The Worst Day

The last day of the cruise was the worst day. We cruised back into the San Francisco Bay and docked. We had beautiful views of the city and perfect weather but I hated that our journey was over.  The whole trip was so relaxing, so fun and definitely a trip I could take over and over again. 

Skagway

After Juneau we headed north to Skagway. Skagway is one of my favorite little towns in Alaska. It was one of the largest populated towns in during the Yukon gold rush and the whole town still looks like it is stuck in 1898. We spend the day on a speed boat tour and then on a train ride up to Canada. 

 While out on the speed boat, this whale came up 15 ft away from us. We were all in awe of the size and beauty of this creature, but as soon as he dove back down under water I was nervous that he would re-surface under our boat. 

My little brother received his call to serve a mission for our church while we were in Skagway. He was called to serve in Lubbock, Texas and will be speaking spanish.  

Our ship. 

Juneau

Juneau is the capital city of Alaska. Alaskans refer to it as "little San Francisco" It has narrow streets, steep hills and colorful buildings. 

We went out on a whale watching boat in Juneau and they told us we "may" see a whale or two during our adventure. 

Then we saw this... 13 humpback whales, over and over again. 

 They were "bubble feeding". The group herds a school of fish, releasing bubbles to confuse the fish and keep them together. The ring of bubbles is visible on the surface just before the whales come up. Then, as one, the whales come up at 45 degree angles to feed. It was incredible to see. 

 Next stop was the Mendenhall Glacier. It is 12 miles long and located in Tongass National Forest. 

 No trip to Juneau is complete without a trip to the Red Dog Saloon downtown

View of Juneau and our cruise ship from across the bay

Twisted Fish Company goes down as the BEST clam chowder I have EVER eaten. We have even called since returning home to see if they can ship to CA. Sadly, we had no luck. 

 I rushed back onto the ship that night to watch a presentation by Libby Riddles, the first woman to ever win the Iditarod. If you don't know what the Iditarod is, it is a sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome Alaska that is held in March each year. 1,049 miles through the Alaskan wilderness. (go watch the movie Iron Will). Libby spoke on an Alaskan cruise when I was 9 years old. She became my hero. I was set on racing in the Iditarod someday. I read her biography and did every single school report I could on Ms. Libby Riddles. (At some point I realized I hated camping/animals so that was never going to happen...)As I was exiting the theater she was right next to me and started up a conversation, I was relaying to her how much she inspired my 9 year old self. She pulled me to the front of line of people waiting to see her and took a picture with me and signed the children's book she wrote that I had purchased for my nephew earlier that day. Thanks Libby!

 There was the most beautiful sunset when leaving Juneau. Me attempting to capture it. 

Ketchikan

 We went on an off road ATV tour in Ketchikan. It was a perfect mix of adventure and stunning views of the Alaskan coastal mountains. 

I wish they would have let me keep this yellow rubber jumpsuit. 

The older part of town is creek street. It was originally all brothels during the Alaskan gold rush. Now an eclectic mix of tourist shops, restaurants, and local craftsman's studios. 

Off to Juneau! 

North To Alaska

We boarded the Grand Princess in San Francisco and headed north to Alaska. 

We spent the first day and a half at sea, eating, walking around the deck, exploring the ship and enjoying cruise life. 

One of my favorite activities on the ship was "movies under the stars". They set up padded lounge chairs, passed out wool blankets and popcorn and played new releases. This is how light it was at 9:50pm watching a movie on deck. Wishing I was back on that ship right about now...