New-Yorker-blog-karenrobbins

Seattle was the starting and ending point for our cruise. Because of our family living there, we have visited often. It is a great city to spend some time in either before or after a cruise. On our way out of the harbor, I grabbed some great shots of the skyline and Mt. Rainier was kind enough to show itself as we sailed away. Mt. Rainier is a bit like Mt. McKinley (Denali). It manufactures its own weather system and is often shrouded by clouds. But when it clears, it is glorious.

There are beautiful mountain areas that surround the Seattle area. The waterways lend an unsurpassed beauty to the city and surrounding towns. Downtown Seattle is fascinating in itself with its history. We have explored the underground where the old part of Seattle still lies after the new Seattle was built on the ruins of the burned buildings after the great fire of 1889. The city was subject to flooding so it was all built up higher to prevent further problems. It's a fascinating tour and story.



Of course there's the space needle, the landmark of the city, and the Farmer's Market where you can watch the infamous "fish toss." The first Starbucks is right around the corner from the market. Plenty of places to shop, eat, and lots of coffee places to get your caffeine hit. If you'd like to see some of the things we've done in past visits, check out my travel index for Washington.

Because of a really old maritime law in the states, cruises originating and ending in the USA have to visit at least one foreign port. Victoria, British Columbia, was our token foreign port and because of our cruising schedule, sadly we arrived in the evening. To make matters worse, we were almost an hour late and by the time we got on the shuttle in to town, the sun had set and it was just about 8 p.m. Due back on board at 11, we only had three hours to see what we could--in the dark.

But the city of Victoria wasn't dark. Many stores stayed open late to accommodate the ships in port and the quaint street lights added a warm glow to the main area around the old Empress Hotel (built in 1908) and the legislative buildings. The legislative buildings were illuminated with over 3500 lights adding to the ambiance.

Victoria is the oldest city in western Canada dating back to 1843 when it was known as a Hudson Bay Company trading post. It's chosen name was to honor Queen Victoria and it is considered to be the most British city in all of Canada. So if you are craving that British tea and scones with clotted cream, you can drop into the Fairmont Empress Hotel's lobby and enjoy your high tea with a great view of the Inner Harbor.

This night the Inner Harbor was alive with a craft market and
street entertainers and surrounded by delicious smelling restaurants making me wish we'd opted to eat on shore although it would have been a bit late for us. Instead, we wandered up Government Street and enjoyed the shops and cafes and people watching. It was Saturday night and there were a lot of young people about having a great time together.

What we didn't get to see because of time restraints and the time we arrived in port were the beautiful gardens we have heard so much about. There was an excursion but who wants to see gardens at night even if they are lit up with twinkling lights as the brochure suggested?

Other points of interest besides the Butchart Gardens we would like to return and take in are the Craigdarroch Castle, the Legislative Buildings in the daylight, Beacon Hill Park, and of course the high tea at the Empress. There is a ferry that runs from Seattle to Victoria and lets you off right at the Inner Harbor. Since we are always looking for an excuse to visit our Seattle grandkids, it sounds like a perfect idea for some time in the near future.

Out of all the ports of call on this Alaskan cruise, I enjoyed Skagway the most. I wouldn't mind coming back some day to spend more time. The area is rich in history and the residents seem to be ready to preserve it and share it.

While we didn't do the White Pass and Yukon Railway ride this time, we did sit for a bit and wait for the train to arrive at the station. They actually have two trains that run from Skagway to the White Pass Summit in the Yukon territory just over the border in Canada. One train leaves from the downtown station and another leaves from the cruise ship pier.

The cars of the narrow gauge railway are vintage passenger coaches and allow for great views along the way including parts of the old trail used by the gold miners before the railroad was built. The railroad dates back to 1898 and is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Amazingly the whole thing was built in 26 months at a cost of $10 million. It was a product of British financing, American engineering, and Canadian contracting. Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives were needed to complete the project.

A 3,000 foot climb over 20 miles with some steep grades, a few tunnels and a bridge makes for an exciting trip. Once gold and mineral prices slipped in the 1980s, the railroad became a tourist attraction taking mostly cruise passengers on the excursion (over 390,00 in 2012).

Back in town, the National Park Service offers talks and of course the reproduced Mascot Saloon with some museum pieces. The "Mascotte" Saloon was one of 80 in the little town of Skagway that sprang up in 1898. But by 1899 the local officials began to charge $1500 for a license for the saloons. Many were forced to close but the owners of the Mascot were able to come up with the money.

The Mascot offered a cigar stand, a club room, locally brewed pilsner beer and free lunches of spareribs and enchiladas. The saloon continued to prosper even after the gold rush but when prohibition and stiff laws kept them from selling liquor, the saloon eventually closed leaving behind a colorful history that was often documented in the Daily News.

Yes, there is much more to Skagway that I'm sure we didn't uncover. Guess we will have to put it on our list of to redo.

Skagway in 1897 was filled with throngs of gold seekers. It began as just a jumble of tents but eventually by the turn of the century became a bustling town. While the Klondike Gold Rush only lasted a few years, it was a time for Skagway to blossom. It was a rough town and boasted 80 brothels the most famous of which was the Red Onion Saloon, a place you can visit today and hear the stories of old.

While there are lots of old looking new buildings there are still a lot of the historic sites left standing. One such is the Arctic Brotherhood Hall built in 1899 and the only remaining example of turn-of-the-century Alaska driftwood architecture.

If you are like us and have done the White Pass and Yukon Railway to the summit of White Pass and the bike ride down the mountain, you have a few other choices to explore that I hadn't remembered from before. There is an opportunity to visit the Yukon wilderness, travel to nearby Haines to see the bald eagles, check out the gold rush history and learn to pan for gold and enjoy some of the other outdoor adventures like horseback riding, hiking, river rafting, etc.

With another beautiful weather day at hand, we opted to just stroll around Skagway and were rewarded with a view of a stream full of salmon still trying to get up it. We found several historical markers and ventured into the Mascot Saloon, a part of the National Park there in Skagway. The Saloon was restored to what it looked like in the early 1900s. There are some interesting museum pieces on display of supplies and tools back in the late 1800s when the gold rush was on.


Skagway also has a small museum linked to its town hall. I was very impressed with the area's obvious push to preserve its history and share it with visitors. Next to the museum we noticed an old chimney standing in among a small grove of trees. Not far from it along the trail was a historical marker telling of its significance.

Harriet Pullen was the wife of a fur trader. She left her husband and four children in the state of Washington and ventured north for the gold rush to make her fortune. She arrived at Skagway with $7 in her pocket and took a job cooking for a crew of men for $3/day. She capitalized on her cooking talents and creativity pounding tin cans into pie tins to make pies to sell. Eventually she made enough money to buy a small cabin and send for her family.

When she fell and broke her arm, her gold prospecting dream ended but not her courage. She sent for the horses she'd left in Washington and used them to haul freight over the White Pass Trail. When the gold rush subsided, she opened a small boarding house.

Harriet met every tourist ship that docked in Skagway, entertained her guests with stories of the north and overwhelmed them with her motherly ways so much that she was dubbed "Mother of the North." With the help of her son and granddaughter, she kept the Pullen House open until her death in 1947. The house was eventually demolished in 1991 but the chimney still stands on the historic property.

Hats off to Harriet! She earned her money without opening a brothel.

Juneau was probably the Alaskan port that had changed more than any other from what I remembered in previous trips. The port was teeming with people from five cruise ships. It was reminiscent of the Caribbean in the prevalent commercialism. Booths lined the walkway from the ships with every tour opportunity imaginable and then as we meandered into the main part of town, we weaved our way through crowded sidewalks to find jewelry store after jewelry store each touting the best deals.


Originally we had planned to take the Mt. Roberts tram up to the top and have a look around. There are several trails up there and some views of surrounding mountains as well as downtown Juneau. When we saw the packed cabins as they ascended and descended over our heads and then measured the cost ($31/adult) against how much interest we really had in it, we opted to go on in search of a good cup of coffee.


Juneau, being the capital of Alaska, was almost certain to have a McDonald's we thought. We like McDonald's coffee and it would be a pleasant change from the awful coffee our ship served. We trudged on past the jewelry stores and stood a moment to look at the information on the billboards outside the Red Dog Saloon. The line was outside the door to get in. The saloon dates back to the old mining days and now offers lunch and dinner along with some great entertainment. It certainly looked like a popular place.


Sandwiched between a couple of jewelry stores, we found a popcorn store that was pumping wonderful smells out of its door. They also claimed to have good coffee. Everything lived up to the claims. We had found heaven. Caramel corn and wonderful drip coffee. We sat and munched through a whole bag of caramel corn and drank two cups of coffee.


Feeling satisfied with our outing, we started back through the crowded streets toward the ship. Stopping once again to watch the sardine-packed tram raise and lower its passengers. The weather had been beautiful all day. The air fresh. The breeze sweet. Not at all a bad day anyway you looked at it.

If you visit Juneau and don't want to put up with the crowds, there are plenty of opportunities to get out of town. Mendenhall Glacier is a great place to visit although with so many cruise ships in, you may find it a bit crowded as well. Still it is a sight to see. There are whale watching opportunities, a salmon hatchery that is very interesting, and a chance to learn more about dog sledding. And if you are truly adventuresome and don't mind helicopters this was the port from which Bob and his mother flew to land on a glacier.

A misty pre dawn sky greeted us at 6 a.m. as we quickly dressed to go find some coffee and be awake for our scenic cruise up into the Tracy Arm Fjord. In the past, we had explored College Fjord and Glacier By National Park but this would be our first foray into Tracy Arm. I wondered if the Sawyer Glacier would be as spectacular as the Hubbard.

Cruising up a fjord to see a glacier is an exciting adventure. The Tracy Arm did not disappoint us as the morning progressed. The misty clouds dissipated and the sun began to grace the mountain tops surrounding us. It is amazing to see how a large cruise ship fits into a fjord. Part of the reason they can cruise a fjord is because a fjord is u-shaped, carved out millions of years ago by much larger glaciers than any we see today. The sides of the fjord go straight down so there are few shallow areas to navigate.

The stone face of the sides of the fjord showed the scarring of ages past from glaciers and weather. Several places were tinged with colors of minerals in the rock perhaps some of it iron which gave it a rusty look.

Anticipation grew as we rounded another bend and began to see more and larger chunks of ice. The closer we got to our end destination, the South Sawyer Glacier, the more ice floated by. Finally we could see up ahead the cool deep blue of the glacier where it met the water. Our ship got relatively close although distance is hard to estimate by sight when everything is on such a large scale.

While the Sawyer Glacier was not as large as the Hubbard, it was still very impressive. The ship barely made a sound as it slowed to almost a stop and allowed for a few minutes of viewing the glacier straight on from the port side. People spoke in hushed tones as they stood in awe of the natural marvel.

All too soon we needed to turn and begin our trip back out. The Star Princess was due to arrive shortly after us. We hurried to the back of the ship and watched the glacier disappear around a bend. We had seen only one small piece calve as we watched but it was still amazing to behold.

Shortly back up the fjord, we watched the Star Princess round a bend. Caught in the sunlight with the dramatic scenery surrounding it we felt that we were seeing a live travel poster for Alaska. Shouts echoed off the walls of the fjord as each ship greeted the other with cheers.

Lunch was had on the Lido deck in the Horizon Court so that we could continue to enjoy our passage through Tracy Arms. In a few hours, we would be making a right turn and heading for our next port of call in the afternoon, Juneau.

Chief Kyan Totem Pole

As you wander the streets and guided trails of Ketchikan, Alaska, you will find yourself face to face with several totem poles. Each has a unique story behind it. And remember the old saying, "Low man on the totem pole?" It was actually a place of honor rather than what the saying suggests. So what is the story behind these works of art?

Totem poles were carved for several reasons: to honor deceased ancestors, record history, social events and oral traditions. They were never objects of worship.

One of my pictures shows the Chief Kyan Totem Pole. It is actually a replica of the original which was carved in the late 1800s. The figures on the totem pole are the Crane which represents the chief's wife, the Thunderbird representing his wife's clan, and the Brown Bear which was the crest of Chief George Kyan. His Tlingil name was Yaansein and he was a member of the Wolf Clan and the Tantakwaan Tribe. The chief sold 160 acres to Mike Martin whose fish camp and other business ventures led to the incorporation of Ketchikan.

Chief Johnson Totem Pole

Near the entrance to Creek Street is the Chief Johnson totem pole which stands 55 feet tall and is carved from a single western red cedar. It depicts the legend of Fog Woman and the creation of salmon. You can find the story at the website of Israel Shotridge who has done many of the replica carvings displayed outdoors in Ketchikan.

To view some of the original totem poles, you need to go the to Totem Heritage Center. There are also pictures there of the villages from which the originals were retrieved and now are preserved in climate controlled displays.

So next time someone tries to tell you that you're low man on the totem pole take it as a compliment. The most honored place is there for many reasons. It's the beginning of the story. It's the place where people get the best view of the carving. The master carver always did the bottom leaving his apprentices to work on the top carvings. And in my opinion, it's a place of strength. After all the low man is holding up the rest of the pole.

It was a sunny morning in Ketchikan, the salmon capital of the world. The town is nestled into the mountainside and colorful houses and buildings give a picture postcard feeling to the scene. Alaska is one of those places where the weather can be good one minute and overcast and rainy the next. With the sea and the mountains, clouds can form and appear to be caught by the pine trees that grace the steep hillsides.

Further up Creek Street, there is a salmon ladder which if chosen by the salmon is a much easier way up the creek than by jumping the frothy rapids. The ladder is actually a series of chutes that the salmon can swim up through without expending as much energy and risking life and limb against the rocks. Still many were trying the traditional route, jumping up stream. We didn’t see any make it while we were watching.

In the late 19^th century, gold and copper were discovered in the surrounding mountains and Ketchikan flourished as a place to replenish supplies. A timber industry was also established in the area and Ketchikan continued to grow to become Alaska’s sixth largest city.

One last thing about Creek Street. It was infamous for its thirty or more brothels. Dolly’s House was one of them and is now a museum.  There is supposed to be a sign that indicated that man and salmon both headed in the same direction to spawn but somehow I missed it. Maybe on our next visit I’ll find it.

Approximately an hour from our departure at pier 91 in Seattle on board the Golden Princess, we began to see a thick white fog forming on the water’s surface. It wasn’t but a few minutes later that we were enveloped in white fog. The fog horn on the ship sounded ominously predicting a night of the mournful sound, a warning to other ships that we were here in the thick murky cloud.  Thankfully the next morning about an hour after sunrise, the fog began to lift and we even saw the promise of blue skies to come.

Unfortunately, the ship’s activities were geared more to having a great shopping experience. The lectures were all about best buys and where to shop in the ports as well as on board the ship. If you were up for great sales, there were lots of end of the Alaska season sales going on.

When the sun came out, I took advantage of the Promenade deck to try to keep up with my walking regimen. About the fourth time around the ship, I suddenly spotted something in the water. Dolphins or porpoise, I wasn’t sure which but so many that it looked like the water was boiling. They were playing in the wake of the ship on the starboard side. Later, we would meet with our friends from the Cruise Critic forum and have the opportunity to see a pod of whales behind the ship. Wildlife already and it was just our first day!

When you combine the facts, it was a no-brainer to choose to take an Alaskan cruise this month. First off, the price was right starting at $799 for an 8 night cruise. Next, it was roundtrip from Seattle where we could spend time before and after with our grandkids (and their parents of course). Lastly, it was about to be our 45^th wedding anniversary. It wasn’t long before we found ourselves aboard the Golden Princess and Alaska bound.

One of the most memorable excursions taken during our second Alaskan trip was a helicopter ride to a glacier. Okay, now here is where I have to admit that I chickened out. I have no fear of flying. I have a great fear of helicopters. So I passed on the opportunity but Bob and his mother shared the great experience.

They flew over some beautiful countryside and observed several glaciers from the air. Then the helicopter pilot, a female younger than our children, landed on one of the glaciers and the passengers were able to explore the surface on foot.

We had gotten close to a glacier on our way to the ship. The Worthington Glacier was on our bus route during our pre cruise land tour and we had stopped there to walk right up to it and touch it. But this was so much better--as I was told over and over. I'm sure it was and my favorite picture was taken of Bob and his mother by the helicopter pilot. They look like they are walking on water. Oh wait! They were. Frozen water.

When the price is right and the port of embarkation holds the opportunity to visit with grandchildren, another trip to Alaska just feels right. Besides, we needed an opportunity to celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary. Alaska is one of our favorite cruise destinations. We have done two previous cruises, one in June and one in August. I prefer August. The colors of the tundra are beautiful much like the autumn colors of the trees in our area of the world.

On previous occasions we have taken a pre-cruise land tour. We prefer doing a land tour before a cruise because it gives us time to rest and relax on board the ship. Each of the land tours started in Fairbanks. There were always several options for exploring the area with the cruise company (for Alaska, we've always gone with Princess).

Our first land tour took us to the Eldorado Gold Mine in Fairbanks where we learned about the Gold Rush and how to pan for gold. We also took a river boat ride which introduced us to some of the local Indian culture and the late four time Iditarod winner Susan Butcher's champion sled dogs that are still raised there.

 Upon our return several years later, we opted for a trip to the Arctic Circle. This trip was the one we took in June. Who would have guessed that it would be 88 F at the Arctic Circle! It was a fun trip that included a stop to see the pipeline and of course the opportunity to step across the Circle's line of latitude and say we'd been to the Arctic.

Both land tours included time at Denali National Park--a not to be missed opportunity if you've never been there. The park does not allow vehicles unless you have a special camping permit so you tour the park on an old school bus. Lots to see including caribou, grizzlies, Dahl sheep, eagles, foxes, and a slew of other critters. If you get really lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of Mt. McKinley. The mountain, also called Denali, has its own unique weather system and is shrouded in clouds and mist a good part of the time. On our last trip, we were privileged to see it as the clouds parted for a while and the sun shone brightly on the snow capped majesty.

The cruise of course is outstanding as well. It takes you in and out of several places to see glaciers and stops in intriguing places such as Skagway, Ketchikan, and Juneau. This trip we will just be doing the cruise portion since our pre-cruise tour is seeing the grandkids. While I like the wild life in Denali, the hugs and kisses from the grands are sweeter.