We got back from Alaska (and Canada) on Saturday night. It was an awesome trip. Here are the highlights.

Day 1: Vancouver

We had the morning in Vancouver before boarding the ship. We went to the top of Harbour Centre to view the city.

I’ve never been on a real shrimp boat, but I have been on a real big boat.

Before we departed, we had to do a safety drill. Laura and Susan were super excited about this.

Day 2: At Sea

I didn’t take any photos on day 2. Laura and I did a yoga class in the morning, then we hung out on the ship and ate lots and lots of food. I got a haircut in the spa that night.

Day 3: Ketchikan, AK

The ship got into Ketchikan early Monday morning.

Our First Excursion was a zipline & ropes course trek through the rainforest. After that, we did some climbing on the climbing wall.

We saw a bunch of humpback wales that evening.

Day 4: Juneau

First, we explored the Capital City.

Then we took a helicopter ride to Mendenhall Glacier and hiked around for a couple of hours.

The big holes are called moulins. They are where a stream of water found a weak spot in the glacier and carved a path all the way through it. They are hundreds of feet deep.

Day 5: Skagway

Wednesday morning we arrived in Skagway and rode a train up and back down the White Pass.

In the afternoon, we took a trip to a sled dog breeding and training center.

Since there is no snow here in July, the dogs pulled us on a wheeled cart.

We also got to play with some puppies.

There is a cliff near the pier called Registry Rock.
On their maiden voyage, ships’ crews paint their insignia on the rock.

The street names in Skagway are very descriptive.

Day 6: Glacier Bay
The scenery here was just amazing.

This is probably my favorite photo of the 1200 or so I took on the trip.

We saw LOTS of bald Eagles on the trip, this one was particularly majestic sitting on a cliff.

Day 7: College Fjord
More breathtaking scenery.

The Glaciers here are names after East Coast Colleges.
I think these are (left to right) Bryn Mawr Glacier, Smith Glacier and Baltimore Glacier.

Vassar Glacier, I think.

Sea Otters Rock.

So do Harbor Seals.

Day 8: Whittier/Anchorage
We disembarked in Whittier on Saturday morning, and cought a shuttle service to the airport in Anchorage.

The tunnel out of whittier is the longest highway tunnel in North America. It is only one lane wide, so we had to wait half an hour for it to open up in our direction.

The sign shows the time of the next traffic release.

Somewhere between Whittier and Anchorage is this huge tidal flat, it’s really beautiful.

We caught our plane home Saturday afternoon, and slept well in our comfortable bed that night. It was an amazing trip. There are lots more pictures here.

At 9:15 tonight, Laura and I will be catching a plane to Vancouver. Tomorrow afternoon we will board the Diamond Princess for a seven day cruise to Anchorage. I’ll post tons of pictures after the trip, and hopefully some during. Until then check out the bridge cam. This will be the scenery I’ll be seeing starting Saturday Afternoon.

I spent the afternoon of Independence Day grilling, swimming and sunning at the apartment of some friends in downtown MPLS. I also got to try out my new camera lens. The view from Symphony Place apartments is pretty decent.

At dusk we headed down to the river to watch the fireworks. Here are a couple of fun shots.