Northbound Vancouver to Whitter 8-11-04

[Elliern]

Returned last week from our Alaska cruise on the Carnival Spirit. Had a wonderful time and would do it again in a heartbeat! Wish we had more time in each port. And next time I would be more organized! Didn't have enough time to see everything I wanted to see in each town.

 

Sailing: Enjoyed the on board naturalist explaining all the sights and spotting wildlife for us. The view was awesome. Loved College Fjord and the glaciers! Seas were very calm, weather was beautiful.

 

Ketchikan: Did Misty Fjord flight seeing with Southeast Air using our toursaver coupon. Were a little disappointed in this and would not do it again. Did not seem worth the money for what we saw/did. Plane was full with 4 very, very large men. I had to sit in the tail, with poor visibility. Landed on a small lake and could stand on the pontoon. Not much to see really. Another pilot kept radioing about sheep and goats on the mountain tops, but we didn't see them. The pilot was very pleasant, but did not have much to say about what we were seeing.

We also went on the rain forest walk. This was definetly not worth $89. A Bus took us to a private park/forest. We walked a trail with a guide who explained the tree and plant growth. We saw a couple of young eagles and a creek with a few salmon. There was a gift shop at the end of the trail. While this was an interesting walk, it lasted about 15-20 minutes total. The guide was friendly and informative. The people in the gift shop also were friendly. But it honestly was not worth $89 each. Wish we had spent more time in town. Maybe there will be a next time!

Enjoyed walking around the town, and the shopping here was probably the best as far as prices go.

 

Juneau: Did Capt. Larry and Mendenhall Glacier on our own. Enjoyed them both. Walked around town. Saw large bear tracks at Mendenhall. Got great pictures fo the glacier and falls. Walked the trail around to the falls.

 

Skagway: Rented a car and drove to Emerald Lake. Also went to the cemetary and saw Soapy Smith Grave and the water fall. It was beautiful. Had a great time. Stopped in Carcrosse and ate at Cinnamon Cache for lunch. We didn't see any wildlife, but RDuke said he saw a bear on his van tour. We used Murray's Guide and it was great! Very glad to have it. We had time to walk around the town and shop a little.

 

Sitka: No excursions planned. We walked around town, went to the park and raptor center. Used the free internet cafe at the college and ate lunch at the Bayview restaurant, which was good. The tea room also looked like a good place to eat. Got a rootbeer float in the old fashioned ice cream parlor.

 

Anchorage and Kenai Peninsula: We disembarked in Whittier quickly and with no problems. Our bus driver pointed out the sights to us along the way and told us stories about the area. Got our bags at the airport car rental area and then drove around anchorage. Ate lunch at a great place downtown. Was one of the best meals we had on our trip. (can't remember the name right now, but if anyone is interested email me and I will get it for you). Saw people fishing for salmon, went to the museum.

Seward: Went on Kenai Fjord tour and it was just outstanding! Had a great trip, saw lots of wildlife and the staff were just great. Capt. Chris was recommended to us and he was terrific! Highly recommend it.

 

Talkeetna: Drove up to Palmer and Talkeetna on our last day. The smoke was bad that day and visibility was poor but still had a nice day.

 

Weather: Was in the high 70's to low 80's every day. Smokey while in Skagway due to new fire starting up. Light rain off and on during our land portion in Seward and early on our last day while driving to Talkeetna. Never wore any winter clothing except for a jacket while on the ship.

 

Had a wonderful time! Loved Alaska, it is a beautful state, but would not want to live there. Met some really nice and interesting people.

Ellie

[powriel]

We were on the 8/25 sailing - also had a great time. Today is actually my 1st day back at work since the 18th, so I'm really struggling!!

[track2traveler]

We were also on the Aug. 25 NB sailing. Really enjoyed it, but the weather was not great. It rained 5 out of 8 days, including a pre-cruise day in Vancouver. Misty Fjords was interesting with a few extra waterfalls because of the rain. And the weather was picture perfect in College Fjord with its impressive mountains and glaciers at sunset. Also enjoyed Blackstone Glacier near Whittier, although it rained, of course. Most of our group of 26 took the red-eye flight from Anchorage back to the east coast and skipped the post-cruise tours. But several people who went to Denali had no rain, but snow!

[mrs. meziggy]

We are very interested in taking this cruise next July. Did you fly into Vancouver? How about on the way home. What city did you fly out of. Do you know what the the distance is from Vancouver to Whittier? Thanks.

[powriel]

You fly into Vancouver and out of Anchorage. Whittier is a long way from Vancouver. Whittier is about a hour from Anchorage.

[mrs. meziggy]

Thank you very much!