Welcome to the Capital of Alaska, Juneau. It is perhaps the busiest of the Alaskan cruise ports, with 4 ships joining us today which will be typical almost every day during the summer season. We estimated 16,000-18,000 cruise passengers tour the area.
There were an astounding 50 tours offered for our port call today on our ship's list. Helicopter rides, float plane trips, Mendenhall Glacier discovery tours, whale watching, salmon bakes, dog sled camps, tram rides up to the top of Mount Roberts, just to mention a few. Vendors also lined the boardwalk along the pier selling tours. The famous Red Dog Saloon is a major attraction, just up the block from the pier, nestled among the dozens of souvenir and jewelry shops calling out to earn some of our tourist dollars. The Alaska State Capital and State Museum were also open to visitors today.
It was raining and foggy when we arrived that morning. We had a plan to visit some of the lesser-known spots around the city. Among the highlights: Overstreet Park with its life-size breaching whale sculpture, Evergreen Cemetery - resting place of notable Juneau residents, the Governor’s Mansion, and the beautiful collection of totems that line the boardwalk and populate many of the official buildings. Not to be missed, is the Patsy Ann statue, the Fisherman’s Memorial, the Empty Chair Memorial, and dozens of other sculptures and statues around the main street.
We had a long day in port, making it possible to have an evening tour. Leaving at 6:30 pm, we took a small group of Cruise Specialists guests to the Dog Sled Summer Camp. These are the training facilities for dogs that race in the Iditarod. There are 180 dogs at this facility, and we met an interesting trainer named Tyler along with his 16-dog team who just love to run. They live up in the mountains all year as the more southerly cities are too warm for them. They are happiest at -20 degrees Fahrenheit!
We were treated to a 2-mile ride with the dogs pulling our cart- rather than a sled. Then we got to play with the dogs, including the beautiful and cuddly puppies that were born just 7 weeks ago. What a fun and unique adventure.
Our visit to Tracy Arm and the Sawyer Glacier scheduled for Wednesday morning was cancelled due to poor visibility and the expectation of encountering large chunks of ice. That is a bad combination!
Next scenic cruising opportunity was on the 4th of July in Misty Fjords National Park. It was a gorgeous day and Misty Fjords was surprisingly not very misty. The landscape here is quite different from what we have been experiencing. High peaks covered in dense green trees with little snow visible were contrasted with great walls of barren rock extending straight up.
After a morning of scenic cruising in this serene environment, we joined about 140 fellow guests for a small group adventure. Directly from our ship, we boarded a double decker touring boat for a two-hour ride through the waters, getting closer to the interesting rock formations. We were taken to an ancient petroglyph, inspected a 270-foot-tall basalt tower projecting straight out in the middle of the bay and were treated to unlimited drinks and tasty snacks of salmon and chowder. If you were expecting a lot of wildlife, you were disappointed as we only saw eagles, but it was an unusual experience to leave the ship in other than a port setting. It was a fun and unique way to spend the afternoon.
We’ll be back with a recap of our day in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada, and a wrap-up of this Voyage.
Fondly,
Wendy and Steve
See all blog posts:
Pre-Cruise, Alaska Awaits! | Our Adventure Begins! | Discovering Alaska | Seward, Dutch Harbor & Nome | Kodiak & Anchorage | Glacier Bay | Juneau & Misty Fjords |Summary
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