Debby found a last minute bargain cruise up the Inside Passage of southeastern Alaska. It was fun to be back at sea again. We left Seattle on a beautiful sunny Saturday and returned on the next cloudless Saturday. And we were blessed with relatively clear weather throughout, a great rarity on this itinerary we are told.
The Alaska we saw on our one week cruise is all about water - misty fjords and majestic glaciers descending from the immense Juneau Ice Field. The two forms of water are sometimes connected directly via tideland glaciers that stretch from the high ice field all the way to the sea. Other times there is a band of rain forest climbing steep hillsides along rushing glacial streams, reaching up from the sea to touch stranded mountain glaciers.
This first pictorial narrative covers the initial sea-faring portion of the trip. The glacial episodes follow in a later post.
Debby captured a few moments on the ship.
We played cards a few times and I think I broke even.
Our first port was Ketchikan, a small village on large Revillagigedo Island. It is noted as the fourth wettest locale on Earth.
Our excursion here was billed the Misty Fjords Wilderness Explorer, a combined whale watching and scenic boat cruise. We traveled up the Behm Canal and into Rudyerd Bay, the fjord we were promised. Just before the turn into the Behm Canal, we encountered almost simultaneously a mother and baby orca pair, and along the shore in the distance, a humpback whale. I have never been fascinated by whale watching from a distance; these photos capture most of the available 'excitement' :). Maybe next time I'll be up close in a small boat and with a wide-angle lens, so as to experience the full impact of such encounters, which for now must exist only in my imagination.
New Eddystone Rock is a landmark near the entrance to Rudyerd Bay. First noted by Captain George Vancouver, it appears from a distance to be a ship under sail.
Inside the fjord, we were treated to tranquil scenic beauty. As latitude increases, so does tidal variation. Here we are looking at distances between high and low tide of ~8m. The tidal zone is visible on rock faces. The forest begins just at the high tide mark.
One native artifact was visible here, a faint rock painting of what appears to be a sun in red outline. Nearby, we saw a pair of bald eagles gracing the top of a snag at the waterline (sadly, no image).
Small Alaskan towns such as Ketchikan are accessible only by boat or float plane. Supplies are hauled in by barges.
Skipping over the glacial sagas for the moment, I end now with our return trip. Our last port of call was Prince Rupert, British Columbia, a small town. We had a short stay, which is appropriate because there is not much that is 'touristy' about the town. Our ship is the only one visiting this year, and next year, even it will switch to Victoria. So we will probably never have opportunity to visit again.
I was interested in the locale because the Queen Charlotte Islands, across Hecate Strait from Prince Rupert, were the setting of a book I read last year, The Golden Spruce.
The highlight for us here was a great dinner at the Hotel Crest with a nice waterfront view. The food on ship was surprisingly disappointing, on a par with college dorm food we estimated, so we relished this reprieve. It was my first taste of wine from BC; not bad.
We awakened Saturday morning back in Elliot Bay. We disembarked in a leisurely manner, possibly among the last ten passengers off. We walked over to the adjacent Hotel Edgewater where we met Dori, Richard and grandkids for brunch before the drive home. The grandkids were pleased with their gifts, an eskimo doll for Emi and a black wolf T-shirt with glow-in-the-dark eyes for Nate.
We've been cruising. Now we're back to tell what it's like to be a cruiser.
The Vision of the Seas parked alongside Cabo San Lucas
On deciding to cruise: I am not a cruiser by nature. Only the 'relatively' low price and the spirit of Debby's retirement getaway bash got me out of the starting blocks. But I am a gamer who will take it on and see if there is some way to make it fit. Tough fit, but it was fun and only a few snafus.
On price: Debby chose a 14-day transition cruise to keep the cost down. Our ship was repositioning from the west coast to the Caribbean. This had the double advantage of getting us a Panama Canal transit experience, and getting us a reasonable rate. We chose an inside cabin to further reduce cost, consumed almost no alcohol to further reduce cost, never went near the casino to further reduce cost, didn't do much clothes cleaning to further reduce cost, and found nothing irresistible in the shops, which further reduced costs.
On inside cabins: We were only in the cabin to sleep and refresh. The cabin was roomy and comfortable. The only negative was being permanently in the dark, which made getting up in the morning more difficult. Our cabin attendant, from Trinidad, was extremely friendly and courteous. She made towel sculptures for us.
On packing: We packed about right, with two wheeled suitcases, two soft carry-on bags, and a soft clothes bag. I brought too many socks, but made do with two pair jeans, one cargo shorts, one pair dress slacks, a suit, a few colored tees, four shirts with collars, and three pairs shoes. Carrying the duffels around, loaded with heavy camera gear, became hard on my aging hands, so small wheeled carry-ons are on my list for future travel.
On eating: I seldom put myself in all-you-can-eat situations (for self-preservation). But cruisers live by all-you-can-eat, so I gained 8 pounds on the trip. I'm dealing with that now. The food was quite good with few exceptions. I learned early to avoid the sandwiches at lunch - all bread and no beef. Our dinner table began with five couples but dwindled to three. The remaining six of us were quite compatible: a retired couple from downstate Illinois, our age, and a Hungarian couple living in Montreal who were a few years older. Our Indian waiter and Mexican assistant were very well trained and courteous. The waiter taught us some cool table tricks that I will try some day to reproduce. We took most of our meals in the main dining room, and took irregular snacks in the informal buffet restaurant up top. Fortunately, I didn't discover the bread pudding with vanilla sauce buffet tray until the next to last day; else, I can't imagine what I might weigh now. Both Debby and I were seduced by the fresh baked raisin bread every day. Self-denial is not our strong point, but we work on it only when we're not cruising.
Dining companions
Captain's Reception Dress-up
Our usual dining garb for the more formal at-sea nights
One knitter we met made whole animals and their clothes by knitting.
On facilities: There were two pools and some saunas, but because I experienced a minor leg wound on the second day, we stayed out of these. We stayed out of the casino (no craps) and mostly out of the shops. There were a variety of lounges and decks with chairs, so relaxation was always facilitated. We preferred the quiet of deck 5 on the port (non-smoking) side. There was continuous calypso music in the main pool area, but the bass was amped so much that it became a turn-off to be near that area. There were dedicated kids areas. Normally, 500-600 passengers are teens or younger on this class ship, but our cruise had only 32. The main theater was very well equipped.
Debby at the Deck 5 railing
There was a 35' rock climbing wall at the rear. At Debby's encouragement I went for it, but shrewdly chose the easiest red route. Glad for that, since my aging fingers were feeling fatigue at the top. Other than that, it was as easy as climbing a ladder.
Aside: Debby didn't have too hard a sell to get me to try. I wasn't a total novice, so my interest was piqued. 35 years ago, under the tutelage of my mountaineering/sailing friend Charlie Haas, I had climbed both at Tahquitz Rock and Mt. Whitney. Charlie was a great talent, good teacher, and a seriously free spirit. As a mid-1950s Yosemite climber, he had his name in an old book I once saw for a new route up El Cap. He was also a fearless free climber, and he told me he once did a free dive to 90' off Palos Verdes, to me an equally impressive feat. I could barely get that deep with scuba gear.My handler lowered me in a sling (like a beached whale, perhaps you are thinking?).
On ports of call: There are separate posts of our days spent in various stops along the way.
Overall: Many sun-worshiping passengers seem to relish the leisurely inactivity of a ship, the casino slots and blackjack, the endless food, afternoon bingo, and the endless shopping opportunities for souvenirs and the like. For us, the best part was the shore time and the opportunity to meet some new people. That is easier on a ship than when touring by one's self, if one gets lucky with assigned table mates as we did. Beyond that, cruising was nice as a change of pace. Although my future vacation preference will remain single-destination-oriented and free of scheduling constraints, I am sure we will do another cruise if we see an interesting and affordable one. We are now both more experienced in what to look for.
The view, looking aft, from Deck 10 down on the Pool Deck, and up to Deck 11 (in the round).
The Alaska we saw on our one week cruise is all about water - misty fjords and majestic glaciers descending from the immense Juneau Ice Field. The two forms of water are sometimes connected directly via tideland glaciers that stretch from the high ice field all the way to the sea. Other times there is a band of rain forest climbing steep hillsides along rushing glacial streams, reaching up from the sea to touch stranded mountain glaciers.
Our excursion here was billed the Misty Fjords Wilderness Explorer, a combined whale watching and scenic boat cruise. We traveled up the Behm Canal and into Rudyerd Bay, the fjord we were promised. Just before the turn into the Behm Canal, we encountered almost simultaneously a mother and baby orca pair, and along the shore in the distance, a humpback whale. I have never been fascinated by whale watching from a distance; these photos capture most of the available 'excitement' :). Maybe next time I'll be up close in a small boat and with a wide-angle lens, so as to experience the full impact of such encounters, which for now must exist only in my imagination.
New Eddystone Rock is a landmark near the entrance to Rudyerd Bay. First noted by Captain George Vancouver, it appears from a distance to be a ship under sail.
Inside the fjord, we were treated to tranquil scenic beauty. As latitude increases, so does tidal variation. Here we are looking at distances between high and low tide of ~8m. The tidal zone is visible on rock faces. The forest begins just at the high tide mark.
One native artifact was visible here, a faint rock painting of what appears to be a sun in red outline. Nearby, we saw a pair of bald eagles gracing the top of a snag at the waterline (sadly, no image).
Small Alaskan towns such as Ketchikan are accessible only by boat or float plane. Supplies are hauled in by barges.
The highlight for us here was a great dinner at the Hotel Crest with a nice waterfront view. The food on ship was surprisingly disappointing, on a par with college dorm food we estimated, so we relished this reprieve. It was my first taste of wine from BC; not bad.
