Eat, Drink, and Go!

It has been a while since I’ve written, but that’s because I’ve been busy cruisin! Took an Alaska cruise from Seattle up through Alaska’s inside passage. Same cruise I did five years ago, and once again, it did not disappoint. This is the type of trip for nature lovers who don’t mind a little bit of cabin time. Celebrity Cruises offers a great trip, good onboard service, and a decent price for a balcony cabin, which is a must on this kind of trip. 

Even more reasons for a balcony in pics below. This view was shortly after leaving Seattle and taking a moment to relax with a welcome bottle of champagne (go Concierge class – it’s not much more and it’s worth it, or of course if you’re a baller, go for suite class, but I’m generally an upper middle class traveler). Our trip began with Ketchikan, AK. 

Ketchikan was our spot for a zip lining adventure, but there are tons of shore excursions you can do at each port.  The Bear Creek zipline by here offered the highest elevations and great rainforest views across the Tongass National forest. 

Yes, that’s me, zipping through the trees!   The next scenic experience was from the ship – cruising the Tracy Arm Fjord. We saw so many icebergs and a great view of the Dawes Glacier.  Check these sights out:

You can smell the glacial air and it just feels so pure!  In with the good, out with the bad. Repeat. We even had the extra bonus of seeing it calf!  That’s when a piece of the glacier breaks off naturally into the water and creates a huge splash and rippling waves as it cascades into the water. 

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Not sure if the video comes out on the blog?  I got the calving on video! Anyways, these pics above are why I needed a balcony cabin. And plenty of whales, but they were tougher to get pics of. 

Our next port of call was Juneau. This was probably my favorite excursion – we kayaked in Mendenhall Lake and went as close as is permissible to the Mendenhall Glacier. It was fantastic. 

Most of my pics from this excursion are on my waterproof camera so I don’t have them in an upload able format here. I definitely recommend this excursion for the fitter folk out there – it was a solid two hours of paddling!! But absolutely worh it to get up close and personal with a gorgeous glacier. After kayaking, we had a great salmon bake. Alaska Travel Adventures was the company and it was a really great experience. http://www.bestofalaskatravel.com

Our last stop in Alaska was Skagway. During the gold rush, this city was the last stop before heading into the Yukon Territory, Klondike coldness, and I kept thinking of the bear scene with Leo DiCapprio in The Revenant. We had a great hike high up in the mountains in Skagway with the Alaska Mountain Guides. http://www.alaskamountainguides.com

This was a new trail cut into the mountain and offered a solid hike for those who like a decent physical challenge. Nothing too arduous, but definitely more than a walk in the park (think ropes for both up and down in some portions!). 

We also experienced some delicious brews here. Our hiking guide advised us to try out Skagway Brewing’s Spruce Tip blonde. It actually has vitamin C in it from the tree!! And it was good!! I also enjoyed the Alaskan Brewing company’s smokes porter and stout beers. 

Alaska is definitely a “must see” for the avid traveller and a cruise is the best way to do it because hear ports aren’t otherwise easily accessible. Well, I’m waiting in the airport to fly home so this is kind of quick and dirty and not as illustrious as I like to write, but I’ll have more to blog about once I get home a debrief!!