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<\/a>Beautiful Skagway, Alaska<\/p><\/div>\n
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<\/a>Skagway when we arrived<\/p><\/div>\n
Next stop is Skagway<\/strong> and from the ship it\u2019s hard to tell Skagway from Juneau<\/strong> or Ketchikan<\/strong> as the accompanying photos would indicate.\u00a0 \u00a0There is no deep-water port next to Skagway, so we must anchor off-shore and take \u2018tenders\u2019 into port.\u00a0 Unfortunately, it\u2019s windy and rainy and the seas are too rough to run the tenders the morning we arrive.\u00a0 We are concerned about getting ashore, as we have a very cool excursion planned on the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway<\/strong>, which was established during the 1890s Yukon Gold Rush<\/strong> \u2013 the scenery is said to be spectacular!<\/p>\n As we wait in the morning mist and rain, the wind finally dies down and we get word that the tenders are now running.\u00a0 We are excited and among the first to get ferried ashore.\u00a0 We find the train and are escorted to our car and as we\u2019re reading the brochure on what an awesome adventure we\u2019re about to go on, the conductor comes on board and tells us that there has been a rockslide up ahead that has covered the track and that there will be no tour today!\u00a0\u00a0 The Alaska gods seem to not be shinning on us this trip! \u00a0I later watched the train trip on YouTube \u2013 looks fun!\u00a0 I\u2019ll never know!!\u00a0 We walk the main street of town and have lunch at the Red Onion<\/strong>, a bar that was formerly a brothel (I think every bar was a brothel back in the day), and head back to the ship.<\/p>\n Glacier Bay on a good day<\/p><\/div>\n Glacier Bay for us<\/p><\/div>\n Our next two days are at sea as we cruise in Glacier Bay<\/strong> and College Fjord<\/strong>, working our way north to Whittier, the coastal port for Anchorage<\/strong>.\u00a0 \u00a0In spite of the low cloud cover and rain, we do see a number of glaciers and in fact, see a couple of calvings.\u00a0 I have to say that I wasn\u2019t as impressed, as I thought I would be surrounded by white and looking up at massive glaciers.\u00a0 Our ship put us at eye-level or above the glacier and the glaciers lost some of their majesty, perhaps because the mist and clouds covered the surrounding mountains, it seemed less grand.\u00a0 As I read the history of Glacier Bay, I discovered that in the 1700s the whole bay used to be a glacier.\u00a0 So, looking at the where the glacier was in certain years, made it a bit sad, as it\u2019s gradually receding and will eventually be gone!<\/p>\n Mt. Denali<\/p><\/div>\n Mt. Denali is rumored to be there<\/p><\/div>\n Once in Whittier<\/strong>, we board a train and head to Denali National Park<\/strong> in hopes of seeing Mt. Denali.\u00a0 If Mt. Denali<\/strong> sounds foreign to you, you may remember this mountain as Mt. McKinley<\/strong>.\u00a0 It is the tallest mountain on the north American continent at 20,310 feet in altitude.\u00a0 The name was changed by President Obama<\/strong> who asserted that the name should go back to its original Athabaskan<\/strong> name meaning \u2018the great one\u2019.\u00a0 But none of the local refer to it as either Denali or McKinley, they just refer to it as \u2018The Mountain\u2019.\u00a0 \u00a0Of course, it was never visible to us at any point during our trip, as we find out that only about 25-30% of tourists get to see it, the rest of us see nothing but clouds.<\/p>\n Christmas in August<\/p><\/div>\n One of the first things we notice when we check into the Denali Wilderness Lodge<\/strong> is a Christmas tree in the foyer \u2013 fully decorated and other yule time trimmings around the hotel.\u00a0 Those of you who have traveled to a National Park in August, know why the tree is there.\u00a0 For those who haven\u2019t, and previous to this, I was one of them, I\u2019ll explain.<\/p>\n On August 24th,\u00a0<\/strong>1912,<\/b>\u00a0a sudden, unexpected snowstorm stranded a group of travelers in Yellowstone National Park<\/strong>. The travelers, making the best of the situation, decided to celebrate Christmas by singing carols and preparing a sumptuous Christmas feast. They enjoyed the celebration so much that a tradition was born.<\/p>\n Next time: North to Alaska Part 3: The Final Days and Some Alaska Dos and Don\u2019ts<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Bob Sparrow Next stop is Skagway and from the ship it\u2019s hard to tell Skagway from Juneau or Ketchikan as the accompanying photos would indicate.\u00a0 \u00a0There is no deep-water port next to Skagway, so we must anchor off-shore and … read more![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Glacier-Bay-C-of-C.jpg\")
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