Cooper Landing, Alaska 8/29/05

Cooper Landing, AK 8/29/05

I am off the boat!!! Ahhh, sweet release! I’m free! Well kinda, now I’m part of a damn bus tour but it just tells me where I’m going and where I’m staying. What I do there is up to me. Sure the boat was kind of like that too but somehow it feels different.

Right now I am staying at the Keni Princess Wilderness Lodge which sits towards the top of a giant hill. It’s not a large place and with the rooms spread out into 15 surrounding buildings it seems even quainter. The lodge has a beautiful deck that overlooks the Keni River a couple hundred feet below. Of course there are mountains in every direction I look. That should be understood from now on in all Alaska entries unless otherwise noted. The mountains are everywhere! I love it!

I know most people appreciate the natural beauty of a good mountain. I see that too but my first thought when I look at a mountain is “I wonder if you could climb it?!” Or to be more specific, “Could I climb it?”

No exaggeration, I think it every time. What would it be like to climb it? How long would it take? How steep is it really once you get up there? Would you need special gear; ropes, crampons, pitons, or just some good boots? I’ll also admit that I’m probably a bit naive too because with the exception of the really steep rocky, snowy, ones I think I could climb them all. Sure it would be hard, a good workout for sure, but I’m confident I could do it. I guess there is only one way to find out…Mental note: Make plans to climb a mountain!

The rest of the days on the boat were uneventful. The cruise through College Fjord was un-narrated, unlike Glacier Bay, so after awhile it was just another cool mountain after another. My running schedule, in preparation for the New York City Marathon in November, also called for a “long run” yesterday. The Runners World plan has 12 down but I have been consistently adding 2 to 4 miles to all the long runs that the plan calls for. If I was in WPB I would have been comfortable with at least a 16 miler but again the boat held me back. I did 12 miles around the deck of the ship and that was enough for me; 36 laps of constant “on your left”.

It actually wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be when I started. Again the passing mountains surrounding the ship were a nice background. I spotted a pod of Killer Whales which provided a nice excuse to stop and stretch for a second also.

- A little pause to look at the scenery and take in some deep breaths of fresh air -

I’m torn between writing/sorting out some thoughts and getting a cold beer while making some friends…and the later is winning. Hey, I’m on vacation! Why can’t I put things off?!

First I will put to rest my grumblings about my first cruise ship experience. Basically it felt like a summer camp for retirees. On board I was pretty bored. The entertainment was horrible; live bands that I wouldn’t book for any reason, magicians doing tricks from the magic shop, comedians who’s only funny moments were when they were making fun of how much they were bombing and how dead the crowd was.

Even the food that everyone usually raves about on cruise ships was very standard. I’ve seen better buffets at school cafeterias. Plus they also nickel and dime you for everything. A can of Coke was $1.73. Good thing I don’t drink much soda.

I spent most nights sitting in the ship’s library. I’d read some; flip through the giant atlas and day dream about future trips, and write, which is probably very evident from the numerous and long entries I have to show for the last week.

I did hit karaoke night once. A night so pathetic it was funny then and probably will still be for years to come. I guess there was a karaoke competition that took place over 4 nights but once was enough for me. Now I’m all for bad, karaoke. I of course can’t sing but like to think I’m pretty good at karaoke or entertaining at least.

You pick a fun song that others can, and like to, sing along with. Then you get up there and cheese it up. For the record on my one night to “Jammers” for the nightly horror show I sang “Build Me Up Buttercup” by The Foundations.

It wasn’t one of my best showings but I blame it on the crowd. As I was saying, karaoke is supposed to be fun, crazy, screaming, yelling, fun booing. This ship was like a bad American Idol try out. One lady sang the National Anthem for crying out loud! Like an Opera singer! I was in a cruise ship disco bar with a 65 year old lady singing the National Anthem from a mirrored dance floor and everybody stood up and put their hand over their heart. I felt like I was in a Fletch movie.

The only compliment I will give them on karaoke night is that their song selection book was the best I have ever seen. They had options for some crazy shit. System of Down is the one that blew me away but there were several that made me chuckle. Of course this made selections like The Star Spangled Banner and anything by Celine Dion much worse because it ain’t like there wasn’t anything left to sing!

Formal night on the boat also cracked me up; literally a night for the kids to play dress up. Bad tuxedos and sequence dresses in every direction. That sounds pretty mean I know. So I’ll turn my criticism towards myself for a change. This is there environment not mine. I have been the intruder here. Who am I to come in and start passing judgment?

Well for all my whining in this journal my mind has not passed judgment. My complaint is that I spent a good chunk of change on an experience that I didn’t want just so I could get to a place that I wanted desperately to see. The cruise shippers are great people and I am no better than them; like line dancing, antique shopping, church, whatever…if that’s how you like to spend your time then have at it. It’s just not for me.

So will I go on another cruise? Probably yes. But it won’t be alone and adventure won’t be my goal, although I do hear good things about “barefoot cruises”. Sailing a boat and sleeping up on deck would be more my speed.

OK, time to go inside now and try to get the scoop on some good trails to hike that are not paved and the trees aren’t labeled, plus the bar inside looks inviting. Draft beer appears to be the standard in Alaska and I’ve found a “local” one I like; Alaska Summer Ale. It’s no Yuengling but it is close.

Now I’ll put my cruise ship complaints to rest and since I don’t see me filling up my Princess Cruise Passport ever I’ll put my official “stamp” right here in my journal!

MJF

“It is the fault of our rhetoric that we cannot strongly state one fact without seeming to belie some other.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Glacier Bay Alaska 8/27/05

Glacier Bay, AK 8/27/05

We are heading south out of the bay now, I think we just passed Blue Mouse Cove. The ship cruised up to the northern most point in the Bay, to the base of the Grand Pacific Glacier and, in my opinion the more impressive, Margerie Glacier.

I was one of the first out on the deck this morning to enjoy the view as we made our way up the bay; two layers of clothes on and a jacket, gloves, and my running headband covering my ears. I was still cold within 5 minutes but the view was so spectacular that the brain made the body stay out there for over 2 hours. After reaching the Margerie Glacier and seeing a huge sheet calve into the water I felt satisfied with the experience and got out of the way of the other spectators that had eventually packed in behind me on the front of the ship.

I just came in from round two of glacier watching. It has warmed up some now and the crowds have thinned, of course I mean that by numbers only. It is a cruise ship after all and food is one of the rare free things so I have a feeling no individuals will be getting thinner on this trip.

The ship is cruising closer to the shore now and people are around the railings scouring the coast line with binoculars fused to their faces hoping to see some “wild life fun”. I don’t have any binoculars but I also enjoy leaning against the railing and daydreaming as the scenery passes.

A lady next to me spotted some kayaks on the shore and with no animals around to occupy the other voyeurs they all turned their attention to the small boats and started verbally investigating where there occupants might be. Soon the paddlers were found on land and with the mystery solved the discussion around me now turned to “What are they doing out there?!”
“I think they are going to go hike on the Glacier! My lord they must be crazy!” a lady next to me muttered.
“You wouldn’t catch me in a boat that size in these waters that’s for sure!” Another retorted.

I just stood in silence wondering how I was on this side of the water and not the subject on the other end of their binoculars. All I could think was the people on the shore were really experiencing “it”. My fellow cruise shippers and I were just observing “it”. Oh well, next time I’ll do it right. It’s still better than sitting in WPB watching the Discovery Channel.

Yesterday was a good day for experiencing rather than just observing. We were in Skagway a little town of about 600 people. I was due for a good run so after getting some trail suggestions from Robyn, a crew member that works in the Spa who I met on the Juneau glacier trek, I set out for an 8 mile run not knowing exactly where that would take me or where I would end up.

It was another chilly gray day but no rain. I found the trail that Robyn had told me about but it only lasted about a mile and I soon found myself on a road. I was hoping the dirt and gravel trail that I started on would continue or at least pick back up again but it didn’t. The road turned out to be just as good though and with its nice wide shoulders the occasional tour busses that passed were not an issue. The road also made the hills easier to climb and since a day later I can still feel the workout from that run in my calves & shins that was probably a good thing.

The major highlight on the run was when 3 black bears crossed the road about 50 yards in front of me. I saw them from about 100 yards away but I couldn’t tell what they were. I was thinking they were dogs, which can usually be an interesting encounter when running in rural areas. I was slowly pondering what to do if they were dogs when I remembered I am in Alaska. Just as one part of my brain was thinking there are more dangerous animals here than farm house dogs another part had finally processed what exactly I was looking at and I stopped running right away.

The larger bear was standing in one of the lanes and looking around when the smaller 2 walked out of the forest, probably a mother and 2 cubs. They trotted across the road and down into the forest on the other side never really stopping to look at me.

I had been cautioned about crossing paths with bears in Alaska several times, especially mothers with cubs. Despite the HUGE thrill and wanting to see them a little closer I didn’t want to be the focus of a “Tourist Jogger Mauled By Bear” story. There was no one else around and I had to continue on that road to get to town so I just stood there for a long time before proceeding…and thinking the whole time “What a great run this is!!!”

I was still running high on my bear sighting as I started to approach Skagway again. It felt great to be running into town from the opposite direction of the boat and coming up on all the cruise ship tourists in their organized groups and busses. They all had this look on their face of “Where did you come from?” I passed a whole row of people on a “mountain bike tour” and yes they were riding at the time and no I am not a fast runner.

My run ended up covering a little over 9 miles with quick stops at Reid Falls and the Prospectors Cemetery. The legs were tired but the stomach was empty so I took a quick shower and then headed back into town. The cruise ship food might be free but I’m not that impressed with it.

Robyn had also recommended a place called the Haven Café. “It’s at the far end of town but they have great sandwiches and the crew likes to go there.” She said.
That sounded good to me and it turned out to be even more perfect than I could have imagined. It was a great sandwich shop/coffee house; a very “local” feeling. After eating my lunch I found an open couch and nestled in to read my new book for awhile.

Several hours and a double espresso later I decided it was time to see more of town. The legs had rested enough. God I love little places like the Haven; locals playing chess, random couches and chairs, used books and games on the shelves for you to peruse, a variety of flyers hanging in the window advertising things that only people in the neighborhood would understand or care about, and of course great music playing.

The music is usually CD’s owned by the eclectic staff that work there and their choice of music speaks for them since they could not possibly tell every customer their story. At the Haven Café, Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Fairytales album came on soon after I moved to the couch. I just smiled. Ahhh, what a great day I was having. I wanted to strike up a conversation with someone and tell them that I was going to see Jack Johnson in about 2 weeks in South Florida but then I knew my cover would be blown. They would know I was a cruise ship tourist!

After my success at the Juneau Public Library when I passed the Skagway Public Library I thought I d try my luck again at some free internet. Unlike Juneau though my fear here was not that they wouldn’t let me use the computer but rather they would not even have internet access. I mean the library was smaller than Philo’s and I’m sure the nearest town of any size was probably several mountains away. Like I’ve said many times though, the World guests smaller every day, not just in the random people you meet but in places like Skagway Alaska where in a tiny library one ring on a desktop bell gets you access to the World Wide Web and then everything is just a click away.

For example from the little Skagway Library I learned that my home in South Florida had just dodged another hurricane. Hurricane Katrina made landfall just South of Ft. Lauderdale; not a major threat to WPB in landfall or size. Notes from my friends basically said it was no big deal. Unfortunately I don’t think that is going to be the case for the gulf coast States as Katrina is heading towards them and looks to be gaining strength.

The boat was scheduled to leave Skagway at 8 p.m. That left me several more hours to pass even after having the great day that I had already had. I’m a coydog though and solo wandering is fine for awhile but eventually I need some social interaction. After several days of clean living I was in the mood for some good beers and conversations that you can only have with strangers in a bar.

I bellied up to the bar at a place called Bonanza. The Red Onion also looked promising but it looked more crowded with tour folks than regulars so I opted for Bonanza. (More cruise ship whining! I know, I know, I need to get my feelings and bitterness towards this cruise sorted out but I think I’ll put that off ‘til later…again. I’m having a good day!)

At Bonanza’s I met Meredith, the solo bartender running a 4 sided bar. I sat alone on one corner and had day dreamed through half a beer before she found time in her busy shift to start up a conversation. She later said she was confused at first which is why she started talking to me. I was zoning out on a pre-season football game between the Steelers and Redskins when I heard her say, “So do you work around here?”

Ahhh, thank you Meredith. “Nope, I’m on the cruise ship.” I said with a smirk.
She looked almost as surprised as Ben was when I told him I grew up in a town 7 miles from his. She gave me a side look and said “Really?! Didn’t anyone tell you people like you don’t go on those?!” I just laughed.

Through her busy servicing of the other people at the bar and a couple waitresses Meredith and I continued our conversation. She is working on her PHD in Anthropology and Fishery Management but bartends in the summer for the money. I told her how I had wound up on a cruise ship and my original goal of sea kayaking and camping. It turns out she is also a sea kayak guide. So now armed with the e-mail address of a bartending, sea kayak guide my brain is plotting my return to Alaska, this time not by cruise ship!

OK enough bashing of this boat. It does have some positive sides. The scenery is amazing! The ship also does provide for some moments of peacefulness as you sit on the deck and the mountains slowly pass. I’m going to go try and find one of those spots now. Bundle back up and hope this quiet spot is also in the sun. Our wonderful Naturalist, who has gotten much better on the p.a. system, has predicted more possible whale watching ahead; yesterday’s prediction yielded 2 orca sightings for me. Today I’m hoping for humpbacks. Hoping, hoping…always hoping for something. As my friend MJ wrote in a song, “Not content with what I have but wanting nothing more.”

MJF

Juneau, Alaska 8/25/05

Juneau, AK 8/25/05

A highlight of Alaska that I was looking forward to was a break from the hot and humid, day and night, weather of South Florida. Well today I got that completely out of my system. In fact today I was down right, teeth chattering cold. No complaints though because my cold blood was to be expected. After all, I was standing on a glacier.

The Mendenhall Glacier sits, or crawls rather, just outside Juneau. It is one of the most accessible ice fields in the world which I suppose is a trade off since Juneau is one of the least accessible cities. Some fun trivia I learned is that Juneau is the only State capital that you can’t drive to. Planes or boats are the only vehicles to get you in and out and if today’s weather is reflective of an average day in Juneau, well air travel would be far from reliable.

Today is cool, grey, and a steady rain has fallen all day. It wasn’t bad when I was walking around this morning in town. I left the boat at 7:30 a.m., again walking directly past the tourist shops that were not even open yet. As I wandered around I was able to stay dry by just hitting the occasional awning. Well the rain picked up a little by the afternoon and then when you remove the buildings, climb a few hundred feet in elevation, and stand in the middle of a mile wide river of ice, well that steady rain quickly soaks you and chills you. Oh well, just part of the experience and what an experience it was! I will never forget it!

The helicopter hauled me and 7 others to the camp on the glacier; another cool helicopter ride through mountain valleys but about twice as long as the rafting trek in New Zealand, my first helicopter experience. Through a lucky break in weight distribution I was placed in the front seat, window side, which just made the flight even better.

The glacier was amazing! It was like another planet with craters and crevasses spreading out for miles in every direction. I felt very much “out there”, to steal a feeling from Ebby "Nuke" LaLoosh. This was not a controlled environment. This was National Geographic esq. Well maybe not quite that level but it is as close as I have gotten….so far.

I took lots of pictures that I hope will do the scenery justice but I’m sure they won’t.
Also the truly great parts could not be captured by photographs. Like slamming your crampons into the ice toe first as you climb a steep wall while slamming your ax in above you, well obviously your hands are busy at that point and it’s raining so hard you don’t want to leave your camera out in the hands of a stranger that is also trying to keep warm and dry.

I also know the photos from my little digital camera won’t sum up the scenery well because I noticed just with the naked eye it’s hard to judge size or distance on the glacier. There are not many features to give you a scale or perspective. We would hike up, down, and around for an hour and then you would finally get a view of the camp and realize you still had a long way to go.

My camera is currently drying out and the battery is recharging. I’ll check the photos tomorrow. In the least they will help trigger the memories, which is really the goal of all my pictures.

After the flight back off the glacier, in the same seat I arrived in, I have a new appreciation for low visibility in regards to flying. I’ve flown in bad weather before and it has never bothered me; blind trust in the pilot to do their job I suppose. But that’s usually in a plane at 30,000 feet while I’m reading a book. In a helicopter, flying low with jagged mountains on both sides, I will admit I was a little nervous…especially since before boarding we found out that we were the last group off the glacier and they had stopped bringing groups up hours earlier because of the weather.

We were on the glacier for around 4 hours, a long time to be out in the rain on a 19 mile long chunk of ice….and worth every minute. Afterwards I went back to the boat to dry out. It was only 5:30 when I got there and we are not scheduled to leave port until 9 p.m. so back into town I marched. Did I mention it was raining?! Did I mention I don’t like to spend much time on the boat?!

Downtown Juneau is a curious mix of government offices and tourist shops; perfect for me because I could find some “local places” easier. After hitting Silverbows Bakery for a bagel sandwich I cruised back to the Juneau Public Library, literally located between two cruise ships…and here I sit; patiently waiting for one of the “30 minute work stations” to open up for what I hope will be free internet access. I have my WPB Library card ready to go just in case but I probably won’t need it, not that I think it would actually do me any good either. Then again I met a guy from Villa Grove in a tree yesterday. Maybe a former WPB Librarian now works here!

OK, now it is time for random thoughts to finish off this entry and page (I write these entries in a paper journal):
- I might need to seek professional help to discuss my paper conservation issues. Do I seriously need to fill every space of white on the paper in order to feel like I’m not being wasteful and destroying the planet?

- What should I do in Skagway tomorrow? My climbing trip was cancelled which is probably a good thing. I think I need to pack the day pack and set out on my own instead of a cruise ship coordinated activity.

- I finished another book off of my “Pulitzer List” yesterday. I think I’ll start my next one when I get back to the ship. It’s called Martin Dressler: The Tale of an American Dreamer. It seemed appropriate for the trip.

MJF

Ketchikan, Alaska 8/24/05

Ketchikan, Alaska 8/24/05

Over two years ago I really started thinking about going to Alaska. For some reason it moved from the infinite list of places I wanted to go and cruised towards the top of places I needed to start planning for. Over a year ago I started checking out websites and thinking about dates. A month ago I booked the trip. Just over 2 days ago I left West Palm Beach. Today I finally set foot in Alaska!

So far it’s exactly like I imagined; mountains, hills, thick forest, dark waters. I was up early this morning while the morning mist still hung over everything. I could see my breath but I wasn’t cold. Ketchikan has a small town look to it but I don’t know if it is considered small by Alaskan standards. There are rows of little shops, all connected by common walls and awnings, running down small streets that make up the downtown. The whole scene was perfect except for the monstrosity sitting at the dock; a 14 story cruise ship that I think looks as out of place as a billboard on the side of the Great Pyramid. What’s worse is that God awful cruise ship is what brought me here!

As I was saying earlier, and as I have written in other entries, I’ve been talking about going to Alaska for awhile….actually I need to stop speaking of this far off place like it is still far off….I’ve been talking about coming here for awhile. Several e-mails were sent to the gang looking for interested companions to join me on an adventure with details yet to be figured out; probably a good 10 day, deep woods trek with a guide service, maybe some sea kayaking.

The e-mails were responded to with the usual ‘I’d love to but…” so it was looking like I had a choice to make. Make Alaska 2005 a solo trek or put off the itch for another year. Of course I was leaning more towards the first option, once I get the itch for something it’s hard to get it out of my mind, but I’ll admit there was a little part of me saying “Save the money. You have already been traveling quite a bit.” Then I ran into Joanne.

Joanne is a friend of a friend and we had shared some travel ideas once so when she came up to me last month and said she was going on an Alaskan cruise and needed another person to go to make it cheaper…and needed to know right away. Well, the spontaneity of quickly booking a trip to Alaska with a person I barely knew overshadowed the thought of what a cruise ship experience would really be like. Even when I realized I wouldn’t be doing the multiple day treks I wanted to I figured the cruise ship might be fun. It would be a new experience, good or bad, to learn from. So now here I sit. Finally in Alaska!

I got off the boat here in Ketchikan this morning, our first port after leaving from Vancouver, and just kept walking until I didn’t see anymore jewelry shops. A few blocks later I found Brewed Awakenings, a little drive up coffee shack a few blocks off the tourist path and literally on the side of the road. I got a nice, hot, double mocha and sat down on some wood steps that lead up a large hill to various houses. The view is of the town in one direction and hills covered in thick forest in all the other directions; perfect place for an entry and soaking up a little atmosphere.

I’ll pause this entry now to go find some action I hope. My 9:30 a.m. reservation for the “Rain Forest Zip Line & Ropes Course” is fast approaching. I hope it isn’t as cheesy as the rest of the cruise ship stuff but I’ll keep rolling the dice no matter what. I’m in Alaska!

- Pause -

The early morning cloud cover has burned off and the sun is now shinning brightly. A rare thing I guess in Southern Alaska and especially Ketchikan. They even have a big sign here in town that keeps track of the “Liquid Sunshine” so I guess Salmon isn’t the only thing they have a lot of here. Today though there is a nice breeze that keeps the Sun from heating you up to much and it seems like another perfect time to just sit and watch the scenery go by.

I’m perched in a deck chair, back on board the Dawn Princess. The ships Naturalist just told me over the PA system that we are cruising through the Tongass Fjord. She then proceeded to list some of the wildlife we could hope to see in the next few hours as we head to Juneau. I’m now on the look out for whales!

Well I actually have about 2 hours before I’m really looking for whales. That was the time she predicted and I trust her too. Based on her lack of public speaking skills I’m guessing it is her talents as a naturalist that got her this job.

My afternoon at the rain forest zip line and ropes course was just OK on the fun scale. Compared to canyoning in New Zealand it would be like playing Putt Putt after 18 holes at Augusta National. Sure it’s fun and the premise is similar but it’s far from thrilling. Wow, would you listen to me whine. Cruise ships and now the ropes course. I’m staring to travel like Bill Bryson. Got to change that stat!

I am having a great time despite what my tone in this journal might reflect later and I need to stop letting the parts that are not ideal saturate my entries. OK, great story from the Rain Forest Challenge.

The facility is your standard adventure subcontractor outfit. It is located just outside of town and is staffed by various seasonal employees. The kind of workers that always seem very cool to me and, yes I’ll admit it, I envy them and usually seek their approval. More importantly I usually try to set myself apart from the other idiot tourists that the bus just dropped off. Probably because I see there career path as the option I didn’t take but deep down still wonder if I could; to enjoy a sport/activity so much that you do it full time like climbing or rafting…but in order to pay for your passion you have to dumb it down for novices. It would be like Billy Joel giving piano lessons.

I knew I was only in town for the day though. There was no sense getting buddy buddy with any of these guides for local tips. However a few asked me the standard traveler intro “Where are you from?” so even with a non-visible cruise ship tattoo on my forehead it still kind of felt like backpacking. Uh oh, there I go again. Get to the fun part Mat!

I zip into one of the platforms, the last person in the group. I’m hanging out waiting for the people in font of me to hook onto the next line. The platform I am waiting on is located about 20 feet up a tree and if you look through the branches there is a nice view; water, thick forest, very pretty.

On the small platform with me is one of the guides and after he sends the person in front of me on there way we have time to wait before I go. He asks me the standard traveling conversation opener and I say Florida, my standard response now despite the urge I always have to give some drawn out detail including where I was raised, and where I now live. I have lived in Florida since 1996, almost a decade. I wonder if I’ll ever not think Philo, Illinois when someone asks me where I’m from.

We are just standing around waiting for the guy on the other end to unhook the last badly balanced John off the line so I keep the conversation going by asking him the same question, “Where are you from?”

Of course we all know where this leads. It’s practically word for word the same storey I told about Scotty in New Zealand only this time I’m standing in a tree in Alaska and the guy running the adventure is from Villa Grove! (A small town, population 2,500 about 9 miles from the town of Philo, 1,000 people, where I grew up in Illinois)

I laughed at two things:
1) When he said he grew up in Villa Grove.
2) When I followed that up with “I grew up in Philo.” His response was “No shit!”

The World gets smaller everyday and 90% of the time I love that. The guides name is Ben Poynter. He grew up in Villa Grove, went to school in Rantoul and when he is not working in Alaska he now lives in Southern California.

After we got down from the tree we talked more about home in Central Illinois. We tried to think of people we both might know but with about 8 years difference in age we didn’t have any luck.

He mentioned that is was getting close to the end of their season so the staff were all getting a little burned out. I told him I totally understood. I used to work at summer camps each season. To which he replied. “You didn’t work at Camp Drake did you?”
I lit up. Ahhh, Camp! Small world!

Also as chance would have it I was wearing my San Diego marathon shirt. Ben said if you ever make it to San Diego again look me up.
“I’ll be there in November.” I said.
“Awesome, do you want to do some climbing while you’re there?”
Cards were exchanged and now in the back of my brain the foundation for another adventure is being laid.

I’ll wrap this entry up now. It’s time for a quick workout. There won’t be any running today but so far I have been able to stick to the schedule I set to get myself ready for the New York Marathon in November. It feels great! After the trip to ships gym it’s back out onto the deck for some whale watching. Well hopefully whale watching; either way the scenery is just as impressive by itself and despite my issues with this floating tourist trap it is very peaceful as the ship quietly cruises by the islands.

Bottom line; I am in Alaska and I am going to have a great experience!

MJF