Alaska in Late August

[Cruise2getaway]

I have booked a 7 day Explorer of the Seas cruise to Alaska, August 24-31. First cruise to Alaska, a few questions about the weather and what I might expect to see while onboard.

 

1. I believe this is a rainy time, any chance of Sunny days in late August?

 

2. Can I expect to see the glaciers calving from the ship or do I need to do an excursion?

 

3. I know to layer, but should I bring any true winter gear? Hats, Gloves, Scarves etc?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

So excited 119 days and counting!!!!!!!

[new_cruiser]

We were in Alaska last August - a Northbound cruise from August 8 to 15 and about a week on land so we finished up August 23.

 

We had morning fog some days, some drizzly times and some cloudy ones but also some sunny times. There were a couple of times when it rained harder, but not for long. At nearly the end of our trip, we got a view of Denali totally free of clouds. It really depends on your luck.

 

Whether you can expect to see glaciers calving depends partly on what glaciers your ship visits. If the itinerary goes to Glacier Bay, then you should see some calving. If it goes to Hubbard Glacier, then you should also see some, unless your ship runs into weather or ice conditions that prevent it from getting close to the glacier. Our cruise went to both and we saw calving at both.

 

If it goes to Tracy Arm, then you might not get that close to the glacier on the ship and the excursion that takes you closer would be a better bet for seeing calving.

 

The coldest times for us were when we were close to the glaciers. For those days, having a wool hat and a scarf in addition to a rain shell over a fleece made the temperature comfortable. I think I also wore gloves some of the time. A hat or balaclava and a scarf don't take up much room at all so you might as well bring them.

[CruiserBruce]

A little reading on the board will find tons of threads on weather. The first rule is that Alaska weather varies tremendously, sometimes hour to hour. Given that, later August will be cooler and wetter. Google search weather for a couple of your ports for the factual data. Yes, sun is definitely possible.

 

"True winter clothes" will vary depending on where you are from.

 

Without knowing your route, we can't predict if you will see glaciers, or even glaciers calving. But if you see glaciers, they calve year around, so you might see them in action.

[Cruise2getaway]

We were in Alaska last August - a Northbound cruise from August 8 to 15 and about a week on land so we finished up August 23.

 

We had morning fog some days, some drizzly times and some cloudy ones but also some sunny times. There were a couple of times when it rained harder, but not for long. At nearly the end of our trip, we got a view of Denali totally free of clouds. It really depends on your luck.

 

Whether you can expect to see glaciers calving depends partly on what glaciers your ship visits. If the itinerary goes to Glacier Bay, then you should see some calving. If it goes to Hubbard Glacier, then you should also see some, unless your ship runs into weather or ice conditions that prevent it from getting close to the glacier. Our cruise went to both and we saw calving at both.

 

If it goes to Tracy Arm, then you might not get that close to the glacier on the ship and the excursion that takes you closer would be a better bet for seeing calving.

 

The coldest times for us were when we were close to the glaciers. For those days, having a wool hat and a scarf in addition to a rain shell over a fleece made the temperature comfortable. I think I also wore gloves some of the time. A hat or balaclava and a scarf don't take up much room at all so you might as well bring them.

 

We are going through Tracy Arm, so I suppose we need to book a glacier tour.

[Cruise2getaway]

So far we have booked the Train, sled dogs and gold panning in Skagway as an excursion.