2015 Trip Report DIY Land/ cruise

We - Husband, 12 yo son and myself – have just returned from 2 weeks Land / Cruise holiday in Alaska. On land we hired a car and visited Girdwood, Palmer, Silver Salmon Creek Lodge in Lake Clark National Park and Seward. The cruise was with Radiance of the Seas travelling from Seward visiting Hubbard Glacier (cruising), Juneau, Skagway, Icy Straight Point (Hoonah) and Ketchikan before sailing to Vancouver. Please visit my blog

http://deddans.blogspot.com.au

for lots of photos.

Happy to answer any questions.

Cheers

Hello, I'm only a few pages into your review and loving it! Especially your photographs! What camera did you use? Thanks

Thanks for sharing your review.

Keith

Thanks, I used a Canon 700D ( aka T5i) with a 70 - 200 f4 lens and 24 -105 f4. I also had a 10-18mm lens but hardly used it.

My husband has also just posted the video here

Tremendous review, very similar to land tour we plan on doing. Two quick questions for you:

1) Appeared you rented a car, where did you leave it while flown away from Soldotna?

2) Did the Silver Salmon Creek Lodge have choices for meals? Wife and I just tend to be picky eaters ... =( We're like kids almost

3) The "upstream salmon spot" you referred to near Seward, does it have a name?

Thanks SO MUCH again, looked beautiful and lifelong memories.

Ben

Fantastic review and pictures! You did a lot of what we will be doing: Anan with Island Wings, Fishes, Independence Mine, Capilano Suspension Bridge. We are staying in Palmer as well but not at the same B&B. We will have to try Turkey Red for dinner. Since you ate at both Ray's and Chinooks in Seward, which did you prefer? We will only have dinner there one night before heading to Cooper Landing.

Tremendous review, very similar to land tour we plan on doing. Two quick questions for you:

 

1) Appeared you rented a car, where did you leave it while flown away from Soldotna?

2) Did the Silver Salmon Creek Lodge have choices for meals? Wife and I just tend to be picky eaters ... =( We're like kids almost

3) The "upstream salmon spot" you referred to near Seward, does it have a name?

 

Thanks SO MUCH again, looked beautiful and lifelong memories.

 

Ben

1 - We left the car ( and the other family their RV) at the airport overnight.

2 - No choice for meals but they can cater for food intolerances if notified early. Breakfast was French toast, sausage, scrambled eggs and porridge ; Lunch we had smoked salmon fillets and sweet potato hash with banana bread; Dinner was macadamia crusted halibut with veggies; it was all very delicious and those that had been there for longer said the food varied but I would guess it was mainly seafood ( locally sourced)

3 - Bear creek - about 6 miles outside Seward turn right and continue to a small bridge over the creek ( maybe one mile or less - can't remember exactly). There is no sign as such but a small building after the bridge I think that says Fisheries or something on it. There has been so little rain in Alaska that this was the best place that we actually saw salmon jumping - the salmon ladder in Ketchikan was very low.

Have a wonderful time

Fantastic review and pictures! You did a lot of what we will be doing: Anan with Island Wings, Fishes, Independence Mine, Capilano Suspension Bridge. We are staying in Palmer as well but not at the same B&B. We will have to try Turkey Red for dinner. Since you ate at both Ray's and Chinooks in Seward, which did you prefer? We will only have dinner there one night before heading to Cooper Landing.

Yes - book with Turkey Red when you get there otherwise we saw people waiting a long time

I don't remember much difference between Rays and Chinooks - they were both good so look at their menu as see which you prefer - they are 2 doors down from each other. Both very busy ( but it was coming up to 4th July) so again if you can book do so.

You will have a great time

Think I met you! You stayed Wed 1st July at Silver Salmon creek? We arrived the next day! Fantastic review!!! Silver Salmon Creek was the best, so want to go back!!!!

Think I met you! You stayed Wed 1st July at Silver Salmon creek? We arrived the next day! Fantastic review!!! Silver Salmon Creek was the best, so want to go back!!!!

Yes - i think we did meet at the plane! I would have loved to have stayed longer - the bears are just so beautiful. It was definitely one of the highlights of our trip.

Hi, thanks for the review. Love seeing the pics. Can you confirm that the Pullman bed is directly over the main bed in the room? If you don't mind saying, what category room were you? Thx

Hi, thanks for the review. Love seeing the pics. Can you confirm that the Pullman bed is directly over the main bed in the room? If you don't mind saying, what category room were you? Thx

If you look at the bottom of the post labelled Icy Strait Point - there is a picture of the pullman - yes it is directly above the bed but enough room to lie in bed and read without feeling squashed. We were in room 7072 - category E1.

Hope that helps

If you look at the bottom of the post labelled Icy Strait Point - there is a picture of the pullman - yes it is directly above the bed but enough room to lie in bed and read without feeling squashed. We were in room 7072 - category E1.

 

Hope that helps

Thanks for the response. It is great to hear that it doesn't feel crowded.

We - Husband, 12 yo son and myself – have just returned from 2 weeks Land / Cruise holiday in Alaska. On land we hired a car and visited Girdwood, Palmer, Silver Salmon Creek Lodge in Lake Clark National Park and Seward. The cruise was with Radiance of the Seas travelling from Seward visiting Hubbard Glacier (cruising), Juneau, Skagway, Icy Straight Point (Hoonah) and Ketchikan before sailing to Vancouver. Please visit my blog

 

http://deddans.blogspot.com.au

 

for lots of photos.

 

Happy to answer any questions.

 

Cheers

Hi Deddans, we are from Adelaide and looking at doing a cruise land tour next year either June or July, planning a northbound tour, so you got to see bears and salmon which is what I want to do, land tour wise was that Rocky Mountains?

Hi Deddans, we are from Adelaide and looking at doing a cruise land tour next year either June or July, planning a northbound tour, so you got to see bears and salmon which is what I want to do, land tour wise was that Rocky Mountains?

No - I organised the land tour myself mainly on the Kenai peninsula ( with extensive research through Trip Advisor and other trip reports on Cruise Critic) . From what I understand July would be better for bears e.g. Anan Creek I think was only open for permits from 1 July. It all depends on when they release the salmon which obviously attracts the bears. In Silver Salmon Creek Lodge they were mainly clamming on the beach.

The bears were an absolute highlight of the trip so when you decide what to do, book early.