Tag Archives: Alaska

Skagway

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Third stop.  Skagway.

We jumped on the White Pass and Yukon Train and rode from Skagway up to  the White Pass Summit.  It was a scenic photographer’s dream, exhilarating to look down from the train at the sheer drop off above and below us.  The mountains were so steep and we saw evidence of glaciers carving through them everywhere.

The train was built to replace the Chilkoot Trail (1898-1900) during the Klondike Gold Rush and climbs 3,000 ft. in just 20 miles.  Just looking at the rugged terrain, I’m amazed that it only took two years to build.

We heard many stories about the Chilkoot Trail and the 30,000 men, women, children and horses that climbed it in search of gold.  If they made it to the Canadian border, Yukon Territory, and they didn’t have a ton of supplies to sustain them for a year, the Canadian North West Mounted Police turned them back.  Those who made it survived brutal weather, grueling hiking/walking conditions and constant fatigue.

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Looking down into the Lynn Canal just south of town where the ship was docked, we could see that beautiful glacial  blue water again and all of the waterfalls and rivers spilling out of the mountains were that same color.  Surreal!

The town of Skagway looks so much like Main Street Park City, Utah,  I felt right at home.  After hearing many stories of the Red Onion Saloon, I had to go in and take a look.  So much fun!  It was packed.  I was so glad to be there in 2016 and not 1897.  Today it is a restaurant/bar with a bordello spirit instead of a bordello in a lawless gold rush town.

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It was an experience we won’t forget.  Happy Anniversary to us!

No Roads Lead To Juneau

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Second stop:  Juneau, Alaska.

I love the idea that you can’t drive to Juneau, Alaska.  You can fly.  Juneau has an airport and you can take a seaplane and land on water…..what a rush.  You can take a boat, ship, ferry or cruiser.  And…..if you really want your car with you so you can drive on the roads in Juneau, you can take the ferry and bring it along.

We took the Goldbelt Roberts Tramway from the cruise ship docks, up through the rainforest to the Mountain House at 1,800 ft.  The view of the Gastineau Channel below was gorgeous. I didn’t expect to see the colors of aqua and turquoise that I usually associate with tropical waters. It was stunning.   Even when we can’t see a glacier, their presence is evident everywhere there’s water.

The trees and underbrush were so thick, the mountainside looked sort of feathery with a jillian different greens sparkling, reflecting through the raindrops.  Magical.  A feast for the senses.  Happy Anniversary to us!

Dawson Glacier

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Our approach to the Dawson Glacier was slow and methodical, weaving in and out of icebergs. Because of the density of the compacted glacial ice compared to water, only about 1/10th of an iceberg is seen above the surface. We didn’t see one as big as the one that sunk the titanic; but, we showed them a lot of respect anyway.

Dawson-Lambton glacier was named by British expedition leader, Ernest Shackleton, just over a hundred years ago.  He named it for Elizabeth Dawson-Lambton, a financial backer of his expeditions.  Seeing this rugged country, I tried to imagine what it must have been like to be an explorer around 1900, travelling by ship.   I really enjoyed being on a luxury liner holding a camera, hot chocolate and coffee and knowing that when I got too cold, my fabulous breakfast was waiting inside in a beautiful, warm restaurant.

The blue colors we captured with our camera were so exciting and so unexpected.  Sometimes the whole area was a brilliant turquoise and other times the translucent blues appeared out of  murky grey-green water.

I had to know:  why are glaciers blue?  Well…..the ice is so dense it absorbs every other color of the spectrum but blue.  So blue is what we see.  The crystalline structure strongly scatters blue light so we see a myriad of blues.  They were spectacular.

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The captain described calving to us over the intercom system. It seemed everyone on board the ship was holding their breath, cameras at the ready, watching for the birth of an iceberg to happen right before our eyes.  We didn’t see one…..but it was so awe-inspiring just being that close to the glacier, we didn’t really care.

Happy Anniversary to us!

Ketchikan

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The first stop on our Alaskan Cruise was Ketchikan.  It reminded me of Yellowstone Park 40 years ago.  It’s so remote and quiet. I felt so content just to be, while I was there.  There was plenty of time to do anything we wanted to do.  No rush.

We went to the Village of Saxman to see the totem poles and one of the workshops where they are being carved today.  There was a small booth, a hair bigger than a telephone booth (if you remember what telephone booths looked like), with a man sitting at a window selling totem pole stories for $1.00.  Those stories told about the spirit guardians represented by the figures on the poles.  They were used to pass on morals and wisdom to the next generation.

I posted a picture of the raven totem pole, (above left) on instagram and quickly received a comment from one or Donny Varnell’s friends telling me that he had carved it and a little about him.  Donny’s works can be seen all over the world. Isn’t Instagram fun?!!!  It connects all of us from all over the planet in little short bursts and lets us share our experiences, interests and information.  I love it!

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We tourists couldn’t get enough of the Tlingit Plank House behind me (above) and the totem poles.  I loved the red, black and turquoise colors used to paint everything.  Just like all of the cultures peopling this earth, they used symbols to represent their Gods and all of the forces of the universe.  We really are all one.

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Logging is a big part of Alaska’s history. We went to the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show to see the loggers demonstrate their skills.  Amazing.  It was so much fun to see them in this setting.  I can’t imagine what it must be like to work as a lumberjack out in the mountains.

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Back to the ship…..what a great way to travel.  On to Juneau. Happy Anniversary to us!

Alaska

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“Let’s do something fun for our anniversary.”  It was an innocent, sort of flip comment. Yes.  We both agreed. And it was left at that.  Later in the day, Lynn suggested “how about an Alaskan cruise?”  This was just three weeks before our anniversary…..don’t you have to make reservations way in advance?  Alaska is cold.  There’s not a lot of lying around in the sun in Alaska. Maybe we should explore doing something further south.

But, the thought lightly danced across my mind, doesn’t Abraham-Hicks have an Alaskan cruise in the summer?  It seems like they do.

Well, they did.  We made the reservations with a few clicks of the mouse for the cruise and the workshop during the cruise for when?????  This seems almost impossible…..with so little thought and no advance planning…..we boarded the ship on our anniversary!  Does the universe orchestrate all things for our well-being and happiness?  Yes!  Yes!  It does!

What a beautiful ship the Celebrity Solstice is…..gorgeous.  So much fun!  I loved coming up the ramp to the ship and being greeted with champagne.  Everything was beautiful.   The theatres, the restaurants and the flow of one inviting lounge after another were beautiful. We loved soaking in the hot tubs while looking out through glass walls at the water and surrounding mountains as we wound our way around islands and through fjords on our way to Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway.

I was blown away by the ficus tree suspended in the center shaft along side the glass elevators.  It was five stories tall and spectacular in every way.  The red pot appeared to be decoupaged with all kinds of flowers, shells and fanciful creatures. Five stories tall!  I had to ride the elevator up and down to enjoy the full impact of this glorious phenomenon.  Who in the world came up with this brilliant idea?

Decoupaged pot
Decoupaged pot

This was a trip full of surprise and fun from champagne to a ficus tree, great food and sightseeing to a fabulous workshop with Esther Hicks and Abraham.  Happy Anniversary to us!