Endicott Arm to Dawes Glacier

Today's schedule had us spending the morning sailing down Tracy Arm Fjord to see the South Sawyer Glacier...but that's not exactly how things went.

The Sun was scheduled to enter Tracy Arm around 5:30 am. We weren't up quite that early, but not long after. Norwegian provides coffee makers in the cabins and this was the perfect day to make use of it. I had brought along an insulated travel mug and enjoyed hot coffee all morning long. Bob (who is not a coffee drinker) just picked up hot chocolate packets from the buffet and used the coffee maker to heat the water. (He was not pleased that I forgot to remove the grounds from the coffee maker and proceeded to make his hot chocolate with weak "coffee water". Time for a re-do.)

The weather was cold, drizzly and overcast and I was so grateful that we had our balcony. I was in and out frequently and it was so nice to have a covered spot...with chairs...where we could watch the scenery. We were bundled up, but if we got chilly, we just popped inside and watched the scenery go by from inside the cabin until we warmed up.

One discovery I made on this cruise was that even with my phone in airplane mode, my Google Maps app would still show the location of our ship using GPS. I would check my phone and then refer to a large map (that I saved from our Princess Alaska cruise) to get a more precise idea of where we were. The map was hanging from our cabin wall with magnets...a discovery I made on a previous cruise! 

But anyway...using Google Maps I had already figured out we were doing a detour down Endicott Arm rather than Tracy Arm (even before this was announced by the cruise director.) This did not come as a surprise since I knew that ice often prevented ships from entering Tracy Arm...but still a disappointment.

Nevertheless, the scenery was spectacular!

The interesting shaped icebergs floating by were all shades of white and blue...and a landing spot for eagles! At one point we saw a whale, but on a moving ship it is hard to get photos unless you are very quick!

We passed by one glacier high up in the mountains and at the end of Endicott Arm we reached Dawes Glacier. Having not seen South Sawyer Glacier I am not able to compare, but in my opinion this glacier was pretty impressive. Unfortunately the lighting was not the best for photos.

Two small ships were also in Endicott Arm with us...the National Geographic Sea Lion and also the Alaskan Dream. I would love to see Alaska on a small cruise ship...but knowing I could take several cruises on a large ship for the same price is enough to keep me from following through with the dream.

The silt from the glacial runoff made the waters a milky greenish-blue color.

Sailing up Endicott Arm was only part of the day's plan...from there we were headed to Juneau where we would spend the afternoon and evening. 

Some photos of the beautiful scenery as we traveled towards Juneau...

Ketchikan

Click here for a Video of Our Day in Ketchikan

The passage into Ketchikan is really beautiful. The mountains off our port side balcony were just beginning to light up with the morning sun as we sailed in. 

And using the binoculars...or the zoom on my camera...we could get an up close look at Alaskan life.

This was going to be a SIX-ship day in Ketchikan! With a population of just over 8,000 it would be a day where the cruise ship passengers outnumbered locals by about 150%. Definitely a day where we knew it would be smart to have a plan...and that plan should be..."get outta town." 

Several of the other ships had already docked by the time the Sun got to Ketchikan and the float planes were whizzing past our ship like crazy. Kent & Laurel had room service deliver their breakfast and hustled off the ship as soon as we docked at 8:00. Their destination was the first Lumberjack Show of the morning.

Our morning was not quite so rushed. We had breakfast in the buffet and then got off the ship and started walking through town. We didn't need to be back at the ship until noon which gave us all morning to explore. Ketchikan is known for being one of the rainiest cities in Alaska with an average of over 150 inches of rain per year. But...our last visit was under sunshine and blue skies and this day looked to be no different. We were two for two!

The Norwegian Pearl was docked right next to the Sun and the Aleutian Ballad was there picking up passengers for the Bering Sea Crab Fisherman's tour. This vessel was featured on the TV show, Deadliest Catch, and now has been retrofitted to give tourists a glimpse into what life on a crab boat was like.

According to Ripley's Believe It or Not, this is the only tunnel that you can drive through, around and over. 

We made a stop in the visitor's center just long enough to grab a walking tour map and stop #1 was just outside...a sculpture called "The Rock" which depicts Ketchikan's first peoples and pioneers. In the background is the Holland America Oosterdam.

Across the street was the welcome arch. The first arch was erected in the early 1920's to welcome visitors on steamships arriving in the city.

Mostly we just looked in the windows of the shops we passed. There were definitely some items you wouldn't find in Caribbean port!

Bob did find one store that we needed to go into. It featured lots of NW Coast Indian carvings...and plenty of inspiration for him.

The Chief Ryan totem pole was located in Whale Park...along with some beautiful flowers.

We were too early, but in July, Ketchikan Creek would be filled with thousands of salmon.

From the boardwalk along Creek Street, a funicular will take you up the hill to the Cape Fox Lodge for $3 round trip...and that is exactly what we did!

The lodge has many pieces of Alaska native art on display inside...

...and also a collection of totem poles outside. 

There is a coffee shop and restaurant in the lobby, but we were just there to look at the artwork...and the fabulous view.

Bob chose to walk down the hill on the Married Man's Trail. In the early 1900's, this was a red-light area where "both men and salmon came upstream to spawn" and this trail was a quick exit route for spouses trying to avoid getting caught during police raids on the brothels. My knees weren't up to all of the steps so I took the easy way and went back down in the funicular.

With the crowds building and our time running short, we didn't spend much time on Creek Street. We needed to get back to the ship to get ready for our afternoon plans.

We went back to the ship, ate a quick lunch in the buffet and then got back off again to start our real adventure of the day. Kayaking!

Our ship was docked the furthest from town, but at least we were docked. A Celebrity ship was at anchor and tendering the passengers to shore. We talked to someone from the Celebrity ship later in the day and they joked that Celebrity was being punished because it was a Celebrity ship that ran into the dock last year, putting it out of commission for quite some time!

I booked our tour with Ketchikan Kayak Company back in October. I had contacted Devon, the owner, hoping to do our kayaking in the morning but was disappointed to find that tour was already full. I considered switching to a different company, but Devon sent me the tide table for our day in port and pointed out that by taking the noon tour we would be kayaking at low tide...the best time to see things along the shore. In the end the advice was spot on!

We met up with Kent & Laurel on the dock right by our ship and that is where Devon picked us up for the ride out to the kayaking location. The ride was about 15 minutes or so and gave us a chance to see some of the sights beyond the city. 

At the marina, we put on rain gear. I had bought a new pair of REI rain pants for the trip so I wore those and my North Face rain jacket. Bob had his own gear, but chose to wear what they provided instead. The weather was perfect, but as novice kayakers we needed the waterproof clothing to stay dry while paddling. Each of us was given a dry bag to store stuff like cameras that we wanted to have with us.

Devon gave us a safety briefing and then it was time to shimmy into the kayaks.

Although I worried about whether I could do the paddling, getting into and out of the kayaks was actually the most difficult part. We had double kayaks and Bob sat in the back where there was a foot controlled rudder for better maneuvering.

There were eight of us altogether on the tour but with two guides (Devon & Ryan) we got plenty of attention. Most of the time we were paddling along the shore looking at the marine life. 

Devon and Ryan collected some of the different species and let us have a chance to hold them. Not sure how these creatures survive out of the water, but with the tides rising and falling everyday they spend a good part of their lives clinging to the rocks.

Using my underwater camera, I took this photo of some sea cucumbers and urchins in the water...

Several times during the morning we saw seals playing nearby. Devon also had us paddle to a spot where a group of eagles were feeding on something. It was fun to see the large group with both mature and juveniles together.

On our first visit to Ketchikan in 2014 we did a flightseeing tour over Misty Fjords which was an amazing way to see the area. Had we not done that previously, I might have felt like we missed something by kayaking but with so many cruise ships in port, spending a day away from the crowds was perfect.

The sun was shining on our balcony as we sailed away from Ketchikan making it feel oh so warm. We grabbed a snack from the buffet and just enjoyed the time until the sun slipped behind the mountains and the temperature dropped suddenly!

The evening entertainment on the ship was Charles Peachock...a juggler. He had been on America's Got Talent and was featured in People magazine. The show was amazing! By going to the early show, we were able to enjoy a beautiful sunset as well!

Coming up next...a two part day!

Sea Day #2

Our 2nd sea day...a chance to recharge between the ports of Astoria and Ketchikan. Breakfast was at the buffet and then the guys took off to sign up for the shuffleboard tournament. I picked up the daily puzzles from the library and went back to the cabin and enjoyed a little of the quiet morning time I enjoy so much now that I am retired.

Eventually I went out and wandered around the ship and stopped for a short time to watch the guys playing shuffleboard.

At 10:00, Laurel and I stopped in the for "$10 Store Grand Opening"...which I'm sure happens EVERY. SINGLE. CRUISE. I was intrigued by the Bijoux Terner $10 store on our first Carnival cruise many, many years ago and started a tradition of buying a watch then and on several subsequent trips. Now my favorite source of cheap watches, jewlery, scarves, etc. is a sale put on by our local hospital auxiliary twice a year...where everything is $5. It is a win-win situation. I get twice as many pieces of junk now...and am supporting the auxiliary at the same time. :)

Following the shuffleboard tournament, the guys participated in a basketball free throw competition before we met for lunch. I suggested we eat in the main dining room rather than the buffet. On a sea day on a warm weather cruise, the lunch crowd would spread out from the buffet to the area around the Lido deck pool or to the Great Outdoors at the back of the ship. In Alaska, everyone was crammed into the Garden Cafe which was not large enough to accomodate that large of a crowd. The dining room experience takes far longer than eating in the buffet, but we were not in a rush.

One unique offering on this cruise was the opportunity to have a caricature drawing done. The artist, Jeff Mendell, did the drawing on a computer and it was projected onto a large screen as he worked. Once the digital drawing was complete, it was printed on a computer printer. While he was doing the caricatures, Jeff's wife was doing "Name Painting"...a combination of calligraphy and painting that would turn a name into a work of art. Together they were billed as "Names and Faces" and passengers could get one drawing from each free of charge! The duo were available for two hours in the afternoons on sea days.

We had watched the artist on the previous sea day, but didn't get there in time to have our portraits done. This time we arrived in the atrium a half an hour early and others were already there waiting. At 1:45, one of the entertainment staff started taking names and by the time the artist started drawing at 2 pm, there were no more slots left. 

While we were waiting for our turn, Laurel and I got in on a crazy game of "Elevator Roulette". The gal in charge divided the group playing into two different teams and we stood by the doors to the elevators in the Atrium. Each team would guess which elevator would arrive first...AND...how many people would be inside. Points were awarded accordingly. Prizes were not given out for these type of participation games during the cruise, but you could have a card signed saying you had played. At the end of the trip, they gave out prizes based on how often you participated.

Bob and I (and also Kent & Laurel) had our caricatures done separately and then combined together to make a single sketch.

Besides getting the printed photo on the cruise, Jeff Mandell has a website where you can download the photos he draws. Here is a link to all of the caricatures done during the week on our NCL Sun cruise. 

NCL Sun Caricatures

I was quite impressed at how well Jeff was able to portray each person's likeness...and how quickly he could draw! 

At 6:30, we went for our 2nd speciality dinner booked as part of our booking promotion. This time it was at Cagney's...a steakhouse. I photographed the menu which was displayed on the wall of the buffet...and then Bob and I studied it ahead of time.  ;)

Our meal was D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S...and the steak was probably some of the most tender I have ever eaten!

Our evening entertainment was a show put on by the singers and dancers..."What the World Needs Now" featuring the music of Burt Bacharach. Such talented performers...and have I mentioned how much I loved having the live music of the show band?

The days were getting longer as we sailed north. The evening sunset wasn't the most spectacular, but we were appreciating the relatively calmer waters...