Trip to Alaska Summer 2009

 

Alaska Land/Cruise Tour Celebrity - Ship: Millennium
June 1-12, 2009

Day 1: Flew from Atlanta, GA to Seattle, WA then on to Fairbanks, AK. When we arrived in Fairbanks we were greeted by our Celebrity Tour Director - Roberta. We stayed at the Sophia Station Hotel. We were there when it was daylight for almost 24 hours each day. It was weird.

 

Day 2: We had many exciting activities, including a Fairbanks City Tour, a cruise on the Riverboat Sternwheeler Discovery, and a tour of the El Dorado Gold Mine, where I tried my luck at panning for gold. I found about 4 ounces of gold in the dirt I panned. We stayed a second night in Fairbanks.

 

Day 3: This morning we enjoyed a cup of cappuccino and some amazing views as we traveled on the Wilderness Express, in a glass-domed train car, to Denali. There we took the exciting 8 hour Tundra Wilderness Tour deep into Denali National Park, where we saw caribou, moose, black bear, wolf, fox and other wildlife. Overnight in Denali at the Grande Denali Lodge.

 

Day 4: Our morning was free to relax at the lodge before we departed by motor coach for Talkeetna. In the evening, we spent time in the little town enjoying the sites. Had lunch in an outdoor café.  It is a cute SMALL town. Spent a relaxing night at the Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge.

 

Day 5: We departed via deluxe motor coach for Anchorage, Alaska's largest city. There we had time to explore and have breakfast. From downtown Anchorage, we continued on to historic Seward, where we boarded the Millennium to begin our cruise adventure.

 

Day 6: Hubbard Glacier, (scenic cruising) is the largest calving glacier on the North American continent. The glacier routinely calves off icebergs as high as 10 story buildings, sending massive blocks of ice into the sea every few minutes.  The water around the ship was filled with chunks of ice.

Day 7: Juneau, AK - Alaska's capital city gracefully balances frontier ruggedness and cosmopolitan flair. I saw the Mendenhall Glacier, a river of ice measuring 1.5 miles in width and over 6 miles on length. It hugs Juneau's north side and is part of the Juneau Ice Field. The only way into Juneau is by boat or by plane. There are no roads leading to this city.

 

Day 8: Skagway, AK - When Gold was discovered in the Klondike in 1896, this town was gripped by a serious epidemic of Gold Fever, one that attracted all manner of fortune hunters, saloon owners, and adventures. I took a train ride from Skagway to the Yukon. It went through some rough but beautiful areas.

 

Day: 9 Icy Strait Point, AK- For thousands of years, the Tlingit Indians have called this place home. This is where we saw the humpback whales, killer whales and eagles. 

 

Day 10: Ketchikan- Known as the "Salmon Capitol of the World", Ketchikan is also the ancestral home of the Tlingit people, who have carved the world's largest collection of totem poles. I went to the Lumberjack Show and it was very entertaining.

 

Day 11: Inside Passage Cruising- Glaciers can exert powerful forces, but they can also wield a delicately artistic brush, leaving behind a scene of breathtaking beauty. Alaska's famed inside passages a labyrinth of fjords and hidden bays where whales and sea lions find refuge during the summer months. We saw plenty of them.

 

Day 12: This morning we arrived in Vancouver. After breakfast we transfered to the airport for our flight to Salt Lake City then on to Atlanta. it took for ever to get to Atlanta. We had to keep circling to stall for time. There was a major storm in the Atlanta area. 

I was glad to have Brian and Laura take me to the airport and pick me up so I did not have to leave my car at the airport.

This is a map of the trip.  The only difference is we

started in Fairbanks and went to Vancouver.

 

 

our hotel in Fairbanks

 

 

 

 

our hotel in Denali