Blogs from Alaska, United States, North America

Well, it's that time again, time for our annual vacation. This year we are going to Alaska and Vancouver, Canada. We fly out of Greenville, SC on Friday, May 10th, and stop at O'Hare International, on our way to Fairbanks, Alaska. We'll spend a few days there, then take the Alaska Railroad to Anchorage, spend a day or two there, then take the train to Seward on the 16th. There, we just spend a night, then board our cruise ship, Celebrity Summit, for our cruise along the Alaskan coast to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to spend a few days there before returning home. What makes this vacation special, is that we will be celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary (yes 50th!), May the 19th, onboard. So, I'll catch you next, on our way to Alaska.... read more

After sailing out of Vancouver we cruised up the Inside Passage. This is such a delight because it’s in protected waters and there is an abundance of sea life, bird life and beautiful scenery along the way. Happily for us the weather was dry and quite balmy the whole first week of our cruise. In Ketchikan, our first port, we escorted our group on a Distinctive Voyages land tour. We were fortunate with the timing because the salmon were running. We saw thousands and thousands of salmon making their way up rivers and creeks in order to spawn. It was mesmerizing to watch their determination to hop up the swim ladders and over the rocks and rapids to reach their final destination. We visited the Saxman Tlingit Native Village and learned about their history and the ... read more

Our shore excursion in Juneau was a whale-watching expedition. A minibus picked us and other whale-watchers up from the cruise ship dock. Our driver was the very personable Shasha. She drives tour buses in the summer and school buses in the winter. As she drove us to the marina at Auke Bay, she provided a narrative about Juneau. Our Whale watching vessel was under the command of Captain Charles. Along with Emily, the naturalist, he spends summer in Alaska and winter in the Virgin Islands. The vessel headed out into Auke Bay and then around Shelter Island and into the Saginaw Channel, a part of the Inside Passage. The Humpback Whales were congregating in the channel today. Along the way, Emily discussed the behavior of the Humpback Whales, including their annual migration to Hawaii and back. ... read more

Thursday morning, we found ourselves in Alaskan waters, navigating Chatham Strait, a part of the Inside Passage. The fog had lifted, and the landscapes of Baranoff Island and Kuiu Island were visible on both sides of the ship. A rainbow even appeared to mark our journey through the Inside Passage! Carnival Pride continued along the Inside Passage, rounding Kuiu Island via Frederick Sound to enter the Stephens Passage. The ship sailed the Stephens Passage, reaching Holkham Bay and the entrance to Tracy Arm fjord at Noon. Louise Riofrio presented another morning lecture, this one on Alaska's Glaciers, Volcanoes, and Wildlife. She discussed the Sawyer Glacier at the end of Tracy Arm, which we would be seeing in the afternoon, and Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau. Her favorite topic was whale watching. She described the migration of the ... read more

Wednesday was a “Fun Day at Sea.“ It was foggy or overcast the entire day as we sailed up the coast of British Columbia and then entered Alaskan waters late in the evening. The ship’s foghorn sounded, and there was little to be seen off to starboard. Given that this was a sea day, there were many activities to attend on board. A Port Shopping presentation and a Skagway port presentation were given by the shopping host. But, most interesting was the “North to Alaska” presentation given by resident naturalist Louise Riofrio. She discussed what we would see in terms of whales, fjords, and glaciers. She also discussed the Alaska indigenous peoples. New theories about their origin hold that they did not come by a land bridge from Siberia but arrived from Asia by watercraft. Further, ... read more