Our trip to Alaska beginning on July 16, 2019.

We traveled 3,452 miles and crossed a couple of time zones from Key West, Florida to Seattle, Washington to begin the adventure to Alaska via Oceania Cruise Lines!

Thank goodness for the excitement to check off another bucket list item! It created enough adrenaline to fuel us through our exhaustion and allowed us to overlook the crammed seats and craziness of scurrying through airports to make our connecting flights.

We literally live in a tropical paradise year-round…so that when it’s time for our adventures…we like to go photograph someplace with cooler temperatures and gorgeous scenery. Alaska definitely fit the bill for this summer’s trip!

Fort Zachary Taylor State Park ~ Key West, FL

Upon arrival in Seattle, we were greeted with a bright blue sky and a rather easy transition to the cruise terminal. The Oceania Cruise Line staff was an absolute joy to be welcomed by after such a long journey. They made the check-in and “All Aboard” process very smooth and comfortable!

As we disembarked and said our farewells to the Seattle Space Needle and headed north on the Pacific…the work of a photographer began! I had two cameras and my cell phone constantly snapping and filming. The smell of salt water and the view of the deep blue ocean were soothing and stunning. Instantly, we were searching the water line and horizon for whales and other potential sea life (which didn’t happen)!

Somewhere on the Pacific Ocean aboard Oceania Regatta. First night at sea!

First stop along the Inside Passage, on a very cloudy and eerie day, was Ketchikan, located on the western coast of Revillagigedo Island, near the southernmost boundary of Alaska.

Wow, if I could describe a scene right out of one of the Twilight movies, this would be it (in a good way). The clouds hung very low against the mountain ridges and appeared as if they were suspended by a string. It was damp and it was sprinkling off and on as we made our way ashore to begin exploring the area.

Our first excursion was supposed to be a scenic sea plane ride to see the Misty Fjords, located about 40 miles east of Ketchican, but due to the poor weather conditions, it was regrettably cancelled. We instantly tried to book a different sea plane for another attempt to get up in the air later in the day, but unfortunately, that too was cancelled.

Oceania Regatta anchored in Ketchican, AK.

Check this stop off as a “bust” for us as the skies didn’t clear up for a scenic air flight! We did however manage to go to lunch at The Cape Fox Lodge, set amidst the Tongass National Forest, and enjoyed some local, seafood cuisine and took in the gorgeous view of the cruise ships in the harbor. Their unique menu offered items such as reindeer sausage and bison burgers, but I wasn’t brave enough to try them!! LOL!

Once the heavy rain let up, I went onto the 10th Deck aboard the Oceania Regatta and was able to snap some great shots of local boats and sea plans as they dodged in and out of the harbor.

Next up was Juneau, named the capital of Alaska in 1906. We were both excited for this stop because we were scheduled to go on a highly anticipated whale watch. Upon arriving, we were greeted by a friendly crew aboard the Juneau Tours and Whale Watch. Lukas, Jessie, Jordan and Russel were fun and energetic as they conducted the safety speech and let us know what to potentially expect for the next few hours. Despite the wind and occasional rain, they didn’t disappoint! We were delighted to see magnificent whales off in the distance as they surfaced and plunged into their dives. Flame, Bunson, and a few others were their named favorites on the tour.

Coming back in from our whale watch tour ~ Juneau, AK

We extended our excursion to include a trip to see the Mendenhall Glacier, one of the most beautiful in North America. Once there, we decided to explore the one-mile hike on the Nugget Falls Trail to go see the gorgeous 377-foot waterfall that cascaded into the Mendenhall Lake. It was so worth it!

Walking the Nugget Falls Trail ~ Juneau, AK

Mendenhall Glacier ~ Mendenhall Lake ~ Nugget FallsJuneau, AK — Mendenhall Glacier ~ Mendenhall Lake ~ Nugget Falls
Juneau, AK

After a brisk 2 miles (in the wrong shoes), we managed to make it on time for our bus ride back to the cruise ship terminal. Unfortunately, as we were getting our fill of local information from the tour driver, our bus broke down on a busy roadway shortly after leaving the glacier park. No worries though, Juneau Tours and Whale Watch were super-fast in getting us back on our way in plenty of time! The experience gave us something to talk about and a quirky memory of our short time in Juneau!

Skagway was our next destination along the Inside Passage heading north. It was yet another dark, wet, and cloudy day. As we left the boat to go explore, we hit a local vendor selling tours of the area. Once again, we attempted to get on another scenic air adventure, but with no luck. Unfortunately, the weather was keeping everything grounded. We strolled through the deserted town between 8-9am, with most shops not yet open. It was a colorful town, but very, very small, hosting approximately 400 year-round residents.

We had an excursion scheduled for the White Pass and Yukon Route Railway/City Tour. We took a short van ride with our driver Ben to the railway station and ended up having less than 10 people sharing a vintage railway car with us. We were all able to spread out and pick a comfy seat for the train ride up to Fraser, British Columbia. This pass was built in 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush. The history in the trail was narrated over the loud speaker as we peered out the window and looked down to complete drop-offs on our left side. How explorers navigated on foot and with horses to clear the tracks in extreme weather conditions is beyond me.

White Pass & Yukon Route Railway ~ Skagway, AK

Fire Weed along the White Pass ~ Skagway, AK

Canadian Customs boarded the railway car in Fraser to verify passports and then we were released back to our driver to return to Skagway. Some chose to purchase a ticket to ride back down on the train, but we opted for the city tour excursion instead.

We departed British Columbia with extreme fog, going down steep slopes in the van. Ben, our diver, recited word-for-word the poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee, which was about two friends on the freezing-cold winter trip in the Yukon during the gold rush. Ben did an amazing job and kept our attention as we continued our decent down. We stopped off at a couple of spots along the way to take pictures of waterfalls and of the railway at designated scenic look-out points.

Upon arriving back in Skagway, we stopped at the Gold Rush Cemetery. The tombstones were old and worn, but we could still make out some of the names and dates etched in the stone. We were told to hike a little way over a foot bridge and up a trail to see yet another beautiful waterfall, The Lower Reid Falls. The 100ft stroll didn’t let us down.

View of Skagway from a look-out point…. There was recently a landslide to the left of the blue cruise ship.

Walking to The Lower Reid Falls ~ Skagway, AK

That was a wrap for Skagway and Part I of this blog post!

Overall, the cruising portion of this trip was smooth sailing! I believe it was on the 2nd day that we experience a little more “rolling” of the boat which caused quite a few of the passengers (including myself) to get a little queasy. The rest of the way north was absolutely fine though. The crew of Oceania Regatta were beyond amazing! The Grand Dining Room was our top choice for dinners most evenings with amazing servers, top of the line cuisine, and breathtaking views.

In Part II of the blog, I’ll be sharing our time in Icy Strait (Hoonah), Sitka, cruising the Outside Passage, and Victoria, British Columbia…along with some packing tips for cruising to Alaska.

Thank You!

~Heather

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