Allison & David's Honeymoon Adventure/ Carnival Miracle's Maiden Alaska Voyage

[ucfalli]

Day 10: Juneau, Alaska Continued

The deadly duo

 

We went by the Frankenstein's Lab.. it was dead. Was always dead when we went by as well later in the week. Don't know if it was ever crowded.

 

We decided to take a quick walk around the boat and "strolled" through Gatsby's Gardens. We mainly saw employees there and today was not an exception. Everyone was making phone calls before we left port.

 

Goodby Juneau!

[sue402001]

Love the pictures you took at Mendenhall, especially the one of the bear (?) print in the snow. Sorry to hear that your excursions got cancelled, must be why they say to have a plan B.

 

I can't wait to read more!

[ucfalli]

Love the pictures you took at Mendenhall, especially the one of the bear (?) print in the snow. Sorry to hear that your excursions got cancelled, must be why they say to have a plan B.

 

I can't wait to read more!

 

Not sure which animal prints are which. We think we saw some bear prints and lot of wolf/dog prints. Also a few other smaller creatures which we were unsure of.

 

Yep always have a plan B for anywhere in Alaska! As you can see just spending time out at Mendenhall was my plan B

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska

May 3rd, 2013

 

Today ended up having my favorite excursion. There are probably going to be quite a few pictures coming up, so get ready!

 

Woke up and looked out our balcony at saw this odd graffiti wall. Seems that on a ships maiden voyage it is encouraged for the crew to record the ship and captain's name on the wall. Suppose to of been done since 1917. Not sure if the Miracle participated in it. I for one am not a fan of any type of graffiti on nature, but was interesting nonetheless. I did recognize some graffiti for Disney and RCI ships. Not in this picture though.

 

We got ready and ate in the MDR. We both had omelets. Oddly enough I liked the omelet better during the comedy brunch. Not sure why they would be any different.

 

Afterwards we headed on top to check out the conditions. Sure enough as expected, it was overcast. However I wasn't feeling let down. For one it wasn't raining! Second We were going to traveling into the Yukon and from I have read the conditions are usually better there. So I was very optimistic. The mountains were still beautiful even with the overcast weather.

 

Over looking Skagway

 

 

The wind was ever present today. As soon as we disembarked, we were met with the wind. I am a Floridian (grew up in S. Florida) and have dealt with quite a few tropical storms/hurricanes in my life time. But the winds in Skagway really caught me off guard! The walk from the ship to the town was about 10min. Flat and easy walk. The wind/cold was the only problem. At one point when we were walking in town, I actually had a little trouble walking towards a shop the wind was that strong! Talk about a wind tunnel. We were to meet for our excursion at 10am, so we decided to do some quick touring of the town and souvenir shopping before hand.

 



There is a nice clean bathroom inside:

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska

 

Some pictures of the town... don't blink twice or you might miss it!

Very nice town. Being from Orlando, Florida I must say though I almost kinda felt a little like I was on a backlot at Hollywood Studios (aka MGM).

 

3rd fake bear photo!

 

This is where the wind tunnel was at:

 

This is what they use to plow the snow on the train track..pretty scary looking!

 

Don't remember where exactly the train stopped. But it was only able to go so far as part of the tracks were still closed for snow. Something to consider if you going very early in the season and want to take the White Pass train.

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

Few more pictures of town:

So I called Frontier Excursions to let them know that we would meet them in town instead of by the dock. This is where we met (very easy to find):

 

Across the street the NPS has a nice building as part of the Klondike Gold Rush Museum with some exhibits and clean bathrooms. We went in briefly to the Klondike Gold Rush museum in town (near the front) earlier on. Worth a visit if you have time.

 

Frontier Excursions drove us back to the ship and from there we boarded a small bus. There were actually two different buses going out that day. While talking to a couple in our group, they said that when they booked a year ago Frontier Excursions wasn't even sure they would have enough to fill a bus. Looks like enough did indeed sign up! Bill was our driver and he was an excellent guide as well. Bill gave us a whole bunch of history early on in the ride and explained everything else we saw along the way.

 

We initially sat on the left side of the bus and realized right away that you want to sit on the right side! The White Pass train was going by and I wasn't in a good position to get a good shot of it. Right after that David and I relocated to back of the bus, where we were able to get pictures from either side and the back.

 

Barely got a picture of the train

 

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

We did the Yukon Discover tour (6hrs). In no time we left Skagway behind and were on the Klondike Highway headed towards the Yukon! The scenery changed quite quickly. To snow, snow, and more snow. Couldn't believe how much snow there was. Eventually we reached the Tormented Valley (nice name), where the trees only grow to around 4ft in height due to the extreme conditions.

 

Oddly about half the people on our bus didn't care to get out of the bus at the stops that Bill made. I for one couldn't wait to get out to take some amazing photographs of the surroundings! Sure it got colder and colder, but it was only to snap a few pictures.

 

This was the line that supplies the electricity to Skagway. Bill said something about it freezing over in the winter! This Floridian wouldn't make it through one Skagway winter.

 

 

Getting more and more snowy!

 

So you can see the bus:

 

 

Wasn't expecting this much snow!

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

 

 

Going all white!

 

Canadian Immigration below. They come on the bus and you hold your passport next to you. Was easy and quick. On the way back, our bus driver knew U.S immigrations well and they didn't even bother coming on the bus.

 

 

Snow is a novelty to us....

 

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

 

All the scratches are from bears...but no bear sightings.

 

Starting to clear up a bit.... That is sun we see!

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

Great to pop into conversations in the future...have you been to the Yukon??

 

Looking back:

 

Bove Island

 

[aerospace]

Great pics keep going I'm taking notes :)

 

Wondering what there was to see in the Yukon besides snow/trees. I've done the summit tour so am thinking about taking the Yukon tour instead this time.

 

Maybe someone knows the difference between the 3.5hour and the 6 hour Yukon tour?

[kcbbq]

Thank you so much for taking the time to do such an in-depth review of your honeymoon!

 

What a fabulous adventure to launch your life-long adventure as a couple. May your days be many and filled with much love and lust for life!

[ucfalli]

Great pics keep going I'm taking notes :)

 

Wondering what there was to see in the Yukon besides snow/trees. I've done the summit tour so am thinking about taking the Yukon tour instead this time.

 

Maybe someone knows the difference between the 3.5hour and the 6 hour Yukon tour?

 

The drive is mostly scenic, bu looks completely different in the summer after the snow is gone. I really want to come back and see then as well. Also there is wildlife sightings. Non on this trip due to being so early in the season.

 

I know that the shorter tour with this company goes to where the Yukon sign is then heads back. I think where Emerald lake is about where you go to on the longer tour.

 

Going to hopefully get the rest of Skagway up tonight.

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

Next was a lunch stop. Lunch is included with the tour price. We stop at Caribou Crossing. Admission also included the museum (taxidermy animals) , an area with farm animals, and best of all... sled puppies! Given about 1.5 hrs here. The lunch was BBQ chicken, baked potato, and coleslaw. There was a vegetarian option. I don't know what it was. There was water on the tables and you had the option of coffee or hot tea. In the middle there was doughnuts and bread. Everything was yummy.

 

Heading to see the animals

 

 

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

David has been waiting all this trip to see the puppies!

 

Normally there about 50 dogs here. But due to the abnormal amount of snow still present on the ground, Michelle Phillips (the owner/Iditarod racer) was only about to bring 10 of them over for us. As you can guess the sled dog rides were not up and running yet. She was super friendly and we really enjoyed our time with the puppies.

 

 

Also a few nice horses were nearby and some goats.

The one furthest back is a "mounty" horse

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

More puppies!... wait isn't he suppose to be pulling the sled??

 

 

Patriotic Puppies

 

 

That is Michelle giving out the treats

 

That's an odd looking husky.... ;-)

 

This is normally where all the dogs are kept... their "houses" aren't out yet as well

 

David is ready to go!

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

Couple photos inside the Museum...they have a wholly mammoth!

 

This doesn't look good for this guy...

 

 

Back on the road.... so the bus driver asked if we wanted to still go and see Emerald Lake because it was still frozen. We voted yes, so we make a quick stop. If you squint real hard you can make out some "Emerald". Real shame since the photos in the summer are amazing looking.

 

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

The view of where we have been...still gorgeous

 

We then stopped at the Carcross Desert (aka the world's smallest desert). Not an actual desert. What remains is the ground rock from glaciers in the past that is now trapped by the mountains. The wind blows the sand into the dunes you see.

 

 

This was awesome to see this guy riding his motor cross bike. His dog was running after him.

 

In case you were wondering...there are bathroom out here. There were also some in the Tormented Valley. David used them....lets just say, they aren't cleaned out often. Avoid them at all costs.

Edited May 21, 2013 by ucfalli

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

We then stopped at the town of Carcross. Really nothing here. We did get to see a really pretty frozen lake. The local ATV on it, you just make out the tracks. They also just built some new tourist shops, but they weren't even open for the season yet. Only thing open was the coffee shop.

 

 

 

This is pretty much it

 

New tourist shop

 

Then back through all the snow! Goodbye sunshine....

 

Edited May 21, 2013 by ucfalli

[ucfalli]

Day 11: Skagway, Alaska Continued

 

 

So the driver/guide dropped those off in town who wanted to explore before heading back onto the boat. I think we were the only ones who headed back to the cruise port. Glad we saw the town in the morning. We were happy to get back to our room and take a hot shower.

Looks like the train just got back into town...and everybody wants to get aboard!

 

 

We saw the Mr. Skagway before dinner. He does a show on all the Carnival ships, not sure about other cruise lines. It's a one man show about the history of Alaska. I really enjoyed it. The show filled up, but not nearly as crowded as the other shows. I think everyone was tired from their day in Skagway. We also seemed to be the only ones to dress up.

 

I ate a lot of fish on this trip. It really was the only that really interested me most of the nights in the MDR. I believe this was the Norwegian Salmon? Funny how we are in Alaska and we are eating Atlantic and Norwegian Salmon on the menu...

 

 

Tonight there was a juggling/comedy act performed by Tyler Linkin. More emphasis on the comedy then the jugging. We enjoyed it. By chance afterwards, we went up to the lido to grab a cookie, instead we came upon the midnight Mexican buffet. Can someone please tell me how you know when it is?? It was not advertised in the Fun Times. Let me start this out with saying that I am not a huge Mexican food fan. But I hate Carnival's Mexican food. I don't know how they get it so wrong. Still we had to sample a few things :-)

 

The strawberry shortcake was yummy and I do really like this chips

 

How do you do?

 

[Bucky3]

Thanks for your wonderful review and great pictures - brings back lots of memories. We have pictures taken in many of the same places as yours! We've driven the road to Carcross a couple of times by rental car but never encountered the amount of snow we see in your pictures - even on one trip we did one year in mid-May! What wonderful memories you have captured with such detail. Wishing you many happy years together, and thanks so much for sharing your special honeymoon trip with us.

Edited May 21, 2013 by Bucky3

[ucfalli]

Thanks for your wonderful review and great pictures - brings back lots of memories. We have pictures taken in many of the same places as yours! We've driven the road to Carcross a couple of times by rental car but never encountered the amount of snow we see in your pictures - even on one trip we did one year in mid-May! What wonderful memories you have captured with such detail. Wishing you many happy years together, and thanks so much for sharing your special honeymoon trip with us.

 

I think it actually snowed the week before we were there. The locals said there was more snow on the ground then there usually is at that time of year.

I can't imagine driving that road in a rental car with all the ice on the ground....especially for a Floridian ;)

[Italy52]

Allison, again, many thanks for taking us all on your journey. Your review is absolutely wonderful and very much appreciated.

[ucfalli]

Day 12: Glacier Bay, Alaska

May 4th, 2013

 

So we woke early today, excited for Glacier Bay. We were to be the first boat of the season to enter the park. The night before a map of Glacier Bay was left in each stateroom.

 

I had a dreading feeling about the weather today. When I checked in Skagway things didn't look to promising. Unfortunately the weather didn't turn up great. Cloudy and rainy.

 

We decided to try room service for the first time this morning. Never tried it before since the options weren't very appealing to us. We however didn't want to miss anything in the morning (optimistic for the weather). We put out our slip the night before along with the time we wanted our breakfast delivered. The room service barely came within our requested time. I actually think it came a little late. We were honestly thinking of just going up to lido since we were getting really hungry.

 

We didn't really care for Carnival's room service breakfast. Wish you could get more then cereal, fruit, pastries, or yogurt.

 

This was our first view into Glacier Bay

 

Seeing how overcast it was, we decided to go up to lido to grab a little something else to eat. We also visited the ranger station. I believe the rangers were set up at around 7:30am. The rangers had set up into the covered pool area on lido.

Map detailing where we are going by the ranger station

 

 

 

Ranger station: Information and items for sale

 

We then went back up to our cabin to watch the changing scenery from the balcony. The ice really came out of no where.

 

 

 

[Keith1010]

Very nice. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.

 

Keith