Hey friends!  Thanks for returning to my blog to read “Part 2” of our amazing Alaska Cruise!

In case you missed it, you can go back and read “Part 1” by clicking on this link: “Alaska Cruise Part 1: Seattle, Embarkation, At Sea”

And I also have a cruise planning post that you can read about by clicking here: “Alaska Cruise Planning for People with Disabilities”

So, continuing on, we drifted toward Juneau on Monday, Day 3 of the cruise.  For most of the morning we were cruising the Stephens Passage thru to the Gastineau Channel.  The serene waterway is surrounded by the Tongass National Forest.  The mountains were tree-covered but from this vantage point, one would have thought they were mounds of soil as the pitch-black color contrasted sharply with low-floating white clouds.

We spent most of this morning in our cabin, enjoying the views from our private balcony.  Our arrival time at Juneau was around 1:30 pm so we had plenty of time to relax and get ready for our day in port.  The weather was about 50F degrees, hazy with a drizzle of rain.  We had anticipated cool, wet weather and packed a bunch of outdoor gear to keep us warm and dry.  We brought rain coats and pants, hand and toe warmers, waterproof hiking shoes, hats and gloves and small umbrellas. 

The color of the mountains changed from black to green as we moved closer to Juneau.  The lush forest served as a grand backdrop to the small city.  Since our cabin was on the port side of the ship, we had a sprawling view of the whole city as the ship was maneuvering to the dock.  The ship was docked facing north so to our left we could see downtown and to our right was the Goldbelt Tram.  The Goldbelt Tram is a popular excursion on this cruise.  Unfortunately, all the Tram tours were canceled because it was too windy to operate. 

In one of the distant mountains there is what looks like a waterfall.  Later we learned that these were not natural waterfalls.  They were actually trenches cut into the mountains to avoid avalanches and what we were seeing was rushing water from recent rains filling the trenches.  The trenches would hardly be noticeable on a dry day.

Fun fact about Juneau:  it is not accessible by road!  The only way to arrive is by boat, ferry or plane.  It is the capital of Alaska and over the years, the location proved to not be ideal.  There have been efforts over the years to move the capitol to a city with better access.  However, it was too much money and hassle, so there it stayed.  

Getting off the ship at this port was pretty straightforward.  We were able to walk/roll down a short ramp that ended directly onto the dock.  There were plenty of crew members available to help us get safely down the ramp with Caitlin in her transport chair.  Once off the ship, we walked along the dock to another ramp that led us up to the street level.

The majority of our time in Juneau was spent at the Mendenhall Glacier National Park and Visitor center.  We booked the tour through the cruise line.  I recommend booking the tour as soon as possible because they sold out months in advance.  I’m not sure if that happens all the time or if it was just during this time of year.  The tour included admission to the park and transportation in a motorcoach bus.  They were able to bring Caitlin’s transport seat and she was able to walk up a few steps to the seats.  Even though it’s not a necessity for Caitlin, I was disappointed that the bus was not wheelchair accessible.  The ride to the park was about 25 minutes. 

We had never seen a glacier before so this was a new and exciting experience for us!  We learned a lot by exploring the exhibits and watching the short movie at the visitor’s center.  Did you know that the Mendenhall Glacier is the closest glacier accessible by land?  The glacier has retreated about a mile since the mid-eighties.  Mendenhall Lake is in front of the glacier and has grown as the glacier has shrunk.  There were historical pictures of tourists walking on the frozen lake to get closer to the glacier.  They say that the glacier may not be viewable by land by as early as 2050!  We also learned that this is just a small portion of an enormous ice field as shown in one of the exhibits. 

There are plenty of photo ops of both the glacier and surrounding landscape along the park trails, there are spectacular views from every angle!  The hiking trails were smooth concrete but narrow, I would say about four people wide.  This was just enough space to accommodate opposing directions of foot/wheelchair traffic.  There were some people rushing their way through and bumping other people along the way which was extremely rude!  We were the only cruise ship at the park and I can’t imagine how crowded this place would be if there were more tourists.

The days are short in October in Alaska and night had fallen by the time we returned to town from the park.   We did a quick walking tour before heading back to the ship.  We had a low-key evening and turned in early to rest up for a full day of sightseeing in Skagway the next day.

We arrived in Skagway at 7am Tuesday, Day 4 of the cruise.  Getting off the ship had some additional logistics that was a little odd although everything went smoothly.  The ship was parked at the far end of the dock.  The shuttles to town were at the other end of the dock.  It was a short distance but they wouldn’t allow people to walk because it was not safe.  The reason it wasn’t safe is because the dock was adjacent to a steep and rocky mountainside with a high risk of falling rock.  So, we had to shuttle the short distance from the ship to the other end of the dock.  Once we were at the other end of the dock, then we had to exit that shuttle and jump on a different shuttle to take us into town.  They had wheelchair accessible shuttles and this driver made the short trip a bit more interesting with a rocking, swashbuckling impersonation

Skagway is exactly how I envisioned a quaint, Alaskan town to be with it’s pretty pastel-colored buildings, simple architecture, rough wooden sidewalks, nestled at the base of the mountains. But exploring the town would have to wait until after we returned from our driving excursion.  I really wanted to make the drive to the Yukon Territory so that was first thing on our agenda.   Tour options were limited during this time of year but the 3-hour Yukon Sightseeing Tour with Southeast Tours was exactly what I had hoped for.  One of the main reasons I chose this tour was because the buses were smaller and there were less people.  And I liked the idea of a guided tour because I read that the Klondike Highway can be hard to drive on your own.  And the tour guides know exactly where to stop and they provide a ton of interesting information.  The meeting place was at the popcorn emporium in town. 

The tour takes you on the Klondike Highway from Skagway, thru British Columbia, to the Welcome to Yukon sign and then back to Skagway on same route.  Not only is the scenery gorgeous but there’s so much history to learn about.  This area is known for the Klondike Gold Rush era.  The stories of the gold prospectors were both gruesome and mind-boggling.  Each traveling group was allowed 2,000 lbs. of gear and supplies to take with them.  Many of them overloaded horses and other animals with gear but did not provide them with enough food, water or rest.  Part of the trail was nicknamed “The Dead Horse Trail” because over 3,000 horses died there.  The long lines of prospectors on the trail were continuous and jam-packed.  It was so crowded that if a traveling group stepped out of the line for whatever reason, it could take them days to make their way back into the line.

Here are some pics of the Tormented valley, Bridal Veil Falls, Pitchfork Falls, Summit Lake, Tutshi Lake, Welcome to Alaska and Welcome to Yukon signs and other sights from this scenic drive.

A passport is required for this tour. The customs station is in Fraser which is 8 miles north of the US/Canada border. The reason it’s so far from the border is that the terrain is too rough and this is the closest area where they could build.

On the way back, the tour guide passed around maps that outlined the trail of the gold rushers.  A lot of people lost their lives making this treacherous journey and most did not complete the journey nor did they become wealthy from it.

I thought the tour was pretty good for somebody like Caitlin that has difficulty walking long distances or over uneven terrain.  The beautiful countryside scenery can be enjoyed through the large windows from inside the bus should you choose not to get off at a stop.  There was not a lot of walking because all of the stops were along the roadside.  The bus was not wheelchair accessible and there was no room for Caitlin’s transport chair (which we ended up leaving at the popcorn shop).  We didn’t need the chair at all because we were not at the stops very long and it was good to get out and walk a bit.  The downside was there was only one rustic bathroom along the way that we stopped at twice, once on the way out and once on the way back.  There are literally no other buildings, gas stations, rest stops etc.… on this part of the freeway!

There was plenty of daylight left to explore Skagway when we returned.  We visited some shops and had an appetizer and a pint of the signature Spruce Tip Blonde at the historic Skagway Brewing Company.

When we returned to the ship for the evening, we took in one of the Broadway musicals “SIX”.  Basically, it was about the six wives of Henry the VIII who were competing with each other to see who had it the worst.  Each wife was portrayed as a modern pop persona (for example, one of them sang similar to the rocker P!NK)  In the end, they stopped competing and celebrated their girl power!  I thought it was an excellent performance and I loved the flashy costumes.  Caitlin loved the music and showed us her best moves during the final song.

That wraps up “Part 2” of our Alaska Cruise vacation!

Stay tuned for future posts on the remainder of our trip as we continue on to Glacier Bay National Park, Ketchikan and Victoria.