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Yukon John!!
  • Amy and Pat Taylor
  • Amy and Pat Taylor

Yukon John!!

Headed out for an Alaskan Cruise with John & Phanie Faye. Read more
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  • Trip start
    September 4, 2026
    Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Yukon John!!!

    Sep 4–13 in Canada ☀️ 59 °F

    Why name this trip Yukon John?

    Because we are so excited to do this trip with John and Stephanie.

    We love them so much and this is going to be so much fun to share with them. Great travelmates.

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Lesson Officially Learned

    September 4 in Canada ☀️ 59 °F

    So, on our trip to Europe last year, the first leg of our flight to Switzerland was delayed. We were due to meet Gary and Patti in Philly and then on to Switzerland. But our flight was delayed and we missed the connecting flight to Switzerland.

    We vowed "never again". We were never going to let an airline mess us up again. So with this year's flight to catch the ship in Vancouver, we departed a day early. Once again, our flight was delayed. And had we not traveled a day early, we would most likely missed our departure.

    Because of our lesson learned, all is good. We had a day to spare. All we lost was some time in Vancouver. Sooooooo, we will have to come back. Because, as it turns out, Vancouver is fabulous.

    Vancouver is a beautiful city that has both mountains and sea.

    As we were waiting to disembark, we watch seaplane after seaplane taking off. We also saw many helicopter tours take off.

    But My Lovely couldnt take here eyes off the mountains. So beautiful. I could hear the mountains call her - taunting her. I am not sure when, but we will make a special trip just to do Vancouver.    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Ketchikan

    September 7 in the United States ⛅ 61 °F

    We jump-started the day in Ketchikan with a little cab ride / local tour guide. 

    Just off the ship we caught a cab and asked the driver to show us a few things before dropping us off at Creek Street (the main tourist trap area).  He drove us to a couple of different sections of a stream full of salmon.  It was tickling to walk up and see hundreds of salmon swimming upstream in 12” of water, waiting to catch their breakfast.

    The driver told us of bears (what everyone really wants to see and hear about) coming down to the stream to fish for their breakfast. And he just happened to have pictures to share. A man making a living. He was entertaining and helpful. We were thankful.

    A couple of stops with the cabbie, and then it was time for our main morning activity – SHOPPING. 

    The town exists on cruise ships bringing travelers in to shop.  I will say that it is a cute little town and easy to walk as long as you can avoid tripping over the jewelry stores.  How many jewelry stores can there be? 

    My Lovely and I didn’t find much of anything we couldn’t live without, but it was fun grazing through the shops anyway.  Then it snuck up on us.  The last shop. 

    My Lovely found a bear, hand carved out of petrified walrus ivory.  It was detailed, different, and sized right.  A cute little thing.  I guess we found something that needed a home.  And a home he has.   Meet Ketchikan.

     
    Our second activity of the day was the Lumberjack show.  Ok, it was a little cheesy, but it was entertaining.  The show pits 2 teams of lumberjacks against each other in lumberjack competitions.  The teams were the Spring Hill Camp (the American Team) against the Dawson Creek team (the Canadians).  The emcee divided the crowd to root for the teams (cheers and jeers).  we became Canadians for the next 90 minutes. This truly added to the fun.

    The teams “competed" in real events with real equipment and real wood which was interesting to watch  -- even with an upscale ‘Studio Rastlin’ level of competition.

    As a bonus to attending the Lumberjack show, everyone gets a $100 gift card to a Jewelry shop called Diamonds International. Fortunately, we still did not trip over any jewelry stores.

    As we cruised out of Ketchikan headed for Juneau, the scenery was breathtaking...a theme that will repeat!    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler
    1

    Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls

    September 8 in the United States ☁️ 55 °F

    Underwhelming, Overwhelming and Oh So Awesome!!!

    Today we went to Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls.

    Mendenhall Glacier is a 13-mile-long river of ice located 12 miles from downtown Juneau.

    We booked a tour that combines glacier viewing with a hike to Nugget Falls.

    Nugget Falls, also known as Nugget Creek Falls or Mendenhall Glacier Falls, is a waterfall downstream of the Nugget Glacier, at the base of Bullard Mountain.

    I'll jump right in here and tell you that the underwhelming part was the Mendenhall Glacier.

    Nothing wrong; and I suppose it was my fault really - I had lofty expectations. And truth be told, I wanted to walk on a Glacier and tour inside a cravasse. There was a tour available for this but it it could be I could be completely beyond our budget - and ultimately got cancelled for those that did book it.

    That leaves us with the overwhelming and the "Oh So Awesome".

    The overwhelming was the Nugget Falls.

    We have seen a lot of falls. And I enjoyed Nugget Falls more than all of them. For me, better than Niagra Falls.

    It was the surprise really. I wasn't expecting much and I got wowwed! We walked right up to the bottom of the Falls with the water crashing at our feet, and the falls towering over us. This was the best.

    No, the size does not compare to Niagra nor many other Falls we have seen; it is really "experiencing" the falls.

    The weather forecast for the week had shown rain everyday. Like 100% chance of rain. And yet, we had skirted by without rain so far. But today, our bill came due. But, as is normally the case with My Lovely's luck, our bill was quite manageable.

    The rain was light at first, and to be completely honest, I find a nice walk in the rain to be incredibly romantic. Just imagine a couple walking in the rain, sharing an umbrella and dashing into a shop for refuge when the weather advances from drizzle, to shower. Then you share a coffee & danish, or you find a little trinket to purchase. What could be better than that?

    Well, there was no coffee nor danish around. And no umbrella either, though we were dressed appropriately. But there we were, the 3 of us (Phanie Faye, My Lovely and I) walking in the rain to the Falls. As we hike down, we see rock (boulders) left behind by the Glacier. We see streams running under or path. And we hear Phanie Faye's excitement.

    Phanie Faye was the Oh So Awesome part. The hike is about a mile each way, and about halfway down, the Falls came into view, and I thought Stephanie was going to lose her breath.

    As we proceeded, the Falls were once again hidden from view. Her excitement built.

    Then we hit the Falls, and Oh my gosh, she gushed.

    We found a great trinket on our walk in the rain. We shared this awesome moment with Stephanie.    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Zodiac Wildlife Ride

    September 9 in the United States 🌧 45 °F

    I was expecting "giggles" and I got "WOW!!!".

    No, I am not disappointed, simply surprised.

    My Lovely and I took a speedboat ride in the largest and deepest fjord in North America. This is a zodiac with 3 250hp motors. It is a thrill ride for wildlife viewing.

    The pilot, Alyssa, guns the boat and does donuts and figure 8s on the way to view wildlife, waterfalls and mountainscapes. Several times, the pilot has us pointed directly at the face of a giant rock at full speed, only to do a J-turn to pull us away.

    The boat stops from time-to-time and our guide extraordinaire, Nicolette, points out things like eagles, harbor seals and the Alaskan Scoter Ducks (that run across the water - 100s in a group). Oh, and lots and lots of amazing waterfalls! Nicolette was great fun and had plenty of interesting tidbits to share.

    We are astride our seats like sitting on a saddle. It is 40° and raining (we are geared up properly in "survival suits") as we blast across the water. Again, I am expecting giggles because this type of stuff does that to My Lovely. But I suppose I'll have to live with WOW!! 2 hours of Wow! ain't bad.

    This was a nice primer for our planned jetboat ride in New Zealand (instead of donuts, the jetboat spins 360s).    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Train

    September 9 in the United States ☁️ 50 °F

    My Lovely and I share a particular appreciation for rail travel.

    During our visit to Skagway, Alaska, we embarked on the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad tour alongside John and Stephanie.

    Established in 1898, this scenic line traverses the Coastal Mountains’ White Pass, extending into the wilderness of British Columbia and the Yukon Territory.

    While the railway holds significant local historical importance, our excursion was primarily focused on the scenery. The three-hour round-trip tour is visually stunning, prompting my partner to draw parallels to the Bernina Express. I can't say that I agree, however, there were some parts that were spectacular.

    The experience was exceptional; however, two aspects stood out in particular:

    1) Unlike the Bernina Express, passengers are permitted to access the open-air decks between cars for enhanced viewing and photography, which significantly elevated the experience.

    2) We were pleased that Stephanie was able to join us on the deck to capture the excursion firsthand.

    The railway utilizes narrow-gauge tracks (3' vs 4' 8 5"), and the route along the mountainside is sufficiently close to the rock faces such that one could reach out from the deck.

    As you stand on the platform preparing for photos, the sound of passing waterfalls is followed immediately by the refreshing mist of the spray.

    It was an excellent journey on a historic train offering numerous spectacular views.

    Although I have a differing perspective regarding the comparison to the Bernina Express, I am pleased that the experience was of such high quality for My Lovely.    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Glacier Bay National Park.

    September 10 in the United States ⛅ 57 °F

    Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is a highlight of this cruise and one of the main reasons we chose it.

    We experience the park from the ship without docking. A permit is required for cruise ships to enter Glacier Bay. They are limited, but we chose this cruise specifically because it has a permit to enter the bay. Our ship headed up the fjord last night.

    The sun was rising but hidden by fog, making the morning crisp despite our three layers of clothing - otherwise, I'd say it was coooold.

    The fog was THICK. Every 2 minutes the fog horn would blow (video attached). 30 seconds later an answering blast from another ship somewhere off our starboard side. And if we listened very carefully, another one much further away.

    The early highlights were the small breaks in the fog: a gap would expose a ray of sunlight, igniting a bit of color over the water or upon a mountainside. But then the wildlife began to entertain us. It started with an otter sighting - at least we thought it was an otter. Another sighting confirmed it, and soon otters were so plentiful that we stopped pointing them out.

    The whale sighting that followed began with My Lovely pointing out the spray. A dark spot under the surface and a few tail flaps were all we got, but it was the first whale we've seen together.

    The morning was still young - we had gotten up at 5:30am to be on deck by 6, and it wasn't yet 7. The treats were rolling in now. As the sun rose higher, the fog became scarcer, leaving patches that highlighted the mountainscapes. The views were in a constant state of change.

    Shortly after rangers boarded the ship, we were alerted to a bear sighting on shore. Far in the distance, we spotted a mother and two cubs. We continued up the fjord as it narrowed, our goal being the Marjorie glacier. We began to see more ice in the water - what they call 'berg bits.' These are pieces broken off the glacier, not full icebergs.

    Roughly four hours after our early start, we reached the glacier. The captain put the ship in 360° mode, rotating it several times so everyone on board could take it in. After a full half hour of "sit 'n spin", we began our reverse trek, possibly 500 photos richer.

    The glacier was awesome. The view was great but for me, understanding what a glacier is, how it moves and what it leaves behind is powerful.

    The photos of the glacier were great. The trip to the glacier was the bigger treat.

    As usual, the photos are fabulous, but they don't truly capture the beauty, and nothing conveys what we shared. But as always, we have footprints to remind us.

    43 National Parks for My Lovely. More to come.

    More pics of the fabulous Glacier Bay in post 2...

    Edit:

    Hours after I wrote this footprint, My Lovely opened drapes in our room and began to ooh and aah again. She said that she had seen many beautiful views and mountainscapes but that nothing compares to grandeur like this. Nothing compares this.    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    Glacier Bay - J&S Whale

    September 10 in the United States ☀️ 54 °F

    Just too many photos for one post, or 10 posts, really...

    Mountains and sea in every direction.

    But this gives us a place to talk about John and Stephanie's whale siting.

    My Lovely and I saw a bit of a whale, a spray and a few small tail whips.

    The day before, I had seen something similar.

    But John and Stephanie saw a whale breach. A spray, a few whips of the tail and the a full roll.

    We are both envious and thrilled.    Read more

  • Amy and Pat TaylorYukon John!!Traveler

    The Recap

    September 12 in the United States ☀️ 54 °F

    This was my first cruise. Did we have a good time?

    Yes!

    Was it the best trip ever?

    No. It doesn't make the top 5. I am not really sure where it would rank because we have had so many great trips (Europe 2025 is still the all-time best). But we had a really good time.

    What was the best?

    Over the years, when people have told me about their cruise, I have asked what was the best thing. The answer is almost always "the food was great."

    I knew that we would care about a lot more than the food, and I was correct. The food, for the most part, was good; the prime steak was great, and our crab lunches were pretty awesome too. But the food does not rank.

    Well, there is a lot to choose from, but the answer is quite simple.

    - The hike to Nugget Falls.
    - The glaciers as a whole.
    - Seeing the wildlife (bears, seals, otters, ~whales).
    - Dressing for formal night.
    - John's fishing excursion.
    We could make this a very long list, but the answer is the trite, cheesy one. The best thing was being with John & Stephanie.

    Beyond that, I think we all have our favorites.

    For Phanie Faye, it was easily the hike to Nugget Falls.

    For John, it was the fishing excursion.

    For My Lovely, the glaciers and the mountains in general. The scenery. The nature.

    My Lovely's absolute top would be the day in Glacier Bay. It was a whole day of awesomeness. We spent roughly 8 hours out on deck enjoying the scenery, hunting for a whale or a seal, taking it all in, watching the sun break through the fog, and hearing our ship sound the fog horn—and waiting for a response from the other two ships out there—in the fog - somewhere. After 8 hours, we went to find warmth and a huge window to get just a little more time in. It was a great day.

    The time in College Fjord was pretty great too. Beautiful scenery all along the way, followed by an up-close view paired with the sounds of the ice moving and even breaking away. College Fjord was spectacular.

    And for me, whatever is important to My Lovely is important to me. We were hand-in-hand enjoying the scenery. But I still have to say the jetboat excursion was my favorite.

    We are grateful for these opportunities. And I am grateful for the "always upbeat" attitude of My Lovely. John and Stephanie are good traveling companions. Watching Stephanie is sometimes like watching a 7-year-old on Christmas morning.    Read more

    Trip end
    September 13, 2026