Alaskan Cruise

Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay are incredible but you just stand on the ship and admire the scenery.

In Juneau-
That was the best whale watching tour we went on. We took the boat that circles Shelter Island.
Also Mendenhall Glacier which may be the most beautiful glacier around that you can drive to. I saw it twice, about 10 years apart. It had melted and receded quite a bit in the interim. See it while you can.

Sitka
There is a lot to do to occupy yourself for a day. Walk the Totem Pole Trail. Go to the raptor center and eagle hospital. Go to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Read James Michener’ s “Alaska “ before you go. Great book and one of the more interesting chapters is the one about the war between the Russians and the Indians in Sitka. You can see exactly where the battle took place.

In Ketchikan we just hung around town.

Great cruise.

Juneau- Harv and Marv small boat whale watching tour. You'll be on a boat with 6 people vs 80 people to see the same whales.

Ketchikan- avoid the Bear Encounter Land and Sea. It was a complete waste of time and money.

No need to find the wildlife in Sitka, it finds you.


Saw more eagles today than anywhere. Seems they are vultures here and are everywhere around the harbor with all the fishing. We had a herd of whale follow us out. Not hundreds, but dozens for sure all around our ship.

I ran the Sitka Cross Trail for about 10 miles. Good time. Well maintained trail. Recommend the Bayview for beers and halibut fish n chips.

quote:

---

We are doing Harv & Mary’s for 6 people in a few days. Can you give any insight on your experience and what we should expect? Thanks

---

They will put you on a big bus at the dock and bring you to the marina. They will likely stop at a lookout point on the way to the marina so you can see and get pictures of the Mendenhal Glacier.

At the marina you will have a chance to use the restroom before meeting your guide and getting routed to your specific boat.

The boats are similar to pipeline crew boats used in south LA. During the boat ride the guide will give great insight of whales and their behaviors.

They track individual whales daily and know their feeding patterns, where they are located, and individual personalities.

Apparently, the pattern on the whale tails is unique like a thumb print so they name the whales and revisit them yearly when they return for their annual feeding.

At anytime you can go out on the bow of the boat or the back end and enjoy the views. Watching the whales is unique for each whale sometimes you see nothing but their tails other times they would surface depending on their feeding technique. If they are "bubbling" then they will likely surface.

We went to three or four spots, its similar to fishing guides they are in conversation with each other so if a whale is actively feeding there will be several boats in the area.

The best part of Harv and Marv is the small group. There was one boat nearby that looked like it had a 100 people crammed on the roof like a bunch of sardines. I'm sure they loved it because a big whale surfaced right next to their boat, but I would hate to spend an afternoon in cramped quarters like that.

They will have snacks on board which is small bags of chips, granola bars, cheezits, small bottles of water, etc.

We also saw several sea lions and a bald eagle (I think). After the tour they put back on the big bus and bring you back to the ship. At the dock I enjoyed a crab leg feast at Tracy's if you are on a budget get the crab nachos. They were great and full of crabmeat.

We had a similar experience with a different guide. There were four or five ships in Juneau same day as ours. The crab leg place was a zoo. We went to the Hangar and had the best fish n chips I’ve ever had. Bartender was smoking hot too. Alaskan Brewing’s amber ale is worth of the hype.