Alaska -- Day Eleven -- Juneau

We docked in Juneau this morning at eight. Bryan was out on deck so that he could watch. Channel 44 in our room allows you to watch whatever is happening at the front of the ship. I preferred the warmth of our room!

While everyone loaded up on buses for expensive shore excursions we chose the local bus to Mendenhall Glacier. However, we still had 45 minutes before it came so we decided to hike up to the state capitol building. We almost passed by. It is a nondescript office building. I also wanted to walk by the Russian Orthodox church...I always make Bryan visit churches when we are on vacation. But while we were studying our map of Juneau a man walked by and said, "There is an amazing parade taking place a couple streets over. It is a parade of the native tribes and they only have this parade every other year." We took off at a run and were not disappointed. What an amazing treat.

Eventually, but much later than we expected, we caught the bus to Mendenhall Glacier. The glacier is about 12 miles north of Juneau and is the most visited glacier in Alaska. It has receded almost 2 miles since 1958. The visitor center used to be right next to the glacier. Because of Mendenhall Lake, which was formed by the glacier melting, we could not get right next to it.

We did hike out to Nugget Falls and were able to get much closer to the glacier. It was a very rainy day and the glacier seems to create its own weather. By the time we hiked to the falls and back we were completely soaked. We dried off in the visitor center and waited for our return bus to town.

By the time we got back to Juneau we were hungry and so we had the requisite fish dinner. I had wanted to ride the tramway to the top of Mt. Roberts but clouds had rolled in and would have obstructed the view. We poked our head into shops on our way to the Russian Orthodox church. (Of course, I hadn't forgotten.) It was a steep climb up the hill and it was a bit disappointing.

We stopped in a bread store and Bryan had so many of their free samples that I felt obligated to buy a cinnamon roll to help them recoup their costs. We got coffee and sat on the pier watching all the floatplanes return from their excursions. A native group performed a dance. It was a perfectly wonderful day.

Alaska -- Day Ten -- Haines

We arrived in Haines, Alaska at 6:30 this morning. We had breakfast in our room and headed out to explore. It appeared that most people were going by ferry to Skagway or taking the Whitepass train ride to Yukon gold country.

We found totem poles, stopped at the visitor center, went past the Hammer Museum and walked through a historic cemetery.

Then we boarded a bus for the Chilkat River Bald Eagle Preserve. From October through January there are about 4,000 Bald Eagles along the river feeding on the salmon. However, in June there seemed to be very few. We roasted a hot dog for lunch and then they bundled us in coats and blankets for a jet boat ride down the river.

It was a gorgeous ride down the river, which is only 2 inches deep at some points. We saw three bald eagle nests, which can each weigh 2,000 pounds. We saw four eagles. I simply enjoyed being on the river between two mountain ranges.

When we returned to town we hiked up the hill to historic Fort Seward. We saw the shop where they build totem poles, poked our heads into a few galleries, admired the biggest dandelions we have ever seen and returned our sore feet to the ship.

Alaska -- Day Nine -- Glacier Bay

Today our ship went into Glacier Bay National Park. You can only experience this National Park by boat or by plane. They allow two cruise ships in a day and they choose the cruise ships by the ones which offer the best educational events. Two rangers and a Tlingit woman boarded our ship by a rope ladder when we arrived at the Visitor Center. One of the rangers spoke about the glaciers, which was broadcast to all the outer decks of the ship.

It took Bryan and I awhile to decide on a place to be in which we would not freeze to death. It was not a beautiful day. It rained most of the day. We finally settled on some chaise lounges on the lower promenade deck.

We saw the Lumplugh, Margerie And Grand Pacific glaciers. The Lumplugh glacier is beautifully blue. The Margerie glacier is a balanced glacier and we saw it calf repeatedly. There is something so serene and majestic about floating quietly by these massive ice formations as they creak, groan and fall into the sea.

We also saw many bald eagles perched on ice bergs and soaring through the skies.

Alaska -- Day Eight -- At Sea

Today is a day at sea. The ship has a schedule of activities -- ranging from silly to interesting. We got up slow, enjoyed the breakfast buffet and then went for a hike around the deck. Four times around equals one mile. The weather was perfect.

In the afternoon we went to a lecture on volcanoes and glaciers. It was very interesting and I now have a better understanding of the geography around me.

Tonight was a formal night for dinner. I brought a dress and Bryan brought a suit. We were afraid we would be overdressed but there were many men in tuxes.

After dinner we went to the theatre for a show of Broadway love songs. Yes. It was silly. But we met the captain and his officers. The sun set at 10:20 tonight -- the earliest since we have been in Alaska so the first one I have witnessed. It was exquisite.

Alaska -- Day Seven -- Boarding the Zaandam

Today is the day we headed to the boat. We could have spent the day wandering around Seward but I needed to do laundry and the easiest place to do it seemed to be the self service laundry on board the ship. The only problem with that idea was the four hours it took to get our luggage. So we had a lovely lunch and watched a bald eagle fly around outside the window. We acquainted ourselves with the ship -- exploring every nook and cranny we were allowed to look in.

I got our laundry done just in time for our dinner. I have heard about food on cruise ships and I was not disappointed. After dinner there was a raffle in the gym for spa services. I have had one hot stone massage and I was willing to join the masses for a chance to win a free one. I did win a Ionithermie revitalizing leg therapy... Whatever that is....

Alaska -- Day Six -- Kenai Fjords National Park

We got up early this morning and went into Seward to have breakfast at the Smoke Shack restaurant in an old railroad car. Bryan tried the grits with cheese, bacon and jalapeño peppers. As we were walking over to check in for our 9 hour boat trip to the Kenai Fjords, Bryan realized that his spicy breakfast might have been a bad idea. We both ate some ginger to try and fend off sea sickness.

There were 101 of us who took this first of the season trip to the Northwestern Glacier. Only one boat goes there a day, during the summer season. It was freezing cold and yet considered a beautiful day. We saw Dall's porpoise, humpback whales, fin whales, mountain goats, harbor seals, sea lions, black bear, puffins, and otters. We also saw glaciers, waterfalls and an icefall. It was nine hours of beauty. Did I mention it was bitterly cold? Early in the day I went down to the bottom level to get some coffee and missed the huge sign that said, "Watch your step." I went completely down and hurt my knee and ankle...and my pride.

When we finally returned to the harbor we went in search of food. We hiked 12 blocks on pavement that seemed to be rocking like the ocean! We were scheduled for a guided hike to Exit Glacier tomorrow but I think my knee and ankle need a rest.

Alaska -- Day Five -- Kenai

It was hard to leave Talkeetna. I posted a picture of the view from our room. We left about an hour later than we planned just because we kept staring out the window.

On the road we found that construction slowed us down. Because of time constraints I only asked Bryan to stop for one picture -- by a lake in Wasilla, home of Sarah Palin.

I wanted to stop in Palmer to see muskox. We were worried about time but we made a quick stop. We saw the babies, mommas, bulls, steers and yearlings. We spent time feeding them before we got back on the road.

We dropped our car at the rental place in Anchorage and went to the bus stop for our ride to Seward. There were four young men who took our luggage and told us we had an hour and a half to find some lunch. We went inside the Anchorage Museum and had a nice meal. When we returned I noticed that my bags were missing. I asked the young men if I should be worried that my bags were not there. It turns out that the answer was, "Yes"! They had sent them to be loaded on a cruise ship. They had that bus turn around and return with our luggage. We left a few minutes late while our whole bus waited for our stuff.

The drive to Seward from Anchorage was breathtaking. Construction put us even further behind. As soon as we arrived we took a shuttle into town to find some dinner. When we returned to our hotel we decided to take a little walk. A jogger stopped us to say that there was a moose down the road. We decided to walk down a little ways so I could use my zoom to get a picture. Before we could get close enough it turned and went back into the brush but moments later it crashed back out and started running towards us. We had read about them last night and learned they were 7 to 8 feet tall and could weigh as much as 1800 pounds. While in Denali our bus driver/guide said that if a moose ran at us we should run fast in a zigzag motion because they really are awkward creatures. We took off but when the moose passed us we quit running. I took this picture of its backside when I came to a halt! I don't need anymore frightening wildlife encounters.