Juneau and Un-Cruise Adventure

Up at 3.45am to catch a flight to Juneau. The rain has arrived - they did say this is a wet place. Had a wander around Juneau which is a really nice town albeit a bit touristy, then headed out to Mildenhall for a walk to see the glacier & waterfall.

King Crab & chowder for lunch in Juneau

Next stop, our briefing for the cruise then "all aboard" the good ship "Safari Endeavour" with the 81 other passengers. Our cabin is small but cosy with nice big windows. The crew (36 in all) & passengers are all friendly & life is good. The cruise takes us on a circuit which takes in Glacier Bay National Park, Icy strait, Chatham Strait, Endicott Arm, Fords Terror & more. The itinerary is subject to change according to weather (mainly wind since the liquid sunshine (rain) is ever present). We enjoyed bush walks ashore, kayaking, skiff (rubber duckie) runs into remote coves, yoga, massage & hot tubs on board. We have seen orca's, glaciers & ice bergs up close, waterfalls, puffins, 15,000 foot mountains dropping straight into the fjords with mountain goats & dall sheep clinging to the rugged cliffs, seals, sea lions, otters, grizzly's, bald eagles by the dozen, salmon by the hundreds, massive star fish & jellyfish and, of course, humpback whales by the dozen. The trees (hemlocks & spruce predominantly), mosses, lichens, fungi are wonderful.

Bartlett Cove walk

Bartlett Cove walk

John Hopkins glacier

Glacier Bay

The food is top class & we have qualified environmentalists, a marine biologist & a bunch of passionate & enthusiastic guides aboard (plus visits from a ranger & some whale researchers). Weather is a little damp (we are told this is normal). Wow! What a week (insert multiple superlatives here).

Beartrack Cove

Kayaking in Beartrack Cove

Steller Sea Lions

Inian Islands

And did I mention the rain? Rain coat, water proof pants &  Alaskan sandshoes (gumboots) are the norm around here.

Muskeg - Inian Islands

Bushwacking - Inian Islands

Tokatz Bay - Baranof Island

Bald eagle

Bushwacking - Port Houghton

Dawes Glacier

Endicott Arm

After a fond farewell & exchange of addresses we disembarked after an amazing week. With a day to kill in Juneau we headed up the tram car to the lookout then did a 3.5 hour walk to Gold Ridge with stunning views over Juneau, the mountains & fjords.

Gold Ridge walk Juneau

Another early start tomorrow as we head for the Yukon.