Tag: Viking Ocean Cruise

2022 Alaska and the Inside Passage – Part 2 – Valdez and Hubbard Glacier

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August 23, 2022 – More rain greeted us in Valdez, the northernmost ice-free port in Alaska. The town is located at the tip of a deep fjord in Prince William Sound with spectacular views of the Chugach Mountains. The southern terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carrying oil from Prudhoe Bay is in Valdez.

Our tour for the day was aptly named “Valdez on your own.” A shuttle bus picked us up at the cruise ship terminal to take us around the town. Our goal was to wander around the small boat harbor near where we had camped in our RV in August, 2013. We enjoyed wandering around looking at boats, browsing in some of the shops and eating a snack of garlic-rosemary fries at the Potato where we enjoyed talking to our server about the town. She told us the RV park is still there and told us where to find it.

Our shuttle ride back to the cruise ship dock took us near the RV park. As we drove through town our driver pointed out points of interest. Back at the cruise ship dock we wandered around the to see a monument dedicated to the men and women who built the Trans-Alaska Pipeline from 1969 to 1977. Another interesting sculpture has a giant octopus attacking a lighthouse.

Back on board ship we returned to our stateroom to find a bottle of champagne to celebrate our 52nd anniversary courtesy of the Viking Orion crew. We took the champagne with us to dinner to enjoy with our meal. We were surprised after dinner when our server brought us a cake to add to our celebration!

We had limited time to spend in Valdez because of the cruise ship schedule. There is a lot more see and do there. If you would like to read about our 2013 Valdez adventures please visit these posts: Waterfalls, Glaciers and Salmon in Valdez , Wildlife and Glacier Cruise from Valdez , and Bear Sighting on our last day in Valdez.

August 24, 2022 – The weather didn’t cooperate for our scenic cruising day. Rain and fog kept us from seeing much scenery so we mostly relaxed and enjoyed being on the ship. When the fog lifted for a few minutes I was able to capture a few pictures.

We were sailing through Yakatat Bay towards the Hubbard Glacier, the largest tidewater glacier in North America. The glacier is more that six miles wide where it meets the ocean and up to 400 feet tall.

As we approached the glacier we ventured out on the deck in the rain hoping for a better look. We were cold and wet but when we finally got close enough for a good view the weather cleared for a few minutes.

Hubbard Glacier

Next up – A new port and more wildlife sightings.

2022 Alaska and the Inside Passage – Part 1 – Anchorage and Seward

Posted in Alaska, Tourist Attractions, WildlifeTagged , , , , , , , 15 Comments

August 19, 2022 – Our latest Alaska adventure began when we flew from Savannah to Atlanta and then to Anchorage for a two night stay in Anchorage. We made it to Atlanta on time but sadly the flight to Anchorage was delayed for 7 hours. We landed at the Anchorage airport about 2:00 am, took an Uber to our hotel and tried to get some sleep.

View of Anchorage from our hotel room on the 13th floor

August 20, 2022 – After a few hours sleep we spent our day in Anchorage exploring the downtown area and enjoying two delicious meals of fresh Alaska seafood. The Aurora Show with fantastic photographs and narration about Aaska’s Great Northern Lights was wonderful. There was a park with a beautiful garden nearby. A grilled cheese and King Crab sandwich at 49th Street Brewery and dinner of Alaskan halibut and chips at Humpy’s satisfied our longing for some fresh Alaska seafood. Alaskan beer went great with both meals. Did I mention it was raining most of the day and night?

August 21, 2022 – We woke up to another rainy day. After breakfast we boarded a tour bus for the scenic drive to Seward where we would board our ship the Viking Orion.

Along the way we stopped to see some bears, musk ox, and other wildlife at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center near Seward. From their website: “The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC) is a sanctuary dedicated to preserving Alaska’s wildlife through conservation, education, research and quality animal care.”

Once aboard the ship in Seward we enjoyed the first of many delicious meals, unpacked and wandered around the ship before dinner.

August 22, 2022 – After a leisurely breakfast we sat on our balcony enjoying the scenery. A bald eagle was perched on a light post close by. If you look closely at the header photo at the top of the page you can see the eagle on top of the light pole.

Bald Eagle perched on lamp post in Seward Harbor

Later we rode a shuttle bus to the Alaska Sea Life Center, a nonprofit organization that has an aquarium and also does marine research, education, and marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation. This stellar sea lion was as interested in us as we were of him.

Stellar Sea Lion – Alaska Sea Life Center, Seward

If you are interested in reading about our 2013 stay in Seward please visit Glaciers and Wildlife in Seward.

Next up – exploring another port and a day of scenic sailing.

Lens Artists Photo Challenge # 215 – Planes, Trains and Automobiles – and the places they take us.

Posted in Alaska, Road Trip, RVing, TravelTagged , , , , , , 27 Comments

The journey not the arrival matters

T. S. Eliot

John from Journeys with JohnBo has challenged us to focus on our journeys and the modes of transportation that got us there.

I am grateful for all the many places that planes, trains, automobiles, trucks, ships, boats, ferries, and buses have taken me. I have been fortunate to see most of the United States, several Canadian provinces, parts of Mexico, several European countries and several Caribbean countries.

For this challenge, I am focusing on our two journeys to Alaska. Our first visit to Alaska was in 2013 when we traveled from Georgia to Alaska and back towing our fifth wheel. Henry drove the truck 14,454 miles during our 106 days on the road.

We just returned from our long awaited second trip to Alaska. This time we flew to Anchorage and rode a bus to Seward to board the cruise ship Viking Orion for a 10 day cruise to Vancouver. We traveled in luxury and saw several new places we couldn’t visit by road.

Below you can see the two major modes of transportation from our two different Alaska journeys. Both journeys were spectacular with amazing landscapes and lots of wildlife.

While our truck was our main mode of transportation on our first Alaska adventure, we had to take a couple of ferries to get where we wanted to go.

We took the truck and RV on the Alaska Ferry from Skagway to Haines
This small ferry took us from Dawson City, Yukon, across the Yukon River to the Top of the World Highway

There were places our truck couldn’t take us so we took a plane ride and landed on a glacier, took a ride on the Alaska Railroad, and took three amazing wildlife cruises.

This year, after two cancellations, we finally were able to take our Alaska cruise the end of August. Our journey involved planes, moving sidewalks in the airports, a beautiful ship, an Uber, sightseeing buses, a tender ride, two wildlife cruises, and lots of walking. It was wonderful seeing Alaska from the water. We really enjoyed returning to places we loved the first time as well as seeing places that were new to us.

Stay tuned for more from our latest Alaska adventure!

Many thanks to John of Journeys with Johnbo for his Lens-Artists Challenge #215 – Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 – Part 10: Onboard the Viking Sea

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January 12 – 23, 2022

For twelve amazing days in January our home was the beautiful Viking Sea.

Our stateroom was spacious and comfortable. The private veranda was my favorite place to sit.

There were many different areas of the ship where we could sit and relax, take a swim, enjoy a cocktail, listen to music, or just stand at the railing and enjoy the view. There is also a Nordic Spa, Fitness area, hair and nail salon, a theater with live shows, two cinemas, and a promenade deck. The attention to detail was evident all around the ship.

We never went hungry or thirsty. The food and cocktails were all delicious and there was a very good selection of wines. There are three fine dining restaurants, several lounges, a buffet restaurant where in the morning we could order an omelet made just the way we like it and at lunch and dinner ask for a chef salad made to order. The gelato bar had a variety of flavors each day which went well with the fresh baked cookies. There are also a couple of restaurants for quick meals at breakfast and lunch.

We were spoiled the entire cruise. If we needed anything in our stateroom all we had to do was ask our room steward and he took care of it. The cruise ship staff were all friendly and attentive.

We are counting the days until our next cruise adventure.

Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 – Part 9: Tortola

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January 23, 2022

Our last port – Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.

The final excursion of our trip was a Catamaran Cruise on the Soul Rebel through Francis Drake Channel to Norman Island for snorkeling and beach time. The catamaran was docked in the harbor just a short walk from our cruise ship and was the only excursion of the trip that didn’t involve a ride in a bus or 4×4.

We couldn’t have asked for more perfect weather as we sailed through the turquoise waters of the British Virgin Islands. Our destination of Norman Island is one of the islands that is said to be the inspiration for Robert Louis Stephenson’s novel “Treasure Island”. Our guides kept us entertained with stories about the island and pirates.

After dropping anchor near the rocky shore of Norman Island we entered the chilly water for snorkeling. Schools of colorful fish swam around the huge coral covered boulders. Huge sea urchins were scattered around on the boulders.

The bar was open with with drinks and delicious snacks when we returned to the boat. The small hand pies filled with spicy fillings called Patties were my favorite. I was too busy eating and drinking to take a picture.

Our next stop was Pirate’s Bight on Nelson Island where we got our toes in the beautiful white sand.

Back at the dock I did a little shopping before returning to the ship for our last night on board. We celebrated with some bubbly in the Explorer’s Lounge.

Earlier in the week we asked the guitarist Michael if he could play “Georgia on my Mind”. He told us he was in the process of learning it. Before performing it for the first time he said it took him 18 hours to get it right. He did a wonderful job and the highlight of the night was hearing him play it.

After watching the sunset we sailed overnight to San Juan, Puerto Rico where we disembarked early in the morning and said goodbye to the beautiful Caribbean.

Coming up – a wrap up and tour of the gorgeous Viking Sea.