Video: Walking on Water (the frozen kind)

Videos: Leaving Seattle

Video: The View of Juneau

Videos: Glacier Bay...

Videos: The Glacier Visit by Helicopter

Landing on the glacier...


Take-off and view from the air...

Victoria, British Columbia

As I sit here in the airport waiting for my flight, free internet makes it possible to upload these shots from the final stop on the cruise.  Victoria is the capital of British Columbia.  It's an island around the size of Maryland (but with a very small population).  They have a perfect view of the mountains in Washington state from the island.

We arrived around 7 PM and I took a guided walking tour of the oldest part of the city.  It was all aboard by 11:15 PM.

The capitol building of province of British Columbia is in Victoria.  The lights had just been turned on for the evening.

The Empress Hotel (named for Queen Victoria, the Empress of India) was Bob Hope's favorite hotel on the island.

The public park and gardens were beautiful.  

We walked into the British Columbia Museum of History, and here's a statue in tribute to the native peoples.

Here's the entrance to the garden.  Note the blue tent ... it is legal for homeless folks to camp in the park at night.

This Canadian harbor has a great view of the mountains in Washington across the ocean.  Also, you can see a "fake" whale tale.

The peacocks were getting ready for bed, and you can see that they sleep perched in trees.

Final Day …

Today is my final full day of the cruise.  The ship doesn’t arrive at our final stop until this evening (Victoria, British Columbia).  So, I’ll post any remaining pictures after my arrival home on Sunday.  

It has been a great cruise, and I’m glad I took the time to explore this southeastern section of Alaska. 

Ketchikan, Alaska

Ketchikan is the fourth largest city in Alaska with about 18,000 people (year-round residents).  It's the salmon capital of Alaska, and I took an excursion by boat today.  It was a small zodiac motor boat it's been many years since I drove a motor boat).  It was fun, and we saw lots of bald eagles.  The guide even threw a frozen fish (they float) for the eagles to scoop up in front of us.  A cool thing to see, and they are very big birds up close.

The eagle after his prey (a frozen fish thrown in the water by our guide).  The eagles, flying in pairs, were waiting for breakfast.

Here are a few shots from today...

Arriving in Ketchikan, Alaska.

Our guide providing us last minute instructions on using the motor boats safely.

You had to wear multiple items (boots, pants, jacket over your personal jacket) to participate in the trip.

We traveled by the Native village ... there's "shame" totem pole that still remains from early times of America's purchase.

The city's population swells and today five cruise ships will be visiting the town.

Here we go...

A few more from the glacier visit...

Beauty abounds on the glacier.

Cracks come from the pressure, but it's not thin ice.  This glacier is between 300 and 500 feet thick.

I'm thankful for the ice boots, and I didn't get too close to this crack!

Water flows under the ice, and it caused recent flooding in the valley below.

Juneau and visiting two glaciers by helicopter

Juneau, the capital of Alaska, is a small city (but big by Alaska standards) started out as a mining town.  I enjoyed my visit and up to the top of the mountain for a view of the city.  I was then off for a helicopter for two glacier visits.

The natives own a tram to the top of the mountain.  The view of the ship (Center) and the city of Juneau (right).

I'm glad we had a capable pilot.  The ice boots they provided came in handy for preventing slips!

That's me standing on top of the Mendenhall Glacier.  Note the ice boots and the life preserver (just in case).  

A few more shots from yesterday's visit to Glacier Bay...

I didn't have time to post these yesterday.

Where the glacier meets the sea.

A bald eagle takes a break on a chunk of glacier ice.

Waterfalls abound from the melting ice.

Entering the national park.

Glacier Bay in pictures...

A "selfie" from my verandah as the ship enters Glacier Bay National Park.

A river of ice.

Arriving at Glacier Bay National Park

It was foggy when the ship arrived, and I started my five mile walk.  The view became extraordinary as the sun helped the fog lift.

The second day at sea was very relaxed...

The second day at sea was an attempt to “catch up” the itinerary.  I spent the day eating (and then walking about 9 miles and 45 flights of stairs to pay for the indulgences).  I also attended a cooking show with one of the ship's chefs; he cooked salmon two ways, and we got to taste it, too (delicious). A little bingo game in the afternoon resulted in no additional cash.  The casino took my money, too. 

We are arriving at Glacier Bay as I write this, and it’s really foggy.  I hope the sky will soon clear.  The weather is supposed to be good today, which may be an advantage that we are a day late on arriving to see these natural wonders.

The rangers from the national park will be narrating our visit today.