Skagway

We left our ship behind on a Saturday morning when we arrived in Dawson.  

A small town with about 20 jewelery stores.  

All the old time facades on the store fronts as well as boardwalks rather than concrete sidewalks. 

It rained the entire time we were there.  I'm so glad we had raincoats.  We were there for a few hours in the morning and left at 12:30 the same afternoon.

Tram Ride in Juneau

      After we got back from whale watching we had the opportunity to ride up the mountain side in a tram.           

                            

The green spruce trees of the mountain side were a sharp contrast from the blue of the water and sky.

Looking down we could see our cruise ship.  Ours is the middle one, the smallest of the three. 

There really aren't words to describe the majesty of the sight. 

Our cruise ship in a closer view from the tram. 

Two trams.  One goes up while the other comes down.  It appears that they move quite slowly but when the two meet it surely doesn't look very slow.

Whale Watching in Juneau

The whale watching started out kind of lame.  We saw a lot of blow hole action but not much else. 

Finally we were able to see the back part of the whale's body.

Then some fins which was really cool.

Then at last some tail.

It was fun listening to the people on our tour at how excited they were to see anything.  

A breach makes quite the splash but it is difficult to get on film as it happens to quickly and if you're not looking in the right spot, you miss it. 

The best of my "tail" shots. 

I did get some decent video of a whale and her calf "rolling" through the water.  Also got a breach or two but they're very far away.  Still, these creatures are majestic and beautiful.  The locals and tour guides know each one by name as each tail has specific markings. 

One whale breached about six times for us plus the rolling thing we saw.  Both our boat captain and the tour guide said they had never seen anything like it.  We were blessed to have such a great tour and see these magnificent creatures in their habitat.

They hang out in Alaska all summer and eat and eat.  Then they head to Hawaii during the winter to give birth in the warmer waters where they don't eat anything.  Then they head back north for the feast.

 

Mendenhall Glacier

Our only excursion from the ship was in Juneau.  We signed up to do the Mendenhall glacier and whale watching tour.  It did not disappoint.  

There was recent flooding in this area so we saw a few ice burgs floating in the water.  

The glacier is receding but absolutely stunning!  

There's also a waterfall in the area but we weren't headed in that direction.  

This ice burg ended up on land because of the flooding.  

I'm amazed at how firmly packed those ice crystals are.  

A glacier selfie.

The whole area was absolutely beautiful!

The piece of the glacier on the land is very dirty.  Lots of sand, gravel and even rocks in and on it.  

The greens of the mountain are breathtaking.  

On our way back to the bus, we came across this sign.  I did see bear scat on the way to the glacier but it was a day or two old.  Our guide wears bear spray and never has had to use it.  After reading the directions on the can, I hope she never has to as it is only good for about an 8 second spray.  She better have great aim if that's the case. 

 

Our First Cruise

Our first cruise was with Holland America on the Volendam.

Boarding the ship was a process since we needed to use our passports because we were in Canada.  It went fairly quickly though.

The day we boarded it was overcast and there was some fog.

We passed this cargo ship as we left Vancouver.  It is said that in rough seas that some of these containers tumble off into the ocean pretty regularly.  I wonder just how many there are at the bottom of the oceans in the shipping lanes.  

Our view from the upper tier of the restaurant.  

The view from the back of the ship.  Not a huge wake.  

Outside on an upper deck.  Our second day on the ship was a little turbulent as I could feel a little motion sickness trying to set in.  Looking at the water, I couldn't see waves but as I looked at the pool behind us sloshing, I knew we were having a "rough seas" kind of morning.  

Having a balcony room was great!  It was such a nice place to sit and read or enjoy the air.  

I especially loved taking this trip with this handsome guy!

Sometimes we would pass another ship.  The Volendam is not the size of this cruise liner. 

Twice a day, Abed and Zam came into our room and made the bed and cleaned.  The second time they came they closed the curtains, turned down the lights and turned down the corners of the bed and left us these types of creations.  

This was the length of our hallway which wasn't even the whole thing.  It gives a little perspective on how long the ship is.  

We went down to the third deck and there we could walk around the entire ship.  One mile was 3 1/2 times around.  We walked for half an hour.  

On dress up night we ate dinner in the lower part of the restaurant.  I had steak and it was delicious!  The menu changed each night.  

We only spent three nights on the ship but it was long enough to see if we liked it or not.  I think we will try it again but it may not be my first choice in travel.  I guess it is a wait and see.

 

PowWow

It has been quite a few years since we attended the Menominee PowWow.  

I love the costumes and color!

They payed tribute to all those who served in the United States military.

The grand entry was impressive with everyone in their regalia.  

I don't need to go every year but then why not.  I was able to get in free as I'm now old enough to be considered an elder.  

Sunflower Fields

We have something new in our neighborhood this year.  Sunflower fields!  Tracy couldn't go out walking with me one morning so I got on my e-bike and took what turned out to be a 15 mile ride.  

This field was just north of the Weed dam.  I didn't see it before even when we rode past it.  

This field is on Brian Jung's property.  I love that there are a few flowers that are taller than the rest as though they are on their tip toes trying to see above the crowd.  

Just so pretty.  This picture is taken from behind.  The flowers are facing East.

It was a really great ride!