Friday, August 13- Anchorage to Juneau; Embarcation

 My flight to Juneau took off close to the scheduled time at 11 AM and about an hour later we landed.  On a clear day the view alone is worth it- anything you read about in a geology book on glaciers is here.

Cirques, horns, hanging glaciers- they're all there!

The face of a glacier


Two glaciers join together partway down a mountain


I met with the UnCruise staff member sent to meet a number of us and he immediately checked my paperwork showing a negative COVID test within the last 4 days and proof of vaccination.  This is the only way I’d travel right now.  We were taken to downtown Juneau to wait till we could board the ship.  After lunch I looked at the upcoming weather report and decided I needed rain pants- an easy errand in a town that caters to cruise ship passengers, but first I had to pass about a dozen jewelry stores with some of the most garish pieces I’d ever seen- and I like jewelry.  I found what I was looking for in a locally-owned shop and also bought some jewelry made by natives in a craft shop.  

An important reminder.

I went back to the UnCruise Office before my credit cards could jump out of my wallet again.

 

Our ship, the Wilderness Adventurer


We boarded the ship, got settled in our rooms and met for Happy Hour.  Let the over-indulging begin.


My room.  Nothing fancy, all the necessities.


The rules.


Glacier seen from the fore deck.  


Another view from the fore deck.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saturday, August 14- First Whale Sightings

Image
  As we cruised to our next destination in the morning we were treated to the sight of humpback whales feeding near the shore.   I was up on deck participating in a stretch class. That was the end of the stretch class as we went over to look.   We were given our choice of several excursions in the afternoon- I chose a 2-hour afternoon kayak paddle where we encountered harbor seals and a couple of bald eagles.   Later that evening we saw sea otters and had a brief glimpse of an orca whale. Seals.  I know- I need a better camera.  Please consider contributing to a GoFundMe for that purpose.  ;-) View from my room- ready for the next kayak paddle. Pictures of whales?  Sorry.  Whales NEVER breach when you have your camera aimed at the right place in the water and even when I've gotten photos it's been a blurry shot of a curved back or a fluke (tail) disappearing.  You gotta be there. But here's a selfie I took in the lounge instead. 
Read more

Sunday, August 15: Two Hikes

Image
  I was unceremoniously awakened at 4 AM as we hauled anchor to head for Bartlett Cove at Glacier Bay.   I tried to get back to sleep but never really did.   There was an early hike scheduled at 6 AM anyway, so I headed into the lounge and enjoyed a frosted scone with my early-bird breakfast.   (I had a second one with my regular breakfast when I got back.)    And this is just the EARLY breakfast.  Eggs, bacon and other necessities followed later.  We ate well. We were the only tourists in Bartlett Cove and were free to wander the trails.   We were reminded that the entire area had been under a thick sheet of ice only 300 years ago.   A nearby totem pole told the story of how the Tlingit were forced to abandon their settlements as the glacier advanced and, after it had receded enough for them to return, the US government locked them out of the area and told them they could no longer fish, hunt or live there.   The government eventually allowed them back in. This totem pole tells the st
Read more

Thursday, August 12- Kansas City to Anchorage

Image
  I haven’t updated published a blog in awhile.   COVID largely spared my loved ones and me but it sure had an impact on my travel.   Eastern Europe in late June- moved to October of 2022.   The cruise off Belize and Guatemala in October- COVID situation in Belize was worsening and I was given the opportunity to change to one within Alaska.   I grabbed it.   Ron and I had taken UnCruise in Alaska in 2012 and 2014.   I’d been considering returning so this was all I needed.   In addition to proof of vaccination they required a negative COVID test a few days before.   Happily, it did come back negative (I had no reason to expect otherwise but you never know). American Airlines sent me a dire warning a few days before:   TSA lines were long, get there 2 hours early for domestic flights… I checked the MyTSA app and found estimates of 15-minute wait times.   Sure enough, the line I needed to use never had more than a few people and only one person ahead of me when I entered it- and I didn’
Read more