The older of my two younger sisters, Joanne (Jo), recently retired from her service as a police officer. So we, her family, pooled resources and got her the trip we knew she had wanted for years: an Alaska cruise. Due to a variety of circumstances, I was the only one able to go with her. What a grand adventure we had...
We were joined in Seattle, our port of departure, by our father and stepmother, who were able to wish us a bon voyage.
Mount Rainier hung over Seattle as we prepared to set sail.
And the Seattle skyline loomed over the deck of the cruise ship.
Our cabin was quite spacious, and the private balcony was easily our favorite spot on board.
Throughout our voyage, when in sight of land the view was invariably beautiful.
The sunsets were spectacular. At times, it looked as if the sky was on fire.
The sunrises were well worth waking for.
Many of the ship's facilities felt better suited to Vegas than the sea, but we mostly avoided those. After all, we had a balcony with a view...
On our second morning at sea, we even spotted porpoises.
And a whale.
Our first port of call was Juneau, Alaska.
While the ship was moored in Juneau, Jo and I went on a whale watching tour. Our first sighting, though, was seals on a buoy.
One of them decided to go for a swim.
Then, the whale sightings began. It is difficult to describe the excitement that was generated aboard our touring boat (it held about three dozen people) each time one breached the water's surface.
Did you know that each whale's tail markings are different, and that they can be identified that way?
Did you also know that the telltale spray you see when they blow is essentially a giant snot rocket? (This funny but gross factoid brought to you by the Naturalist on our whale watching boat.)
Hard to get across the size of these beautiful whales, but this image helps (that is just part of its back you see):
Whale watching, no matter the weather, is just awesome!
And each glimpse was glorious.
After our whale watching adventure, we returned to the cruise ship and set sail again. When we woke in the morning and looked out, we were in Skagway, and this was our view.
I wandered into town early in the morning, before our excursion was scheduled to start. The town of Skagway was straight out of the story books.
That one on the right is a snow blower for the tracks.
And since I could not get a decent latté on board, when I found this place, which serves a superb soy latté, I was in heaven!
After my quick turn through town, we boarded a bus and rode to Fraser, British Columbia, where we spent an afternoon kayaking on Glacier Lake.
With views like this.
Then we boarded an old fashioned train for the ride of a lifetime back down through the valley to Skagway.
We enjoyed this soooooo much. Every view was spectacular.
We wound down through the mountains.
Past water green from silt created by the glaciers.
Along deep, verdant valleys.
Past misty ranges.
Over roaring rivers.
And back into Skagway, where we were greeted by what I can only assume is the town mascot...
We had a wonderful dinner in town.
Then returned to the ship after a little souvenir shopping.
The next day, we awoke on our approach to Glacier Bay.
Where we were greeted by a pod of orcas.
Truly majestic scenery surrounded us.
Including, of course, glaciers!
I was fascinated by their texture and coloring. The dark brown and black is earth moved by the glacier, and the blue is the oldest ice.
Two glaciers at once!
Tourists!
And little icebergs floating everywhere.
And a gull on the railing next to ours, presumably enjoying the view, too. Or looking for food, maybe?
The ship got in pretty close.
The glacier actually groans, and we witnessed some "calving".
As with so much, the scale of what we saw is hard to describe and cannot possibly be conveyed in pictures, but this sail boat (not small) helps.
As does, perhaps, the way this glacier winds back into mountains it completely surrounds and partially buries.
And these kayaks against the bottom bit of the glacier... Wish I were with them, as I can only imagine the awe inspired by their vantage point.
While admiring the glaciers and mountains' majesty, we received a visit from a friend.
Next day we arrived in Ketchikan.
It is a small, vibrant town that I would honestly like to visit again.
We moored near town and our ship felt out of proportion with the place.
And we were watched.
On our way to to visit the Misty Fjords National Monument, we were reminded why it is important to pay attention to the tides when setting sail.
Along the way, we were treated to a black bear sighting.
Not to mention some glorious scenery.
Upon arriving in the Misty Fjords, we found another landscape that just does not come across fully in photos. The cliffs were 1,500 feet and more in height!
Sea planes looked like toys when flying by.
One the way back to Ketchikan, we were still being watched.
Really, our ship did look out of place...
We spent the next day at sea, which was wonderfully peaceful.
It also provided an opportunity to celebrate Jo's retirement with a cake!
And another sunset at sea.
We were greeted by whales as we approached Victoria the next day.
We took a tour of Victoria via carriage, admiring the beautiful old homes.
The parliament building in Victoria is something to behold.
We bid farewell to our companions, who we believe were well treated. (Our guide was asked a lot about this.)
We finished with dinner in downtown Victoria, not far from the Empress Hotel, where almost nine years prior my wife and I stayed when we got engaged.
From Victoria, we returned over night to Seattle, where we disembarked and caught our flight home - complete with a surprise upgrade to first class! I feel honored and privileged to have been able to accompany my sister on her trip of a lifetime after she gave so many years to protecting the public.
Congratulations, Jo, and thank you!
