June 17, 2017 - Juneau & Skagway, AK

We rode with Donna & Bill to the parking lot at the cruise port, waited for the rest of the caravan members to arrive.  

We boarded on Fjord Express Cruise to Juneau at 7:30 am, and the cruise departed from Skagway harbor at 8 am. 

 

 

 

The cruise headed south through Lynn Canal, the continent's longest and deepest glacial fjord.  The canal stretches over 100 miles long and the depth is over 2,000'.  Going toward Juneau we saw hanging glaciers, waterfalls, harbor seals, Stellar sea lions, a pod of Orcas,or seals, and humpback whale.  The cruise made a stop at a rookery where there were hundreds and hundreds of sea lions on the rocks.

The water was very rough and choppy on our way to Juneau. So rough that you almost cannot drink coffee or tea. 

 

 

 

 

 Pam & Donna

Haines, AK

 

 

 

 

My Epic Shot

After spending 3 hours on the cruise we arrived Auke Bay where there was a bus waiting to transfer us to downtown Juneau.  We were dropped off at Marine Park on the waterfront near downtown.  It was drizzling at that time, and we brought ponchos along.  Stores, restaurants and attractions were within easy access from the park.  We had about 3 "free" hours to walk around the town.  We did not have a chance to walk up to see the Governor's mansion and an old church.  Afterwards the bus took us to Mendenhall Glacier.  There we spent about 45 minutes walking the trail to get a glimpse of the glacier and Nugget Waterfall. There was a trail (45 minute walk one way) to get a close-up look of the waterfall, but there was not much time left.  We checked out the US Forest Service visitor center for a while before returning back to Auke Bay.

Downtown Juneau

 

Red Dog Saloon is a drinking establishment.  It is
one of the oldest tourist attractions in Juneau

Inside the Red Dog Saloon

Statue of Patsy Ann, the deaf dog
Even though she was deaf, Patsy Ann would run to the docks
to meet incoming ships, and became the town's
official greeter.  Because Patsy Ann stole the hearts of
the townspeople the statue was built in her honor.

Juneau Boat Harbor

The Ravens (they were huge!)

 

 

We had to get a small package of fudge before
leaving Juneau to satisfy our sweet teeth on way back to Skagway

 

 

 

 

Mendenhall Glacier

Nugget Waterfall

Close-up shot of the Mendenhall Glacier

Iceberg

Point Retreat Lighthouse

Steve, our Wagonmaster, looking out for whales

 

The ride back to Skagway from Juneau was much smoother than it was this morning.   Seafood chowder was served.  

It was a long day, but we enjoyed every minute of the trip.

~~Edith