Alaska PART 2

Wednesday - Skagway, AK

Overnight we went the short distance from Juneau to Skagway and were allowed off the ship at 7 AM. But, were my mom and I up at 7 ready to walk off the ship? Ha! NOPE!!

The sun had started to show it’s face that morning, so we were very excited about that.

My mom and I had decided that we would take the excursion where you took a bus up the mountain into the Yukon Territory to Fraser, BC and take the White Pass Railroad back down. I was very excited about this because this would be my FIRST STAMP in my PASSPORT – EVER!!!! Cool!!!! The railroad also has a very interesting history. Click here to read about it!

We arrived at the bus depot early, so I decided to walk around town for a bit. It was so cute, but SO small! There was one main road with mostly shops, and the town was mapped out like a grid. It was a flat town so you could see basically to the other end of it!

Here are some pictures:

We boarded the bus and it was pretty much a straight shot right up the mountain… sometimes I wondered if we were driving a little too close to the edge! It was a far way down!

When we got to the top we had to wait in line to have our passports checked. I was in awe! This town consisted of ONLY the Canadian Customs people!! Ha, ha. There was their office, a small apt building for them to stay in, and a building for bathrooms for visitors. That’s IT! I hoped these customs people could rotate out their assignment because it would get VERY boring after a while and VERY cold there! The temperature had dropped about 20 or 30 degrees on our climb and it was just August! Imagine January. UGH. That would be a terrible assignment if I worked for Canadian customs.

Fortunately they accepted my passport :) We were allowed off the bus to take pictures and wait for the train to come up with its passengers. They would get off and take the bus down and we would take the train down. We got the better end of the deal. The train down had AMAZING views!

So, while we waited for the train, we took pictures.

The Canadian and US Flag on a peak by the
side of the road as we arrived in Fraser, BC

Then another one with the Canadian and British flag

This was the building with the bathrooms!

The lake that was up there. I thought the picture with the clouds in the background was pretty. The clouds were so low because we were high up o the mountain!

My mom and I by the same lake.
By now the clouds had lifted and the sun was out!
It was very, very chilly though!

So pretty!!

Me before boarding the train.

As we started down the mountain... clouds...

This was the river down below.
Literally, the train hugged the mountain.

My mom on the train! It was such a pretty ride down. As the clouds were breaking... we had such a great view. I am glad we didn't take the train up because the view on the way down was so much better! We even stopped and picked up some hikers along the way!

Ships at port as we come down the mountain

After we arrived back in town, I had a little bit of time before my ZIPLINE adventure. So back to the ship for lunch :) We could have had lunch in town, but there were four ships in port that day, and it was INCREDIBLY crowded in the small town. So, why not go back to the ship and enjoy lunch while still eating outside and the ship wouldn’t be very crowded at all!

I was a little nervous about my ZIPLINE adventure, but I am SO glad I did it and totally bonded with everyone on my excursion!! There was a family of two parents and two teenagers. The mom and I talked a lot while we waited about the trip so far, etc. Then, there was an older couple on their honeymoon on the cruise! And, finally, there were two hilarious married couples from the south so I loved their accent (A brother with his wife and a sister with her husband). They were so funny and lightened everything up!

We took a bus out of town a ways and met up with our two female group leaders who were true nature-loving people. You’d have to be to work in Alaska in the summer. There’s not much to do in town, so you either work, or on your days off you hike/camp/rock climb, etc! You also work rain or shine! Ha, ha… not a job for me! I did find out that a lot of BYU kids come up and work there in the summers! They love the Mormon summer crews up there!

The view was amazing. So beautiful! Everyone in our group was a bit nervous, but I was more nervous than I let on. I didn’t understand how this one rope was going to hold all my weight as I flew through the sky! I also didn’t like the first zipline they sent us on to get used to it. It was this tightrope walking thing that wobbled back and forth. So frustrating as I couldn’t keep my balance! After doing the first short zipline through the air, I realized I couldn’t think about what I was doing and just TRUST my guides and have FAITH in the rope!!

Well, I LIVED and LOVED it! However, they tried to get us to do silly things with our hands and feet as we flew through the air. I tried, but always ended up being too scared and holding on with my hands!!!

Here are some pics:

View from the mountain

The first one we went one. This rope was rediculously wobbly.
I felt like I could flop upside down on it!

Look at that. There's no room for a foot!

This was another wobbly one, but not as bad.

Do you see that tree and platform in the distance.
This was one of the shorter ziplines through the trees!!

I am so glad I did it though. But, I was glad to board the bus back to the safety of land and the ship!! Now it was off to dinner and some fun entertainment for the evening. Oh - and some ice cream and cookies too!!!

Alaska Part 3

Thursday - Glacier Bay, Alaska

Now, I don't think Glacier Bay is an actual name of a town, but it's the area we toured on Thursday without having to get off the ship.

It was such a beautiful day!! The sun was shining and the temperatures were relatively warm considering how far up to the north we were. Early in the morning one of the National Park Rangers came on board. She reached our ship by a "skiver"? I know that's not how you spell it, but I have no idea what how to spell it. It's a small boat that somehow came up to our huge cruise ship and somehow they lifted her up to get on board. I would have loved to have seen that!

Anyway, it was such a treat because all day long while were were within sight of Glacier Bay and sailing around it, she was talking over the loud speaker telling us facts about it, pointing out interesting things, etc. It was so nice to see it in it's beauty in the sunlight, but then to learn all about it!

We didn't get off the ship at all on Thursday. I spent most of the day on deck watching for whales (which I saw!!) and looking at the beauty of the glaciers. My mom and I also attended a few fun things they had (classes, etc) and just enjoyed yet another day on board soaking in the sun!

It was bright in the sunshine!!
But, so pretty!!

Alaska Part 4

Friday - Ketchikan, AK
Saturday - Victoria, BC

Friday was awesome!! Yet again, another beautiful day! And, yet again, we arrived at 6 AM, but were Mom and I ready for a 6 AM departure... I think not :)

We had heard that "THE THING" to do in Ketchican (besides the shopping and eating Salmon... you'll notice on their welcome sign (below) they claim to be the Salmon capital of the world!)

was to go and see a REAL Lumberjack show! It's called the "Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show" and it's claimed that viewers see some of the worlds best athletes in sport pulled straight from the heart of America. I can now vouch for that. Also, supposedly these things are on ESPN, but I've never seen it or heard about it. But, hey... if you're in Alaska and have a chance to see it - why not?! Here's the link for some pictures of theirs and to meet the real lumberjack men!

IT was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G and H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S!

They stuffed so many people in their "theater" area. Literally, before the opened, the line for people with tickets was a few blocks long! Once we were in and found seats, we were split into two teams. Each team had two lumberjacks to cheer on! And, we did. Loudly!!

These guys were incredibly strong, but also hilarious. The show was filled with funny jokes and "side acts".

My team in the log cutting race. They went back and forth FAST!

The log rolling contest. These guys were on different teams and the one to knock the other off first won!

My team lost :(

The log climbing race
THE VERY cool thing about this one is that
this guy has a PEG LEG and he's still climbing it!!!!

We won! With his peg leg and all!!
VERY COOL!

Log Chopping

I have no idea what this one was now...
but it just looks crazy looking at the picture!

I would recommend this show to anyone. Well worth the time and money. We also had some extra time before seeing the lumberjack show, so my mom and I walked up to CREEK STREET (which is famous for it's stores) and the CREEK! Since it was salmon season and since we were in the salmon capital of the world, I took pictures of what the thousands of salmon have to go through to climb the ladders from fresh to salt water and vice versa.

A calm area in the creek. I know it's hard to see the salmon in this picture, but there were SO many!
Ok - This is when it got crazy. The salmon were swimming against the flow of the river and sometimes having to jump rocks and other things in their way. I can't even imagine the energy it took them to do this!

Yep - This was part of their travels.
Imagine having to go either up or down that!

A view of the creek and the shops

My mom and I as we entered our walk along the street.
No cars... only salmon and pedestrians :)

Me at the end of the street. Pretty flowers.
By this time it was actually HOT in Alaska.
I could have been happy in a t-shirt and shorts
but I hadn't brought any!

We did a little shopping and then boarded the ship for our sail to Victoria, BC. We had a nice time just resting and reading on deck, soaking in the sun. In the evening, I took these pictures of the beautiful Alaskan sunset. Beautiful and pure.

Saturday was our last day on the ship and we spent it sailing back down to BC and Seattle. My mom and I spent a large part of the day packing, because we had decided to deboard in Victoria and fly back to DC that way. The ship stopped in Victoria for the evening and then passengers got on board by 11 PM and arrived in Seattle by 8 AM, so we figured we were OK just getting off and taking a cheaper and more direct flight back!

To say the least, it was a little crazy getting a taxi and then getting to the airport. I'd have to say I am not very impressed with the taxi transportation system in this city. There are no set fees, so you can totally get "taken" by a taxi driver, but we had no choice. And, on the way there, our taxi driver tells us that our flight doesn't exist! Ha!! So, I panicked for about 30 min until we got to this VERY small airport! I ran inside and yes - our flight existed. But, I was shocked at how SMALL the airport was. We had a bit before our flight, so I walked around and read outside.

Minus the flight and lack of sleep, my mom and I arrived home feeling like we just had the most wonderful trip and wanted to go back right away! I am so grateful for the opportunity to go, especially for the opportunity to experience all of this with my angel mother! I would recommend it to anyone... and if you are thinking of going... let me know! I have recommendations and the BEST guidebook to share with you!