Our cruise was awesome. We had such a good time that we're already planning our next cruise although it probably won't be until 2015. We ended up getting an extra excursion that we didn't have to pay for. I think it was the evening that we were sailing away from Juneau. Right at dusk, there was about 13 whales off the side of the boat and we were able to watch them surfacing and blowing water out their blow holes and then diving back under. It was incredibly beautiful, peaceful, and relaxing. And we didn't even have to book a whale watching excursion to see this.
Skagway We booked the Bennett Scenic Journey through Chillkoot Charters. It was fantastic. The weather was perfect and the guide kept telling us how lucky we were and that normally the weather wasn't this good. The train trip up was full of unbelieveably beautiful scenery and they did a great job of narrating all the important details along the way. We stopped in Bennett for lunch which consisted of stew, coleslaw, bread, and pie plus coffee, tea, and water. The stew and the bread was delicious. The coleslaw was just so-so. Pie was also delicious. Bennett is so pretty. Lake Bennett is the most unusual color of milky aqua green. Even though its a ghost town, there's still one resident there. Edna. She runs a little store around the back of the old church and sells her handmade goods. Got back on the train and continued on to Carcross and met our guide, Tim, up there for the bus ride back down to Skagway. Tim was born and bred Alaskan and did a great job of telling us all about the different stops and threw in his own stories about the different areas.
Once we got back to Skagway we did a little shopping in town and then walked back to the ship. Not sure if it's always this way or not but it was so incredibly windy when we were walking back to the ship. It was almost as if they were trying to push us back to town to do more shopping.
Juneau We had booked the Pilots Choice Helicopter tour and glacier landing for the morning. It was cancelled due to the weather. That didn't deter us though. We took the shuttle into town and was able to book the ERA Glacier adventure by Helicopter for 1:40pm. It was the highlight of our trip. Unbelievable. Everyone at ERA was just wonderful. We were picked up at the dock and driven to ERA's facility just outside of town. There we were given life vests and boots and loaded into our helicopter. Our pilot Reiner (sorry if I misspelled your name) was great and very knowledgeable about the area. We took a ride over the Juneau Icefield and then landed on Taku Glacier. That was one of the most incredible things I've ever done. The glacier is incredibly beautiful and gives you the feeling of the being the only people on earth. You're surrounded by unreal landscape. The ice reminded me of being on the moon. The crevasses were spectacular and the blue ice and blue pools of water were beyond belief. Ironically, one of the great things about our trip was when it came time to take off again, the helicopter had a mechanical problem. Reiner called the base and they dispatched another helicopter to pick us up and we ended up getting another 15 minutes on that spectacular glacier. We all agreed that the helicopter issue was actually a great thing and so unique. Just another story about to tell about our glacier landing. Our pictures came out great and really do it justice. All in all, this was the absolute highlight of our trip and the excursion of a lifetime. ERA was great and next time we're in town we're going back to them again. We just hope we can request the Glacier Adventure by Helicopter with Helicopter Mechanical Issue.
Once we got back to town we took the Mt. Robert Tramway up to the top and looked around. It was well worth the trip. We got some incredible views and got to see a bear. Also saw a bald eagle up there who was unfortunately shot through the beak and as a result crashed and shattered it's wing. It can never be released back into the wild but they take good care of her up there. Be warned, she doesn't like flash photography so be sure to turn off your flash on your camera before you take a picture of her.
Ketchikan It rained and rained and rained some more and just when we thought we couldn't take it any more...it rained again. Luckily, Disney was giving out free ponchos as you left the ship. Our floatplane tour with Island Wings was cancelled due to weather but once again, we weren't going to let that deter us. We walked over to the Ketchikan Visitors Bureau and were able to book a floatplane tour with Misty Fjords Air. The flight was great and the scenery was incredible. We landed on a dock in a remote area and were able to get out of the plane for about 10 minutes and walk around. We'd do it again in a heartbeat and we all loved the trip but it wasn't enough to outshine our glacier adventure in Juneau.
When we got back to Ketchikan we did some shopping...in the rain. I picked up my Ulu knives. I was actually a little disappointed in some of the shops in all 3 ports. They were actually selling Ulu knives that were made in China. I refused to buy those and made sure the knife sets I bought were actually made in Alaska. So if that's important to you, be sure to check and make sure it says "Made in Alaska".
So other than Skagway, our excursions were not exactly as planned but in retrospect, we wouldn't have had it any other way. It all worked out so well in the end. Alaska is a spectacular place and has to be seen to be believed. I honestly don't think you can go wrong with any excursion you take in this awesome, wonderful, beautiful land. To all who have a cruise coming up - Relax and enjoy!