Zuiderdam Alaska Inside Passage Cruise 31 May 2014 Departure Part 4

[Delbankin]

After Skagway our next stops were Glacier Bay and Ketchikan. One of the reasons we chose HAL and Zuiderdam in particular was the opportunity for close up glacier viewing as it was the only itinerary that offered Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay.

 

After breakfast we returned to our balcony to begin to enjoy the approaches to Glacier Bay. As expected, the scenery was spectacular. As we approached the main glaciers we decided to go on deck so as not to miss anything. The sun was shining and conditions were perfect.

 

As has been documented by others the main viewing is of John Hopkins Glacier and Margerie Glacier. Without doubt Margerie Glacier is the most spectacular.

 

We approached just as another ship was leaving the viewing area. We couldn't believe how close the ship managed to get to view the glacier. We spent a couple of hours viewing the glacier and the ship did a 360 to allow people at both sides to get a view.

 

We were lucky enough to see the glacier calving however we didn't witness anything particularly spectacular but it did appear from the face that there had been some fairly recent significant calving taking place. That said the sound from even smaller pieces of ice breaking away is something to behold. The height and depth of the glacier is quite amazing.

 

As mentioned, the weather was very kind and it was quite amazing how much the temperature rose if we moved away from the rail. It was fairly chilly looking over the rail at the glacier but was warm enough to sit comfortably on a sun lounger when moving a few yards away.

 

Despite it not being long after we had breakfast we made a point of getting the full HAL experience of Glacier Bay by partaking of the green pea soup. Essentially it seemed to be pea and ham soup and was quite tasty albeit a little salty for our tastes. We found it by hunting it down in the Crow's nest somewhere between 10 and 11am if I'm not mistaken.

 

All in all this was one of the best experiences of our trip to see the magnificent glaciers in relatively close up detail. Many people with a far greater grasp of words then me have described this before and I can confirm it is worth every moment.

 

The following day we landed in Ketchikan. Originally we did not have anything planned for Ketchikan but as we were scheduled to be there from 10am - 6pm and we had visions of Ketchikan being like Skagway we had booked an excursion a couple of days before.

 

We didn't want to book anything particularly demanding so decided to go for the Saxman Village tour. We decided against the lumberjack show add on as we were due to spend a few days post cruise in Vancouver and were going to visit Grouse Mountain which had a lumberjack show included.

 

The Saxman Village was relatively close and a short ride in a coach. Despite having done the trip on a good number of occasions the driver managed to drive past the entrance. We had to turn round and go back.

 

The trip consisted of a short video of the native Tlingit history and then a visit to a timber built Clan house which was finished with ornate painted murals on the end wall facing the sea. Inside the house we witnessed a short talk on the customs and then some native dancing with representatives of all ages. At the end, members of the audience were invited up to participate. It was both interesting and fun.

 

After the show we exited to visit the Totem poles in the grounds (apparently one of the largest collections of totem poles in the world) and learn about the history and explanations of the various animals etc exhibited on the carvings. We then visited one of the workshops and were lucky enough to see one of the master carvers at work - Nathan Jackson. Although he didn't do too much when we were there it was fascinating to see some of the work he had produced, both carvings and jewellery.

 

Our group did get the opportunity to ask questions of Mr Jackson but as with most masters of their craft he was fairly dour and didn't seem too keen to participate. Nevertheless he did answer some questions and it was fascinating to see and to hear how much carvings could be commissioned for if a master carver was engaged to do the work.

 

After the carving area we had the obligatory visit to the souvenir shop within the Village. At that point we concluded that the Saxman Village must be quite a money spinner. There were a good number of coaches there and if multiplying the number of people by the cost of the tour it would be quite a lucrative extra source of income for the village. After the tour we boarded the bus and took the short trip back to town.

 

We found Ketchikan to be quite a lively place and probably one of our favourite towns visited. We enjoyed the walk round Creek Street which is the area built on stilts with the history of the red light district and the famous Dolly's house. Tours of Dolly's are available but we decided to give that a miss. This is a fascinating little area filled with local craft shops and souvenir outlets. There is also a small funicular railway which rises from the Creek Street area to the higher part of town.

 

We bumped into some folks we had spent some time in the company of earlier in the trip whilst sampling some local Alaskan beer and they had taken the Misty Fjords tour which by all accounts lasted a couple of hours. They were very enthusiastic about the trip and said the plane landed in the fjord which allowed them to step out on the the plane floats and that some of the scenery on the trip was quite amazing. It sounds like this is to be recommended.

 

Although we enjoyed Ketchikan, like other stops on the cruise, there is so much time in port that alternative excursions are almost essential to get the benefit of what each has to offer. All in all a very enjoyable day.

 

In future posts we will give some views on what the ship had to offer. We will also give a brief summary of our 3 day post cruise visit to Vancouver. Hopefully these will be of some interest.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for the wonderful report.

Glacier Bay is great.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your report.

[madera1]

Thank you for sharing.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[erewhon]

Thanks for your report.

[Delbankin]

Despite using the various boards over the years I've just realised over 200 people have read my latest review which makes it worthwhile. It is nice when people acknowledge a posting (albeit a much smaller amount!) and makes me more inclined to say thanks to others who's reviews I read and who take the trouble to post reviews and thoughts of cruises they have taken. My next post will probably be the last relating to our recent trip and will include thoughts and reflections on our first HAL cruise.