in on the setting where it takes a normal quality JPG file + a RAW format picture at the same time. So basically, everytime I take a picture, it saves 2 separate files. I can get a little over 500 pictures on a 32 gig card.

 

That same card in a point and shoot will be well over 1,000 pictures. I plan on having the capacity to take 3,000-5,000 pictures during our 12 day trip. I will either have to get some more cards or will have to carry my laptop so I can transfer my pictures and reuse the memory cards.

 

Just remember, you can get memory cards here much cheaper than you can on the ship, or in a tourist port, so my one piece of advice is get them now.

 

Also, look at the write speed of the card. At least for SD cards, that is an issue. The cheaper cards are usually a slower speed and it will take longer for your camera to save the picture and be ready to take another shot. Most of the packaging now will give you recommendations for digital cameras.

 

Now, off to look for a sale on SD cards.:)

 

Even though I am the one posting the review, I am learning something new on this thread!

 

I didn't realize there was a difference in "write speed" in different cards. All I have ever paid attention to was the amount of memory. What or where should I be looking to determine what the write speed is?

 

Also...what does the "class" of the memory card refer to? I just bought a "Class 10" 8 GB Verbatim card for $4.88 on sale which I thought was a great deal.

 

Thanks for jumping in with advice! It is good to hear from someone who "knows" what they are doing! I just point and shoot and hope for the best!

:)

 

[1153rsmith]

Even though I am the one posting the review, I am learning something new on this thread!

 

I didn't realize there was a difference in "write speed" in different cards. All I have ever paid attention to was the amount of memory. What or where should I be looking to determine what the write speed is?

 

Also...what does the "class" of the memory card refer to? I just bought a "Class 10" 8 GB Verbatim card for $4.88 on sale which I thought was a great deal.

 

Thanks for jumping in with advice! It is good to hear from someone who "knows" what they are doing! I just point and shoot and hope for the best!

:)

 

 

 

I don't fully understand the class either, but from what I have seen, Class 10 is recommended for digital cameras. I am looking at one of my Sony 32 gb cards and on the face of the card it says 40 MB/S. The 40 MB/S is how fast it reads and it writes slighly slower, but they go hand in hand. I have some that say 30, some say 40, and I have one that says 45. The quicker it can save the image, the quicker your camera will be ready to take the next picture.

 

I just did a quick swagbucks search and I think the consensus is to stick with Class 10 for digital cameras and that will take care of most of the circumstances. Personally, going forward, I am trying to buy cards that are at least 30 mb/s just to help give me the added edge when I am photographing my kids basketball games, and hopefully, when whales are breaching.:D

Edited July 3, 2014 by 1153rsmith

[Shazzah]

Just to add to the card discussion - having a higher speed card becomes more critical depending on the camera specs - not all cameras will take advantage of a very fast card.

 

The Class 10 card is great for the SX50.

 

Actually, I popped back in to say I just finished AryMay's review of the Emerald Princess Cruise and enjoyed it immensely. Another to add to the bucket list.

[klwigg59]

Thanks for all the advice & yes I will be shopping for more memory cards. Again thank you OP for the awesome narration & sharing of YOUR photos & vacation.

[AryMay]

I don't fully understand the class either, but from what I have seen, Class 10 is recommended for digital cameras. I am looking at one of my Sony 32 gb cards and on the face of the card it says 40 MB/S. The 40 MB/S is how fast it reads and it writes slighly slower, but they go hand in hand. I have some that say 30, some say 40, and I have one that says 45. The quicker it can save the image, the quicker your camera will be ready to take the next picture.

 

This has been helpful. I pulled out all of my memory cards today and most of my cards don't have any speed listed, but one of the 16 GB cards said 15 MB/S! I had no idea that there was a difference in cards other than the total memory!

 

This card was purchased at the Black Friday sale at Walmart last year for a very cheap price. It is a Sony brand, but I can't help but thinking it was a special order just for for the Walmart stores.

 

From now on I will be looking at cards a little more carefully!

[AryMay]

Just to add to the card discussion - having a higher speed card becomes more critical depending on the camera specs - not all cameras will take advantage of a very fast card.

 

The Class 10 card is great for the SX50.

 

Actually, I popped back in to say I just finished AryMay's review of the Emerald Princess Cruise and enjoyed it immensely. Another to add to the bucket list.

 

You must enjoy reading cruise reviews as much as I do! I would much rather enjoy a good cruise report than watch some of the stupid shows on TV!

 

The southern Caribbean route that we did on the Emerald was a great cruise...and visited some new ports for us. Dominica had been on my bucket list and I am happy to say that it did not disappoint!

[Mustangsally58]

Thank you for your wonderful report and photos.

 

We are about to undertake our first ever visit to Alaska and have learnt so much by reading your post.

 

I hope my photos are even half as good as yours.

 

Sally

[lag9122]

Great review I love all the pictures . Thanks for taking the time to share your vacation with us I am looking forward to Alaska in June next year .

[Parrottdizes]

Thanks for the great review AryMay, really enjoyed it!

 

And thanks to 1153rsmith for bring up cards and that there is more to them then the amount of memory. The 2 8GB cards that I have are 90MB read and 45MB write.......I did buy them at the small camera shop where I bought my camera. I noticed that at the stores (Wallgreens/Staples...etc.) that sell memory cards, that those cards have slower speeds. It seems that to get the faster cards, one needs to buy them at a camera shop (which probably costs more) or order them. Who would have thought that there was so much more to those cards!

 

Also another thing I have noticed is that though the camera/card shows that you have X amount of images available, that is not the case. For example, it showed that I had space for 1371 images but after taking 4 pictures, it showed that I now had space for 1351 images (all "jpeg"). Why is this........well, each image taken takes up a different amount of space on the card. Some images take up more space than others......plus, if you use "raw" or "jpeg & raw" that will effect the amount of space each image uses on the card. And then there is resolution and image size to be tossed into the mix......OH MY.:eek:

 

Again, thanks for the review......loved the pictures that you posted!

[threetimesalady]

Thanks so much for the great trip report and photos. We are sailing northbound on the Island Princess in late August and then spending a few days in Seward. I have wondered if after seeing Glacier Bay and College Fjord and whale watching in Juneau, the Kenai National Park cruise will be redundant? I guess my question is, is the Kenai area unique in some way in comparison to areas seen from the ship or is there something unique about the Kenai Park tour? Of course, the weather while on the cruise could be a factor, as well. I can tell by your report that you really enjoyed the Kenai Park tour so I would just like to hear your thoughts on this when you have time.

 

Again, thanks for all the useful information and enjoyable photos.

 

Penny K.

[AryMay]

Thanks so much for the great trip report and photos. We are sailing northbound on the Island Princess in late August and then spending a few days in Seward. I have wondered if after seeing Glacier Bay and College Fjord and whale watching in Juneau, the Kenai National Park cruise will be redundant? I guess my question is, is the Kenai area unique in some way in comparison to areas seen from the ship or is there something unique about the Kenai Park tour? Of course, the weather while on the cruise could be a factor, as well. I can tell by your report that you really enjoyed the Kenai Park tour so I would just like to hear your thoughts on this when you have time.

 

Again, thanks for all the useful information and enjoyable photos.

 

Penny K.

 

Your point about the weather is a good one. We had such incredible weather on our day in Kenai Fjords and I'm sure that played a huge factor in how much we enjoyed the tour. Had it been cold and rainy we would not have come away with such a positive opinion.

 

You are also correct in saying that the Kenai Fjords cruise is redundant. By the time we took the tour we had already seen almost all of the wildlife (except puffins), glaciers and snow covered mountains earlier in the week. But the Kenai Fjords National Park tour was far superior in terms of quality and quantity of what we saw! And...you were able to see everything at a much closer range than what you could from the ship. The boat captain on the tour would also position the boat and then STOP so you weren't trying to photograph or see things from a moving vessel.

 

If you have the time and money, I would highly recommend that you do the National Park Tour. And everyone's advice to take the longer tours (6+ hours) is good advice. I have decided that Kenai Fjords is one of the most beautiful places on earth and am so lucky to have experienced it.

 

[AryMay]

It has been a fun and busy holiday weekend, but now I need to wrap up what little is left to my report.

 

After seeing our moose at Potter’s Marsh, we drove the last few miles to the airport. After turning in our rental car we hauled our luggage to the Alaska Airlines counters (thank goodness for the invention of the wheel!) There were scales off to the side and when we checked the weight of the luggage all was good…except for my big bag. It was 55.7 pounds. Ugh. We shuffled some of my stuff over to Bob’s bag and luckily were able to get it down to just under 50 pounds…barely.

 

We had some “contraband” that could not go through security so we sat down near the scales and consumed the illegal substances (the rest of my Subway sandwich, a pop, etc.) A young couple was also waiting there with their two husky-mix dogs, River and Creek. Kent and Laurel had their encounter with huskies at the dog sled tour…we had ours at the airport! The two of them were teachers in one of the remote villages and were on their way home to visit family. A short time later, another older lady sat down and she too had been a teacher in one of the villages…we had a delightful chat about her experiences!

 

 

 

Our flight left around 12:30 a.m. I took this photo at midnight to show how light it still was outside.

 

 

One of the passengers on our flight from Anchorage had a small dog in a carrier under the seat. It began to bark shortly after takeoff and kept barking…and barking. Eventually the steward came by and handed out ear plugs!

 

It never did get totally dark on our flight and when we landed in Seattle for our layover, the sun was just coming up. It felt like we had totally lost one night in our life! From Seattle we flew to Minneapolis. Getting comfortable enough to sleep was pretty much impossible.

 

 

 

[AryMay]

Much of the way the skies were clear, so I amused myself by taking photos out of the window of the plane with my cell phone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arrived back in Minneapolis around noon, picked up our car and then had another three hour drive to get home…back home to the prairie.

 

Thanks so much to all of you who have followed along with me…and especially thank you to those who have left such nice comments. I have not responded to each of you individually, but knowing that you enjoyed seeing the photos and reading my commentary was much appreciated!

 

Hopefully there have been a few of you that acquired some little tidbits of information that will be helpful when planning your own trip. I gained so much from reading others’ trip reports and just wanted to “pay it forward.”

 

Please let me know if you have any other questions…and I will look forward to reading your reviews soon!