Sunday June 2, 2019 – HUBBARD GLACIER          

Today we did not get off the ship. Instead we spent the day sailing very close to Hubbard Glacier which is one of only a few advancing glaciers in Alaska.  The rest of the glaciers are receding which means they are melting faster than their forward momentum.  We witnessed some small calving events however the calving season will not be at its best until July and August when the ambient temperature is much warmer.

 The night before arriving at the Hubbard Glacier we attended a lecture by Dr. Kent Syverson on glaciers.  He did his PhD on glacial geology (perfect). This helped prepare us for spending the day viewing Hubbard Glacier, and all the other glaciers we will be seeing on this cruise. So we now can identify different glaciers types and how glaciers carved the geological structures of the land.  As a matter of fact JY says she could have taken one or more of his geology classes in college. He is not only brilliant, but approachable and funny. He and the other scientist on board give on-going lectures throughout the cruise. One night Dr. Syverson gave a lecture on how chemistry and temperature affect the development and sustainability of the Alaskan temperate rainforest along the coast of the Alaskan panhandle.   Dr. Syverson surprising used the periodic table in his lecture and neither one of us had seen a periodic table since our college days. The lecture was informative and painless. We try to attend as many presentations as possible.

We saw several female Harbor Seals and their pups resting on medium size icebergs as we sailed by.  We are starting to see sea otters more frequently.  The onboard naturalist gives talks on the flora and fauna and said that before the Russians nearly wiped out the sea otter population for their fur the otters were much bigger.  They look cute and cuddly but are actually very mean and vicious.   Even in the mating season the males are vicious with the females. The courting process is not romantic at all.  During sex the male will grab a hold of the female generally by the nose or ear and won’t let go until the mating process is complete.  The naturalist showed a photo of couples (otters) mating and some females had parts of their noses missing.   That’s rough sex!

Monday June 3, 2019 – VALDEZ

Today we docked at Valdez which is a very small town of 4,000 people who mainly work at the Alaska pipeline terminal on the opposite shore of Prince William Sound.  The Valdez where we docked has been relocated and rebuilt after the original town was completely wiped off the map in the aftermath of the 1964 Good Friday Earthquake and Tsunami.

  The earthquake was 9.2 on the Richter scale, one of the largest earthquake ever recorded in the world.  After the quake destroyed the town of Valdez the 35 feet high Tsunami that followed wiped out whatever was left.  The town was completely flattened, so the residents rebuilt Valdez in another location not too far away.  The new location was built next to a peninsula of land they hoped would buffer future Tsunamis.

Then another disaster occurred in Prince William Sound – the infamous Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.  As you can imagine this disaster affected the wildlife and many marine species have still not recovered. We attended an informative presentation by Dr. Syverson about the disaster.   

There were many tragic problems after the ship ran aground.  There had never been an oil spill of this magnitude anywhere in the world so nobody knew what to do, in fact no one showed up for three days to start managing the oil leaking from the vessel.  To make matters worse on the third day after the accident there was a terrible storm that severely hampered any effort to contain the leaking oil but the waves and wind spread the oil up and down the cost for hundreds of miles.  Then if that wasn’t bad enough many of the techniques that were developed to clean up the oil where very detrimental to the ecosystem. 

We watched a film in Kodiak that focused on the aftermath which showed the coastline looking somewhat pristine however if you dig down 12 inches the oil is still there and it sticks to your hands and tools just like it did 25 years ago.   Valdez and Prince William Sound suffered irreparable damage to the economy and the ecosystem that will go on for decades.  It is difficult not to focus on the Exxon Valdez tragedy.

On our excursion in Valdez we took a bus tour to Thompson Pass and an opportunity to get up close and personal to the Worthington Glacier.  The scenery on the bus ride was beyond description in is vastness and beauty.  Snowcapped mountains no matter where you looked.  Valdez is described as the Switzerland of Alaska.  On the way to the pass we saw many waterfalls.   When we reached the pass there was a parking lot for the buses so tourists could get out and take pictures of Worthington Glacier.  We were very close to the glacier with a high bank of glacial moraine long the southern edge.  Peter was satisfied taking pictures from the viewing platform until he spotted someone walking up the moraine toward the foot of the glacier.  So he decided to climb up the moraine and get closer pictures also.  

The bus was scheduled to leave at 1:40 and Peter was nowhere in sight.  He’d walked up a trail on the moraine for 20 minutes and did not realize the time until 1:30.  He starts running down the trail jumping over snow drifts and rock piles and made it to the bus 7 minutes late.  When he walked on the bus everybody “boo’d” him as they had already voted to leave without him.  JY was embarrassed to say the least.

On the way back to Valdez we stopped at Bridal Veil falls for a photo op.

The bus drove around the town of Valdez and that part of the tour was over in about 15 minutes.  Later that night we went to a presentation by a woman who grew up in Valdez after the earthquake and before the oil spill.  Valdez gets an incredible amount of snow each year and she had pictures of a pathway to their front door that had vertical sides, was 2 feet wide and about 8 feet high.

Average yearly snowfall is 306 (25 feet) inches with a record of 560 inches (46 feet).

Tuesday June 4, 2019 – COLLEGE FJORD

Wednesday June 5, 2019 – HOMER

Homer Alaska is a larger town than Valdez with 3 stop lights and more retail stores.  We took the free shuttle into town.  We brought the computer and planned to go to the library to use their free WiFi to publish the next edition of the blog. 

At the first stop there was a McDonald’s close by so we walked over there to use their free WiFi and drink senior coffee. We worked on the blog and managed to publish what we had up to that point. 

There was some confusion with the time that our excursion was to start.  The ticket said to meet at 2:15 and the excursion would start at 2:30.  The cruise ship said there were problems with the excursion and there were different times announcements for the starting time.  We were aware of this while at McDonald’s so when the original time to meet came

along we packed up and headed for shuttle pick up station #1.  ††††††

The volunteers there showed us a text message that they had just received saying the excursion was going to start sooner than the original time indicated on the ticket.  While we were sitting at the shuttle stop a moose and her calf walked through the parking lot right in front of us.  We were so amazed by what we were seeing that there was no time to take a photo.  Peter did not want to follow the moose into the woods as it’s dangerous to get close to a mother and her baby.   

The two volunteers at the shuttle stop said there was no way we were going to catch the shuttle, make the next 3 shuttle stops and get to the theater on time for the show.  We were then treated to some Alaskan hospitality.

The couple that were manning shuttle stop #1 cleaned out the back seat of their pick-up and said hop in and drove us to the theater. Consequently we were the first ones there and we thought the place was not open.  After pounding on the door someone finally answered. 

The man who runs the show (who is the show) looked out the door and asked “where’s the bus”?  About 20 minutes later the bus arrived and the show went on!

Although this appeared to be a small-town operation and a one man show, the production (Rhythm of the North) was extremely enjoyable. As we were early we were able to talk to the star of the show, Johnny B.

He is a classically trained pianist and heavily influenced by jazz, boogie-woogie and the environment and wildlife. His touring began in 1979 after graduating from the Berklee School of Music in Boston. He has lived in Alaska since 1981 when he met his wife in the potato salad line at the Talketna Moose Dropping Festival. He is a piano player par excellence.

The show consisted of music, beautiful photography, videos, stories and fun.  

After the show we went to a well-known pub called the “Salty Dawg.”  The Salty Dawg was a dive however almost everyone who goes in for a drink writes their name on a dollar bill and tacks it onto the wall or ceiling.  As you can see in the photo there’s a lot of currency tacked to the walls and ceiling.  All the money is considered a donation and at the end of the year they take it down and donate it.  They told us that it is usually about $10,000 each year.  The bank where they take it turns the money over to the Feds and they destroy it because it has been written on.

We shopped around a bit before heading back for the ship.  The driver of the bus pointed out the “Time Bandit” which is one of the ships featured in the television series “The Deadliest Catch”.  Peter walked to the dock for a picture with the ship.  He ended up getting a tour of the ship and meeting the Captain and a photo  with the owner.  He was able to explore the whole ship. 

Consequently he got a realistic look at ship board life out at sea.  Several of the crew were there sitting around the table drinking with their ladies and they were all talking like drunken sailors.  Enough said!

Thursday June 6, 2019 – Anchorage

This morning we docked in Anchorage.  It is the largest city in Alaska with approximately 40% of the entire population of the state.  The weather has been abnormally nice according to most people we have talked to.  This time of year it is usually overcast and/or rainy.

Our excursion today was 3.5 hours and included a narrated tour of downtown Anchorage where they have some department stores that we were surprised to see including Nordstrom’s.  (We didn’t shop there.)  Our shuttle bus continued to a 26 acre Alaska Native Heritage Center that exhibited the 11 major cultural groups of the state.

There were demonstrations of Native games that are included in the Olympics of native cultures from around the world above the Arctic Circle.  They were events that we had never seen or heard of before, including the two foot kick.  In this event there is a ball tied to a string that is dangling from a horizontal pole 10 feet in the air.  The athlete stands back about 20 to 30 feet then runs up to where the ball is suspended, leaps up in the air, kicks the ball with BOTH feet and then lands on both feet without falling down.  This may sound easy but requires a lot of agility.  The record is 8 feet 8.5 inches and that record has been unbroken for 31 years.  About a half dozen have reached 8 feet with the closest being 8 feet 5 inches.

Another difficult event involved crouching on the floor, while the athlete balances his/her body on one hand then with the other hand  reaches  up  and touches  a ball over their head.  Then after touching the ball they can’t let any part of their body touch the floor until they have exhibited stability while still balanced on that one hand.  This is much harder than it looks and requires  strength and balance.

Other events involved a hop, 3 skips, and a long jump where they have to stick the landing on one foot. This event simulated hopping and skipping across floating pieces of ice in open waters.  All the games are practiced to improve hunting skills on the ice. For example, shooting a seal requires stealth,  balance on the ice and strength to pull a 400 lb. seal out of the water and drag it through the ice back to the village.  It’s important not to slip on the ice and fall in the freezing water as there is no one to rescue a lone hunter. 

 there was a video showing the native Olympics with teams from Russia, Canada, Norway, Finland and Greenland.  Although this is truly Native Olympics with many events requiring power, balance, agility and focus the vast majority are directly related to the ability to survive in the extremely harsh environment of the arctic.   

The next demonstration was of native dancing. During the 82 dark days of winter villagers gather at someone’s  small lodging around a fire, share a meal, tell stories about their ancestry, sing songs and dance.  The houses are small so there is less to heat and most of the interpretive dancing involves foot and arm movements in one spot as there is not much room to dance with people sitting on the floor.

After the shuttle dropped us off at the rendezvous point in downtown Anchorage we spent some time exploring.  As it was lunchtime, we decided to try highly recommended restaurant for fish and chips and beer. 

 

Friday June 7, 2019 – KODIAK    

Kodiak Island is where we spent the day.  It is a nice little town that thrives mostly on fishing and tourism.  This year 12 ships are scheduled to dock in Kodiak however next year there are 31 ships scheduled to dock here.  After driving around Kodiak it does not appear that the infrastructure can weather the wear and tear of 31 cruise ships with an estimated head count of 37,200 passengers coming ashore in a 4 month period.

Our excursion was Kodiak Highlights.  From the dock we drove into town which has a population of 6,000. The bear population of 3,000 is half the people population.  There are only 100 miles of paved roads on the island so there’s not much scenic touring to do on the island.

Our first stop was the Baranov History Museum where there is a mix of Native, Russian and American historical artifacts.  It is a small museum with an amazingly large number of pieces on display.  The history of Kodiak and all of Alaska has been determined by the impact of earthquakes, military presence, Russian influence and history, along with the rich influence of the five main tribes of Alaska, Tlingit in particular.  And “Sewards’s Folly” – the purchase of Alaska, was considered a foolish waste of money. However for a multitude of reasons this did not turn out to be the case as the true value of Alaska quickly became an asset to America.

Next we visited the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center.  The center exhibited a collection of Native artifacts and an assortment of wildlife dioramas.  There was a replica of one of the largest Kodiak bears ever taken by a hunter at the center and it was huge.  If you met a bear like this in the wilderness you’d be toast before you could say “HOLY S**T”.

Our next stop was the Alutiiq Museum.  This museum offered a more in-depth look at the Alaskan Native Culture and provided a very detailed collection of artifacts like clothes, weapons, cookware and musical instruments. 

There were detailed explanations of how the items were made and used.  You can walk through these museums and see everything but it would take days to read all the descriptions, review the literature and watch the videos.  We each read what was of interest to ourselves but soon it was time for the shuttle to leave.

Our tour ended at Fort Abercrombie State Park, a WW II Historical site. There were a few bunkers on the site.  The main bunker had been converted into a museum displaying hundreds of objects from the WW II.  Leftover weapons and munitions had been destroyed on this strategic military island so we were free to roam around the site.  

The view looking out over the ocean was breathtaking.

In town we walked to a gift shop and stopped in at a Wells Fargo bank where there was a Kodiak bear mounted in the office area.  As you can see next to JY it is huge.

†

Thursday  May 29, 2019

We now have begun the second part of our journey this summer. We are sailing towards the “Land of the Midnight  Sun.” We have never been on a cruise this long before. (21 days)

We originally booked our cruise with an inside cabin. However, a couple of days before sailing, the Cruise Company (our booking agent) called and because we had sailed with Holland America before we were upgraded to what we understood was a room with a balcony; as it turns out we have an ocean view cabin and we are glad it worked out that way. Our cabin is much bigger as the space that would have been the balcony is now living space so we have a much bigger room. Also, people with balconies say there rooms are cold. All is well…

Regarding of the blog, we cannot send new postings while on the cruise.  It looks like we’ll need to pay for some Internet time in order to keep you up to date. We also cannot send texts or e-mails very successfully. Sometimes when we’re in port JY manages to send a text and a photo.

At first we were concerned that we would be bored for 21 days. Well, the 21 day cruise is called an “in-depth cruise.” So the topics that have been covered in depth include – Culture, Flora, Wildlife, Cuisine and Entertainment. There are a couple geologists that give on-going lectures and a Greek chef who is fusing Mediterranean and Alaskan cuisine.

In today’s the “When and Where” guide listing all of today’s activities there are 70+ activities to choose from and that does not include time for eating or sleeping or reading or maybe just relaxing.

Just by coincidence we were the second couple to board the ship and to offset that we were the last ones to get our luggage.  As we departed the skyline of San Francisco was amazing.  We sailed right by Alcatraz.  The day before leaving we tried to get a tour of “The Rock” but they were booked up 5 days in advance and it cost $75 per person.

This is our first full day on the ship with today and tomorrow being sea days.  Yesterday we departed from San Francisco and many were on deck taking pictures as we sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge.  It was an awesome experience as Peter had heard and read about the bridge ever since he was a small boy in school.  The wind was blowing so hard you could barely stand up.  He was using his iPad to take photos and had a death grip on it as the wind tried to rip it from his hands.  It was so windy JY had to go inside for fear of being blown over. A hot coffee was in order. Peter did get some good pics though.

Like that school boy, while in the stateroom Peter was sitting on our bed which is right under the window watching the waves. About 40 yards from the ship right in front of our window a grey whale surfaced for air and was gone in a split second.

 He says it was just luck that he was in the right place at the right time and looking at that spot. Of course every night now he gazes out the window for another encounter with that whale. (or maybe a pirate or Viking ship.)

Being on board the ship is like moving into a new town, for the first couple of days you don’t know where anything is so we are frequently referring to the little map of the ship to figure out where we are and where we need to be for different activities.    

Thursday May 31, 2019

This is our second sea day as we make our way north up the west coast of California, Oregon and Washington.  We will cruise on by Canada and back into the US waters as we approach Ketchikan, our first port of call.   We have started to meet people as time passes and meeting them mostly while we are eating.  Now faces are starting to become more familiar in this gathering of 1,200 people,  and just like traveling in the RV they are temporary friends meaning you meet them, have a great chat, share travel, career and family stories and then everyone moves on to meet more new people.  Everyone is friendly, polite and sociable.

Friday June 1, 2019

We did not dock in Ketchikan.  It was a rainy day and we tendered  into the dock.  There were 5 cruise ships in Ketchikan at the same time (our ship was the smallest) and the streets, shops and restaurants were packed with people.  It was a mad house and it did not help that the main street between the dock and the shops was under construction to make the sidewalks wider for tourists. 

Luckily we had scheduled an excursion for today which took us away from the crowded tourist trap area.  We boarded a bus that took us to the Saxman Native Village where we listened to native Tlingit people as they shared cultural stories with us.  And they taught us some Clingit vocabulary. They performed ceremonial dances mixed with traditional songs, chants and stories.  People in the audience were invited to participate in the dances and Peter stepped up to the plate to dance.  He wore the ceremonial dance garments.   It was fun.

After leaving the Beaver Clan Lodge we walked a short distance to a building where they were carving totem poles.  The master carver was in Juneau for the day but our guide, who does some carving, explained some of the work in process and the tools used during the carving process.  He also explained the different types of wood being carved and how difficult the harder wood is to work with.  We were very surprised to hear that this particular carver is world renowned and has orders for totem poles from many different countries. 

Depending on the intricacy of the carving, the type of wood and the finish (paint, varnish or wax) totem poles can range in price from $3,000 to $8,000 per foot.  Totems can take from one to two years to complete.

We left the carving building and went outside to one of the largest collection of totem poles in the world.  Our guide explained the story of many of the totem poles and the meaning of the various figures carved into the pole.  Then we gladly made our way to the gift shop to get out of the rain and enjoy a cup of hot coffee.

I wanted to buy a small totem pole as a souvenir however to my surprise a 12” tall one sells for $200 to $300 plus.  I did not want one that bad.  We boarded our bus back into town and after struggling through the mob of tourists and the rain we decided to just tender back to the board the ship.  We have been to Ketchikan 2 times before today and have seen many of the attractions.

This evening we decided to go to the main dining room and we met our table partners.  We had the early seating so we wouldn’t miss the evening show.  Our table partners were from Australia and we got along very well, telling stories about our lives, families and countries. They vacation regularly in Bali as it is fairly close to them in Perth, Australia 4 hours by plane.  Our waiter is from Bali so  they had much in common and spoke some Balinese.

Saturday June 1, 2019

We docked in Sitka for a 10 minute shuttle ride into town.  We did not have an excursion planned but when we got off the shuttle we purchased a tour from one of the local tour guides. 

Our tour was a walk through an old growth forest, crossing a salmon stream (no salmon), a visit to the Fortress of the Bears which is a rescue facility and then an up close and personal tour of the Alaska Raptor Center.

As our guide walked us through the old growth forest she carried a large can of bear repellent as the day before she had seen a large brown bear on one of the trails.  She said bears are a part of life in Alaska however one day a couple of years ago one broke into the family garage and tore everything up including their freezer full of salmon.  The bear tried to rip the garage door into the house off the hinges but gave up after a while and left.  She said she and her kids were really spooked and she now carries bear spray wherever there is a chance of encountering a bear.  She said the bear spray is really potent as her husband accidentally set one off in their car.

From our forest walk we drove to the Fortress of the Bear rescue facility where they have taken in injured bears.  There were a total of nine bears, 4 large brown bears, 3 black bears and 2 juvenile brown bears. 

All the bears were in an open air enclosure with walls about 20 feet high.  The adults, juveniles and black bears were separated as they would fight and kill each other if allowed to co-habitate.  Although the bears seemed to be doing well it was sad to see them in their enclosures as it is an unnatural way for them to live.

Then it was a short drive to the Alaska Raptor Center.  A wildlife interpreter guided us through the Bald Eagle Flight Building where recovering and juvenile birds learn to fly before being released. 

In the area where the birds were they have a small stream along with many perching areas and simulated trees made of old branches and logs.  They are fed salmon and other types of food they would eat in the wild when released from captivity.  We could see the birds but they could not see us.

From there our interpreter introduced us to the raptors that are permanent residents due to disabling injuries.  There were many birds including a golden eagle and several bald eagles.  There was a kestrel, a great horned owl, several other species of owls and a peregrine falcon.  As an example the interpreter explained that the golden eagle is so handicapped that when he gets down off of his perch he does a back flip.  We met one of the workers as she was transporting an owl from its outside enclosure to the auditorium for a presentation however she stopped for 5 minutes giving us the opportunity to take pictures and ask questions.

Our tour guide dropped us off at the shuttle stop and we boarded the ship.  On the way through town the bus driver pointed out the best restaurant in town.  The sign said “Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant – The Best pizza in Town”.

WOW!!  It’s Monday and we are now in our hotel in San Francisco. The last five days have been quite eventful. 

We were staying at the Dayton RV Park in Nevada and decided to get groomed before the cruise so we got haircuts and JY got a mani/pedi.  This was Friday and we planned to cross the Sierra Nevada’s into California on Sunday. During the haircut the stylist told Peter that we’d never make it over the mountains in our truck, let alone pulling a travel trailer. She indicated that 4-6 inches of snow were forecasted on all the mountain passes. We verified this with the highway patrol and they advised us to leave immediately if possible.

It could start snowing the next day (Saturday) in which case  the highway patrol could shut down the passes until they were cleared during the week. We did not want to get stuck on this side of the Sierra Nevada’s, nor did we want to miss the boat. (Literally.)

There were no second thoughts about what we had to do.  We packed up, hooked up the trailer to the truck and pulled out of the RV Park by 5:00 pm.  We drove over Carson Pass where the snow drifts, in some places, were 10 feet deep along the side of the road due to a snow storm the week before that dumped 11 inches of snow on the pass. 

The roads were good for us as we made our way over Carson Pass at 8,990 ft.  Not one snowflake fell during the drive although the clouds where dark and you could see precipitation falling off in the distance. We were really lucky!

JY called ahead to the RV Park where we were going to stay Monday night in northern California. Luckily they had a cancelation and we could stay for 3 days which is exactly what we needed.  We pulled into our site at 9:30 pm in the dark.  Shut the truck off, climbed in the trailer and went right to sleep as we were exhausted from that night time harrowing drive.

Peter had made arrangements with someone who owned a large lot in San Leandro to park the truck and trailer for 21 days while we were on the cruise.  It was a fenced lot and he lived on the property.  He let other people store vehicles, RV’s, boats, school buses and about everything else you could think off on the property.  The property was a junk yard to put it nicely.  The guy and his wife lived on the property. Interestingly he had a 500 gallon tank he created on the lot with a couple hundred tilapias in it. This was part of their regular diet.  We took a 1.5 hour drive to this huge junk yard in San Leandro Saturday just to make sure we could find the place as we  did  not  want to be searching for it Monday morning pulling a travel trailer.  On Monday morning at 6:00 am (today) we left the RV Park and drove to the place and parked the truck and trailer.  Actually parking the truck and trailer was quite a feat in this weird and crowded junkyard.

Our cab got us and our luggage into San Francisco to our hotel by 9:30 am.  Our hotel is just around the corner from the cruise ship,  Pier 27.   

We stored our luggage at the hotel and spent the next 4 hour wandering around Pier 39 with a million other tourists.  We of course had clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl for lunch. JY says her life is complete in San Francisco as she has eaten this iconic San Francisco treat.

Happy Memorial Day!