Walking Vancouver

Yesterday (Monday) morning we made our final pass at the all you can eat bacon on the breakfast buffet and disembarked in Vancouver.  It was a great cruise with some more great memories created, as well as some new friendships forged along the way.  We hope British Air is back up and running smoothly for Derrick and Flora and that Chris and Joan enjoy their time in San Francisco before they head back to England.
Our hotel here in Vancouver is the Hyatt (Hotwire) which is just a few blocks from the cruise terminal so it was an easy walk to reach.  Fortunately even though it was only around 8:00 AM they had a room ready so we were able to go ahead and check in before heading out for the day.  Vancouver is nicknamed "Rain City".  It's a well earned nickname since they average close to 45 inches of rain per year and are coming off one of their wettest winters in history.  However we were greeted with blue skies and temperatures in the 70's (it is raining a little today).  So we did what we like to do which is take off by foot and walk, and walk, and walk, and walk! 
We were on the streets around 9:00 and not back until close to 7:00.  Through town, across the Burrard Bridge, through the Kitsilano neighborhood to Kitsilano and Wilderness Beach, along the sea wall to Granville Island, a short ferry ride across the inlet back to the city and then around the Stanley Park Sea Wall.  We're not sure of the exact distance but somewhere in the 16-18 mile range.  A long walk but a lot of nice benches along the way!
Spending that much time walking there is a lot of time for conversation.  One topic along the way was favorite international cities.  I suggested we come up with a top five but were never able to whittle the list down to just five.  If we would have, Vancouver would have been near the top of the list.  It combines friendly people with beautiful coastlines, mountains, great food, and pedestrian friendly walkways through town and along the waterfront.
http://granvilleisland.com/public-market
http://granvilleisland.com/
http://covapp.vancouver.ca/parkfinder/parkdetail.aspx?inparkid=112
http://vancouver.ca/parks-recreation-culture/stanley-park.aspx
Even though it was a Monday the weather brought out a lot of beach goers, walkers and bikers so the people watching was as entertaining as ever. We also enjoyed watching the ships coming in and out of the harbor at Burrard Inlet, spotted several seals and had an eagle land on a group of rocks no more than 20-30 yards away from us.  As we finished up the day we sat on a bench and watched as the Norwegian Sun, which had been our home for the past two weeks, made it's way out towards the Pacific Ocean with a new load of passengers heading for Alaska and hopefully a fresh supply of bacon!

Wilderness Beach-Behind me is a tree trunk that washed up on the beach, it's huge!

Vancouver skyline from Kitsilano Beach

Not a good day of sailing for someone!

Coal Harbor Marina

Granville Island Public Market

From Vancouver with Granville Island and Granville Bridge in the background

Siwash Rock in Stanley Park

Along the Sea Wall Walkway in Stanley Park.  Lions Gate Bridge in the Background

Totem Poles in Stanley Park

Vancouver skyline from Stanley Park near Brockton Point

Hopefully they restocked the bacon!

Alcohol was probably involved-reposted

This blog was originally posted on Saturday, May 27.  I tried to get fancy and write it in notes on my iphone and then cut and paste it into the blog............it didn't work so well!


The last few days have included an attempt to view the Hubbard Glacier, our final Alaskan port, Sitka and our first Canadian Port, Prince Rupert Island.
Weather wise we've had a pretty mixed bag.  We were not able to get up to the Hubbard Glacier due to dense fog/drizzle combined with heavy ice in the inlet.  It would have been nice to get up close but not at the risk of us being the modern day version of Titanic.  I'm glad the weather cooperated earlier when we visited Glacier Bay, especially since seeing the glaciers were high on the list of so many people we've visited with over the past twelve days.
Sitka is a town of around 9,000 people which is fairly large by Alaska standards.  Sitka we heard was the largest city in the US.........by land mass.  Now I was always told the largest city by land mass was Jacksonville, Fl.  I guess I'm going to have to do a little fact checking when I have internet.  I'll let you know what I find.
Our weather up in Sitka was a slight upgrade over the Hubbard Glacier weather.  We had a little chill in the air, some drizzle and fog but not enough to cause any disruption in our plans, especially since we didn't have anything specific on the agenda.
Having visited Sitka before we knew we were surrounded by snow capped mountains.  They weren't visible because of the low hanging fog.  This fog gave everything a different look which was pretty interesting as well.
After walking around the downtown which is far less "touristy" than most we visited the Sitka National Historic Park.  We listened to a woodcarver who was a member of the Tlingit (pronounced Clink-it) tribe share a fascinating story on the meaning of one of the totem poles on display.  The park is full of trails through a dense forest which served as a natural canopy from the drizzle.
Once we returned to the ship we were treated to a great show.  Just off the back of the ship we saw a full grown sea lion (they can get up to 2000 pounds) with a large fish in its mouth.  I'm not sure if he was trying to kill the fish or tear it into smaller pieces but he was shaking it like crazy from side to side.  The fish slipped out of his mouth and landed about 10 yards away.  As he lazily swam over to it an eagle swooped down, grabbed the fish and was gone.  It was a thrill for us.  A meal for the eagle. There are more fish in the sea for the sea lion.  The real loser in this National Geographic moment was this particular fish who at great personal sacrifice played a key role in the event!
The sunshine returned yesterday for our visit to Prince Rupert Island.  This was our first visit to this city on the northwest coast of British Columbia.  Even though it was our first visit we didn't actually discover it.  They have found evidence that the area has been inhabited for around 10.000 years.  The towns biggest industries are related to the port and mainly focus on shipping and fishing instead of tourism.  We roamed the sleepy downtown a bit before heading back into the neighborhoods in search of the McClymont Park Trail which followed Hays Creek down to the seaside.
Once we got tot the port area we stopped in a small pub with outdoor seating overlooking a marina and the harbor.  The sun was shining, the birds were chirping and we were enjoying a beverage and snack when suddenly we heard the shrill scream of a woman "help", man overboard"!  We looked up and sure enough a guy had fallen overboard from a commercial fishing boat tied to the dock.  He was able to swim around the boat to the dock and hold on patiently while they found a ladder for him to climb up.  After climbing out of the water  the possible cause of the fall was still floating near the boat.  I'm making a few assumptions here but it looked like a can of beer to me and I'm betting it since it was late in the day it wasn't his first.
Just out of curiosity I check the water temperature.........it was a chilly 51 degrees.  Yikes, I'll bet that was a sobering experience!


The pictures below also include some from earlier in the week (Hubbard Glacier, Skagway & Yukon Pass and Icy Strait Point.


Also, I just looked it up.  Jacksonville is the largest city by area in the lower 48.  Four Alaskan cities are larger than it and Sitka is the largest!  Everyone can sleep easier tonight with that mystery solved!
https://factualfacts.com/us-largest-cities/

Bear #1 Yukon Pass

Hubbard Glacier

Emerald Lake-Yukon Pass

Bear #2 Yukon Pass

Yukon Pass

Icy Strait Point

Humpback Whale-Icy Strait Point

Prince Rupert Island

Sunken Garden Prince Rupert Island

Marina Prince Rupert Island-Site of the "Man Overboard"!

We almost did it last night!

No, I really didn't create some magic in the last post to make it simulate Alaskan fog although I appreciate my sister in law Debbie thinking I'm that smart.  For some reason it didn't post correctly (hopefully this one does).  I'll work on correcting it in the next couple of days once we're back on land.
Today is our last full day of the cruise and it's been awesome.  We are in Nanaimo, Canada which is located on Vancouver Island.  We've had a cloudless day and temperatures close to 80 degrees. 
Nanaimo is known as the "Harbor City" and after exploring it by foot and kayak I feel it certainly lives up to it's name "Harbor City"..  We were off the ship early and took off on a hike along the waterfront that took us down about 3.5 miles.  We came across a kayak rental that looked inviting so we rented a kayak for an hour and enjoyed exploring the rocky shoreline of New Castle Island.  Along the way we spotted several seals who seemed to enjoy looking at us as much as we enjoyed looking at them.  There were also several raccoons along the shoreline.  It's always a nice and rare treat to see actual living raccoons instead of those typically seen along the side of the road.
A great way to wrap up a great cruise!
Now about last night.............we really did almost do it.  Just another 30 minutes or so and we would have stayed up until dark.  Now don't think poorly of us, keep in mind it doesn't get dark up here until after 10:00 PM. 

She didn't know I wasn't paddling!

Nanaimo Waterfront Path



Along the Waterfront Trail

A great cruising and kayaking partner!

Alcohol was probably involved!

The last few days have included  an attempt to view the Hubbard Glacier, our final Alaskan port, Sitka and our first Canadian port, Prince Rupert Island. 

Weather wise we've had a pretty mixed bag. We were not able to get up to the Hubbard Glacier due to a dense fog/drizzle combined with heavy ice  in the inlet. It would have been nice to get up close but not at the risk of us being the modern day version of Titanic. I'm glad the weather cooperated earlier when we visited Glacier Bay, especially since seeing the glaciers were high on the list of so many people we've visited with over the past twelve days. 

Sitka is a town of around 9,000 people which is fairly large by Alaska standards. Sitka we heard was the largest city in the US....by land mass. Now I was always told the largest city by land mass was Jacksonville, Fl. I guess I'm going to have to do a little fact checking when I have internet. I'll let you know what I find. 

Our weather in Sitka was a slight upgrade over the Hubbard Glacier weather. We had a little chill in the air, some drizzle and fog but not enough to cause any disruption in our plans, especially since we really didn't have anything specific on the agenda. 

Having visited Sitka before we knew we were surrounded by snow capped mountains. They weren't visible because of the low hanging fog. This fog gave everything a different look which was pretty interesting as well. 

After walking around downtown which is far less "touristy" than most we visited the Sitka National Historical Park. We listened to a woodcarver who was a member of the Tlingit (pronounced "clink-it") tribe share a fascinating story on the meaning of one of the totem poles on display. The park is full of trails through a dense forest which served as a natural canopy from the drizzle. 

Once we returned to the ship we were treated to a great show. Just off the back of the ship we saw a full grown sea lion (they can get up to 2000 pounds) with a large fish in his mouth. I'm not sure if he was trying to kill the fish or tear it into smaller pieces but he was shaking it like crazy from side to side.  The fish slipped out of his mouth and landed about ten yards away. As he lazily swam over to it an eagle swooped down, grabbed the fish and was gone.  It was a thrill for us.  A meal for the eagle. There are more fish in the sea for the sea lion. The real loser in this National Geographic moment was that particular fish who at great personal sacrifice played a key role in this event!

The sunshine returned yesterday for our visit to Prince Rupert Island. This was our first visit to this city on the northwest coast of British Columbia. Even though it was our first visit we didn't actually discover it. They have found evidence that the area has been inhabited for around 10,000 years.  The towns biggest industries are related to the port and mainly focus on shipping and fishing instead of tourism. We roamed the sleepy downtown a bit before heading back into the neighborhoods in search of the McClymont Park Trail which followed Hays Creek down to the seaside. 

Once we got down to the port area we stopped in a small pub with outdoor seating overlooking a marina and the harbor.  The sun was shining, the birds were chirping and we were enjoying a beverage and snack when suddenly we heard the shrill scream of a woman "help!", "man overboard!".  We looked up and sure enough a guy had fallen overboard from a commercial fishing boat tied to the dock. He was able to swim around to the dock and hold on patiently while they found a ladder for him to climb up. After climbing out of the water the possible cause of the fall was still floating near the boat. I'm making a few assumptions here but it looked like a beer can to me and I'm betting since it was late in the day that it wasn't his first. 

Just out of curiosity I checked the water temperature......it was a chilly 51 degrees.  Yikes, I'll bet that was a sobering experience!

Bear #1  Yukon Pass

Yukon Pass Drive from Sitka

Yukon Pass

Bear #2 Yukon Pass

Yukon Pass

Icy Strait Point

Whales near Icy Strait Point

Hayes Creek Trail-Prince Rupert Island

Prince Rupert Island-Site of the "Man Overboard"

Glaciers, Bears and Whales

Over the last three days we've been to Glacier Bay and Skagway and today we're at Icy Strait Point. I shared this story last year but I'm sitting here again chuckling that the US paid Russia a whopping $7.2 million for this place. I've never done the math but have been told that it works out to around 2 cents per acre. Not a bad deal!  Although at the time I understand there was a lot of criticism that Sec. of State Seward had way overpaid for "nothing but frozen wasteland".  I guess he got the last laugh and there is even a city named for him up here.
There are numerous glaciers in Glacier Bay, hence the name. But the star attraction is the Margerie Glacier which is over 20 miles long, close to a mile wide and over 300 feet tall.  It's quite a site to see and even more impressive when it is calving and tons of ice are falling into the water.   It makes sounds like cannons going off that echo through the mountains long after the ice has fallen.
The attached youtube may give you some idea of what it's like to be up close to the action.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7OaRzo3lHU
After Glacier Bay we were off to Skagway where we had a nice long day in port.  We arrived before 8:00 AM and weren't scheduled to leave until 9:00 PM.  Skagway is a nice little Alaskan town with just over 1,000 permanent residents.  We had been there several times previously and really enjoy roaming around on the wooden sidewalks of downtown.  However, we took advantage of the long day and rented a car to explore a little further out of town.  In just a few miles we crossed over the US/Canadian border into British Columbia and shortly thereafter had left the Providence of British Columbia for the Yukon Territory.  The drive was over a snowy pass and past lakes that were still covered with ice.  Around every bend it seemed as if there was something amazing to see.  As impressive as the scenery was along the drive the highlight was seeing two bears.  In both cases they were just off the road feeding on berries and grasses.  Making it more fun was the fact we pretty much had them to ourselves.  The roads weren't crowded so we were able to just sit and enjoy them until they decided to ramble back into the woods.  We put about 230 miles on the rental car in one day.  It was 230 miles of magic. 
Today we are in Icy Strait Point and today is "Whale Day"!  As I am writing this there is a pod of 6 or so huge humpback whales out in the bay sometimes no more than 100 yards offshore.  They cruise along for a bit on the surface so close you can hear them blowing air through their blow hole.  We've even seen them "Bubble Feeding" several times.  This is where they do a deep dive and shoot straight up to the surface with their mouths open taking in all the unsuspecting small herring and other fish they can take in.  It looks very similar to some of the cruise passengers on the ship passing by the buffet.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_net_feeding
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJvfjiCTvq4
Internet is a little slow up here and my pictures of the glaciers, bears and whales are not downloading.  I do have them and will get them up as soon as possible.  In the meantime here are a few more pictures from Tracy Arm Fjord.

Amazing Alaska!

To the best of our recollections this is my seventh and Beth's eighth trip to Alaska. Three of my visits were "land only" mainly in the Anchorage/Denali area and four have been cruises. Beth is one up on me because she, her sisters and her mom did a cruise as one of their numerous and infamous "old lady trips".  I didn't meet the criteria for that one!
So here we are on Day 6 of this 14 day adventure and I'm reminded of why we keep coming back. It's all about the scenery!  Astoria, Oregon which is located at the mouth of the Columbia River was our first stop and a great primer for Alaska. There is a great coastal hike that passes numerous old salmon canneries as well as a pier area with hundreds of huge, constantly barking sea lions. Yesterday we were sitting in Ketchikan under a cloudless sky, snow capped mountains in the background and eagles flying effortlessly over the ship. Earlier today we were gliding along in the Tracy Arm Fjord passing icebergs, some that were serving as temporary resting places for seals.  There were too many waterfalls coming off the sheer mountains to count and occasionally the surface of the water would be broken by a whale coming up for a breath of some of the coolest, freshest air on the planet. After cruising the fjord we're now sitting in Juneau. Funny thing about Juneau, it's the capital of Alaska but there are no roads in or out of here. The only way in or out is by plane or boat. Just think about how much better off we'd be if there was no way in or out of D.C.
One of the best things about this trip so far?  It's not even half over!
More pictures later!

Mothers Day (#2) in San Francisco

I hope everyone especially all the mothers out there had a great Mothers Day.  Back when we were in the UK we had the English version of Mothers Day one Sunday so today was Mothers Day #2 for Beth this year.  We were sharing that story with some folks we were talking to in the hotel lobby earlier today and they told us that they had enjoyed three Mother's Day celebrations this year.  One while they were in the UK, another while they were in the Canary Islands a few weeks later and then today's here in the US.  For all the great things they do there can't be too many Mothers Days.
We got to San Francisco just before dark on Saturday evening.  It had been a long but fun day exploring Monterey, Pebble Beach and Big Sur Village and we were pretty whipped.  After a little friendly chatting with a very nice young man at the hotel front desk about travel and how to get in the lottery for Masters Golf Tournament tickets he upgraded us to a room overlooking San Francisco Bay and the Bay Bridge.  Now while the Golden Gate Bridge is more famous I think the recently installed lights on the Bay Bridge make it equally spectacular.  The lights put on a dazzling show from dusk till dawn that is definitely worth checking out.


http://thebaylights.org
Also worth checking out is this side of the city.  It's a little removed from the touristy areas of Pier 39, Chinatown, Golden Gate Park, etc. but well worth it.  It also has a feature that is unlike those other areas, it's pretty darn flat over here!
As much as Beth and I enjoy walking we're pretty much flatlanders so the hills of San Francisco do require some extra effort that we just didn't care to exert on this trip, so we've stayed on this side of town.  We had a nice easy early morning stroll along the Embarcadero.  Feeling good about the flatness of the area we then borrowed a couple of bikes from the hotel and rode further along the waterfront down to the Maritime National Park where some brave souls were getting in their morning swim.  I was shocked to see so many of them without wet suits hopping into the very chilly water.  Better them than me.
We took in a few innings of the Giants/Reds game courtesy of a lifetime pass from an old friend  named Bobby Bragan.
Afterwards it was simply enjoying people watching on a sunny Sunday afternoon in San Francisco.  It was a great day with a great mother and wife!
The cruise leaves Monday afternoon and there will be blogs and pictures posted along the way as connectivity allows.

The Bay Bridge at night from our hotel room

Sunrise on the Bay Bridge

Rincon Park with the Financial District in the background

The Sea Lions of Pier 39

Pregame snack at the Hi Dive on the Embarcardero

Nothing soothes the soul like the church of baseball, especially on a Sunday afternoon

First Mothers Day!