Destination: Alaska!

The number one bucket list destination in the United States right now is Alaska. In September 2018, Casey and I took a group to Alaska and spent 3 days on land and 7 days traveling on a cruise ship. If you decide to spend the money on an Alaskan adventure, we recommend you book both a land and sea expedition as we did—you will see so much more than you imagine.

Alaska by Land & Sea 2018: A Personal Account by Claire Hodgkin

Day 1:We flew into Fairbanks. It is a long trip from the East Coast. Most of the flights from the lower 48 to Fairbanks go out of Seattle. While in Fairbanks, we visited North Pole Alaska. Next to it is a reindeer farm. There was more to see, but we were short on time.

Day 2: The second day on land, we boarded a bus and went to Denali. It took about 3 hours to get there with one stop along the way. Because we were cruising with Holland America, our accommodations in Denali were at the Wilderness Lodge which is owned by Carnival Cruise Lines for their Holland America and Princess lines. We stayed in a 2 room bungalow with a bathroom and it was a short walk to the main building. In Denali, we went to see Alaskan Huskies being trained for the Iditarod. It is amazing how much the dogs want to pull the sled. They attached them to a snowmobile, and while they were in the process, the dogs were jumping and barking as if to say, “ Pick me, pick me!” That evening we went on a covered wagon ride to a dining lodge where we had dinner. The ride was along the base of the mountains and we got great views of the glacier deposits.

Day 3: Day three was probably one of the best travel days we have ever experienced. We boarded the Alaska Railroad train and rode from Denali to Anchorage. It was an 8 hour train ride. Most people who travel to Denali never see the top of Mount McKinley. It is too high into the clouds. 30% of people experience the view for a short time, but only 1% of the visitors to Denali see the entire mountain range on a clear day. Our day was clear for the entire trip. Not only did we see the top of Mount McKinley, we saw the entire snow covered range. We had lunch on the train, and there was a guide with us in the train car. The car has huge windows, so nothing is missed.

In Anchorage, we had time for a walk through the small city (You would probably call it a town.) After a light dinner, we were ready for bed. Sunday morning, we were up and on the bus to Seward to get on our cruise ship. The first part of the trip from Anchorage to Seward has spectacular views of Kenai Peninsula. There was a brief viewing of a whale. The bus driver told us all about the area including some of the folklore. The scenery on this route is incredible. Along the way, we stopped at a national forest area to see the salmon spawning. Once we got to Seward the bus driver drove us through town and delivered us to our ship. We were on board by 12:30PM, and the ship was not departing until 8PM. This gave us plenty of time to walk through Seward. There was a free shuttle that took us from the cruise port into town.

In Anchorage, we had time for a walk through the small city (though, you would probably call it a town.) After a light dinner, we were ready for bed. Sunday morning, we were up and on the bus to Seward to get on our cruise ship. The first part of the trip from Anchorage to Seward has spectacular views of Kenai Peninsula. There was a brief viewing of a whale. The bus driver told us all about the area including some of the folklore. The scenery on this route is incredible. Along the way, we stopped at a national forest area to see the salmon spawning. Once we got to Seward the bus driver drove us through town and delivered us to our ship. We were on board by 12:30PM, and the ship was not departing until 8PM. This gave us plenty of time to walk through Seward. There was a free shuttle that took us from the cruise port into town.

Day 5: Our first day was a day at sea, and we were happy to be able to sleep in. On Tuesday, our ship when into Glacier National Park (Holland America and Princess are the only cruise lines allowed in the park.) A couple of park rangers boarded the ship at 7:30AM. They narrated over the TV and PA system what we were seeing. The first sight was a large rock with sea lions. Then we came to the first glacier of the day. The ship parks in front of the glacier and slowly does a 360 degree turn, so everyone gets to see everything. You can hear the ice cracking before it splashes into the water. Our second glacier was called the Johns Hopkins Glacier, and the only time they can go down the fjord to it, is after the seals’ mating season. The mating season had just ended.

Day 6: Wednesday we were back on land. Our ship docked in Haines, Alaska. We took a ferry over to Skagway. Our excursion that day was the steam train to White Pass. It was built at the turn of the 20th century to take gold miners to the mines. The scenery was beautiful and vast. Once we got to White Pass, the engine was disconnected and a new engine was put on the back of the train. We were told to flip our seats over, and voila, we were facing in the direction that the train was moving. We walked through Skagway and visited some of the museums that told the story of the gold rush.

Day 7: Thursday, we went to Juneau. We got off the ship and walked through town to the Alaska State House. Juneau is accessible only by air or water. Since Alaska became a state in 1959, there isn’t a whole lot of history in their state house. After our walk we took the tram up the mountain. At the top there were 2 men carving totem poles. We also visited a nature building that had a lot of information on the animals and plants that grow in Alaska. On our way back to the tram, we stopped to visit with a bald eagle that is caged on site. Its wing was shot, so it cannot fly, and so they keep it in a large cage so people can interact with it.

Day 8: Ketchikan was our last stop. It rains about 290 days a year in Ketchikan. Guess what? It did not rain the day we were there! I was very happy about that because we took a canoe trip on a mountain lake. The highlight of this tour was when our guide took us to an area of the lake where we could hear our voices echo off the mountains. We stopped for a snack at a camp site that the tour company has just for that purpose. Our guide took us up onto a mountain trail and schooled us on how plants and trees grow in the mountains. It was truly a back to nature day.

Day 9: Saturday was our final day and again it was a sea day. We arrived in Vancouver very early Sunday morning. We stayed in Vancouver for 3 days, but that is a story for another post.

Alaska is definitely worth the trip! There are sights there that you will see no where else on earth.

So now that you're all excited about visiting Alaska, let'splan your trip!

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