Category Archives: NCL Spirit

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Note:  This is the 16th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia north along the inside passage to Sitka, Alaska, and then across the North Pacific Ocean to the Hawaiian Islands, before ending in Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 13 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos by me (Bruce) taken with SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

FRIDAY 15 September 2023 — (T20-21,C17) Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii and home

This was the 20th day of our trip, and the 17th and final day of our cruise.  We arrived in the early morning hours at the cruise port in Honolulu, Oahu, our final port-of-call in the Hawaiian Islands.  (It was a 21-day trip in total, as we would not arrive back at our home in Michigan until the following day, but I cover a few highlights of that at the end of this post.)

On the last day of a cruise, passengers must disembark fairly early in the day so the crew can “turn the ship around” and get it ready for the next set of passengers, who will start their embarkation by late morning.  When leaving from and returning to ports in the continental USA, we can usually arrange flights back to Michigan that allow us plenty of time to get to the airport without having to wait too long to board our plane after getting there.  In the case of this cruise, however, the most “reasonable” flight we could book departed at around 5 PM local time.  That meant we had to figure out what to do during the day, which included what to do with our luggage, a not insignificant issue.

The easiest solution was to book a motorcoach shore excursion that included transportation to the Honolulu International Airport, with our luggage safely stored onboard the motorcoach until we were dropped off at our terminal.  Yes, pre- and post-cruise shore excursions are a “thing,” as are pre- and post-tour transportation options.  Actually, any service a cruise line can provide, or product they can sell, to extract a bit more money from their customers is a thing.  In this case, however, it was an excellent option for us.  Although we had been to Pearl Harbor on our last visit to Hawaii, it was the shore excursion that best met the needs of passengers, like us, with flights departing after 3 PM local time.  And so, we went to Pearl Harbor.

Although still very much an active military base, the Pearl Harbor National Memorial is an interesting, historically important, and somber place that draws some 2 Million visitors every year.  Perhaps we were just tired from the cruise, but it seemed like half of those people were there today, or perhaps just half of the people from our cruise ship.  They weren’t, of course, but the place did seem crowed.  Since we had already seen many of the major sites that make up the National Memorial, we were not motivated to spend more money beyond our entrance fee just to stand in lines and deal with crowds to try to see them again.  We decided to just stroll the grounds instead, read placards, take a few photos, and find something to eat.  Our biggest problem was finding someplace to sit (at all, never mind comfortable) and stay out of the sun.  As we’ve gotten older, however, I think we’ve gotten better at just quietly “passing the time” when we find ourselves in situations that require it, or at least benefit from adopting that attitude.

Here are a few photos from that day, followed by an epilogue to wrap up our 21-day trip.

 

Our ship was already at the dock when I took this photo around 6 AM local time.

 

I am always interested in structures, machines, etc.  Shown here is a service ramp that has already been deployed from the terminal to the ship.

 

The famous Diamond Head (extinct volcano) at the far east end of Waikiki Beach, backlit by the sunrise around 6:30 AM.

 

Another view looking towards Diamond Head, which is towards the right edge of the frame at the horizon, showing some of the skyscrapers in this part of Honolulu.  These could be hotels, apartment/condos, or office buildings.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Since we had to disembark early, we were up and dressed early to get a bite to eat and have one last stroll around the ship.  At ~6:30 AM we had the walking track on Deck 13 (ABIR) to ourselves.  The pool has been covered with netting to keep people out, or catch anyone who might fall in.

 

A panorama composited from five (5) images of the harbor off the port side of the ship.

 

Another early morning photo from the starboard side walking track with the harbor behind Bruce.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Yes, this is a photo of the TV screen in our stateroom.

Regarding the above photo, the left side of the screen clearly shows the time to be 17:01 UTC and the upper right corner shows the time to be 07:01 (local) establishing the 10-hour time difference between Honolulu and Greenwich, England (where Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and UTC are usually the same).

UTC (Universal Time Coordinated) is a time standard that never changes (no daylight savings time nonsense), while GMT is a time zone, in which Greenwich, England is located.  We live in the Eastern Time zone (EST or EDT, depending on the time of year), which is UTC minus 5 this time of year (Daylight savings time was still in effect in the USA).  By the time we arrived back in Michigan, our plane (and us) had been in six (6) time zones over ~ 9-1/2 hours in the air.

The screen also shows our position at 21 degrees 18.12 minutes North Latitude and 157 degrees 51.92 minutes West Longitude.  Linda captured an image (not shown here) of the lower left corner of the screen indicating that our total distance traveled (in the ship) was 4,502 nautical miles (5,180.8 statute miles).  The flight distance from DTW (Detroit) to YVR (Vancouver) is ~1,959 miles, and the flight distance from HNL (Honolulu) to DTW (Detroit) is ~ 4,475 miles.  Thus, the total distance traveled on this trip, not including excursions, was ~ 11,614 statute miles, or ~553 miles per day on average.

 

Welcome to the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, which includes Memorials for the USS Arizona, USS Oklahoma, and USS Utah, all lost on the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

 

An anchor that was salvaged from the USS Arizona.

 

The low white building with the curved roof is the USS Arizona Memorial.  It straddles the ship in its final resting place and has a glass floor, allowing visitors to view the remains of part of the ship.  We visited this Memorial on our previous visit.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A circular courtyard that surrounds a relief map of Pearl Harbor, and has plaques with the names of the lost, provided some place to sit and contemplate the events of the day that pulled the USA into World Ward II.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A broader view of the grounds at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial.  The USS Arizona Memorial is visible at the left edge of the frame.  The site is beautifully maintained, as you would expect, and is accessible for those visitors with mobility issues.  I think the exception is the submarine tour, as it involves climbing stairs and, ABIR, ladders.  We toured the submarine on our previous visit to the National Memorial.

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Epilogue (T20-21) — Friday evening 15 September & Saturday 16 September

With our drop-off at the Honolulu International Airport around 3 PM, our NCL SPIRIT cruise was officially concluded.  We were no longer “cruisers,” just ordinary travelers waiting to fly home.  The drop-off point was a “back” entrance to the terminal and it was a bit confusing at first figuring out where to go once we were inside.  But we figured it out in short enough order, and began the process of checking our two larger suitcases, clearing through the TSA checkpoint, finding our gate, and waiting to be called to board the airplane.  The airport was busy;  the Hawaiian Islands are a popular tourist destination, and Honolulu International Airport is the major way most people arrive and depart.

Time zones are fascinating, and while travel across them can be interesting, it can also be challenging, especially as regards sleeping.  (As noted in several posts, I’ve also had an issue merging photos from three different devices in correct chronological sequence.  This has been due to different devices using different time references when naming and tagging image files.)  ABIR, our Delta Airlines flight was scheduled to depart at around 5 PM Honolulu time.  At 5 PM in Honolulu, it was already 10 PM in Detroit, Michigan, and within a couple of hours of taking off, it was Saturday, 16 September at home.

We had an approximately 4,500-mile trip ahead of us at an average (air) speed of ~500 mph, so roughly a 9-hour flight plus a 30-minute allowance for ground operations (takeoff and landing combined).  The actual time, gate-to-gate, could have been more or less depending on prevailing wind speeds and directions at flight altitude (which tend to be from west to east, so a favorable tailwind), or the need to detour around severe weather.  That put our estimated time of arrival at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) at 6:30 AM local time.  Realistically, that meant we should be off the plane, luggage collected, and ready for pickup by around 7:30 AM, but I no longer recall exactly what time we reached the gate.  Early, in any event, but not hugely inconvenient for our son, who lives about 30 minutes from the airport, and had agreed to fetch us upon our arrival.

As with past cruises, we had one of our children take us to the airport and pick us up upon our return.  That has usually been our daughter, but for this trip it was our son.  We drove our F-150 to his house on departure day and he chauffeured us from/to there.  Part of the reason for this, was that he and his wife wanted to get the truck “detailed” while we were away.  They had borrowed it during the summer, along with the Airstream travel trailer, to use for a family vacation and wanted to get it cleaned up as a “thank you” for letting them use it.  We did not expect them to do this, of course, but we were not going to say “no” either.  They also live closer to the airport than our daughter does.

Back at his house the rest of the family was awake, so we got to see our two youngest grand-daughters and tell everyone a little bit about our trip.  We eventually left for home and arrived to find Cabella (the cat who is not our cat, or so we say) waiting for us, even though she had lived outside for the entire duration of our trip.  (She is an outside cat who has become an outside/inside cat while we are trying to figure out how to take care of her in a way that works for her and us.)  Our neighbor, Mike, had kept an eye on the house (and the cat) while we were away, making sure she had water and refilling her automatic food feeder as needed.

I always like to launder all of the clothes we have had with us on any trip (short or long), but that was a task that would wait until tomorrow and get spread over a couple of days so as not to overload the septic system (or me).  What could not wait, was putting the water treatment system back in full operation.  I shut it off whenever we are gone for more than few days so the tanks do not regenerate, which puts a lot of water into the sump.  I recall that we talked about stopping at a Panera to get something to eat, but I don’t recall what we actually did for lunch or dinner.  I suspect we found something to eat for dinner in our refrigerator and/or panty as Linda usually plans for that when we go on shorter trips.  We had, after all, eaten out every meal for the last 21 days.  For longer trips, we try to use up any fresh food before we leave.

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Note:  This is the 15th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 20 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos taken by me (Bruce) with a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

THURSDAY 14 September 2023 — (T19,C16) Hilo, Hawai’i, Hawaii and Mona Kea

This was the 19th day of our trip, and the 16th day of our cruise and saw us arrive in the cruise port at Hilo, Hawai’i (the Big Island), Hawaii (the State of).  Our main activity was a shore excursion that stopped at Rainbow Falls Lookout before taking us to the observatories atop Mona Kea (also spelled “Muanakea”).

At 13,803 feet (4,207.3 m) AMSL, which is also its “wet prominence,” the summit of Mona Kea (Muanakea) is the highest point of land in the Hawaiian Islands, and the second highest island mountain summit on earth.  From Wikipedia:  “Because the Hawaiian Islands slope deep into the ocean, Mauna Kea has a dry prominence of 9,330 m (30,610 ft) (it’s height if the ocean was “drained” of water. This dry prominence is taller than Mount Everest’s height above sea level of 8,848.86 m (29,032 ft), so Everest would have to include whole continents in its foothills to exceed Mauna Kea’s dry prominence. …”  The highest summit on an island is Puncak Jaya in New Guinea, Indonesia, which stands at an impressive elevation of 4,884 meters (16,024 feet) above mean sea level.

 

Our first view of Hawai’i (the Big Island) and Mona Kea.  This panoramic photo is a composite of five (5) images.  Mona Loa is just visible at the left edge of the frame.

 

Sunrise lights up Mona Kea as the NCL SPIRIT slowly motors towards the cruise port in Hilo, Hawai’i, Hawaii.  The photo is 900×678 pixels and can be viewed at full-resolution on compatible devices.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A selfie at Rainbow Falls Overlook in Hilo, Hawai’i, HI.

 

A flower along the trail at Rainbow Falls Overlook.  (Photo by Linda)

 

We always try to take a photo of signs to identify where we are.  If we can get a photo with a clock in it, so much the better as it helps me time sync photos to local time.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Rainbow Fall in Hilo, Hawai’i, HI.

 

I’m holding grand-daughter Sadie’s “Apa and Ama” artwork to mark our location at the Mona Kea ranger station / store (the building behind me).  We are already at/above the level of the clouds.

 

The Mona Kea ranger station/store/museum with our tour van in the front parking lot.  From a web search:  “The Onizuka Center for International Astronomy Visitor Information Station (VIS) on Maunakea is open every day of the year from 9am to 9pm.  Located at the 9,200 foot (2,804 meter) level, they provide health, safety, and other information about Maunakea along with access control.  The road up the mountain is open to any/all visitors up this building.  Beyond this point, permission is needed and a 4-wheel drive vehicle is required.  Our tour van met both of those criteria.

 

The VIS has a store with various Mona Kea and astronomy related merchandise.  It is also a small museum focused on telescopes and other things astronomical.

 

One of the radio telescopes on top of Mona Kea.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a joint operation of several universities under the auspices of the National Science Foundation.

 

Our tour guide presents information on the various rocks that make up Mona Kea.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Our tour guide had a Mauna Kea (Mona Kea) sign for photo ops for his customers.  Linda is holding grand-daughter Sadie’s “Apa and Ama” artwork.  (Photo taken with Linda’s phone, but obviously taken by someone else, probably our tour guide.)

 

A panoramic view of several telescopes made using the panorama feature of the Pixel 6 Pro.   This photo file is 1080×271 pixels and can be viewed at full-resolution on compatible devices.

 

This is a composite of two (2) images, showing several different types of telescopes on Mona Kea, how they are situated, and the road(s) that are used to access them.  Not all of the telescopes have a 360-degree clear view of the horizon.  They are situated based on available real estate and what part of the sky they need to be able to see.

 

By now it should be obvious that we were there, but here’s another selfie, just to prove the point.

 

The same two observatories as the previous photo without us in the frame.

 

This panorama is a composite of eight (8) images.  The photo file is 1920×363 pixels, so there is a lot of detail that can be seen on a device with appropriate screen resolution.  There are at least 15 telescopes of various kinds visible in the image, along with a portion of the amazing road system that winds up to and around the observatories and support buildings.

 

Last, but not least, a photo of the actual summit of Mona Kea, several hundred feet above where we are standing, and higher than the highest observatory on the mountain.  Why?  Because the summit is a sacred site to indigenous Hawaiians that is used for special ceremonies throughout the year.  As such, it is not open to the public at any time.

 

We are back on the ship in the theater at the conclusion of the evening’s entertainment at ~10:15 PM.  If was the final ensemble performance of the cruise and featured most of the performers who had entertained us throughout the last couple of weeks.  The performances were of a high enough caliber that we were always entertained.  This final performance was over, so cameras where very evident as passengers tried to capture the celebratory moment.  I took this photo to provide some context for the look of the theater.

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Note:  This is the 14th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 20 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

WEDNESDAY 13 September 2023 — (T18,C15) Kahului, Maui, Hawaii

Our ship arrived in the harbor at Kahului, Maui early this morning.  As was well-reported in the news, Maui had recently suffered a devastating fire in and around Lahaina.  This obviously impacted some of the planned shore excursions, but we did not detect anyone being upset about changes in planned offerings.  Indeed, tourists were being encouraged to visit Maui and support the local economy, but the Lahaina area was obviously off limits.  Any disappointment for cruise passengers was inconsequential compared to the loss and suffering of the impacted islanders.

Our main activity today was a shore excursion with “Hike Maui” east along the first portion of “the road to Hana.”  We were transported in vans and had an excellent tour guide.  There was a lot of walking, but it was mostly easy and it was nice to get off the ship and use our legs to walk around town and in the woods.

 

The NCL SPIRIT approaches Kahului, Maui, Hawaii at sunrise.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Linda soaks up the sunrise as it floods the port side of the ship inbound to Kahului, Maui.

 

The mountains loom behind Kahului, Maui and make their own weather, as mountains are want to do.

 

This sign says it all:  “Aloha, Welcome to Kahului, Maui, Hawaii” with the NCL SPIRIT in the background.  We enjoyed our time on this ship.  It’s the smallest ship in the NCL fleet, but it’s still pretty big.

 

I hold Sadie’s “Apa and Ama” artwork by a large map of Maui, Hawaii.  Notice how the island resembles a person in lying on their side with the head at the upper left and facing down and slightly left.  The cruise port at Kahului is in the curve of the neck on the back (north/upper) side.  Most of the head is high mountains.  The town of Lahaina, which suffered the worst of the recent fire, is more or less directly opposite Kahului on the other side of the central mountains.  Travel to that area was not allowed, of course, as the area is still recovering and rebuilding.  (Photo by Linda)

 

From a web search:  Maui is an island formed by two volcanoes: Haleakala and Mauna Kahalawai. Haleakala is a 10,000 foot shield volcano that means “House of the Sun” and had its recent eruptions between 1480 and 1600.  Maui is an island formed by two volcanoes: Haleakala and Mauna Kahalawai. Haleakala is a 10,000 foot shield volcano that means “House of the Sun” and had its recent eruptions between 1480 and 160012. Mauna Kahalawai is an eroded shield volcano also known as the West Maui Mountains (the “head”) that last erupted 320,000 years ago. Maui does not have any active volcanoes, unlike Hawaiʻi Island, which has two of the world’s most active volcanoes: Kīlauea and Maunaloa.

 

We went on a shore excursion with “Hike Maui.”  Our first stop was the town of Paia.  From a web search:  Pā’ia is  a census-designated place on Maui, Hawaii with a population of 2,470 as of the 2020 census.  It is home to several restaurants, art galleries, surf shops and other tourist-oriented businesses. It was formerly home to the Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Mill from 1880 to 2000.  Pā’ia is the first town on the Hana Highway when heading eastbound towards Hana.  It was cute, inviting, and very walkable.  “Surf shops” were much in evidence.

 

We came across a ukelele shop while strolling around downtown Paia.  Yes, Ukuleles really are a thing in the Hawaiian Islands, and this shop had a lot of them!  They were all exquisite instruments whose craftsmanship was obvious, and are sold to customers all over the world.  They ranged in price quite a bit but some of them were, as you might expect, very expensive.

 

The front façade of the Mele Ukulele shop.  I had a nice conversation with the owner, as much about photography and cameras (he was also a SONY shooter) as about ukuleles and living on tropical paradise island.

 

“Hike Maui” has taken us to a bamboo grove.  Much of the bamboo was very tall, as shown in the next photo.  The tour provided water and a light lunch, which was appreciated.

 

The tour guide used Linda’s Pixel 6 to take this photo in which we are dwarfed by a stand of bamboo.  It was nice to have a photo of the two of us that wasn’t a selfie.  (Photo by Linda, sort of)

 

The plant life in Hawaii is remarkable; unique, diverse, beautiful and fragile (to outside negative influences).

 

Our tour guide stops to explain some plant life along the trail.  (Photo by Linda)

 

I just liked this plant, photographically:  An interesting backlit pattern in contrasting shades of green.

 

We pause on our way to the waterfall and wading pool for photo op.  (Photo by Linda’s phone, but someone else obviously took the photo.)

 

On part of a hike to a small waterfall and swimming hole we had to go through this tunnel of twisted branches.  This was one of just many interesting things that were part of the hike.

 

We always appreciate good signposts to help us get where we need to go.

 

This view seemed to be quintessentially Maui; a rugged coast with a white sand beach set off by beautiful blue and green water and a blue sky with some puffy clouds.  If you look carefully at the white sand beach, you will also see a large gathering of very large sea turtles.

 

A zoomed in view of a section of the beach showing the very large sea turtles resting on the sand.  This section of the beach was closed off and posted “No Admittance” but we saw people ignoring that, both from land and from the sea.  (Photo by Linda)

 

I included this photo to show that Hawaiians’ also have a sense of humor.

 

We are back on the ship and having diner around 7:30 PM.  We did not do specialty dining very often, but we got two dinner meals as part of our fare, so we apparently used our second one this evening to dine at Teppanyaki, the Japanese table side grill.  The food was excellent and the chef was very entertaining.  (Photo by Linda)

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Note:  This is the 13th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 4 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos were taken by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

TUESDAY 12 September 2023 — (T17,C14) At-Sea from Nawiliwili, Kauai to Kahului, Maui, Hawaiian Islands

Our ship spent last night at the dock in Nawiliwili.  This allowed for extended time ashore, although we did not avail ourselves of that opportunity as we already had a long day ashore.  We departed Nawiliwili late morning, so there might have been some morning shore excursions today.  If so, we did not sign up for one.   Our next port-of-call was Kahului, Maui with arrival scheduled for early tomorrow morning.  As such, this would essentially be a partial sea day with an overnight sail and early morning arrival, as usual.

 

A last look at the harbor in Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii as the NCL SPIRIT moves away from the dock.

 

One last look at Kauai before going to lunch and settling in for the overnight cruise to Maui.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A 2-image composite photo of this evening’s sunset.  (It’s been post-processed to bring out some of the color.  I hope I didn’t overdo it.)

 

Based on the timestamp (05:39 on the 13th, so ~ 7:40 PM today), we had dinner a bit later than usual this evening.  This photo indicates that we dined at “Onda by Scarpetta,” the Italian specialty restaurant on the NCL SPIRIT.  Linda seems pleased with what has been set in front of her.  ABWR, the meal was excellent, as it has been with every specialty restaurant meal we have had on NCL ships (the main dining rooms food has also been quite good).  I think we went to the late performance in the theater afterwards, but photos/videos are not allowed during performances (even though we always see people taking them).  Not that I would take them anyway; we go there to relax and be entertained.

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Note:  This is the 12th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 26 photographs with captions and some narrative.  I think I finally figured out the file naming/numbering scheme used on the Google Pixel 6 / 6 Pro phones and how to relate that to the EXIF date/time stamps on the phone and SONY a6400 photos.  Which is to say, the photos in this post should be in the correct chronological order and I know what time of day (local) they were taken.  Photos taken by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

MONDAY 11 September 2023 — (T16,C13) Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii and McBryde National Tropical Botanical Garden.

After spending five (5) nights, four (4) full days, and part of two (2) other days crossing the North Pacific Ocean, we finally sighted land early this morning.  It was the 16th day of our trip, and the 13th day of our cruise.  By 6:30 AM we were making our way into the harbor at Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii, but we sighted land well before that.  Although I had been to Hawaii once before, and Linda had been here twice, It would be our first visit to this island, as well as to Maui, and we were excited to see them.

Our main activity today was a shore excursion to the McBryde National Tropical Botanical Garden (McBryde Garden or MNTBG), with a stop along the seashore on the way there.  Our guide for the tour of the Garden was a former director of the facility.  It was obvious that he really knew his stuff, and still had a great passion for all things botanical.

 

The NCL SPIRIT enters the harbor at Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A golf course at the entrance to the Nawiliwili, Kauai harbor.  Almost makes me want to take up golf.  Nope.

 

The “Apa and Ama were here” photo from the harbor at Nawiliwili with the marina and mountains behind.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A scenic stop along the coast on our drive to McBryde Garden.

 

Another photo from the scenic stop, looking in the other direction up the coast.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Life seems to be everywhere in the Hawaiian Islands.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Another scenic stop, this time after entering the McBryde National Tropical Botanical Garden property.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The contrast of colors and textures caught my eye.  MNTPG.

 

An interesting flowering plant at the MNTBG.

 

There are small frogs on the Lilley pads at MNTBG.  (This photo is 900×600 pixels.  Click to view full size on an appropriate device.)

 

This fruit was larger than appears (the leaves were really big!).  MNTBG.

 

We don’t see plants like this back in Michigan, except in greenhouse environments.  MNTBG.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The variety of green plant leaves provides a nice backdrop for the very colorful flowers at the MNTBG.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Our guide for the McBryde Garden tour was a former director of the NTBG.  He was very knowledgeable, and clearly still had a deep passion for plants and for the Garden.  Here he is cutting up a large piece of fruit, which grows there, so we can all try a piece.

 

A “walled” garden space at MNTBG, with the walls made of plants.

 

Another interesting plant at MNTBG.

 

And yet another interesting plant in flower at MNTBG.

 

Much of McBryde Garden had a very natural look and feel.  There were places, such as this courtyard, that were clearly designed and built to provide architectural elements within the landscape.  The wavy structure down the center of the photo carries running water.

 

Every now and then we have to stop and take a selfie.  We are not very good at it, but it’s required, you know.  MNTBG.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A different view of the same end of the courtyard showing the statue and bench.  The “walls” of this courtyard are plant material again.  MNTBG.

 

These very large trees had amazing, exposed root systems.  For a sense of scale, the little blue patch at the center of the base is me in my blue Columbia shirt.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Linda stands by a different tree (same species) as the previous photo.  MNTBG.

 

We encountered quite a few chickens on Kauai, including here at McBryde Garden.  The egg-shaped rocks among the roots are referred to as “dinosaur eggs.”  (Photo by Linda)

 

The green leaves with white dots caught my eye, and reminded me of “candy dots” that I would peel off of a paper backing as a child.  A quick Google search revealed that they are still very much available.  MNTBG.

 

This map of McBryde Garden should probably have come first, but we came across it at the end of our tour.  As shown, a small river (creek, stream) runs through the full length of the property.

 

One last flower photo as we wrap up at McBryde Garden.

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202309_06-10_T11-15_C8-12_At-Sea-NPO

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Note:  This is the 11th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has six (6) photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos were taken by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise noted.  (Photos by Linda were taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

WEDNESDAY 06 – SUNDAY 10 September 2023 — (T11-15,C8-12) At Sea on the North Pacific Ocean, and a Death at Sea (not one us)

The NCL SPIRIT departed Sitka, Alaska late yesterday afternoon and headed out into the open ocean for what would be our first of five (5) nights crossing the North Pacific Ocean to Kauai, Hawaii.  Once out of sight of land, we would be at sea for all or part of six (6) days, and not see land it again until the morning of Monday, 11 September, when we were scheduled to arrive in the port at Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii.

Our main reason for doing this cruise was to see southeast coastal Alaska for the first time and make a return visit to the Hawaiian Islands, but this time on a cruise ship.  Another reason for doing this cruise was that we had originally booked the same cruise on the same ship for June 2025, but with the itinerary starting in Hawaii and ending in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  That cruise was canceled by NCL, but Linda found this one in time to book a balcony stateroom in an acceptable location on the ship.

Another reason for doing this cruise at this time, as opposed to some unspecified future date, was to see how we would do spending extended days at sea.  Early in 2023 Linda (and Nancy) had booked a 4-month world cruise, starting in early January 2025, on the MSC Magnifica and we wanted to determine if we would be okay with extended sea days while we still had time to cancel that booking and get a full refund of our deposit.

I can report that we were fine being on the open ocean, out of sight of land and even other marine traffic, for an extended time.  We were favored with good weather, which probably helped, but we have been on cruise ships in less-than-ideal conditions, so we already knew we could handle that, at least for 48 hours.  While ports-of-call are usually new places to visit, with lots of opportunities for new, interesting, and even exciting experiences, cruise ships are fundamentally floating cities, with all of the necessities of life, i.e., housekeeping, interior climate control, food–water–sanitation, and lots of activities and amenities such as: entertainment, games, lectures, libraries, music venues, exercise rooms and classes, casinos and, of course, bars and lounges.  (I borrowed a book on the Bauhaus and managed to read it during the cruise.)  And shopping (lots of shopping).  Most ships have a walking track or promenade, so we could stroll there as an alternative to walking the shop and restaurant decks.  And we had our stateroom where we could relax, read, work puzzles, or just rest.  Without the hustle and bustle of going ashore and being part of shore excursions, we found our days at sea quite relaxing.  When the weather was amenable, we could sit on our private balcony, or go enjoy coffee in a more public, but still relaxing area of the ship.  Indeed, for many people, us included, the ship itself is an enjoyable experience.

What we did not do is “document” our time at sea, in part because the only things that change about the ocean are the weather and waves.  Sunrise and sunset are especially nice times, of course, and we hoped to see amazing stars at night.  But we knew from our Panama Canal cruise that the sky might be obscured by clouds, and the outside lighting on cruise ships never really turns off (presumably for visibility and safety) so the “dark sky” experience is elusive to non-existent.  It was also difficult to get photos that did not include other guests, especially their faces.  But at its core, while photography is a pleasurable hobby, it can be a bit of work, we just wanted to relax.

 

Following are a few photos to give you a sense of our time at sea on the North Pacific Ocean.

 

On our third full day at sea, Linda relaxes on our balcony with a book as the ship glides along under fair weather.  These large cruise ships are very stable and move smoothly through the water, all while traveling at 20 – 22 knots.

 

Linda pauses by the walking track for a photo.

 

A selfie sitting in the main theater waiting for the second show of the evening’s entertainment.  We got there early to get good seats, thus the empty seats behind us.

 

A panoramic composite of 8 images showing storm clouds brewing on the horizon at sunset.  I “enhanced” this photo in post-processing to bring out some of the colors (artistic license) but hopefully have not overdone it.

 

In spite of relatively good weather, we did have occasional rainclouds.  As shown here, we were treated to a double rainbow one day.  (Again, I have also used my artistic license to “enhance” this photo in post-processing to bring out the rainbows.  Again, hopefully have not overdone it.

 

This is the book I checked out of the ship’s library.  Though small, the library had a (perhaps surprisingly) good collection of “serious” books like this one, especially on travel and art.  People using the library as a game room were quiet and respectful of others who might be reading.  It was a small, but wonderful alternative place to the larger public spaces to spend some time without feeling cooped up in our stateroom.  (Note:  There is no reason to feel cooped up in a cruise ship cabin.  The ship is a floating city that operates 24 hours a day with massive amounts of deck square footage.)

…

 

Epilogue — A Death at Sea

The most unexpected thing that happened during our entire trip/cruise was that the women in one of the cabins next to ours passed away while the ship was crossing the North Pacific Ocean.  We were only aware of this because we heard conversation in the hallway one morning around sunrise and opened the door to see what was going on.  The husband was talking to some crew members, and told us that she had taken ill in their cabin a day earlier and was moved to the medical center but died during the night.

Yes, cruise ships have medical centers.  I think the one on the NCL SPIRIT is typical of cruise ships of this class; a small medical center with two doctors and a nurse/technician, lab equipment including an X-Ray machine, and a small pharmacy.  Apparently this woman already had breathing and other health issues (asthma or COPD, but I don’t recall exactly) and was quickly diagnosed with CoVID-19 as well.  We chatted with the husband (listened, mostly) during the next couple of days.  He was very impressed with the care and skill of the entire crew, especially the medical staff as they worked to treat her, but she lapsed into a comma and passed away before the ship could reach Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii and we were too far from land for an aero medivac.  The command staff gave him access to a phone so he could call relatives with the sad news and call someone in Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii to make arrangements for the transfer of her body to shore and transportation home (lower 48 states in the USA).

It turns out that cruise ships also have a mortuary because, as it turns out, deaths do occur at sea on cruise ships.  Not many, but it does happen.  I decided to do some light research (web search) on the subject and found the following from TouristSecrets.com:

“The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) reports that the mortality rate on cruises is considerably lower than on land-based vacations or other modes of transportation.  It is estimated that the annual mortality rate on cruise ships ranges between 0.14 and 0.25 deaths per 100,000 passengers.”   That’s 1.4 to 2.5 deaths per 1,000,000 passenger bookings, or roughly “1 in a million.”  This can also be expressed as 0.000014 to 0.000025 deaths per 100 passengers, which is 0.0014% to 0.0025%.  Any way you look at it, these are very low numbers or probabilities.  So, on a cruise ship with 3,000 guests and 1,500 crew (4,500 total people) the percentage chance of someone dying is 0.0063% to 0.0113% (to 4 decimal places).  But these are not random (roll of the dice) probabilities because people don’t just die on cruise ships for no reason anymore than they do on land.

Here is what I found (courtesy of Bing AI):

On average, approximately 200 people meet their fate aboard cruise ships each year (out of multiple millions of passenger bookings).  While the majority of these deaths result from natural causes, there are instances of accidents, suicides, and even murders.  Here are some key points about cruise ship deaths:

  1. Natural Causes: Most onboard deaths occur due to natural causes. These include health-related issues, age-related factors, and pre-existing conditions.  However, not all cruise lines and countries consistently share their death statistics, so the actual number may be higher than reported.
  2. Accidents: Accidental deaths can happen on cruise ships. These may involve slips, falls, or other unforeseen incidents.  Accidents can occur both at sea and while the ship is docked.  (Cruise ships are constantly moving when underway, and even when docked, and movement can be significant in really bad weather.  These ships also have a LOT of stairs, although elevators provide access to all guest floors.  Anyone with balance/stability/walking issues should be mindful of these factors.)
  3. Murders: While incredibly rare, cruise ship murders do occur. These are usually committed by someone the victim knows, often during heated arguments or due to a history of abuse. Guns are strictly prohibited on cruise ships, so most murders involve stabbings or pushing victims overboard.

I would add suicide to the list.  Again, very rare, but they do occur.  Remember that these incidents represent an incredibly small fraction of the millions of passenger bookings each year. The overall risk remains (extremely) low, but serve as a reminder that it’s essential to be aware of health and and safety measures/protocols while at sea.  And there is some comfort, I suppose, in knowing that cruise ships are prepared to deal with these situations.

…

20230905_T10-C7_Sitka-AK

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Note:  This is the 10th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 21 photographs with captions and some narrative.  All photos were taken by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda were taken using a Google Pixel 6.)

As I am writing these posts some five (5) months after our trip, I have struggled with getting the correct local time stamp for each photo and thus establishing the correct time sequence for images within a post.  The issue is the intermixing of photos from two Pixel smartphones with photos from a Sony a6400 ILC camera while shooting in different time zones far removed from home.  I think I have the photos in this post in the correct order, but have avoided making any reference in the captions to the time of day an image was captured.

 

TUESDAY 05 September 2023 — (T10,C7) Sitka, AK

This was day 10 or our trip, day 7 or our cruise, and our final stop in Alaska before crossing the North Pacific Ocean to the Hawaiian Islands.  We arrived in the Sitka harbor early this morning.  The weather was hazy upon arrival, but quickly gave way to blue skies with nice puffy clouds over the surrounding mountains.  It was just cool enough to require a light jacket, which made for wonderful conditions to walk around the town and go on a guided shore excursion with a very good local guide.

Sitka is a fascinating city with a history that placed it at the center of a crossroads of cultures.  The area around Sitka has been the traditional home of the Tlingit people for thousands of years, and they are still here.  The Russians arrived in 1804 and forcibly established a colony with Sitka (New Archangel) as its Capital.  It later became the Capital of American Alaska when the Russians sold the territory to the United States in 1867.

The Tlingit maintain a vibrant culture here with a performance center in the style of a traditional community clan house; offerings include song and dance.  Traditional art abounds in the Center and various art galleries, as well as the many intricately carved totem poles in the National Park peninsula.  Russian influence is evident in the onion domed Cathedral of St. Michael and the Russian Bishop’s House, as well as the Russian Cemetery and the names of places, buildings, and streets.  Russian dance is performed in town by the New Archangel dancers, while Summer music festivals celebrate Jazz as well as other musical traditions.

Paraphrased from Wikipedia:  Sitka is a unified city-borough in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of Alaska. It was under Russian rule from 1799 to 1867.  The city is situated on the west side of Baranof Island and the south half of Chichagof Island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean.  As of the 2020 census, Sitka had a population of 8,458, making it the fifth-most populated city in the state.   Although the City of Sitka is located on a two small islands, the borough encompasses a vast area.  According to the United States Census Bureau, the city-borough is the largest incorporated municipality by area in the U.S., with a total area of 4,811 square miles (12,460.4 sq km ), of which 2,870 square miles (7,400 sq km ) is land and 1,941 square miles (5,030 sq km ), comprising 40.3%, is water.

We enjoyed our short time in Sitka, as we did in Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway, but we sensed that we would enjoy returning here for a longer visit and the opportunity to explore the area more thoroughly.

 

This photo is from the day before around 4 PM as the ship was departing from Skagway.  (Photo by Linda)

 

We had slightly hazy weather for our arrival in the Sitka area, and the best scenery was to the ESE, into the sun.

 

After playing around with this photo for a while in post -processing, I decided it looked best as a black & white image.  (I got my first camera when I was 16 and started out shooting with B&W film and learning how to develop it and make prints using a darkroom that belonged to my parent’s best friends.  It still appeals to me.)

 

We were “anchored out” during our time in Sitka.  (It was never clear to me if this was due to a lack of adequate dockage for a ship our size, or a limited amount of such dockage that was already occupied by another ship or ships.)  A fuel ship prepares to come along side and refuel the SPIRIT in advance of our crossing the North Pacific Ocean.  (The fuel ship is not a barge as it is under its own power.)  (Photo by Linda)

 

As the NCL SPIRIT was anchored out, we had to tender in to the Sitka marina.  Shortly after disembarking from the tender, we were greeted by this very helpful sign with highlights marked on a map of the main downtown area.

 

I never tire of views where mountains meet the water.  This was captured from near the Sitka marina looking out towards our ship, which is just visible center frame where the mountains and water meet.

 

The “Welcome to Sitka” sign seemed like a good place to take a “Apa and Ama are here” photo for grand-daughter Sadie.  We tried to remember to take a photo in each place we visited and text them to her parents so she could follow our travels.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Linda holds the Apa and Ama artwork for another “we are here” photo.  This one is in Totem Square with the Sitka Pioneers Home in the background.  It might look like a hotel, but it’s actually an assisted living complex; one of the nicest we had ever seen (at least form the outside).

 

On June 14, 1879 the U.S.S. Jamestown (a sailing ship of war) arrived in the waters near Sitka to relieve the U.S.S. Alaska, and eventually moored near where this sign now stands.  From 1879 to 1881, she was the official seat of government for the Alaska District.  The Jamestown was relieved in August 1881 by the U.S.S Wachusett (a steam ship of war), which continued as the seat of government for the District of Alaska until the Civil Government was finally established by the Organic Act of 1884.

 

Our shore excursion today included a visit to the Sitka National Historical Park (aka Totem Park).

 

Our visit to Sitka NHP included a walk in the woods.  The tour guide (left) and Linda (right) are sporting their Tilley hats.  Linda’s lightweight hoodie says “Travel Park Connect.”  This was the motto of the RVillage social media platform.  I have one too.  It was a great idea and good platform for RVers that was very popular but did not survive.

 

While walking through Totem Park, we got to stop at a small footbridge over the Indian River, an active Salmon run.  Although not really visible in this photo (I couldn’t get a good one) the stream was thick with salmon swimming against the current, presumably trying to reach their spawning grounds.  It was quite a sight.  As I mentioned in a previous post, when I think of Alaska I think of Grizzly Bears, Bald Eagles, and Salmon.  I would add to that Eskimos and other indigenous people, totem poles, Polar Bears, Moose, Elk, Caribou, Whales, Bush planes/pilots, and oil production.

 

A shed at Sikta NHP / Totem Park where totem poles are repaired and restored.  (Photo by Linda)

 

This panorama of the Historic Campus of the Sika Fine Arts Camp is a composite of seven images.  The image is 1920 x 270 pixels; clicking on it will display it full size on a device with a suitable monitor.

 

The Sheldon Jackson Museum, founded in 1888, houses an exceptional collection of Alaska Native ethnographic material gathered by Presbyterian missionary and General Agent of Education for Alaska, the Rev. Dr. Sheldon Jackson.  It was purchased by the State of Alaska in 1985.

 

This charming and well-maintained building is St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church.  It was established on Thanksgiving Day in 1896, the same year the Klondike Gold Rush began.

 

The Russian Bishop’s House is now part of Sitka National Historical Park.  Given that Alaska was Russian territory for 68 years before being sold to the USA, it was not surprising to see Russian influences everywhere, including in the names of islands, streets, buildings and, of course, churches.  Next photo please.

 

Paraphrased from Wikipedia:  St. Michael’s Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel, is a cathedral of the Orthodox Church in America, Diocese of Alaska, in Sitka, Alaska. The earliest Orthodox cathedral in the New World, it was built in the nineteenth century, when Alaska was under the control of Russia.  After 1872, the cathedral came under the control of the Diocese of Alaska.  It had been a National Historic Landmark since 1962, notable as an important legacy of Russian influence in North America and Southeast Alaska in particular.  An accidental fire destroyed the cathedral during the night of January 2, 1966, but it was subsequently rebuilt.  The new building’s green domes and golden crosses are a prominent landmark in Sitka.  Some of the icons date to the mid-17th century; two icons are by Vladimir Borovikovsky.

 

Our shore excursion guided walking tour ended atop Castle Hill.  Looking northeast, the green domes and golden crosses of the Orthodox Cathedral are visible  through the trees.

 

A view (probably from Castle Hill) of the mountains, and the east end of the harbor, south of Sitka, Alaska.  (Photo by Linda)

 

We departed Sitka Harbor in the late afternoon / early evening and were greeted by this spouting whale and fishing boat.  Fishing boats were numerous in the harbor and marina.  This was the last time we would see land until the morning of Monday 11 September when we arrived at the port in Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii.

…

20230904_T9-C6_Skagway-AK

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Note:  This is the 9th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 27 photographs with captions and some narrative.  All photos taken by me (Bruce) using a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

MONDAY 04 September 2023 — (T9,C6) Skagway, AK — Miners Camp, Bar & Brothel, White Pass & Yukon Railroad

This was day 9 or our trip and day 6 of our cruise.  We had three shore experiences, but they were booked as one shore excursion that provided transportation between venues and ensured we met the starting times for each one, including getting back to the ship on time.

The excursion(s) started with a bus ride to the Liarsville Gold Rush Trail Camp & Salmon Bake, a private reproduction gold mining camp.  It was nicely done, but only provided a sanitized glimpse at what life must have been like during the Klondike gold rush period, which started in 1896.  The “camp” we experienced was certainly much cleaner than the reality of a by-gone era of fortune-seeking in the Alaskan wilderness.  Our visit to the camp included panning for gold (we didn’t get any), a show in the Hippodrome (which was very good), and a buffet lunch (with LOTS of salmon on offer along with lots of side dishes).

Back in town, we toured the Red Onion Saloon and Brothel.  It was a brothel in its day, but is now a museum (of course), although the saloon is still a functioning bar.  Again, a somewhat “sanitized” glimpse, but a glimpse nonetheless, into another aspect of frontier life in the Klondike Gold Rush era.

Our third experience, and one of the highlights of our entire trip, was a ride on the White Pass and Yukon Railway from Skagway, AK through White Pass Summit (mm 20.4) and ending in Fraser, British Columbia (mm 27.7). The return trip to Skagway was by motorcoach, which is much faster than the return trip by train, but also gave us different views.

Paraphrased from Wikipedia (and other sources):  The White Pass and Yukon Railway was completed in 1900.  The 3-foot “narrow gauge” railway extended from Skagway, Alaska to Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory of Canada, a distance of 177 km (~ 110 miles).  It was built in two sections; the first from Skagway, AK north to Carcross, BC (67.5 mi) and the other from Whitehorse, YT south to Carcross (42.9 mi).

When first built, the railway transported would-be miners, equipment, and supplies to the gold fields in the Yukon Territory, as well as points along the route.  It continued to service mines all along the route until metal prices collapsed and the railway closed on October 7, 1982.  The route reopened from Skagway to White Pass Summit in 1988 (20.4 mi) for tourist traffic only, to Fraser, BC in 1989 (an additional 7.3 mi for a total of 27.7 mi) and then to Bennett, BC in 1992 (another 12.9 mi for a total of 40.6 mi).  The reopening from Skagway north was at the urging, and with the active support, of the cruise line industry, which was already calling on Skagway and saw the potential for a unique onshore experience.  (The parent company of Carnival Cruise Lines is a major stakeholder in the current railroad operations.)

The hope has always existed that the entire route would reopen someday.  A train from Skagway, AK reached Carcross Station, YT in 1997 for the “Ton of Gold Centennial Celebration,” a distance of 67.5 miles (~110 km), and this is the currently active portion of the original line.  On October 10, 1997 a special passenger train (invitation only) ran from Carcross Station to Whitehorse, affirming that the rails were still intact and usable.

Here are some highlights of our day in photos and captions:

 

The entrance to Liarsville Gold Rush Trail Camp.  The “camp” is mostly based on tents displaying various aspects of camp life in the Klondike Gold Rush era.  “Rustic” permanent buildings on-site house a store, restrooms, and the Hippodrome entertainment venue.

 

Our Liarsville location photo for grand-daughter Sadie with her Apa and Ama artworks.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Signs to the most important places in the Liarsville camp (top-to-bottom): General Store, Brothel, and Restrooms.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The Liarsville Hippodrome; a covered entertainment venue (that would not have been part of an 1897 Gold Rush camp).  (Photo by Linda)

 

The young (to us) entertainers were very good.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Linda pans for gold.  (She didn’t find any.)

 

The Liarsville experience included a salmon bake luncheon.  Shown here is the Cookhouse.  It was here for tourists and employees and would not have been part of an authentic tent camp.

 

A view of the “back-room bar” at the Red Onion Saloon and Brothel.  The “madam” serves drinks to our tour group and “explains” the operation of the establishment.  The “rooms” are upstairs and we got to tour that area as well.

 

A massive snowblower used to clear the White Pass & Yukon Railway tracks.  My research indicated that it still works, and is still used, and is quite a sight to see in operation.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A rare selfie of the two of us.  We are in our Pullman-style train car as the train starts its journey up to White Pass Summit and Fraser, BC.  (Photo by Linda)

 

A view from of the left side of the train from in-between two of the passenger cars.  The views were constantly changing, and always amazing, but not always easy to capture from a moving platform with limited choices of shooting angle (and lots of other passengers also trying to take photos).  (Photo by Linda)

 

This a composite of two images that Linda shot with her phone.  The Coastal Range are some serious mountains.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The train approaches one of several trestle bridges that span deep gorges.  The construction of this rail line was quite a feat of engineering and labor.  (Photo by Linda)

 

In the area around White Pass Summit, the highest surrounding peaks are in the 6000 to 7000 ft AMSL category.  The highest peak anywhere near Skagway is Mt. Fairweather.  Located 89 miles to the SW of town, near the ocean coast, it rises to 15,325 ft AMSL.  It is part of a range with numerous peaks in the 10K, 11K, and 12K foot ASL categories, and must be quite a sight to see from the ocean.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Mountains, mountains everywhere, with snow still present in the highest elevations.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The WP&YR uses several different types of diesel-electric locomotives, and still operates a couple of steam engine locomotives.  Our locomotives were black with a red horizontal stripe, but I have been unable to identify the exact model.

 

If this photo is of the maintenance yard, it is out of order.  The sequence number (assigned by the camera), however, indicates that it is in the correct order, so I’m not sure what is being shown here, but I have included it anyway.

 

A view of our passenger car from the rear as Linda (closest person to the camera on the right) enjoys the scenery.

 

Somewhere along the White Pass & Yukon Route (the image has been manipulated, obviously).

 

Well, this is obviously a view from Rocky Point, which is mm 6.9, so we still had most of the trip ahead of us.  The day was obviously cloudy, but the views were spectacular nonetheless.

 

A jagged peak towers into the clouds.  Like I said earlier, the Coastal Ranges are serious mountains.

 

Our train crosses a gorge and disappears into a tunnel.  There are only two tunnels on the WP&YR route, Tunnel Mountain at mm 16.0 and a newer one (1969) at mm 18.8.  I was unable to determine which one this was after the fact.

 

The end of our train as it is about to cross a trestle bridge over a gorge and follow the rest of the train into a tunnel.

 

Distant views.

 

White Pass Summit and the monument marking the boarder between Alaska (USA) and British Columbia (Canada).  The Summit at White Pass is 2,864 ft AMSL.  The train starts in Skagway a few feet above sea level and climbs ~ 140 feet per mile traveled, on average.  That’s a 2.65% grade, on average.

 

The (old) North West Mounted Police (NWMP) station.  I think this was right after crossing into British Columbia, but I’m not sure of the exact location.

 

Our train ride ended in Fraser, British Columbia, where we cleared Canadian Customs before boarding a motorcoach for the return trip to Skagway via the Klondike Highway.

…

 

20230903_T8-C5_Juneau-AK

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Note:  This is the 8th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 23 photographs with captions and some narrative.  All photos taken by me (Bruce) with a SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with a Google Pixel 6.)

 

SUNDAY 03 September 2023 — (T8,C5) Juneau (AK); Glaciers, Gardens, and Hatcheries

This was day 8 of our travels and day 5 of the cruise.  We signed up for a shore excursion to that included the Mendenhall Glacier, Glacier Gardens Rainforest Adventure (GGRA) (a private botanical garden and Yard Doctor Nursery), and the Macauley Salmon Hatchery.  The shore excursion started early and took most of the morning.

The Mendenhall Glacier is located in the Tongass National Forest.  Access is controlled and limited and, for whatever reason, our tour bus did have access today, so we only got to see the glacier from a distance.  Disappointing, certainly, but not the end of the world as we had just seen Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve yesterday.  We returned to the dock by noon and then walked around downtown Juneau, which is Alaska’s state capital.

 

Our tour bus stopped at a parking area that allowed us to walk north along a trail on the west side of the Mendenhall River, where I spotted this flower.

 

A stretch of the Mendenhall River, flowing strongly.  The Mendenhall Glacier is visible center frame just above the trees.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Glacier Gardens (GGRA) is known for their “upside down” trees.  Steve and Cindy Bowhay created this place, with the Rainforest Adventure opening in 1998.  Located within the Tongass National Forest, GGRA is a temperate rainforest environment.  The upside-down trees are just that; the lower portion of large trees and their root ball, inverted and stuck in the ground.  The top of the root ball is then used as a planter.  They are unique and delightful, with a wonderful variety of flowers and shrubs.

 

The GGRA Adventure involved climbing a small mountain through a dense forest in open-sided vehicles (shown later).  The road is constructed of logs in many places, with no shoulder and steep drop-offs in places.  There is a log curb, however, as shown in this photo, and our driver seemed to take safety seriously.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Another view of the road as seen from below.  The GGRA gardens were beautiful, and the views from the summit outstanding, but the road was an attraction in its own right, at least for those who are curious about such things (like me).  (Photo by Linda)

 

A view to the west (I think) from the summit of GGRA.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The extended wheelbase “vans” used to transport guests on the road to/from the summit of GGRA.

 

A small waterfall/feature at GGRA.  (Photo by Linda)

 

This planting bed at GGR caught our eyes.

 

A closer view of an interesting plant at GGRA.

 

Proof that I was here at GGRA.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Proof that Linda was also here at GGRA.  (Photo by Bruce using Linda’s Pixel 6.)

 

The landscaping at GGRA really was something.  This cascading stream looked very natural.  Glacier Gardens is not just a tourist attraction; is also a nursery and landscaping service for the greater Juneau area.

 

Our shore excursion concluded with a stop at the Macauley Salmon Hatchery (MSH), located northwest of Juneau on the Gastineau Channel.  Fishing in general, and salmon in particular, is a big industry in Alaska, of course, and there are many hatcheries and processing plants in the state.  The MSH is a working facility that is also open to the public for tours.  It was a great way to end our shore excursion.

 

The salmon run at MSH looking northwest.  The Gastineau Channel is to the left.  The tide was out and the water level was very low.

 

There were quite a variety of fish and crustaceans in the tanks at MSH.  I selected this photo because I thought it was an interesting composition.

 

The official (?) “Welcome to Juneau” sign.  We had, in fact, felt very welcomed everywhere we had been on this trip thus far.  (Photo by Linda)

 

We were not looking for it, but managed to stumble across the City Hall building for the “City and Borough” of Juneau.  The distinction must be important or the sign would not have mentioned it.  I wonder if the locals divide up into “townies” and “boroughies”?  And I wonder if “boroughies” is even a word?  (MS Word spell check doesn’t think so.)

 

I don’t recall what the significance of this building was, if indeed it had any special significance.  I photographed it because I liked its design and materials, and it had a cool totem pole.

 

This statue was in the plaza that is part of the State Capital complex, which included the Capitol, of course.  When I think of Alaska I think of many things, but especially Bald Eagles, Grizzly Bears, and Salmon.  This statue had two of those three, so …

 

We took this to be the main food/shopping street in Juneau, or at least typical of the retail sector in town.  Some of the shops and eateries might have been a bit more upscale, but not all of them, and the look/feel of the place was still very much coastal Alaska.  (Note:  The timestamp on this photo matches the time on the clock in the photo.  I love it when that happens.)

 

Like all of the coastal cites we visited, Juneau occupies land between the water and steep, high terrain.  Much of the city is built on the lower, flatter areas, when possible, but the land rises quickly and steeply as you move away from the water, and we saw plenty of structures up on the slopes that appeared to be mostly residences.  This staircase is very steep and long, and leads up to a building at the top that might be visible in this photograph.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Linda relaxes in our stateroom after spending the better part of 5+ hours ashore.  The ship in the background is the Seven Seas Explorer from the Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line.  It is one of their two new Explorer Class ships, the other being the Seven Seas Splendor.  ALL staterooms on ALL Regent Seven Seas ships are “suites” and come with butler service.  Regent Seven Seas offers a luxury cruise experience and tends to be more inclusive than most other lines, but with a fare to match.  In spite of being upscale, it is our understanding that these ships are quite relaxed, with freestyle dining, for instance.  They also tend to be mostly adult oriented, lacking some of the “entertainment” attractions on more family and “younger cruiser”-oriented lines.  I think we would enjoy this (or a similar) cruise line, if not for the cost.  (Winning a big lottery might chance that equation.)

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20230902_T7-C4_Glacier-Bay-NPP-AK

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Note:  This is the 7th of 16 posts about our 20-day trip that included a 16-night cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia north along the inside passage to Sitka, Alaska, and then across the North Pacific Ocean to the Hawaiian Islands, before ending in Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 10 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos by me (Bruce) taken with SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with Google Pixel 6.)

 

SATURDAY 02 September 2023 — (T7,C4) Cruising Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve, Alaska

This was day 7 of our travels and day 4 of the cruise.  Our destination for today was Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNP&P).  We had an early departure from the port at Ketchikan yesterday, as it was a long sail from there to the Bay and our itinerary was planned to give us as much sailing time in the Bay as possible.  We anticipated that this would be one of the scenic highlights of our entire trip, and it was, in spite of less-than-ideal weather conditions.  The weather also made photography a bit more challenging, but I think we did okay.

Glacier Bay is a National Park & Preserve, so ships (cruise and otherwise) cannot just sail in as they please.  Access is controlled and cruise ships, in particular, have to book entrance for their itineraries well in advance.  They also have to stop near the entrance of the Bay and pick up a National Park Service Ranger/Historian, who remains on-board until the ship leaves the boundaries of the park/preserve.  The Park employee does double duty, both explaining on the P.A. system what the passengers are seeing, as well as (I suspect) “advising” the Captain about conditions in the Park so no harm comes to the ship or the Park.  Not a harbor pilot, of course, but an official Park presence for sure.  The Park employee is returned to their base as the ship exits the Park.

 

Our first large glacier appears on the port (left) side of the ship as it works its way north into Glacier Bay.  (Photo by Linda.)

 

Our APA and AMA “proof we were here photo for GBNP&P.  (Photo by Bruce using Linda’s phone.)

 

There were great views in every direction all of the time.  This photo is looking forward from the forward lounge.  The large glass windows distort the exposure and color.  I’ve corrected it as best I can.  (This image is 1200×675 pixels.  Clicking on it will display it full-resolution on a device with a sufficient screen resolution.)

 

The exposure on this photo was so bad I could not correct it.  I wanted to use it as it’s a nice shot of Linda and shows the forward observation lounge.  I adjusted it to make it “artsy.”

 

This is the same basic view as the previous two photos with an attempt at natural color corrections.  Some of the forward observation lounge windows are visible along with a few passengers for scale.

 

Winding our way around headlands as we sailed deeper into the Bay was exciting as we (literally) never knew what was around the next corner (even though we had a map of GBNP&P).  (Photo by Linda.)

 

Linda caught an especially nice photo of this headland with higher mountains behind.  I think this photo captures just how rugged GBNP&P is.  (Photo by Linda.)

 

The end of the Bay, ABIR.  The day started out overcast and grey, with weak light.  By later in the afternoon, the clouds had opened up a bit to let in light and reveal blue skies.  (This image is 1080×608 pixels, and can be displayed at full-resolution on an appropriate device by clicking on the image.)

 

Linda on the pool deck (13, ABIR) with mountains looming in the background, relatively close to the ship.  The experience of seeing the Park from a cruise ship was grand.

 

The land comes down to meet the sea as we sail south out of GBNP&P.  I liked the way this green island stood out against the somewhat monochromatic mountains and clouds.  (This image is 1200×628 pixels.  You know what to do.)

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20230901_T6-C3_Ketchikan-AK

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Note:  This is the 6th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia Honolulu, Oahu.  This post has 14 photographs with captions and some narrative.  Photos taken by me (Bruce) with SONY alpha 6400 or Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photo by Linda taken with Google Pixel 6.)

 

FRIDAY 01 September 2023 — (T6,C3) Ketchikan, Alaska and Totem Bight State Historical Park

 

This was day 6 of our travels and day 3 of the cruise.  I’m not sure what time we arrived at Ketchikan, Alaska, but our first photos, taken from our balcony, appear to be from 6 AM local time.  If so, we were up early and dressed for the arrival.  The embarkation “sail away” is always a big deal, but we especially like arriving in a new port-of-call.  Cruise ships often arrive in ports very early in the morning to give their guests as much time as possible to go ashore (and spend money on shore excursions).  Departure is typically anywhere from mid-afternoon to early evening, depending on the distance/time to the next port.  These ships are able to set and course and speed and maintain it with considerable precision, so they have very accurate ETAs as a rule.   After a few photos, I presume we went in search of breakfast somewhere on the ship.

 

Proof of Arrival for grand-daughter Sadie.  The pony on the left (of the photo) is labeled “APA” (Grandpa Bruce) and the other one is labeled “AMA” (Grandma Linda).  (Photo by Linda)

 

We were docked starboard side in, so we had a view of most of Ketchikan from our stateroom balcony.  Most of the town is nestled between some small mountains and the water, and has an extensive waterfront.  This is a composite image of 4 photographs.

 

We booked a shore excursion to Totem Bight State Historical Park (TBSHP), which took up the late morning.  As we stepped ashore to gather by our tour bus, we were aware that this was the first time we had set foot on Alaskan soil.

One of things we noticed on the Coastal Alaska portion of this cruise was that many of the tour bus drivers/guides and venue guides were relatively young.  In conversation, we discovered that many of them were from Brigham Young University (Utah) and were here working seasonal jobs.  The reason is that BU has a semester schedule that makes it possible for students to take jobs in places like Alaska at times of the year when they are needed.  They also have a training program for tourist industry work, and many companies recruit from there as a result.  We were impressed that these relatively young folks had gotten their CDL-B (Commercial Driver’s License – Passenger Bus).

 

An information board on arrival at TBSHP.

 

A totem pole at the entrance into TBSHP.

 

The lovely, wooded entrance path into TBSHP.

 

The Lodge House at TBSHP.  Our tour guide provides scale for the carved figures that support the massive beams that support the rafter beams for the roof.

 

The Lodge House at TBSHP viewed from the entrance end.

 

A view of the Lodge House at TBSHP from the side, with several totem poles visible.

 

 

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A view of the Lodge House at TBSHP from the side, with several totem poles visible.

 

Another interesting totem pole as we were exiting the TBSHP.

 

Upon return to the cruise ship dock, we walked the town for a while before returning to our ship well ahead of “all on board” time.

 

A view of one of the streets in Ketchikan.  Ketchikan was a neat little town, but busy with tourists and vehicles and difficult to photograph in an interesting or meaningful way.

 

This photo is from mid-afternoon, not long after leaving the dock in Ketchikan.  Seven images were composited to form this panoramic photograph.

 

 

These ships are part of the Alaska Marine Highway System, which is headquartered in Ketchikan, Alaska.  There is a major dry dock facility just out of frame to the left with a ship in it for repairs.

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20230831_T5-C2_At-Sea on the Inside-Passage

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Note:  This is the 5th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post does not have any photographs.

THURSDAY 31 August 2023 — (T5,C2) At Sea in the southern Inside Passage

This was the fifth day of our trip, and the second day of our cruise.  We left the cruise terminal in Vancouver, BC yesterday at approximately 3 PM local time and were scheduled to arrive in Ketchikan, Alaska early on the morning of September 1st.  That meant today was a “sea day.“  We had sailed overnight last night and would sail through the overnight hours again tonight—approximately 37 hours in total—before reaching Ketchikan, Alaska.  We tend to sleep well on cruise ships, perhaps surprisingly, as we are in an unfamiliar space with unfamiliar noises and sleeping on a mattress and pillows that are not our own.  Linda attributes this to the gentle movement of the ship (in nice weather) and perhaps the faint sound of water flowing as the ship glides through the ocean.

This cruise was going to have more sea days than most 2-week cruises as we would be crossing the North Pacific Ocean (NPO) from Sitka, Alaska to Nawiliwili, Kauai (Hawaiian Islands), a 5-night journey that would take five full days and parts of two others.  But this sea day was in the southern end of the famous “inside passage,” a route up the coast of British Columbia and Alaska that winds its way between the mainland to the east and the plethora of islands to the west.  As a route, it is more protected and (presumably) more scenic than the “outside passage” but, I presume, also trickier to navigate.  It’s not really optional, however, as the major cities here are mostly located on the mainland coast.  Going from outside to inside and back would add many, many nautical miles and hours to the journey and therefore $$$ to the cost of such cruises.  I presume it is also more scenic, with something to see on both sides of the ship most of the time.  An Alaskan coastal cruise is not just about epic scenery, however; it also about history, culture, and adventure, so the ships have to go to the cities if guests want to visit them which, of course, they do.

The weather was overcast and hazy during our initial passage, so we did not have any good photo opportunities until our arrival in Ketchikan.  Which was fine.  Sea days are a wonderful time to explore the ship in greater depth as well as just relax and enjoy the motion of the ship and the world floating by, if only ephemeral glimpses of land through the mist.  I found a book on the Bauhaus in the ship’s library, and spent some relaxing time reading it over the duration of the cruise.

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20230830_T4-C1_NCL-SPIRIT Embarkation and Sail-Away

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Note:  This is the 4th of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-dat (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT from Vancouver, British Columbia to Honolulu, Oahu.  This post consists of 13 photos with captions and some narrative.  Photos taken by me (Bruce) with SONY alpha 6400 and Google Pixel 6 Pro unless otherwise indicated.  (Photos by Linda taken with Google Pixel 6.)

 

WEDNESDAY 30 August 2023 — (T4,C1)  NCL SPIRIT Embarkation & Sail-Away, Le Bistro French Restaurant

Today was the fourth day of our trip, and the first day of our “Ice & Fire” cruise on the NCL cruise ship SPIRIT.  Embarkation was at the cruise terminal at the Port of Vancouver, which we had visited during the last couple of days to make sure we knew where it was and how to get in as pedestrians.  Given that it was only ~0.5 miles from our hotel, which did not have a shuttle service, we walked to the cruise port with our roller bag suitcases rather than take a cab or Uber.  I’ve mentioned previously that central/downtown Vancouver is a very walkable city, at least in nice weather.

Embarkation was relatively easy.  We checked our larger bags, and took our smaller ones on-board with us rather than leave them for the porters to deliver.  We had to wait for a while to gain access to our stateroom but once we did, we dropped off our bags and explored the ship.  We would naturally do this anyway, as there isn’t much else to (other than drink or swim) while all of the guests are being embarked, but we have also discovered that this is one of the “tips” that is widely shared on Youtube cruising channels.

We made an assumption that the scenery going up the inside passage might be better on the starboard (mainland) side of the ship, so we booked a balcony cabin on that side (the right when facing forward towards the bow).  We chose a room on Deck 9 near the fore-aft center of the ship.  This deck was high enough to have a good view and a near optimal location to minimize the effect of the ship’s movement by being near the ships center of gravity.  This minimizes both roll (side-to-side, worse the higher up you are) and pitch (fore-to-aft, worse the closer you are to the bow or the stern).  (The most movement is felt high up at either end of a ship.)

 

I hold two “cards” that our 4-year-old grand-daughter made.  We tried to photograph them each place that we visited and share the photos with her.  This photo was taken around 10 AM local time near the bow as the ship was docked “bow in” such that the bow was close to shore and the buildings of central downtown Vancouver, BC.  (Photo by Linda)

After getting to our room, we explored the ship for a bit and then had some lunch in the café (buffet).

 

This photo was taken from the forward lounge (the bow of the ship is visible).  The “sails” to the right of the ship are on the roof the terminal, which also houses Canada Place.  The upper deck by the sails is publicly accessible and affords a great, close-up view of docked cruise ships.

 

This photo is a view of the rear of the ship with the small swimming pool surrounded by lounge chairs arranged on stadium tiers.  The land in the background is North Vancouver on the other side of the harbor.

 

A rare photo of me on an upper/rear deck above the rear swimming pool looking towards the exit from the harbor and the bridge to North Vancouver.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Departure was scheduled for mid-late afternoon local time, and the ship started to move away from the dock around 3 PM, ABIR (and as evidenced by my photos).  We had a lovely cruise out of the Vancouver harbor, with lots of seaplane activity, something we don’t see much at home.  We watched the scenery go by for quite a while, but eventually went to dinner.

 

The ship has left the dock, and is making a backing turn.  This and the next three (3) photos were taken from the upper forward lounge though large plate glass windows.  This resulted in reflections and a heavy blue cast to the images, which I tried to correct.  Notice how the cruise terminal juts out like the bow of a ship, which was the architectural intent.

 

Another view of the Port of Vancouver Cruise Terminal.  The ship-like appearance is even more apparent here, with the “sails” flying above the building.

 

The ship is bringing the bow around towards the harbor entrance with the Vancouver skyline visible to port (left).

 

From Wikipedia:  “The Lions Gate Bridge, opened in 1938 and officially known as the First Narrows Bridge, is a suspension bridge that crosses the first narrows Burrard Inlet and connects the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, to the North Shore municipalities of the District of North Vancouver, the City of North Vancouver, and West Vancouver.”

 

The entrance/exit from the harbor is underneath a bridge (center of the frame) that connects Vancouver (left) and to the North Shores municipalities (right).

 

The ship is about to pass under the Lion’s Gate Bridge that connects Vancouver (left) to the North Shores municipalities (right).  The bridge marks (symbolically) the boundary of Vancouver harbor with the larger Pacific ocean.

 

Once the ship was out of the harbor and underway we eventually went to dinner.  Dining on NCL ships is “freestyle,” which means we did not have an assigned dining room, time, or table.  This is not true with all cruise lines, but it’s something we like and will look for on future cruises, regardless of the cruise line.  On this occasion, however, we had booked a table at Le Bistro, the specialty French restaurant.  I think we got two specialty restaurant meals as part of our cruise fare, and Linda thought it would be nice to use one of for our embarkation dinner, and she was right (of course).  We booked a 7:45 PM seating.  The setting was lovely and the food was amazing.

 

Linda models our table at Le Bistro, with lots of glasses waiting to be filled.

 

Our salad.  I think it had artichokes, but whatever it was, it was amazing.

 

I pose with what I presume was the main course.  Whatever it was, it was also amazing, because our recollection is that everything about this meal was amazing.  (Photo by Linda)

 

The Le Bistro dinner menu for this evening.  The reality of cruise ship dining is that we have to become vegetarians (or pescatarians) as true vegan options are very limited to non-existent, unless we only eat salad from the café/buffet venue.  (Photo by Linda)

 

Sometime during the day, and certainly before we went to sleep for the night, we unpacked our suitcases and found a storage place for everything.  We appreciated that the empty suitcases fit neatly under the bed and did not take up valuable closet or floor space.  Had they been a few inches thicker, they might not have fit.  Something to keep in mind for future cruises.

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20230827_T1_Air Ice Water Fire Air

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Note:  This is the first of 16 posts about our 21-day trip that included a 17-day (16-night) cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) ship SPIRIT.  Our trip started in Michigan with a flight to Vancouver, British Columbia where we spent a few days exploring the central/downtown area.  We then boarded the cruise ship and headed north along the inside passage to Ketchikan, Alaska.  We toured Glacier Bay and then made port calls in Juneau, Skagway, and Sitka, with interesting shore excursions in each port.  We then crossed the North Pacific Ocean to the Hawaiian Islands, visiting Kauai and Maui before ending in Honolulu, Oahu, again with interesting shore excursion in each port.

This post consists of 5 photos with captions and some narrative.  Photos were taken by me (Bruce) with a SONY alpha 6400 or a Google Pixel 6 Pro, unless otherwise indicated.  Photos by Linda were taken with a Google Pixel 6.

 

SUNDAY 27 August 2023 — (T1) Detroit, MI (USA) to Vancouver, BC (Canada)

The first leg of our Air – Ice – Water – Fire – Air trip was air travel from Detroit Metropolitan Airport to Vancouver International Airport via Seattle-Tacoma (SEATAC) International Airport.  Much like any other “vacation” travel that does not involve one of our RVs, we had the usual preparations for this trip.  There was trip planning, booking the ship, arranging the flights, deciding what to take (and what not to take), figuring out how to pack it, online check-ins, actually getting to/from our home airport and parking our vehicle (we used U.S. Park for the first time, and it worked well), clearing Customs and Border check-ins, physical check-ins for flights and the cruise, and navigating unfamiliar airports, train stations, cities, and a cruise port and.  All of that was work, of course, and although makes for an interesting experience, it doesn’t make for particularly interesting blog fodder.

What might be worth nothing, however, is that we originally planned to do this cruise in June 2024 from Hawai’i to Vancouver via the North Pacific Ocean and coastal Alaska.  This is sometimes referred to as the “Fire & Ice” cruise and we had booked it earlier in 2023.  Sometime during the year, however, we received an e-mail from NCL informing us that the cruise had been cancelled.  Disappointed, but undeterred, Linda found that the same cruise was available on the same ship starting in late August 2023, but sailing in the reverse order.

 

On the street in Vancouver near our hotel.

Well, alrighty then, apparently we were going on our second cruise of 2023!  We were excited about it, of course, starting with embarkation at the Port of Vancouver in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  Vancouver would be a first time visit for us, and a place we had wanted to visit for some time.  Indeed, it was the first time we would be in any Province of Canada west of Ontario.  Although we plan to visit Alaska by RV in the next few years, this would also be our first time in Alaska, and we were aware that much of southeast coastal Alaska is best accessed by ship.

 

I have held a private pilot license since my early 20’s (a long time ago), and I enjoyed flying small planes, but I have no love for modern day airline travel, and Linda shares that feeling.  Flying out of Detroit Metropolitan Airport DELTA Airlines is our primary choice because Detroit Metro is a major hub for the airline and flies almost everywhere from there.  Their “service” seemed to be lacking this time, but we doubt that it’s any different/better with any other carriers.  We particularly dislike the luggage “self-check” system, which still requires us to interact with an agent, of which there never seem to be enough on duty to handle the number of passengers, resulting in long waits in long lines.  We do some of the work and DELTA gets to hire less people.

Adding to this annoyance is that they have special lines and agents for customers with higher loyalty levels, and these lines are often empty but the agents just stand around waiting for the next privileged customer to show up.  Once through the TSA security check-point (more on that in a minute) we object to people being allowed to bring suitcases/bags on a plane that are obviously too large to pass carry-on dimensions, even after being told (by public announcement) that this will not be allowed.  Add to that the small, cramped seats in the “main cabin”, a stupid loading order (front-to-back), and it’s just not much fun.  In fairness, our interactions with agents and cabin crew were pleasant and helpful, as usual, and things tended to work better once we are in the plane and in the air.  Until we have to deplane, which is always a zoo.  But again, to be fair, the other passengers tend to “play nice” and let people out of their seats as the plane empties out.

 

Another street view in our Vancouver hotel district.

The TSA security check-points are always a hassle, especially having to remove shoes, belts, etc. but on this occasion we encountered a new issue.  As we were getting in line (for the ordinary travelers, not those with TSA pre-check or other special security clearance credentials) the area was suddenly closed for a “shift change.”  Apparently the shift change involved a 100% rotation of personnel, necessitating the shut-down of the lanes.  We were directed to go through the check-point in the attached Westin Hotel; a considerable (1/2 mile) walk from where we were.  Once through security, we had an even longer walk (~ 1.0 mile) through the terminal to our gate.  Fortunately, we arrived at the airport plenty early to leave time for this kind of nonsense, but nonsense it was nonetheless.

 

A shot from the hop-on/hop-off bus.  Vancouver has some very interesting skyscrapers and other architecture.

When we have to fly, we typically have two roller cases each, one that just fits within the carry-on size requirements and one that is much smaller and fits easily under the seat in front of us if needed.  The airline rules do permit us to bring this combination on board, but we have taken to checking the larger bags and carrying the smaller ones onto the plane.  If we are going to be away for a long time, we will take one or two larger suitcases that must be checked.  As such, the smaller bags contain the essentials that we cannot afford to lose in transit: cameras, tablets, chargers, spare glasses, medications, personal toiletries, a change of underwear and socks, and our winter (down) jackets if required by the time of year and/or destinations.  If our larger bags on delayed or lost, the bags and contents are replaceable given some time to deal with the situation.  With that in mind, we always try to arrive at least one day ahead of embarkation for a cruise.  For this cruise, we arrived three days ahead of time, giving us two full days to explore a city we had heard so much about, and were excited to finally visit.

 

Another unusual skyscraper as seen from the hop-on/hop-off bus.

A direct flight from Detroit to Vancouver was not available, or at least not at a time that worked for us, and we ended up flying through SEATAC Airport in Washington (State) and changing planes.  Which was fine.  We had a bit of a wait for the second leg of our trip, but that was fine too.  Most importantly, our two checked bags arrived in Vancouver on the same plane that we did.

Once we had gathered our bags from the luggage claim in Vancouver, we made our way to the on-airport train station.  Vancouver has a train that runs from the airport to the train station in the heart of downtown.  The system was “self-serve,” and a bit confusing to us as first-time users, but we figured out quickly enough how to use a credit card to get through the entrance control gate and get on the correct train with our roller-cases.  The train ride was novel and fun, and we got our first ground level view of the Vancouver area.  Soon enough we were exiting the train at the downtown station.  The station was ~0.4 miles from our hotel and ~0.1 miles from the Cruise Port (in the opposite direction), putting our hotel only ~0.5 miles from the Cruise Terminal, which will be important a few blog posts from now.

 

Vancouver’s Chinatown was large and felt very authentic.  Vancouver is known as a cultural and ethnically diverse metropolis, and we saw clear evidence of that as we rode around on the hop-on/hop-off bus.  (Photo by Linda)

Linda had selected the Coast Coal Harbor Vancouver hotel for our three (3) nights in the city; partly for the reasonable cost and partly for its proximity to the train station and cruise terminal.  Rather than hail a cab or call an Uber, we walked to the hotel, rolling our suitcases as we went.  (If we were younger and more physically fit we might have opted for suitcases/bags that work like backpacks, but the wheeled cases were okay).  Once we arrived in what we thought was the correct location, it took us a few minutes to identify the entrance to the hotel, but once inside the check-in process was very smooth and the room, many floors up, was very nice with a view of some of the surrounding buildings.  It was the first time we had stayed in a hotel that required us to swipe our key card to use the elevator to access our floor.  This was true for all of the floors, not just the usual “penthouse” floor(s) at the top.

 

Our first impression of Vancouver was that it was an architecturally interesting, clean, vibrant city.  The hotel concierge gave us some brochures and suggestions about things to see and do during a relatively short stay, including places to eat (given our plant-based preferences).  He also suggested the “hop-on, hop-off” bus, which included a ferry service on False Creek, as the best way to quickly get acquainted with the city.  Vancouver is a large city, but its various districts and neighborhoods were very walkable.  We decided to have a first look at the city on the bus/ferry and then search out someplace to have dinner.

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