Our 1-8 June excursions

[retiredAF]

We sailed on the NCL Pearl and I posted a review on the NCL site after our return this past weekend but now that the "post cruise fog" has cleared, I remembered that I learned so much from this board so wanted to post a quick review here as well.

Once again I say thanks to all of the knowledgeable posters that helped us make our excursion decisions. We had considered this a once in a life time trip but that sure has changed.. We had a great trip and still have so much to do and see.

Here is what we did in our ports:

Juneau: whale watch with Harv and Marv. Wonderful experience. Harv and Marv take a small boat of 6 passengers out. Our guide (Jay/aka Marv) was fabulous and very knowledgeable and we saw a number of whales as well as eagles and sea lions. His enthusiasm was great and it was really a "personal" experience. Jay's FIL picked us up at the port and on the way back stopped at Mendenhall Glacier where we were able to take pictures and walk around for 15 minutes or so. That was certainly an added bonus and a nice touch. We had a great time!

 

Skagway: We did the Packer Expedition heli-hike and train trip. Another fabulous experience. Chris was our helicopter pilot. I was so NERVOUS about the helicopter (not my thing but my dh really wanted to do it) and I must admit I did miss out on some of the fun of that part of the experience. I was so nervous that can't even remember if I said thanks when we landed. I am the camera person and I did not take one picture in the helicopter! My mistake for sure!! My dh LOVED the heli-copter ride! Our guides for the rest of the trip were Cory and Craig and it was us and a family of four for the hike. We thoroughly enjoyed this. We are no spring chickens but do like to hike but we live in a much flatter part of the country. This hike was great! We did see mountain goats but the only other wildlife exposure was lots of fresh "droppings" That was better then running in to a bear or moose to me :) Much of the hike was in the rain forest but as we got closer to the glacier, the difficulty did increase a bit but our guides made sure we were comfortable without pushing any of us too far. They encouraged us to make the most of our experience and while I am a complete "spass" and had a great time!!! Again, great guides who made the trip a great experience.Cory has lived in Alaska for a number of years and really knew his stuff. He really drew in the young boy on our hike which I am sure made the experience so much better for him. Craig was fairly new but very excited about what he was doing and we really enjoyed him as well. Great guides and great guys!

After we got back in to town, we went to the Skagway brewery and enjoyed a few Spruce Tip beers that we had learned about on our hike.. Interesting story and very enjoyable beer.

 

Ketchikan: We did the Bering Sea/Aleutian Ballard tour. DH is a BIG fan of the "Deadliest Catch" on Discovery. This was another very enjoyable trip and really did cater to families and groups of all ages. Derrick and Kiwi, the two primary guides, were very entertaining and great with the folks on board. Dave (captain) also bought us by an area with a large number of eagles and we had a great time watching them dive for fish and just fly around. It was great.

 

In Victoria we did not do a tour but walked around the city and had a nice meal and a few drinks in a local bar. It is a very picturesque city and the folks were great.

 

I think I covered what we did this trip and are already thinking about what we will do next time.. What a wonderful part of the country!