Alaska Vacation Blog 2018

This is a copy of the blog Fiona and I sent to family and friends during our adventure to Alaska.

Blog 1
Hello everyone; you are receiving this Blog because we have sent it to you. If you don't wish to receive the Blogs please do not switch your computer or hand-held devices on for the next two weeks!

We were up nice and early Wednesday morning and the traffic to Barcelona Airport was light. At check-in we were given four boarding passes; one each for Club Class (Business Class) to London and then one each for First Class to Seattle. Nice seats and no need to reclaim our bags in London. Reward for thirty-seven years of hard work in British Airways. Stress level back down to nearly zero.

In First Class we both watched the movie Black Panther. Brilliant! The BA service was excellent but, as it was a day flight, sleeping was not easy. We had a car and driver in Seattle to drive us to the Marriott Waterside Hotel, which had fabulous views across the bay.

We were here for three nights but, as we have been to Seattle many times before, we did not do any sightseeing. Instead we took the short walk to the Pike Street Market area and found a different breakfast place every day. After breakfast there was the standard retail therapy - an hour or so around the shops before I escaped. Fiona would reappear just before sunset eager to show me the bargains she had found. There are loads of great restaurants along the seafront with wonderful views.

This morning we awoke to find our ship, the Norwegian Jewel, docked immediately outside our hotel. It is good to have contacts!

We board the Jewel at 12.00 midday and sail at 4.00pm. Tomorrow we will be at sea sailing north passed Vancouver on our way northward. Access to the Internet will be sporadic, but we will try and send again in a few days.


Blog 2
Boarding the ship at Seattle was easy. We stepped out of our hotel with our bags, crossed the road and we were there. We deposited our suitcases and then stood in line. Although seemingly long, the line went quickly as we filled through identification, security and then registration where were given our keys. Security swiped the keys as we we boarded and we would re-swipe every time we left the ship.

None of the rooms were as yet released so we went to the 12th floor to the huge swimming pool area and found somewhere to sit in the warm sun. Fiona sat while I went to one of the many bars and got us a cool beer. Despite all our drinks being free, the barman apologised and asked for our room key. "You have to pay the tax while we are in port," he explained. "That's one dollar thirty eight to your card sir. Have a nice day!"

After a lazy 45 minutes looking out on the beautiful Puget Sound to starboard, and the city of Seattle to port, the ship departed and headed north. After settling in to our suite, we went for dinner, finishing off with a show in the Stardust Theatre.

Our first full day was spent at sea, heading north to Alaska. We explored the ship, relaxed in our cabin, and chose a suitable restaurant for dinner. From now on the days would be busy, with several early starts.

We arrived at Ketchikan at 7.00am and, after breakfast, we went ashore. The town looked beautiful, but that have to wait. First we were had a plane to catch! Following a briefing, six of us boarded a Beaver float plane. I sat in front with the the pilot, while Fiona had a whole seat to herself so she could see left and right out of both windows. Within minutes we were airborne and climbing into rainy, cloudy skies. It is impossible to describe the thrill as we passed over mountain ridges, looking up and down at the beautiful scenery. However the highlight was when we landed on a remote lake. The pilot shut the engine off and we climbed out onto the aircraft floats listening the the vast silence and staring up at the mountain walls that surrounded us. Back in Ketchikan we explored the local shops, but we were still buzzing with excitement from our amazing experience.

The ship headed north again at 2.00pm towards our next destination Juneau. We arrived at 7.00am the next morning and a bus took us through the capital city of Alaska (it was a small town, at best) on a 25 minute journey to Mendenhall Glacier. We looked in awe at the beauty of the huge glacier, dipping its blue and white toes into the sea. We walked along the shore in brilliant sunshine, still wrapped in our thermal coats. The experience was stunning, but filled with sadness. The glacier retreats at fifteen feet a year and, in another generation, will be gone.

We were back on board by lunchtime, this time heading south. The float plane of yesterday was amazing. The Mendenhall Glacier was incredible. However nothing could had have prepared us for our next experience. During the afternoon we sat and watched as the shoreline passed us by on both sides. Up on deck I saw a whale break water, a jet of water exhaled into the sky.

The ship edged its's way along a fjord and we began passing small ice flows of blue and white. Eventually, with the waters edge close on both sides we turned a corner to see the Sawyer Glacier. We headed closer, until the ice became too much. We slowed and the ship began turning on the spot, gliding gently full circle, so that all the passengers could get a view of nature at its' most beautiful. A most incredible journey and more still to come!

Blog 3
We were still buzzing from our previous day - our amazing seaplane landing on a lake and beautiful Ketchikan but, for us, our journey negotiating a narrow fjord onboard our ship to the Sawyer Glacier had really blown us away. It was Wednesday morning, we were in Skagway, excited, and getting ready for breakfast. It was then the ships' tannoy burst into life, leaving us stunned!

We had read that most peoples' highlight of their Alaskan cruise was the White Pass Scenic Railway from Skagway. The trip on board an old fashioned train would take us from the waterside up to the summit of White Pass 2,885 feet above sea level, passing over incredible bridges and two tunnels, the route of the Klondike Trail.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we regret to announce that due to a rock slide all railway trips have been cancelled. Norwegian Cruise Lines will arrange automatic refunds back into your accounts and wish to apologise for the inconvenience."

Our heads spun. At breakfast we discussed our options, although I had already gone to the Excursions Desk to see hundreds of passengers queue for alternative tours. We decided to go into Skagway and explore our options ashore. With other cruise ships also in dock our chances were slim. Eventually we found a Jeep car hire company with one vehicle left and we took it! Navigating would be easy; there is only one road in and out of Skagway.

Our journey took us along the Klondike Highway and we began to realise this was a good alternative to our cancelled train trip. The views were very spectacular. Soon we were crossing the Canadian border heading for the town of Carcross. It was a great trip and we even saw a black bear by the side of the road. The day was saved! We even had time to explore beautiful Skagway, with its' smartly painted pioneer buildings.

The next day, another early morning, and we boarded a bus at Icy Point Strait in search of bears and other wild life. The dock and Icy Strait Point area are owned by the Tlingit people whose ancestors have been in Alaska for at least 12,000 years. The profits, mostly reinvested into tourism, benefit the Tlingit many who otherwise would have only a subsistence living. We were driven through the only village, named Hoonah, and then on towards the Spassky River Valley. We read there was about a 60% chance of seeing a bear. On arrival, we were told we could not leave the bus. Just ahead in the trees was a mother and two cubs. They slowly made their way, closely passing by our bus. After getting off the bears were still visible a little way up the road. A Tlingit ranger stood with us with a rifle just in case!

After the bears disappeared into the trees we walked along a broad walk, a decked-walkway through a marshy open area and back into the trees near the river. The valley was beautiful and the bears routinely went down to the river to graze and, sometimes, catch fish. Everyone looked up and down the river valley but something made me look back and into the forest. Between the trees paying us little attention was a large male brown bear. I quietly placed my hand on the shoulder of our Tlingit guard and pointed. He stepped quickly between us and the bear. We all watched in awe. In all, we saw 9 bears that day, something our guide had never experienced before. We were very lucky!

Returning to the ship we found a bottle of wine and chocolates in our suite. It was our 11th wedding anniversary and, that evening, Fiona and I celebrated by dining in the Brazilian speciality restaurant.

The next day we were at Sitka. A vessel was already waiting at the dockside to take us on our Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest. We were less fortunate today. We did see several sea otters, mostly lying on their backs in the sea eating kelp. Fiona thought they were "cute". We also spotted several bald eagles but what everyone wanted to see was a whale. Eventually we saw three whales in all but each sighting lasted only seconds as the creatures surfaced, blew, and then dived again and were gone. Taking a picture proved impossible. After several hours on the sea we were dropped of in Sitka and explored the town before taking a free shuttle bus back to the ship.

As most days we had time for a quick nap and a shower before venturing out to eat and take in a show. Tomorrow we would be at sea all day and night heading back south. An opportunity to relax and enjoy the activities on board.

Blog 4
Saturday gave us the opportunity to sleep in as the Norwegian Jewel sailed southward the 800 miles to Victoria, in British Columbia. It also gave us the chance to reflect on our magnificent adventure. We had high expectations of Alaska, but it magically exceeded them in every way.

We arrived in Victoria, Canada, at midday on Sunday. On shore we queued in the rain for a taxi to the downtown area and we were not disappointed. Victoria is lovely and, soon, was bathed in sunshine and blue skies. Attractive shops and office buildings lined the pretty streets against a background of snow-capped mountains and the pretty, but bustling harbour. After a little retail therapy we retired to a Canadian pub for a couple of lemonades. To cap off a wonderful afternoon we walked to the harbour and took a water taxi back to our ship.

The next day we docked in Vancouver and it was time to say goodbye to this extraordinary ship. We had two nights in the Hyatt Regency Hotel, in central Vancouver, but the highlight was probably the evening dinners we had in two great restaurants. Wednesday evening we boarded the doubled-decked Airbus 380 to take our first-class seats to London.

In London circumstances reminded us how lucky we had been on our holiday. We were put on standby, only receiving boarding passes ten minutes before departure. World Traveller was fine for the two hour flight, but waiting 90 minutes for our bags in Barcelona was not funny; we finally arrived home at 10.30pm. Tired, jet-lagged, but home, having had one of the most wonderful holidays we have ever had. Thank you for reading our blog; see you soon!