Cruising Day 3 - Juneau arrival at 10:30 am, Departure 6:30 pm
Juneau is the capital of Alaska and the only way in is by boat or plane.
"It was gold that spurred the birth of the town that was originally named Harrisburg, later renamed Juneau. The town was founded in 1880 by gold seekers Joe Juneau and Richard Harris. However, it was the Tlingit Chief Kowee that first pointed Harris and Juneau in the direction of Gold!"
Juneau is the capital of Alaska and the only way in is by boat or plane.
"It was gold that spurred the birth of the town that was originally named Harrisburg, later renamed Juneau. The town was founded in 1880 by gold seekers Joe Juneau and Richard Harris. However, it was the Tlingit Chief Kowee that first pointed Harris and Juneau in the direction of Gold!"
With the time change I was up at 5 am instead of 6. I left so Ray could try to get some sleep. The only thing open was a coffee dispenser in the Lido Market. Pretty quiet otherwise. Came back to the room at 6:30 and Ray was up and had not slept. After some coffee and Bailey’s it was off to the Lido Market for breakfast. I had an appointment for a full body massage and facial … what a treat. Hard to stay awake. Lol
For lunch it was Alaskan Cod and chips in the dining room ... so off we went. They had great desserts.We all ate well before disembarking to wander around Juneau. Unfortunately, the weather was pretty wet and our float plane tour was cancelled so we just wandered around the town for an hour or so. Ended up meeting with Jason at the Alaskan Brewing Company before returning to the ship.
The store adjacent to this pub had a tomahawk on display which was made on the show "Forged in Fire" with a $12,000 USD price tag!
Ray checked out the price for a King Crab Leg ... $69.95 USD per leg!!!! No thank you. Lots of people lined up for it though.
I paid the extra at dinner in the dining room on board to have my crab feast.
Lovely old architecture on the streets. Most of the buildings are now "tourist traps" though. We mostly just walked the streets.
Kristi went on her 5-hour hike around the base of an glacier that turned out to be more of a walk …. Pretty wet day.
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| Jason always finds the best bars. lol |
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| Our ship the Nieuw Amsterdam |
I paid the extra at dinner in the dining room on board to have my crab feast.
Lovely old architecture on the streets. Most of the buildings are now "tourist traps" though. We mostly just walked the streets.
Kristi went on her 5-hour hike around the base of an glacier that turned out to be more of a walk …. Pretty wet day.
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| She had fun though. |
Jason, Garrett, Kat, Ray and I ended up attending the happy hour at the Billboard bar and then onto the happy hour at the Gallery Bar. Great margaritas.
I booked us a table for dinner at the Tamarind for 6:30. What a fabulous dinner we all had. Unfortunately, Garrett ended up with a migraine headache and had to leave after the appetizer round. I was not doing to well either … the deep tissue massage caught up with me and I could hardly move. as well as I was starting to feel like I caught a cold. Fortunately, Jason had some Tylenol and Ibuprofen and as per Kristi’s instructions I swallowed a bunch and within about 20 minutes I was feeling much better. The rest of the table ate a lot of my dinner. Ha ha. We will be going back another night so Garrett and I can fully participate.
Ray and I headed to our room after dinner, Garrett stayed sleeping in his. Kristi and Kat went downstairs to see the dance performance. Jason found himself a quiet place on the Lido Deck at the outside pool area to read. At 9:30 the ship left Juneau to sail to Skagway, AK. Another fabulous day.
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| Fortune Cookie Dessert .... yummm |
Cruising Day 4 - Skagway, arrival around 6am, Departure 9:30 pm
Skagway is the only town we stop at that you can actually drive out of back to Canada.
Skagway History: The first non-Native settler was Captain William Moore in 1887. He is credited with being the first white man to use the White Pass route between Skagway and the interior. In August 1896, gold was discovered in the Klondike region, and the first boatload of prospectors landed at Skagway the following summer.
Chilkoot Pass is the highest point along the Chilkoot Trail that leads from Dyea, Alaska to Bennett Lake, British Columbia. The Chilkoot Trail was long a route used by the Tlingit for trade. During the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 19th century, it was used by prospectors and packers to get through the mountains.
An interesting note is that everyone that took this trail from Canada into the USA had to have a years worth of rations equalling about 1000 pounds so many trips were made before they could get into the Klondike gold fields.
Tuesday morning, we woke up in Skagway. I think we docked at 6am. The kids all arrived at our room at 6:30 am and after a couple cups of coffee procured by Jason and Kat we all went upstairs to the Lido Market for breakfast.
Skagway is the only town we stop at that you can actually drive out of back to Canada.
Skagway History: The first non-Native settler was Captain William Moore in 1887. He is credited with being the first white man to use the White Pass route between Skagway and the interior. In August 1896, gold was discovered in the Klondike region, and the first boatload of prospectors landed at Skagway the following summer.
Chilkoot Pass is the highest point along the Chilkoot Trail that leads from Dyea, Alaska to Bennett Lake, British Columbia. The Chilkoot Trail was long a route used by the Tlingit for trade. During the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 19th century, it was used by prospectors and packers to get through the mountains.
An interesting note is that everyone that took this trail from Canada into the USA had to have a years worth of rations equalling about 1000 pounds so many trips were made before they could get into the Klondike gold fields.
Tuesday morning, we woke up in Skagway. I think we docked at 6am. The kids all arrived at our room at 6:30 am and after a couple cups of coffee procured by Jason and Kat we all went upstairs to the Lido Market for breakfast.
Our excursion on the White Pass Train left the station at 9 am. We were lucky as the train is right in front of our ship and we did not have far to walk. The other 3 cruise ships were on docks much further away. We chose the shorter trip of 2 3/4 hours instead of the 8 hour trip that takes you into Bennett Lake, Yukon so Ray did not have to sit so long.
What a fabulous train ride in the Luxury Car. Only 14 comfortable seats for passengers on this car instead of the 30 or so in the forward cars. Being at the end of the train Ray had even better picture opportunities. This package included food and free beer and wine so yes, we were drinking by 9:15 am.
Although the Luxury Cars look vintage they were only complete a few years ago.
And we are off:
This a memorial to a man, his helper and his two pack mules who were crushed by a 500 ton boulder that fell on top of them on the Chilkoot Trail.
Up into the clouds.
If you look carefully in the following pictures, 120 years later you can still see evidence of the prospectors using the old White Pass trail etched into the rocks. This part of the trail is off limits to use.
Up into the sub-alpine as we do a loop around to head back. Don't tell anyone but the loop is in Canada and they never checked our passport, lol.
Back into the sunshine.
And the picture below is their "money shot", according to the hostess.
After the 2 3/4 hour ride we went to the ship for a rest and then came back out to stroll the town. Again really interesting and well maintained old buildings.
This building up close looked to be made of twigs.
What a fabulous train ride in the Luxury Car. Only 14 comfortable seats for passengers on this car instead of the 30 or so in the forward cars. Being at the end of the train Ray had even better picture opportunities. This package included food and free beer and wine so yes, we were drinking by 9:15 am.
Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives overcame harsh climate and challenging geography to create the “railway built of gold”. Today, 116 years later, you can re-live the adventure and the “triumph over challenge” in comfort and safety!
The White Pass & Yukon Route Railway is “The Scenic Railway of the World”. Built in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush, this narrow gauge railroad is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, a designation shared with the Panama Canal, the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty.
The WP&YR railway was considered an impossible task but it was literally blasted through coastal mountains in only 26 months.
The $10 million project was the product of British financing, American engineering and Canadian contracting. Tens of thousands of men and 450 tons of explosives overcame harsh and challenging climate and geography to create “the railway built of gold.”
The WP&YR climbs almost 3000 feet in just 20 miles and features steep grades of up to 3.9%, cliff-hanging turns of 16 degrees, two tunnels and numerous bridges and trestles. The steel cantilever bridge was the tallest of its kind in the world when it was constructed in 1901.
Although the Luxury Cars look vintage they were only complete a few years ago.
And we are off:
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| View back towards the harbour and our cruise ship (second in on right). |
This a memorial to a man, his helper and his two pack mules who were crushed by a 500 ton boulder that fell on top of them on the Chilkoot Trail.
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| The track on the other side of the canyon. |
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| Passing another train ... they have 14 trains a day. |
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| See how steep a grade it is. |
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| Up into the sub alpine. |
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| Looks like snow but it is actually white rock. |
Up into the clouds.
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| Canadian Border |
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| Ghost Bridge, how fitting seeing it in the fog. A no longer used bridge for obvious reasons. lol |
If you look carefully in the following pictures, 120 years later you can still see evidence of the prospectors using the old White Pass trail etched into the rocks. This part of the trail is off limits to use.
Up into the sub-alpine as we do a loop around to head back. Don't tell anyone but the loop is in Canada and they never checked our passport, lol.
Back into the sunshine.
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| Distant view of the harbour again |
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| Oh look a Yetti! |
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| Heading past the Rail Yard. |
After the 2 3/4 hour ride we went to the ship for a rest and then came back out to stroll the town. Again really interesting and well maintained old buildings.
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| This snow plow was only decommissioned in 2011 |
This building up close looked to be made of twigs.
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| The Bordello that you could tour upstairs .... |
Kristi and Jason went on their own excursion which included river rafting… had a great time.
Garrett and Kat went ashore and explored the town and did a walk along the shore to see the harbour.
Ray and I got back from the train, we went for a quick lunch on the Lido deck after which we laid down for an hour as we have not been sleeping well, especially with Ray’s back so sore. When we woke up it was time for a hot tub area on the Lido deck. Kat was in town to check it out for the second time and Garrett joined us at the pool.
We all met for dinner at the main dining room for 5:30pm. Had a pretty good meal this time. After dinner we all went to the Main Stage except for Jason and watched a National Geographic presentation of the Seasons of Alaska. What fabulous photography. Bedtime again. Tomorrow we wake up cruising into Glacier Bay National Park.
Too bad your float plane tour in Juneau was cancelled. Love Skagway and the train ride...beautiful scenery! Thanks for bringing back memories of our train trip there!
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