Alaska 2

Une aventure de 15 jours par Chuck & Glenda En savoir plus

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Début du voyage
31 mai 2014
Alaska 2
North to Alaska
30 mai 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F
We loaded our luggage, as we always do, on the sofa to take a picture, then we were off to the Charlotte Airport. Martha took us, so we left our car at her house.
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Alaska 2
Flying Through Houston?
30 mai 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F
The ways of the airlines are like the ways of God. They are inscrutable to us mere mortals. So for some reason we will be flying to Alaska through Houston. The good news is that all of our flights seem to be functioning as advertised and on time.En savoir plus
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Breakfast in the Dark
31 mai 2014, États Unis ⋅ 🌧 39 °F
It is 9:45 am and we are at Hotel Captain Cook. We went to the Snow City Grill for breakfast. The line there was so long we decided to go elsewhere. Went to hotel restaurant for breakfast. High winds caused a power failure and as we finished our meal we were plunged into darkness. The wind and the rain are sufficient to cause considerable damage here.En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Alaska Cultural Center
31 mai 2014, États Unis ⋅ 🌧 41 °F
With time on our hands on the first day we decided to go to the Alaska Native Cultural Center. Our guide was a young lady named August. We had lunch at the snack bar. Glenda ordered for us a reindeer hot dog, and some reindeer stew. It was rainy and cold. One of the demonstrations showed a native Alaskan game played by girls. A ball is suspended from a frame and the girl must kick it from a sitting position. Afterwards we went to the Anchorage Museum. We walked back to the Capt. Cook hotel. Just strolling through the streets of Anchorage was interesting. In one store front we found a ladies' suit made of seal fur. We also found the cathedral, a rather simple church, but still the seat of the Catholic Bishop of Alaska. We had supper at Fletcher's restaurant in the hotel.En savoir plus
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To Copper River
1 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 50 °F
We boarded a bus and left the Hotel Captain Cook at 9:45 AM for Copper River. We stopped on the way to photograph the Matanuska Glacier. We had lunch at the Eureka Road House at mile marker 128 on the Richardson Highway. I had chili and Glenda had soup and a chicken salad sandwich. The road houses were important institutions in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. They served as little outposts of civilization in a vast wilderness. Offering food, lodging and supplies, they were essential for survival. We arrived at the Copper River Princess Lodge about 3:30 PM,En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Flight Over Wrangell-St. Elias
1 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F
At 5 PM Jared took us, along with a couple from Sumter, S.C., Rob and Courtney, to Copper River Aviation. Our pilot, Alex, packed us into an old Cessna 185 and showed us some wonderful sights during a very bumpy ride. I got some great photos. Glenda found the motion of the airplane very unsettling, so she decided to miss supper. I was still full from the chili at lunch, so I didn't mind. At 8:30 PM there was an evening retreat ceremony ay the flag pole. Only about half a dozen people were there. Two of us were veterans, and both of us were given a small U. S. flag as a token of gratitude for our service. It was very cold and the wind was blowing hardEn savoir plus
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Copper River Wilderness
2 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 45 °F
We went on an ATV excursion from the Princes Copper River Lodge along the Klutina River with Carrie, our driver. The scenery was wonderful but the weather was horrible. As we started the rain began. After 20 minutes, the rain stopped and the sun came out and the temperature warmed up. We went through four cycles of cold rain and warm sun when Glenda saw in the distance "beautiful dark blue sky against the powdery white cliffs.” She asked me to photograph the scene, and as I did so, I realized the the "dark blue" was actually an intense rain storm. After a few minutes Carrie commented the the storm was really dumping on the lodge, and the we were heading right into it. About that time we felt the temperature drop about 10 degrees into the high 30’s and heavy rain started. However, within just a couple of seconds it turned into pea-sized hail. We finally made it back to the lodge. Glenda took a warm bath to wash off the mud, and we went to the bar and had a nice glass of wine and a plate of bread and butter.En savoir plus
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On to Fairbanks
3 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F
We split an omelet at the Copper River Princess Wilderness Lodge. Because the clouds obscuring them had finally cleared, I photographed Drum, Stanford, and Wrangell Mounts. Our bus to Fairbanks, again driven by Daniel, paused for lunch at the Rika Roadhouse not far from Delta, Alaska. We passed Fort Wainwright, and saw F-15's, and F-16's flying. There were also A-10's and KC135's on the ground. Near the Eilson Air Force Base we glimpsed a huge bull moose, then saw two other moose a little farther up the road. Daniel drove us on a short tour of Fairbanks before taking us to the Fairbanks Princess Riverside Lodge. After about an hour of rest we boarded another bus to go to the Salmon Bake. When we walked into the complex a recording of the theme for "Welcome Back, Kotter" was being played. Where we sat to enjoy our meal a Black musician was singling an extended version of "Blue Moon." They offer an excellent buffet featuring grilled salmon, fried beer-batter cod, and prime rib. It was an excellent meal, and I tried hard not to overeat. We came back to the lodge, where Glenda did our first batch of laundry on this trip. I read the textbook on wine before retiring about 10 PM.En savoir plus
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Athabascan Introduction
4 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F
At breakfast in the Princess Fairbanks River Lodge we were surprised to learn that until 8:30 AM one could not order from a menu, but only from the buffet, which cost $16 per person. Glenda's omelet was claimed by a man who came into the line after us, but she quickly corrected the mistake. The riverboat cruise on the Chena River was far more than just a cruise; it was an excellent introduction to the varied elements of Alaskan culture and history. As we cruised down the river, we stopped to hear presentations on bush pilots, dog sledding and native culture. The presenters were on the bank of the narrow, shallow river, and their words were broadcast to the entire boat by wireless microphone and television. We stopped for more than an hour at the reproduction of a native Athabascan village. Young people demonstrated elements of hunting, housing and folkways. Another presentation won Glenda's heart. Laura Alloway, a contender in this year's Iditerod dog sled race, had dogs with her and discussed her preparations for the race. Back on shore we enjoyed a delicious lunch of beef stew, apple-pecan-goat cheese salad, and a rich chocolate brownie. During lunch, four-time Iditerod winner Lance Mackey spoke to the crowd about his recovery from throat cancer and his Iditerod victories.En savoir plus
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Alaska Pipeline & Gold Dredge
4 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F
In the afternoon we went to Goldstream Valley near the town of Fox, about 12 miles north of Fairbanks, to see the remains of the Fairbanks Exploration Company's Gold Dredge No. 8. First our guide Tim showed us the finer points of the Trans-Alaska pipeline. Then on a narrow-gauge railroad we rode through the site with a guide explaining the gold dredging process with re-enactors assisting. The final presentation took us to the actual machine itself, Gold Dredge No. 8, a huge machine so large that it altered the terrain it chewed up. Finally we each were given a bag of soil made from the tailings garnered from the site. We sat at a trough with a gold pan and sifted through our soil. Glenda's bag yielded $19 worth of gold; mine yielded $30 worth. We combined our gold and I bought Glenda a little necklace which contained and displayed the gold we had panned.En savoir plus
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Fox River Wilderness & Lance Mackey
4 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F
After a quick supper of a hamburger and a glass of Kenwood Yulupa Zinfandel (almost as tannic as the Syrah I had the day before, but not bad with a hamburger) we met one Tom, our driver for our tour of the Alaskan wilderness in a converted military Hummer H-1. After picking up four other riders at a hotel, we rode for over an hour on Murphy Dome Road, north of Fox, toward a mountaintop radar site still operated by the US military. We stopped at the home of Lance Mackey, petted the puppies, and had an excellent conversation with the musher. He actually seemed lonely, sad about some of the things he had done in the past. I offered some forgiving, affirming words, and he latched onto me as though I were an old friend. We passed the abandoned school bus that was the site for the tragic travelogue Into the Wild about Christopher McCandless. As we got back into the Hummer for the rest of our tour it became obvious that guide Tom did not understand the difference between good-natured banter and excessive sarcasm. He denigrated tourists (who provided his income), Kentuckians (who were in the van), bicyclists, and several other groups, with his incessant talking. It really became tiring. We returned to the lodge at about 10 PM with the midnight sun still high in the sky.En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Back to Denali Princess Lodge
5 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F
We began this morning by boarding Michael's bus. The weather was cool and cloudy with occasional light showers. Because we had to board a bus for Denali we had a quick pizza with David and Carol Friedman and Mike and Chris Wrinkle as soon as we arrived around 1 PM. Mike is a retired Navy Captain who worked in the Washington, DC area at the Pentagon. Earlier in his career, he flew P-3’s from Moffet NAS in California. At 2 PM we met our Denali bus driver, Gary Seekins, who obviously loves Denali national Park very much. Although we did not see any animals, the park was as beautiful as we remembered it. Glenda and I had a wonderful meal of king crab legs at the Salmon Bake Restaurant. We saw Dan, a waiter, who had served our table during our visit of September 2012. We remembered him by his handlebar mustache. I ordered a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, and enjoyed it thoroughly with the meal. I noted in its nose melons and peaches. It was delicious. After supper we bought some snack mix from a convenience store for tomorrow's train ride to Talkeetna. Mike and Chris Wrinkle and the Friedmans are becoming our friends.En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Train to Talkeetna
6 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F
We awoke about 5:30 AM to a breakfast of leftover pizza and coffee made in our hotel room at the Denali Princess Wilderness Lodge. The Cooks, Wrinkles, and Friedmans met in the large common room and shared a shuttle to the Denali National Park up Visitors' Center. We saw a movie about the park and then enjoyed Ranger Pete Dally's presentation on wildlife sustainability in the park. David Friedman reported severe pain in his neck and seemed very uncomfortable for the rest of the day. A short walk took us to the train station. We boarded the train to Talkeetna, and found the comments of Kate, our guide, moderately entertaining and enlightening. I went over to Mike Wrinkle's seat when we passed the site of the secret World War II fighter base. He and I had a great time talking about airplanes and missions he had flown. When we reached Talkeetna we stayed with the Wrinkles and Friedmans as we walked down to the riverbank so that I could photograph Denali. Clouds continued to clear and re-form, so I had no good shot at the mountain.En savoir plus
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Trying to Catch Denali
6 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F
The group left me on the riverbank to wait for the clouds to clear while they toured Talkeetna for another hour. I met them at the Twister Creek Restaurant and Denali Brewery, where they were already well into their meal. Glenda and I ordered a wonderful jalapeño tostada. I also enjoyed a glass of their stout. We all separated and Glenda and I went across the street to Frank Lee's Roadhouse and split a big brownie with ice cream and whipped cream on it with a cup of coffee. We checked the riverbank once more, but the mountain was obscured even more than before. A quick visit to see the movie at the ranger station about the Denali mountain climbers turned out to be too late. The office had closed at 5:30 PM, about 45 minutes earlier. We boarded the bus for the Princess McKinley Wilderness Lodge and checked in an hour later, around 7:45 PM. The summit of Denali had cleared by then, though it was still quite hazy. Nevertheless, I got a couple of shots at the mountain that were better than those I took in Talkeetna. We were delighted that the room we were assigned was a mini-suite, though we had not asked for one. We got our gear in order for tomorrow's bus ride to the ship through Anchorage, where we will stop to see a wildlife preserve. We got to bed around 9:30 PM, although the daylight was still strong and the sun was high over the horizon.En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Anchorage Street Market
7 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F
We went to the 20-320 Restaurant on the campus at McKinley Wilderness Lodge for a huge stack of Blueberry pancakes that were wonderfully delicious. Then we met with Mike and Chris Wrinkle and David and Carol Friedman to take the bus to Whittier and the Coral Princess. Our bus driver was a woman from Palm Springs named Samantha. Glenda was impressed that she sang "the Beaver Song," a ditty she had learned to teach her small children whee she was a schoolteacher. We stopped in Anchorage where we had about two hours free. We went to the open-air Saturday Market. Glenda replaced her earmuffs. Temperatures rose into the seventies (Fahrenheit). I told her a whale had stolen those she lost and was now wearing them in Hawaii. We walked west, past the Hotel Captain Cook to the monument erected in memory of the great explorer. We had a snack at Starbuck's with Joan and her ninety-year-old mother Jean, still traveling like a pro.En savoir plus
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Alaska 2
Alaskan Wildlife Conservation Center
7 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ 🌧 52 °F
Before going through the tunnel to Whittier, we stopped at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center and photographed grizzlies, moose, elk and bison. We arrived at the Coral Princess around 4:00 PM. The rain began in earnest and continued through the rest of the night. We familiarized ourselves with the ship and dined with the Friedmans and Wrinkles, along with a few other couples we didn't know. My tablemate was one Mike, a charter school teacher from Redding, California.En savoir plus
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Hubbard Glacier
8 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 48 °F
We had breakfast in the Provence Dining Room on deck 7 with assorted messmates from India, Galveston, Florida, and Las Vegas. Then we walked about 2 miles on the promenade deck. Came back to room and Glenda took a nap. We ate lunch by ourselves; I had split pea soup and bread. Glenda had soup and salad.

I decided to miss the wine tasting so that we might go out on deck to photograph the Hubbard Glacier in Yakutat Bay. Clouds partially obscured it, so my pictures were not quite as good as last time. The naturalist onboard has not been nearly as active in informing passengers about the glaciers as was her predecessor, Kathy Slamp. I was pleased to hear the captain speak over the public address system about an unusually high incidence of influenza on this ship last week. He stressed the need for frequent, thorough handwashing, and the need to cover one's cough. Had the captain of the Ruby Princess been as diligent, I might have been spared that case of pneumonia in November.

Tonight supper was a formal night. Mike arranged for the Wrinkles, Friedmans and Cooks to sit at the same table. What a feast! Mike began by bringing a bottle of Champagne. I ordered medallions of lamb and a bottle of Gamay Beaujolais. As I expected, it was fruity and full. The conversation was lively, and David ended the evening with a hilarious joke about a Russian wrestler.En savoir plus
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Marjerie & Lamplugh Glaciers
9 juin 2014, Coastal Waters Of Southeast Alaska And British Columbia ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F
At about 12:30 pm we arrived at the mouth of Glacier Bay with the white Margerie Glacier on our left, and the massive Grand Pacific Glacier on our right. Although the pretty white glacier was much more photogenic, the Grand Pacific Glacier, essentially a big, dirty snowball did the work of carving this fjord. We stayed by the Margerie Glacier for about an hour and saw it calving. Our ship should pass the Johns Hopkins Glacier around 2:45 pm, and leave the Lamplugh Glacier around 3:15 pm. I missed the Johns Hopkins but took some abstract photos of the Lamplugh. The rotary switch on my camera is not working properly. I think water may have worked its way into the contacts during one of the recent rain storms. David and Carol Friedman brought a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from a small vineyard. They bought it at Publix. Tonight was Italian night. The wine was interesting because my first sensation was a tactile note of the prickly tang of fizziness on the tongue. It was similar to Trader Joe's Cabernet in that it did not have substantial body, and would be a sort of "cabernet light." I had penne al Arrabiata. After supper Mike and I went to talk about his mother's near-death experience. I was still hungry, so Glenda went and brought me a cheese plate from the International Cafe.En savoir plus
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Yukon Trail to Carcross
10 juin 2014, Canada ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F
We took a bus trip from Skagway to Caribou Crossing, Yukon Territory. Guide: Anna. At 9:10 am took photo in Tormented Valley, British Columbia. At 9:45 am photographed Tutshi Lake, about 30 mi. long. There is a legend of a monster in this lake, which is at the same latitude as Loch Ness in Scotland. At 10:05 am photographed Tagish Lake (name means "fish trap" in local native dialect). At 10:25 am photo of Bove Island with Glenda's camera. Guide told story of Queen Victoria's visit. All undesirables in Carcross were rounded up and made to spend the week in a tent city on Bove Island. At 11 am we photographed Emerald Lake. We had barbecue chicken at Caribou Crossing, and happened to sit with a whole table of Australians from the Holland America ship Zuiderdam. We toured the little natural history museum, and then Anna drove us into the town of Carcross.En savoir plus
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White Pass Railroad
10 juin 2014, Canada ⋅ ☁️ 45 °F
Our next stop was at Frazer, B.C. where we caught he White Pass Yukon Route Railroad for the return trip to Skagway. Taking photos along the way, we were transported by the majestic scenery, the stories of the intrepid stampeders of 1898, and the tenacity of those who built the railroad. One couple on our train was habitually late in returning to the bus. Not only that, she refused to relinquish he place on the platform when someone else wanted to take photos. Glenda actually asked her kindly if she would mind letting some others use the platform, which was large enough for only one person at a time. She curtly said, "No!" Back in Skagway I did penance for the horrible shot I took of the historic Skagway train station on our last trip. I made sure all of my camera settings were correct, then took several interior shots with supplemental flash. We returned to the ship just in time to change clothes and have an early dinner. I had a game pate, Caesar salad, and prime rib medallions with shrimp. Mike ordered a delicious Pinot Noir. We returned to our stateroom and got our gear ready for tomorrow, the big day of dog sledding and whale watching.En savoir plus
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Anniversary Dinner
10 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F
About 10:15 pm we had already fallen asleep when we thought we heard a knock at the door. We ignored it, but the knock came again. Then again. Glenda went to the door in her night gown and said, "Yes?"
The reply came back, "Room service."
"But we didn't order anything."
"I have a delivery for this room," the waiter said.
Glenda opened the door, then hid behind it, being dressed in nothing but her nightgown. By this time I roused enough to say to the waiter, "Hello." I was still in bed, dressed only in my skivvies. He seemed very embarrassed, and in fact we had told Princess that we would celebrate our anniversary the day before. Nevertheless, there it sat in our stateroom, a beautiful little chocolate anniversary cake. We stayed awake long enough to eat it, sitting up in bed, then went back to sleep.En savoir plus
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Dog Sledding on Mendenhall Glacier
11 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 39 °F
We awoke early for a quick breakfast so that we could catch the coach to the Juneau Airport. There we were fitted with big snow overshoes for our helicopter ride 12 miles up the Mendenhall Glacier to the sled dog camp. The weather was magnificently clear, with a temperature in the 50's. It turned out that our three layers of clothing was excessive for this lovely day, but in Alaska one never knows what the weather will bring, nor how quickly it will change. The helicopter ride was smooth and comfortable, though a bit cramped with 6 persons including the pilot. The views of the glacier in the clear sunlight were magnificent. We landed at the sled dog camp and were divided into groups of 4. Our musher, named Ibbie, allowed each of us the opportunity to pilot the dog sled. After 6 to eight minutes, we relinquished command to one of our fellow tourists. Each change took place during a three or four minute rest for the dogs. I went to pet the dogs and encourage them. Among our huskies were Sampson, a large black dog with very thick fur; Greazy, a lean, white dog who seemed a bit frightened by new people, but a very sweet dog; Jack; and 6 others. In all we traveled maybe two miles in a large circle.

We flew back to the airport in an equally glorious scene, then got to the ship in time to have a quick sandwich which we had saved from the International Cafe the night before.En savoir plus
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Whale Watching
11 juin 2014, Coastal Waters Of Southeast Alaska And British Columbia ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F
We shed a couple of layers of clothing, then boarded another bus for the whale-watching excursion. The weather held fair, windy and mild as we went aboard a 70 foot, jet powered catamaran named the St. Juvenaly. In three hours we saw four humpback whales, many bald eagles, and several seals and sea lions. Again the scenery was beyond description. I got a photograph of the buoy and lighthouse which offered such a lovely scene when we passed the same spot on our whal expedition of September 2012. When the boat went fast it became a bit cool, but on the whole we were dressed appropriately. We dressed for another formal night and met the Friedmans and Wrinkles for a dinner of lobster and giant prawns. I ordered a delicious bottle of Bex Riesling from the Nahe region of Germany, which we all shared. We returned to our stateroom, did the laundry, and wrote up these notes before retiring around 10:30 pmEn savoir plus
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Misty Fjords
12 juin 2014, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F
I had a sweet roll at International Cafe before breakfast in Provence Dining Room. We took a boat ride to Misty Fjord National Monument. On the way we saw orcas sea lions, seals, eagles. We decided not to go to Tongass Trading Company since we have everything we need. Besides, we don't want to pack anything else in the few bags we brought with us. We came back to stateroom for nap. Tonight for supper I had lamb chop at Sabatini's.En savoir plus
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Sea Day
13 juin 2014, Coastal Waters Of Southeast Alaska And British Columbia ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F
Today is a sea day as we make our way down toward the south and the end of our cruise at Vancouver. Here are some shots from around the ship that show what a lovely vessel she is. We spent some time this morning after breakfast sitting in a sofa out by the Wheelhouse Lounge reading. I am still trying to correct this intermittent malfunction of one of the switches on my Canon 60D. I think maybe water got into the camera during the heavy rainstorm that caught us outside at Copper River. At dinner I ordered mussels, a Caesar salad, and a bottle of Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc Viognier (California). Glenda liked it better than any wine we have enjoyed on the cruise so far. We packed up and prepared to leave the ship tomorrow morning. Baked Alaska parade. Waitresses were Vaneza from Brazil and Branny from Serbia.En savoir plus
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