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There's nothing like a spur-of-the-moment trip! My fabulous friend, Linda, has invited me on the Sea Wolf for a cruise in Alaska. Linda is the ship's chef, and I will be accompanied by my sister, Deb. This is my favorite type of trip; spontaneous. Read more
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  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    North...to Alaska!

    July 2, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 64 °F

    I loaded the car, and we drove over to my brother's house to pick up my sister, Deb. Before we got five minutes away from our house, she called, "Have you left yet?" I assured her we were on the way. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”

    Now, before we get too far in this blog, let’s lay out my sister’s personality versus my personality:

    Deb-“I want to arrive at the airport two hours before our (domestic) flight."
    Dana-“I want to arrive at the gate when they announce the last boarding call.”

    Deb-“We’re going to be bear watching?”
    Dana-“We’re going to be bear watching!”

    You get the idea. So, she was a little anxious that we didn’t get to the airport with two hours to spare; however, I thought the hour and three-quarters was plenty. Our flight left on time, despite heavy rain clouds. We had smooth sailing and no problems getting into Seattle. We arrived at 10pm and caught the shuttle to the hotel. Although my heart just about stopped when the elevator made a sudden clanking noise, the hotel was newly renovated and comfortable. We agreed to catch the 6am shuttle back to the airport, while I noted to myself to take the hotel stairs in the morning.    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    Australian euros?

    July 3, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F

    Deb got ready first. I had gotten out of the shower and was doddling, when Deb suggested, "Maybe we should take the 5:40 shuttle." Did I mention the flight is at 8am, and we're 10 minutes from the airport? I mumbled something about waiting until six, then starting packing up. I finished getting ready, closed up my bag, and we returned to the lobby. Due to no effort on my part, we actually made it in time for the 5:40 shuttle, so we got on it and arrived at the airport before six. Did I mention we had an 8am flight? It’s all right, though, I got back at her. As I wandered the airport (since I didn’t have anything to do for two hours) I noticed the drinking fountain in our gate area made loud splashing noises. Specifically, there were speakers attached below the fountain generating excess noise. I returned to our seats, “Hey Deb, will you go fill up my water bottle?” She innocently walked to the fountain, and I watched (and snickered) as she began to fill my bottle: blurp, blurp, blurp. She came back with about two sips worth to which she responded, “Did you hear that thing? If you want more you can go over there. It’s loud.”

    I got breakfast at the airport's Japanese restaurant. Actually, when I read the menu and saw the breakfast sandwich with Spam, I decided it may have been Filipino instead. I skipped the Spam but did enjoy some good bacon and eggs.

    The flight to Juneau was interesting. It was a cargo plane, too, so we were all in the back of the plane and the cargo in front. That’s some nice first class packages. I was listening to the conversation of the two people next to me. I was on the window, a man who had travelled to Australia was on the aisle, and a not so bright young lady sat next to me. He was telling her all about Australia, when she throws out this thoughtful question, “Do they use the Euro there?” Hmmm, I’m thinking Euro sounds kinda like Europe, which is in another hemisphere, but what do I know? He was much more gracious than I and said, “Well, no. They use the Australian dollar.” To which she asks, “What’s that?” At this point, I am thinking some fairly judgmental thoughts, so I’m really glad she’s not talking to me. The man responded a somewhat hesitantly, “Uh, it’s the dollar…they use in Australia…they have their own…money.” Amazingly, this was before she ordered the two vodkas. Did I mention it was an 8am flight?

    The weather in Juneau was sunny and warm. We took the public bus into town and walked around a bit. We had fish (halibut) and chips out on the water then went on a shopping spree. I happened to have my Barack Obama sweatshirt in my backpack, so we hiked up the hill, on the west side of town, to visit the governor’s mansion. There was a woman in her late thirties, posing for her husband’s camera. She was a Palin look alike, which made me wonder if she knew what type of currency they have in Australia. Anyway, I walked up to the mansion and she said, “I’m not giving autographs (laugh, laugh).” I just smile and told her I wouldn’t want one anyway. I smile, pumped out my chest, and Deb took a couple pictures.

    We rode the bus back to the airport and flew to Gustavus. The proprietor of the Annie Mae Lodge picked us up and delivered us to the guesthouse. Linda met us at 6 for dinner. She and Deb had some beef dish, but I went for the crab and lots of butter. In order to get my blood pumping again, we walked to the beach after eating. It was a great way to end a very long day.    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    July 4th-Small Town Style

    July 4, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 57 °F

    Happy Fourth! We had breakfast at the lodge, then borrowed two of their cruisers to bike down to town. We met up with Linda just before the start of the 11am parade. We selected a shady spot and waited for the procession. It began with the airport fire truck, followed by a variety of parade entrants. Alaska Air was there. They were driving their Alaska Air van, having affixed wings and a tail. As it drove by, the gal that was doing everything for the yesterday was in a flight attendant's outfit. "Do you think she does that too?" I mentioned to Deb. A large delivery truck was dressed up as a Moose, for the local lodge. A small pick-up truck was made over as a bee, with all the pre-schoolers in the bed. There was a fish fry scheduled for later in the day, with the benefits going to the pre-school. "Bee there, Bee hungry," the tailgate read. The Glacier Bay National Park had their fire truck out, with the ranger waving from the top. My favorite parade participant was the guy in the Hawaiian shirt carrying a life size cardboard Sarah Palin. She had a cardboard sign, like the panhandlers on highway exits, which read, "Unemployed, will work for salmon or beer." I had my picture taken with her.

    Following the parade, we walked to the park. The Boy Scouts were giving away free root beer. They had made the beverage from scratch, which they were dispensing from a 30 gallon trash can, through PVC, and into my cup. It was very good. Our attention was then drawn to the pavilion area. Each year, 40 residents stand and read the Declaration of Independence. Children, adults, and seniors read their part from the historic document. I have to say, it's been a while since I read it myself. A large thunder of applause followed the reading, and we moved on to the National Forest table. They had free samples of chips and dip, made from invasive plant species. Yum. After picking up a Gustavus tee shirt, we stood in line for the all-American meal: hot dog or hamburger, chips, and drink. We took in the sack race, while we ate. It was followed by the other standard contests (spoon race, three-legged race, egg toss) and some ice cream.

    Linda needed to head back for a nap, so Deb and I biked down to the dock outside of town. On the way, we passed the 36 par, golf course. At first I just thought it was someone's backyard. Then I realized there was more than one flag. The course was carved out of someone's alfalfa field, where waving stalks of grass stood, a mowed fairway took shape. Each tee box had its own piece of rusted farm equipment to mark it. I pulled the bike to the side of the road and made sure I had a few good photos to take home.

    The bike ride back to the lodge was a little breezy, but it made for good exercise.

    A little bit about Gustavus. First, it's small. Reading material puts the population at 400-500 residents. You can’t really drive in or out of it, so there is no vehicle theft. Just as we weren’t given keys to our room in the lodge, no one locks their cars or bothers to take the keys out of the ignition. They don’t even bother to register their cars here, either. Many vehicles don’t have plates, and those that do have plates have not renewed them in years…decades in some cases. Hell, not even in this century! But that’s not the story I wanted to tell you. Here’s how laid back it is in Gustavus… Linda was telling me about the one rental car shop at the airport. When you rent the vehicle, you sign the contract and the guy sends you out to the car in the parking lot. No need to give you keys because keys are in the ignition. Well, a customer rented a vehicle, signed the paperwork, and hopped into the car in the parking lot. He went about his business for a week, then returned the vehicle to the rental company. At the time of return, the rental guy went out to check that the car had been refueled. It was then he discovered the car, which had been rented for a week, had no new mileage on it. Apparently the man who rented the car had actually gotten into a private vehicle instead of the rented vehicle. Because the owners (who were on vacation somewhere and oblivious to these events) had left their keys in the car, the renter assumed he was in the right vehicle. I’m not sure how or if the rental car company actually told the car owners what happened. Just one more reason to keep your car messy.    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    Setting sail

    July 5, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    The day started simply with breakfast at the lodge. Once we were packed, we were transported to the dock at Glacier Bay National Park. We boarded the MV Sea Wolf, along with eight other guests: Chris and Betty from New Jersey; Peter and Heidi from Washington; Ann and Ron from Michigan; and two locals from Gustavus, Ida (maybe 14 or 15) and Phil, the local fix-it guy. We were welcomed by the crew: Keith, the engineer; Tom the captain; Skylar, the 19 year old deckhand (I had a cat named Skylar when I was a kid, so it's hard to look at him, without imaging those cute furry ears); Kimber, the owner/naturalist/guide/veterinarian/biologist; and our favorite, Cheffy, aka Linda.

    We started with an orientation to the boat and a lecture on boat safety. We are aboard a WWII mine sweeper that is in fabulous condition. Deb and I are bunking on the top deck, just behind the wheelhouse. The berth is about the size of my new cubicle, with a set of bunk beds, a sink, and an attached water closet with toilet and little, tiny shower. I have the top bunk, which includes a porthole and window. It should be interesting trying to get to sleep tonight with all the light streaming in. It doesn't get dark until well after midnight and the sun rises again around three-thirty.

    We shoved off from the Glacier Bay dock and headed north. Almost immediately we saw five orcas traveling south. Their spray glistened off the bay, with their tall fins rising upward. They surfaced twice and then they were too far out of view once they broke from their last dive. We continued up the bay and saw numerous sea otters floating on their backs, while cracking shells and using their stomachs as dinner plates. On our way in Geikie Inlet, Kimber took us to the top deck, where they store the kayaks. She provided everyone with a safety talk and basic kayak lesson. We were each issued our safety vests and spray skirts for our trip after lunch. Our midday meal was light, soup and salad, so we were on the water quickly. Now, I have to say, I wasn't expecting to come home from Alaska with a tan, but if the weather holds, I'll be returning with some serious pigment. It was in the upper seventies while we were on the water and the sky was clear. We paddled almost two miles to the end of the inlet. Along the way we saw some waterfalls, which had originated about 3700 feet above. On each side of the inlet were hills rising steeply. On the faces of the hills, the glacier left deep horizontal scars as it retreated. Vegetation has returned but isn't terribly diverse. Did you know the last ice age ended here just over 250 years ago?

    The water was cold, but it was a nice treat while we kayaked. I regularly sprinkled water on my bare arms to cool down. It is a greenish blue, with almost a milky effect from the glacial silt. As we approached the shore, the sea floor was visible several feet below. On our way back to the boat, a large bald eagle flew over the inlet, from west to east, landing in a treetop on the near shore. It swayed on the branch, as we floated by.

    We returned to the boat and got settled for the next leg. I climbed to the top deck and sat in the sunshine by the wheelhouse. This is where the captain steers the boat. Inside, he was playing Jimmy Buffet, so I commented to him, "With all this sun, warm weather, beautiful boat, and Jimmy Buffet, I feel like I'm in Mexico!" He agreed it was a great day. Apparently, they are having unseasonably warm and dry weather this year, particularly today.

    The anchor came up, and we chugged back into the bay. Heading north, the wind began to pick up and the temperature dropped precipitously. I ended up putting on my long underwear top, windbreaker, and gloves. It continued to cool, as we turned west into the inlet containing Reid Glacier. It's the first one we've seen today, and it terminates just short of the water line. Once we anchored, a skiff was brought around and we boarded for a quick transport to land. We hiked right to the front of the glacier. If you've never seen one, there is a lot of water flowing in and under the ice, so streams/rivers flow from within the glacier; therefore, I had to slog through a couple feet of water to get to the actual glacier, but I was determined. The only regret I have from Kilimanjaro was not visiting the glacier at the top. It was about 1/4 to 1/2 mile away from our camp and just below the summit of the mountain, but I really thought I might die if I walked one more step that day, not to mention there was no oxygen left in the air at that altitude. Anyway, I didn't do it there, but I had the chance today. So, I got my feet very wet and made my way to the glacier. It was as solid as glass and just as smooth. I looked over my shoulder and noticed everyone was ogling over the ice, so I turned quickly and gave it a lick. Brrr. It was cold and tasted like water. Not really sure what I was expecting from 200 year old ice. What's fascinating about being so close is realizing you are the first animal to walk on this dirt in thousands of years. The whole experience was quite powerful. There is a sacredness to the glaciers that, in part, come from their utter beauty. I just hope they don't come with giardia.    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    Water and Ice

    July 6, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    We spent the night anchored at the foot of Reid Glacier.

    We got to Margerie Glacier early, so as to kayak without any cruise boats' wake. The day was sunny and warm again, so I was in a tee shirt and spent a little time sunning myself in the back of the kayak while Deb paddled (don't tell her, though). The Margerie glacier and the Grand Pacific merge together and create a contrasting sight. Margerie is white and blue, with a lot of dirt mostly on one side. On the other hand, the Grand Pacific looks like a big dirt mound, winding its way down the valley to the sea. The Grand Pacific was the glacier that was responsible for carving out the national park. In the late 1700's, Grand Pacific reached the Icy Strait, which is now the gateway to the park and near Gustavus; however, it has retreated 65 miles to its current position. At some point in the 1920's it retreated all the way into Canada, but it now sits on the US side of the border. There was, of course, an argument over whose glacier it was, and the international body that governs these things (can't remember the name) awarded its possession to the US. But I digress, we got to watch the glacier calf several pieces of ice, as well as row by a number of bird species. I took a lot of pictures of puffins, but I can't tell if they've come out or not. Between their bobbing and the kayak rocking, it was a difficult scene to shoot. Unfortunately, the wind picked up, blowing cold air from the ice, and the water got rough. We had to pay close attention, so as not to drift into the icebergs floating all around us. We got to see the glacier calve a couple of times, but what is so amazing is the booming noises, which echo down the valley, from the internal glacial movement. As the currents grew stronger with the incoming tide, Kimber decided to point us back to the boat. It was a little work to get back. There was a lot of ice to detour, as well as currents. I had to ask Deb to stop paddling at one point, because every time she raised her oar, the spray came off and hit me in the face. The water was extremely cold, but that wasn't as annoying as having to clean my glasses every few minutes, while trying to keep my camera dry, while trying to paddle, while trying to navigate through the ice chunks. It was fun, though.

    We pulled anchor and headed for John Hopkins glacier. It was only opened for boat traffic last week (7/1). It is a protected area because of the seal pups. We decided to go check it out. It was beautiful in the inlet. The water was chocked with icebergs from the calving glacier. Seals lounged on the bergs, in some areas, but the boat stayed quite a distance from them. The glacier is large, and you can see how it wound down the mountain face to spill into the ocean. The backdrop includes two mountains, well over ten thousand feet tall-that's from sea level. They were snowcapped, and the sky draped blue behind it. All around this inlet, glaciers drop from the mountains, but only one other goes all the way to the sea. In total, there are nine glaciers in this one area. There was one that was absolutely stunning. It came down the mountain at a 75 degree angle and flowing under and out of it was a surge of water that looked like a good sized river. It was unthinkable how the glacier maintained its position on the mountain, with all that water lubricating the bottom on such a steep rock face. Amazing.

    We spent a good portion of the afternoon traveling the east arm, where we will explore more tomorrow. I took a little nappy because the boat makes me sleepy. When I awoke (actually Deb did the awakening), we boarded the skiff and motored over to shore, with the intent of looking for bears. We found bear scat (poo) but no bears. Kimber pointed out belly holes, where bears have dug holes to lay prone on the ground. Because they put on so much weight in the summer, they like to lay on their tummies in the holes, so they are more comfortable sleeping on their stomachs. Now I know what my dog’s been doing in my back yard!    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    I got crabs!

    July 8, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 59 °F

    We awoke to a calm morning in North Sandy Cove. Immediately following breakfast, we launched the kayaks. We paddled along the rim of an island, and as the tide was way down, we viewed vertical tide pools. Along the steep rock outcroppings, differing levels could be distinguished: barnacles and muscles at the top, with star fish, urchins, and sea cucumbers near the water level. In the shallow water, we saw a good sized jelly fish, some snails, and thousands of infant salmon, called fries. We paddled slowly, as not to miss a single organism. Kimber did a lot of explaining, regarding the geology, marine biology, and tides. It was all rather fascinating. Once we finished the east wall, we crossed the cove to a river outlet. Kimber pointed out a black bear, but we missed seeing it. Instead, everyone paddled ahead, while Debbie and I took our time. We were rewarded with harbor porpoise. Everyone else was out of range, when the porpoise neared our kayak. They kept a safe distance but weren't shy about being seen. We counted four of them and stayed with them for a while. When they appeared to be leaving the bay, we headed back to the boat. The crew hauled the kayaks out of the water, and we crossed Glacier Bay to view a Stellar sea lion haul out. This is where they hang out, sun, and play. Breeding grounds are in a different location. There were at least a hundred sea lions groaning in the distance, as we approached. They were on the rock face and swimming in the water. There was a group of about 20, doing flips and twirling around, just off the bow of the boat. I expected one of them to pull up with a beach ball on his nose, but apparently they don't have access to them here. We observed the animals for about an hour before we left the area. We chugged back to Bartlett Cove, our origination point, to pick up the crab traps for a fresh dinner. The rest of the day was spent on the water, sailing up to Dundas Bay. Along the way, we saw some orcas, with one swimming right toward the bow of the boat about 50 feet away. It came up for air, showing its white underside, then dipped down, with his tall dorsal fin arcing from right to left to submersion. I've never seen one so close, except at Sea World. Not long after anchoring, I poked my head out of the dining area and saw Ida and Skylar ripping the legs off the live crabs. Later, I happily ripped the meat from those very legs and enjoyed the best tasting crabs I've ever had. No butter needed.Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    Whale watching

    July 9, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

    The bugs were so awful this morning that Kimber decided against a hike. Instead, we headed out of the bay to whale watch. It didn't take long before I heard someone say something about breaching. Again, I've seen whales before but not breaching whales. We weren't able to get real close to the breaching animals, but we could see them in the distance. The amount of water that is displaced when a whale reenters the water is stunning. The breaching was fantastic to watch, but my attention was often diverted to closer animals. Several humpbacks were near the boat, some approaching as close as 50 yards. During lunch (fresh crab cakes with a ginger sauce), a whale paced the boat right alongside the dining area. No one complained about the view. We stopped several times to take in the whale activities, crossing the Icy Strait to Idaho Inlet. We sailed up the inlet, until dropping anchor near the river at the end which feeds into it. Although the wind kicked up, Kimber decided to lower the kayaks in the water and send us up the river to look for bears. We saw an enormous one just before we anchored. It was a brown bear (aka grizzly), that was grazing in the meadow. We hoped to see more after kayaking to a hiking spot.

    We paddled down wind and upstream into the river. We ditched our kayaks in the tall grass, then took a hike along the river. The wildflowers were amazing. Kimber picked a chocolate lily. The root is edible and is a good source of starch. It wasn't terribly tasty, but I suppose if you were starving, it wouldn't be bad. We found no bears, but lots of tracks. In one area there were bear, deer, and river otter tracks. We circled back, hopped in the kayaks, and headed back to the Sea Wolf. We sailed to the Idaho Inlet for the night anchor. It is named after the first tourist boat to come into this area. The Idaho apparently didn't understand the nature of glaciers. They sailed into the inlet, getting stuck in the silt. Although they evacuated the passengers at some point, it took them several years to finally extricate the boat.    Read more

  • Abuse your passportTaming Wild Alaska

    Great Endings

    July 10, 2009 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    We left our anchor this morning for a day of whale watching. And we weren't disappointed. On the way to Adolphus Point, we saw several whales and sea otters. Did you know sea otters can get up to 6 feet long and 120 pounds? They're huge. Once we got to the Point, it was easy to see why we came. A group of 12-15 whales were swimming together, probably fishing. They broke into groups after quite a while, then several of the whales began to breach. Oh my goodness. I've never seen breaching in person. It was unbelievable to watch these enormous creatures lunging their bodies clear out of the water. I was able to get a few photos, but nothing as astonishing as being there in person. We also watched some of the whales smack their pectoral fins against the water. Kimber indicated they may have been stun feeding or just playing. After a while, they slept on the water in little groups, then it was back to activities. Breaching, smacking, and diving. WOW. Unfortunately we ran out of time and sailed back to the park station.

    We unloaded the boat, then were informed that our flight had been canceled. Instead, Alaska Air had arranged a float plane to pick us up at the park's dock. I haven't been in one of those since I was three or four. Deb was a little apprehensive but was a trooper. Since we had some extra time, we had dinner with Kimber, Linda, as well as Chris and Betty, who were on our flight, too. The park lodge overlooks the bay, so we ate on the deck and had a nice good-bye.

    The float plane provided fantastic views of the mountains, glaciers, and sea. We landed on the water air strip, which is parallel with the paved landing strip at the Juneau airport. We got out of there late, arriving in Seattle about thirty minutes late. Tomorrow we will leave for Denver and the end of a terrific trip. If you're ever wanting to experience Alaska, make sure you enjoy with Kimber and her crew. What a trip!    Read more

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