Our First Dam Ship: Amsterdam to Alaska Trip Review

[Steppy08]

Sweet southern delicacy

It was really peaceful at the lake. And once again, I was amazed at how clear the water was. Breathtaking. Steve and I traipsed around the perimeter of the lake and back for about 30 minutes before we realized the best picture taking spot was just to the right of where we came in.

 

 

 

Now, with all this talk of pretty streams and peaceful lakes comes a brutal reality. Which I knew about ahead of time but in one quick slip of the mind came back to haunt me. It is often said, half-jokingly, that Alaska's state bird is the mosquito. This is no lie. I knew that and had meant to pack some bug repellent before we left home. It was that one little thing I forgot, and boy did I pay dearly for it.

 

I am a sweet and juicy delicacy for mosquitoes around the world. Savannah, Jamaica, and now Alaska. We were dining outside in Jamaica and one landed on the MIDDLE OF MY FOREHEAD and took a huge chomp out of me! By the end of that dinner I looked like a unicorn. They don't touch Steve - he's obviously not as sweet as me. Not only does my personal chemistry attract mosquitoes, but I must be allergic to them as well because the bites swell up ridiculously and look deformed after 24 hours.

 

So knowing all this, I did not put ANY bug repellent on before our hikes. Why? Every last bit of me was covered with clothing, except for the tips of my fingers (my sleeves were extra long) and my face (even that was shielded by my jacket hood). If I had brought the repellent I would have used it, but I didn't think it would be an issue.

 

Except for the 3 1/2 minutes I was taking pictures up at the lake.

 

I got no less than FIVE bites on my left hand and THREE bites on my forehead (I had lowered my hood to see better). Moral of the story: take bug repellent.

 

Steve and I at Lower Dewey Lake.

 

We carefully hiked down by way of the reservoir and went into town, were we grabbed a quick drink and did some last minute shopping. Skagway Hardware was a really cool store (Steve needed camera batteries). They have a lot of the same souvenirs as the touristy stores but for less money. I should have bought my Alaskan flag and scrapbook stuff here - I did not find it cheaper anywhere the rest of the cruise.

 

We were pretty worn out by that point - it was about 3 or 4 in the afternoon - so we headed back to the ship for some R and R in the Thermal suite. We deserved it. As we were heading back, an old steam engine from the White Pass and Yukon RR was waiting outside town. Classic Skagway picture.

[superoma]

Great review. Eagerly awaiting for the rest of it.

 

We've done Alaska three times and were on the 14 day Amsterdam cruise last year.

[Steppy08]

Okay, I'm going to sleep - I will pick up with Juneau tomorrow. Find out if Steve and I have what it takes to kayak in 36 degree water with icebergs the size of our house floating close by... :p

[jer_l]

As the trail became more level, we heard streams of water rushing around and knew we were getting close to the lake. You have a couple choices here- you can hike around the lake, which isn't that far but the trail is extremely rough and slow going - or you can hike to Upper Dewey Lake which is a few hours away - or you can hang out in the flat parts of the trail, take a bunch of pictures, then hike down by way of the reservoir. We picked that last one. Actually we started going around the lake, but gave up about a quarter of the way around. It was too much like work.

I still remember the first time I hiked up to Lower Dewey Lake. It's been quite a few years. I did hike all the way around, but it was a beautiful sunny day. Since then I've hiked it three more times--twice up and back and once all the way around again. One of the things I found striking was the color of the water. I've also walked out to the cemetery with my (non-hiker) wife who has since forgiven me. She does like the cemetery and has read a dozen or so books on the history of Skagway, but she likes to ride out to the cemetery. Reid Falls is amazing!

As you discovered, there are many inexpensive options in Skagway. There is another hike (shorter and easier) to Pirate's Cove and Yakutania Point which is also worthwhile.

You are making me more anxious to get on the Amsterdam with each of your posts.

Edited July 13, 2013 by jer_l

[svalbard]

Last year in Glacier Bay I underwent your trauma of missing the pea soup. This year on the Zaandam I made sure I would get the soup. However I was disappointed that it was burnt-tasting. Disappointing. In past trips to Glacier Bay the soup has been great. Anyway, just wanted to let you know that there are other Pea Soup people out there. Your review is interesting and wonderful.

[mjfawkes]

Loving this review! We took our first cruise ever this May, Oosterdam to Alaska, and we are hooked. I thought maybe after the cruise I could stop obsessively reading CC's HAL forum but but now I crave HAL Alaska tales to keep me going until we can plan another one! Your cruise experience sounds just wonderful.

[Shining Clem]

Hi Amy & Steve-

We are just coming up for air after returning from the same cruise. Enjoying your reports!

 

A couple of comments/additions to your observations:

About the muster drill - HAL needs to upgrade their life jackets - putting them on over the head isn't the problem, but the miles of thin braid at the bottom where it goes around the waist & back is a disaster. At our station, the person demo'ing, got all tangled up in the excess line. No way would one be able to deal with that mess in the water, in an emergency, at night. Could easily strangle oneself too.

 

We too missed the pea soup-It's as if they are trying to keep the tradition alive, but barely so in this day of staff cut backs. In the past, they probably served it for an hour's time. Ten thirty would probably be a better hour, but would impact regular meal staffing too much. They also might serve it at regular meals occasionally.

 

As you know, we were at the Pinnacle Grill the same night you were. Just to let your fans know, despite the yellow cast of the lighting around your 'tuffet', you looked great with sparkles in your hair and eyes. Steve looked equally impressive. At that meal, we had the pleasure of being served by Sari, who managed to flambe our main courses without setting off the smoke detectors.

 

I'll be writing a report shortly too. Enjoying yours!

[erewhon]

Enjoying reading your fantastic review.

Thank you.

[spacepotatoes]

It's interesting how much the weather varies from one season to the next. We were on the Zuiderdam last July and there was a lot more snow everywhere than there seems to be in your photos. We couldn't get into Johns Hopkins inlet for the ice and there were no mosquitos yet as it was still too cold.

 

Sorry to hear about your bites, my DH always has reactions to them too. Not fun.

[RuthC]

About the muster drill - HAL needs to upgrade their life jackets - putting them on over the head isn't the problem, but the miles of thin braid at the bottom where it goes around the waist & back is a disaster. At our station, the person demo'ing, got all tangled up in the excess line. No way would one be able to deal with that mess in the water, in an emergency, at night. Could easily strangle oneself too.

As it happens, HAL has been upgrading the lifejackets to a kind that is put on more like a jacket, and the short straps are clicked together.

I'm surprised to read that the Amsterdam hasn't been changed to the newer ones yet.

[Steppy08]

I still remember the first time I hiked up to Lower Dewey Lake. It's been quite a few years. I did hike all the way around, but it was a beautiful sunny day. Since then I've hiked it three more times--twice up and back and once all the way around again. One of the things I found striking was the color of the water. I've also walked out to the cemetery with my (non-hiker) wife who has since forgiven me. She does like the cemetery and has read a dozen or so books on the history of Skagway, but she likes to ride out to the cemetery. Reid Falls is amazing!

As you discovered, there are many inexpensive options in Skagway. There is another hike (shorter and easier) to Pirate's Cove and Yakutania Point which is also worthwhile.

You are making me more anxious to get on the Amsterdam with each of your posts.

 

Too funny. I was really questioning Steve's judgment for "scenic hiking" as we were surrounded by the train depot and piles of dirt. If we had to do it over again I would rather take a ride out there and save my energy for better hikes.

 

Pirate's Cove and Yakutania Point were on our to-do list, and technically we had time after Dewey Lake, but we were exhausted and my hand was starting to swell and itch, so we called it a day.

[Steppy08]

Last year in Glacier Bay I underwent your trauma of missing the pea soup. This year on the Zaandam I made sure I would get the soup. However I was disappointed that it was burnt-tasting. Disappointing. In past trips to Glacier Bay the soup has been great. Anyway, just wanted to let you know that there are other Pea Soup people out there. Your review is interesting and wonderful.

 

You have no idea how happy your post makes me! I thought I was the only one! It seemed no one else was searching for the soup! I felt alone and dejected...

 

We should form a support group... Pea Soup Anonymous or something...

[Steppy08]

Hi Amy & Steve-

We are just coming up for air after returning from the same cruise. Enjoying your reports!

 

A couple of comments/additions to your observations:

About the muster drill - HAL needs to upgrade their life jackets - putting them on over the head isn't the problem, but the miles of thin braid at the bottom where it goes around the waist & back is a disaster. At our station, the person demo'ing, got all tangled up in the excess line. No way would one be able to deal with that mess in the water, in an emergency, at night. Could easily strangle oneself too.

 

We too missed the pea soup-It's as if they are trying to keep the tradition alive, but barely so in this day of staff cut backs. In the past, they probably served it for an hour's time. Ten thirty would probably be a better hour, but would impact regular meal staffing too much. They also might serve it at regular meals occasionally.

 

As you know, we were at the Pinnacle Grill the same night you were. Just to let your fans know, despite the yellow cast of the lighting around your 'tuffet', you looked great with sparkles in your hair and eyes. Steve looked equally impressive. At that meal, we had the pleasure of being served by Sari, who managed to flambe our main courses without setting off the smoke detectors.

 

I'll be writing a report shortly too. Enjoying yours!

 

Debby! So good to hear from you. And thank you so much for the lovely compliments.

 

You should join our support group for the Pea Soup. I agree, it's like they want to offer it but don't have the staffing to do it for any length of time. Steve and I agree as well about the life jackets... we watched the slender crew member wrap that strap around himself 4 times, with a knot here and then double back there... if the ship's going down I'm not going to remember any of that!

[Steppy08]

It's interesting how much the weather varies from one season to the next. We were on the Zuiderdam last July and there was a lot more snow everywhere than there seems to be in your photos. We couldn't get into Johns Hopkins inlet for the ice and there were no mosquitos yet as it was still too cold.

 

Sorry to hear about your bites, my DH always has reactions to them too. Not fun.

 

We were so happy to have had excellent weather for Glacier Bay. Apparently right now the Park Service is saying that there are an unusually high amount of humpback whales in the park, so good news for all of you lucky people that are cruising soon!

 

As for the mosquito bites - I found a great solution. In addition to not packing insect repellent, I also did not pack any type of anti-itch cream. So I suffered and itched and scratched for two days before a light bulb went off in my head. Benadryl - I always bring it along when we travel. I was desperately scratching one night before bed and popped two pills, not knowing if they would even work. Voila! The next morning the bites had retreated to half their previous size and were WAY less itchy. Not sure why I never thought of using Benadryl for mosquito bites before.

[Steppy08]

Yes, it's still raining...

We awoke to gray skies once more as we finished docking in Juneau. Again, we had a prime berth, the closest to town. Other ships in port that day were Radiance of the Seas (which we had seen in Vancouver and I believe was doing a Northbound itinerary), the Sapphire Princess (sans fog this time), and the Norwegian Jewel/Pearl. Yes, Jewel/Pearl. When we got there in the morning it was the Jewel. Mid-day we saw the Pearl coming in to the harbor, and weren't exactly sure where she was going to go... then the Jewel up and left, and the Pearl took her spot. If you hadn't been paying attention you would never know it was a different ship (they are identical, except in name and the colorful painting on their hulls). I'm pretty sure most people who are not into cruise ships and obsessed like us wouldn't even realize it.

 

We ate breakfast on our balcony again (sorry Lido lovers...) and watched the incessant stream of floatplanes land and take off. I think Steve could have spent all day out here watching planes, but alas we had bigger and better (and wetter) things to do.

 

Kayaking for Dummies

Again, Steve and I are not outdoorsy in real life, just vacation. We had kayaked in Cozumel and Jamaica in the ocean enough to know that it was an enjoyable activity for us. And not once did we flip over! So, in planning for this trip we thought we would try kayaking on Mendenhall Lake, up to the glacier. Steve found a small local company called Above And Beyond Alaska on the Alaska forums here and followed up on Trip Advisor, and booked us for a 3 hour self-guided kayak expedition. It was slightly cheaper than a similar excursion offered through HAL, and was promised to be longer. In his correspondence with the company, Steve was asked if we had any cold-water paddling experience. Uh, no. The lady seemed somewhat concerned, but offered us dry-suits for a little extra charge. We reserved them, not wanting to chance hypothermia.

 

Pittsburgh is famous for its three rivers, and a few years ago a company began renting kayaks downtown, right near PNC Park where the Pittsburgh Pirates (winning season so far!!!) play. Steve and I had been meaning to try out these kayaks for a few years, but had never gotten around to it. Now, with this kayaking excursion booked, we had some serious incentive. Flipping over your kayak at the beach in your bathing suit is just funny and maybe embarassing - doing so in 36 degree water in Alaska means a trip to the ER. So Steve and I diligently practiced kayaking twice - once in a large lake near our home, and once in downtown Pittsburgh on the Allegheny River. (Shameless plug - kayaking on the river was super fun if you like that sort of thing and are visiting Pittsburgh. We went up to the Point and around it. Great views of our city.)

 

So we met our guide from Above and Beyond Alaska (henceforth abbreviated ABAK) outside the cruise ship dock. After some initial confusion as to which people were going to which excursion, we ended up in a mini-van with Hannah from ABAK, a young couple from Victoria, B.C., and an older couple from Virginia (when I say older I mean my parents' age, probably late 50's). We drove out to the ABAK kayak shop, which was about a 20 minute ride. Hannah gave us some local information about Juneau as we drove. Once at the shop, we donned more outdoorsy gear - rain pants, rain boots, and life jackets - all provided by the tour company.

They didn't offer us the aforementioned dry-suits, or even mention that to any of us, so we let it go and made a mental note to mention it later. They also took a cell phone number from each couple (apparently Mendenhall lake gets excellent coverage) in case we needed to contact them I took one last picture with my phone before securing it a zip-lock bag in my jacket.

 

While all of this was happening, several of the young ladies who work at the shop were loading our kayaks onto a trailer and hitching it to the mini-van. We jumped back in the van and drove up to the launch point at the lake. It was maybe a 10 minute ride. We got out and then the guys in the group started helping Hannah unload the kayaks. I got a great picture of Steve looking like an expert kayaker along with the young man from Victoria.

 

 

And there, before our very eyes, was Mendenhall Lake. Misty and gray, but still quite pretty. There was a small little beach to launch kayaks, canoes, and rafts. You could see across the lake to an enormous waterfall that I didn't even know existed (Nugget Falls). And floating everywhere in the lake were mysterious and oddly shaped icebergs with a haunting blue glow.

 

Edited July 13, 2013 by Steppy08

[Steppy08]

If you fall in, you only have 5 minutes of fine motor skills left...

So, the kayaks were all lined up on the shore, and then Hannah launched into her instructions/safety lecture. The first thing she did was ask how experienced we all were with kayaking. Well, the couple from B.C. could have been an advertisement for L.L. Bean. They just looked outdoorsy and athletic. Plus they live in British Columbia, and I'm pretty sure you are required to be good at outdoor stuff if you live there. Steve and I admitted to never having cold-water kayaked before, but had a lot of warm water experience. The gentleman from the older couple bragged that he had done this about a dozen times before. Great. His wife didn't say anything... Hannah gave us a lecture about how to get back in the kayaks should we flip over, and that it would probably be best if we stayed together as a group in case we got in trouble. She then said, if we went into the water that hypothermia would set in after about 5 minutes and we should really try to get back in the kayak if possible. She put a laminated map of the lake, told us where to go and where to say away from, and loaded our kayaks with water and snacks for each person and some safety supplies.

 

The L.L. Bean Couple got themselves into their kayaks with the spray skirts and all, and pushed themselves into the lake. Steve and I waited for Hannah's expertise. She helped the Expert Kayaker and his wife into theirs next, and sent them off. We were last, and a final push and shove and a flip of the rudder and we were floating in Mendenhall Lake, right past a small chunk of ice.

 

Teamwork... or not...

That whole stay together idea didn't last long. The L.L. Bean Couple was way ahead of us already, and it was obvious they knew what they were doing. Their paddles were perfectly synchronized and they were moving quickly along the left shoreline. Expert Kayaker and his wife were another story altogether. It was painfully obvious that he had exaggerated his skills a bit, and his wife was a complete novice. (Hannah noted after she pushed them into the lake, and they had gone about 40 feet in, that the wife's oars were backwards...yikes). Their oars were mismatched and kept hitting each other, and he was having a difficult time steering the kayak with the rudder (because he almost ran into us a couple times.)

 

Steve and I quickly decided that there was no way we would get to the glacier in three hours if we hung around with Expert Kayaker. We made the decision to try and catch up with L.L. Bean Couple. It took a bit of getting used to... the kayak was slightly more unstable than those we had used in the past, and that combined with the constant fear of flipping over into cold water made for a few tense moments at first ("Stop leaning so much, we're going to tip!" "No, YOU'RE the one who's tipping it!")

 

But alas, we got into a rhythm and made a beeline for the point, stopping for some pictures of icebergs along the way. (We had safely secured our phones in favor of a moderately inexpensive waterproof camera at this point.) It was still raining steadily, and that fact combined with the fog and water itself led to less clarity in our pictures than we would have liked.

This was Steve's view for the entire trip, my back. Any picture taking created some instability in the kayak while we got the camera out of his pocket, so at first we didn't dare take too many pictures.

 

 

Mendenhall Glacier was up ahead, around that little penninsula.

 

The icebergs were absolutely stunning. Hannah had warned us against getting too close... apparently they can roll over (on top of you!) without much warning. So we kept a respectful but curious distance from them.

 

It was approximately 2.5 miles from our launch point to Mendenhall Glacier, and we managed to get to the glacier in about 45 minutes. We actually were the first kayak from our group to get there. (Note: we only saw one other kayak not with our group the entire time we were out on the lake.) L.L. Bean Couple got there just after us (we had cut across the lake and they had stayed closer to the shore)

[Steppy08]

Mendenhall Glacier

It was beautiful and misty and blue. I momentarily forgot about my fear of flipping over and took in the sight. We paddled towards the glacier, but not too close. Hannah warned to stay about 200 yards away from the glacier for safety. Mendenhall doesn't calve often, since it's not a tidewater glacier, but it does calve. In addition, she said that the glacier extends about 100 feet below the water line, and ice chunks can break off down there and float to the surface unexpectedly.

 

Again, the camera doesn't do it justice. Despite the mist and fog, we had a much better view of the glacier than you can tell from this picture. Now, before you go and say "Don't you wish you had a clear, sunny day for this trip?" I will stop you. Apparently when it's sunny and nice, the temperature differential between the air and the glacier creates powerful wind gusts that come off the glacier towards the lake. There can be 1-2 foot swells on the lake. Two weeks before our trip, Hannah had two clients that ended up in the water because of these winds (she had some fancy technical name for them that I can't remember). I was happy for mist and fog and flat calm water.

 

The only water that does get a bit rough is right in front of Nugget Falls. The sheer volume of water dumped into the lake by the waterfall causes waves in the area immediately in front of it. In retrospect, it wasn't nearly as bad as the wakes on the rivers in Pittsburgh when the boats go by, but then again the water in the Allegheny River is not 36 degrees...

 

L.L. Bean Couple passing in front of Nugget Falls.

 

We spent a few minutes more admiring the glacier, then turned towards Nugget Falls and went to explore the icebergs floating around the lake.

Right in front of Nugget Falls was an enormous iceberg that was probably larger than our house.

 

Note: to give this picture some perspective... that clump of stuff at the bottom right of Nugget Falls is a crowd of people on the shore.

 

We turned and heading along the shore to the visitor's center, then back towards the launch point on the other side of the lake. We took our time, we had only been out for about an hour and 15 minutes, and explored some of the icebergs bobbing around the shore.

[kazu]

Your review is just wonderful and such a good read - not to mention very picturesque. May I add my thanks for the enjoyment you are providing please:D

[Steppy08]

Wait, where did everyone go?

So at this point you may be wondering where Expert Kayaker and his wife went. Did they fall in? Did they run into an iceberg because of his expert steering ability? Well, we saw them briefly right after we rounded the bend and came up to the face of the glacier. At that point, his wife had just stopped trying to paddle at all and was sitting there while he both paddled and tried to steer. Hmmm. They could not have spent more than 5 minutes looking at the glacier before they disappeared completely. After we turned towards Nugget Falls and the huge iceberg we did not see them again. According to Expert Kayaker later after we came back to the shore, they saw the glacier and turned around and went right back to the launch point. Let me translate ...that's macho bravado speak for: "We realized that we were in way over our heads and I'm not nearly as good at this as I pretended to be, so instead of flipping our kayak we hightailed it back to dry land."

 

L.L. Bean Couple was about 30 yards ahead of us as we made our way leisurely back towards the launch point. They, like us, were exploring the icebergs. One in particular, in the middle of the lake, was very interesting.

 

We lovingly nicknamed this not so little guy "Bouldery"

 

Upon further inspection, Bouldery was defying gravity at every turn. From every angle we paddled to, it appeared more and more unstable. After admiring Bouldery for a bit, we turned towards the short and realized that we no longer could see L.L. Bean Couple, or in fact... the shore line. The fog and mist that had slowly rolled across the lake during our trip now permeated everything, and we were out in the middle of the lake by ourselves...

 

Edited July 13, 2013 by Steppy08

[scdreamer]

What a wonderful review! I am holding my breath for the novice couple :eek:.

 

I am really enjoying your descriptions and especially your take on everything.

 

We did a Celebrity cruise a few years ago - inside passage - and also kayaked. But not in quite as remote an area as you are doing. It was still pretty daunting to consider the ramifications of tipping and falling in, though. And it absolutely reinforced my dislike of double kayaks. I can even blue-water solo in cold water, but hate being at the mercy of anyone else's movements in a double. Was not exactly a great activity for fostering camaraderie with my husband :o

 

Looking forward to more from you!

[Steppy08]

All by myself...

A small wave of panic passed through me. Here we were, in the middle of a cold lake, by ourselves in Alaska, and the fog was closing in on us... and we are not wilderness experts! This was followed by my rational brain saying "You can still see landmarks and the island off shore that you passed on your way out here. Quiet down and enjoy this." Thankfully, I listened to my rational brain. Steve and I are pretty cool and collected most of the time. It takes a lot to get us upset. In both of our jobs we have to deal with crises and think on our feet all the time, as well as lead other people through difficult times. So when faced with adversity, we come up with plans and follow through, and avoid arm flailing and panic at all costs.

 

It was incredibly serene and quiet out there, so we did enjoy that aspect. We technically had over an hour left before Hannah came back to get us, but the recent disappearance of L.L. Bean Couple left us a bit uneasy. Did they know something we didn't? We made a plan to head back towards the launch point before visibility got any worse, but to do so at a moderate pace and still take pictures and enjoy our time on the lake.

 

 

So we headed back slowly, keeping certain landmarks in view and our direction towards the launch point.

 

Finally, we arrived safely back at the shore. L.L. Bean Couple and Expert Kayaker and Wife were there waiting for us. We still had 45 minutes before Hannah was to pick us up, but Expert Kayaker called her on his cell and told her that we were ready. I was a little disappointed to cut our trip short, but was content to be safe rather than sorry. We still had an amazing time on the lake. When Hannah came to pick us up about 10 minutes later, she was surprised that the lake had gotten so foggy. She said she had never seen it so bad. That was somewhat comforting. We piled into the mini-van and headed back to the ABAK shop.

 

Wet and hungry

We stripped off the rain pants and boots (my feet were completely dry and most of my legs were as well.) We left all of the equipment in the shack and got back into the mini-van for the drive back to the ship. Hannah was chatty on the way back, and gave us a little bit of local insight into Juneau and its relationship with cruise ship tourists. She said that unfortunately, a lot of the money generated by the ships does not stay in Juneau, especially the stores set up on the dock area by the cruise ships themselves. Most of the money leaves along with the workers during the off season. Even the large tour companies don't generate much local revenue, many are owned by outside companies that take most of the profits. So we were glad to support a local business with our trip. And we had a great time. Hannah suggested a local place called The Hangar for lunch, which was right at the end of the dock in front of the Amsterdam (this was already in our plans, as Steve had done his homework.) She dropped us and L.L.Bean Couple off at the Amsterdam (yes they were on our ship, but we never saw them again after that). We headed back to change and dry off before we got lunch.

 

[Steppy08]

I can even blue-water solo in cold water, but hate being at the mercy of anyone else's movements in a double. Was not exactly a great activity for fostering camaraderie with my husband :o

!

 

LOL! I could not agree more. I've only ever done a double kayak with Steve. But yes, there were a few terse moments and some yelling in front of the glacier!!! And we had practiced! I can only imagine what went on in Expert Kayaker's boat. I was shocked that they had found their way back. I bet they didn't enjoy it though.

[Steppy08]

Okay everyone, I need to eat lunch. And Steve is pouting because I'm writing this review and ignoring him... so I'm taking a break for a bit.

 

I'll be back! Cheers!

[PathfinderEss]

Keep it coming Steepy.:D

[serendipity1499]

Steppy08, Loving your review & pictures of Alaska on the Amsterdam our second favorite HAL ship...:):)

We retired early, DH from A.T. & T & me from the International Airline business in N.Y. & moved to sunny Fl...Had planned on getting a job when we moved here but was having too much fun with our Sailing club..;)

We've been to a lot of places all over the world, but had never been to Alaska...Like you, DH could not understand why I wanted to go to "Cold Alaska"...

 

On one of our South American cruises on the "Amsterdam" he even asked another Psgr., who had been to Alaska, if the glaciers of SA were very different than the glaciers of Alaska..She assured DH there were big differences, but he was not convinced..

In 2008 I fell down several steps during one of DH's chorus concerts & sprained both ankles..Had to be off my feet for a while & did a lot of reading.. Left some of HAL's Alaska brochures around the house..DH, feeling sorry for me, finally said "OK lets book a trip to Alaska"..I quickly booked it & we flew to Anchorage that Aug. for a 7 day land trip before boarding the "Veendam" in Seward for our cruise Southbound..HAL's land trips are just as exciting as their cruises..

DH was hooked & still talks about our Alaska land/cruise..This past January we sailed on the "Prinsendam" (my favorite HAL ship) to South America & Antarctica which was just as awesome!

If you ever go back to Alaska, think about taking one of HAL's land tours in conjunction with a cruise..Guarantee you won't regret it!

Thanks again for the memories...:):)Betty

Edited July 13, 2013 by serendipity1499