Day 1 – My cruise to Alaska for the third time, this time on Queen Elizabeth II operated by the Cunard Line. Boarding the ship @12 noon was fast & easy. After a hot meal, Yvonne and I explored the ship from Deck 1 to the top deck at 12th Floor. Spectacular sight of Vancouver as the ship sailed pass Stanley Park and the Lion Gate’s Bridge heading north. Now, let me show you the interior of this classic ship…….
Day 2 – Cruise to Alaska on QEII. Today our ship sailed past Burrand Inlet; Strait of Geogia & Vancouver Island into American waters. At sea the whole day can be most enjoyable. Meeting friends, fine dining, listening to talks on Ketchikan, Sitka;; line dancing and our group of more than 20 friends have had our portraits taken by our professional photographer friend that evening.
Day 3 – Cruise to Alaska on QEII – Day in Ketchikan, the Salmon Capital of the world. This town is famous for it’s colourful stilted houses and a busy waterfront just minutes from the cruise-ship terminal. We walked all over the downtown area, taking photos of their main attraction: the Thundering Wings; the Rock; the Creek Street District & the Chief Johnson Museum.
Excursion in Ketchikan, Alaska. Out of the 25 Shore Excursions from the ship, I think I picked the very best one to sign up. Yvonne & I enjoyed our 3.30-hour at sea thoroughly. Yes, we boarded the fishing boat “Aleutian Ballad” for a “Bering Sea Crab Fisherman” trip to catch King Crabs. We heard the crew narrated their fishing experiences and interacted with the catch of crabs, prawns, octopues, star fish, etc. Viewing the bald head eagles, sea lions and whales were our greatest joy of the day
Day 4 – Cruise to Alaska on QEII – We arrived in SITKA today, a small old town under Russian rule from 1799 to 1867. Getting to city needs a free shuttle ride of 15 minutes. However, we signed up for a 4-hour Sitka Highlight Excursion to enjoy their most famous abundant Totems in Sitka National Historical Park, a museum; a Russian Orthodox Church and a Russian Story tale & dance.
Day 5 - Cruise to Alaska on QEII – Day cruising Hubbard Glacier. This Glacier is located in eastern Alaska & in Yukon, Canada. It is 122 km(76 mi) long & around 3,400 m(11,200 ft) high. It is also one of the few glaciers advancing rather than retreating every year. Our ship sailed very close to the glacier which gave us a fantastic 360 degree view.
Day 6 - Cruise to Alaska on QEII – Day in Juneau. Juneau is the capital of Alaska, & is unique among the other 49 U.S. capitals in that there are no roads connecting the city to other cities in NA as it is surrounded by ice-mass & forest, accessible only by plane & boat. Here, we took an excursion to its 2 main attractions: the Mendenhall Glacier which is fast retreating & whale watching. We also explored their downtown which is close to the pier.
Day 7 - Cruise to Alaska on QEII – Day in Skagway. The major sightseeing here is the White Pass & Yukon railway linking Skagway & the Canadian Whitehorse, capital of Yukon . This railroad began construction in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush as a means of reaching the goldfields. Different from previous trips, I went up to the summit by bus, crossed Canadian border at Bennett Lake & back to US Skagway on the train. Enjoyed the pretty colorful houses in downtown Skagway too!
Day 8 - Cruise to Alaska on QEII – our ship sailed past Glacier Bay from 6am to 4pm today. This Bay covering 3.3 million acres of rugged mountains, dynamic glaciers, temperate rainforest, wild coastlines and deep sheltered fjords. Glacier Bay National Park is a highlight of Alaska's Inside Passage and part of a 25-million acre World Heritage Site.
Day 9 - Cruise to Alaska on QEII – At sea today en route back to Victoria, Vancouver. The good thing is all of our mobile phones can get wifi back. The Masquerade Ball tonight is also something for us to look forward to……
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