If the eNews articles seemed a bit few and far between during the last two weeks – Larry & I celebrated our 35th anniversary with an Alaskan cruise!! We traveled with Roxy & David Chivington and Loren & Joni Swager and we had a great time! Anchorage, Talkeetna, Denali National Park, Whittier, Glacier Bay, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan and Vancouver were the places of interest that we visited. Internet was not what I had hoped it would be thus the eNews postings were minimal – internet was either extremely slow, extremely expensive, or it just wasn’t anything at all. My apologies to those who tried to contact us as often times my replies didn’t get sent. I am still catching up and will be posting all the articles that were submitted. We were back on Sunday – its always good to be home. We’ve always dreamed of seeing Alaska and was so glad we got to share the experience with good friends and family.
Some observations:
– It was nearing the end of salmon season and we saw lots of them along with moose, whales, dolphins, eagles, sea otters and more.
– President Obama stayed at the same hotel in Anchorage a couple of days after we checked out. He re-named Mt. McKinley to Denali while we were there.
– There were snow flurries at the Denali National Park and we bought winter coats to stay warm. I was glad I had packed gloves. They told us the snow was a month early.
– It was also nearing the end of the season for cruise ships – all the shops close down when the ships stop coming in mid September.
– We traveled by plane, cruise ship, train, motor coach, shuttle, river raft, duck boat, old school bus, car and van.
– We are part of the 30 Percenters – only 30% of the people who go to see Denali actually get to see it. It is usually covered by clouds. We saw it!
– Joni & Loren saw Denali and the Northern Lights at the same time – they got up in the middle of the night and went out into the cold to get pictures. The rest of us just hung up on that wake-up call.
– Larry & I are the same age as the state of Alaska – not everyone can say that!
– The way the airlines figure it, Dallas is “on the way” from Vancouver to Detroit.(??)
– The Love Boat (that show from the seventies) featured the Princess Cruise Lines emblem.
– The Ulu Knife set works wonders and it is very, very sharp. I’ve used it 3 times and still have all my fingers.
– Panning for gold is a cool thing to do and the salmon bake that followed was delicious.
– Kids in Alaska can get their pilot permit at age 14-1/2. They can fly a plane solo at age 15 but can’t drive a car until age 16.
– They told us that the only way one gets to Juneau or Ketchikan is by boat, by plane, or birth canal. Not many roads up there.
– It was a wonderful trip – we highly recommend it!
