Hello! My name is Shannon. I live in the desert with my husband Scott and 3 kids (Conner, Payton, Anna). I have been blogging since 2005 and I love to write about my family, everyday life, dating my husband, projects and parties, memory keeping, being a mom, faith, setting and working towards goals, and finding joy in the journey.
Thank you so much for dropping by!
Thomas S. Monson
- I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey -- now.
After visiting Ketchikan we made our way to Victoria, British Columbia -- the last stop on our Alaskan cruise. This one was short (8pm - 11:30pm) but very, very sweet.
As always, cruising into port was one of my favorite parts -- the new scenery & sights to take in, and the excitement over what we might find when we get off the ship.
Once off the boat we grabbed a taxi to take us downtown.
Let me just say that we loved Victoria! We only got a small taste but we could tell this is our kind of place. We agreed that we definitely want to come back someday and truly experience it. For tonight, though, we only had time for a walk through downtown, checking out a couple must-see buildings, a little shopping, and a little dessert.
First stop, the Parliament Building. Apparently we were here on British Columbia Day weekend so we got a glimpse of this celebration with military, a band, and the whole shebang.
We stopped at Chocolats Favoris for dessert -- think, chocolate-dipped ice cream cones on steroids. They had 8 different flavors to choose from for your dip. I got S'mores. But for real, the chocolate did me over and I was sad that I could not finish my ice cream cone. Too. much. sugar. But it was delicious!
So fun to circle back to the Parliament Building and see it all lit up!
Oh Canada! It was short, but we were super glad we got to visit!
Another day, another port! After sailing through Glacier Bay we found ourselves in . . .
But let's back up for a second and admire the beautiful sunrise we were treated to this morning
We made zero plans for Ketchikan. Our schedule allowed us to be there 7am - 1:15pm and we knew it would be a chill day of wandering the town and just checking things out.
Right off the boat we stopped at the Visitors Center and picked up a map for a walking tour of the city. It was the perfect activity as it wove us through all the important parts of town and provided info on what we were seeing. We spent a couple leisurely hours hopping from spot to spot and still only completed half of the walking tour.
Ketchikan is such a CUTE town, so no matter what we were doing or seeing it was just a happy place to be.
As the town's welcome sign states, Ketchikan is "The Salmon Capital of the World". And we definitely saw plenty of salmon today! We watched the salmon trying to make their way up the rapids to spawn ...
And later we watched locals fishing from the bridge near the marina, having to compete with sea lions who were hunting for some lunch.
We spotted a bald eagle hanging out by the creek
Totem poles are a big "attraction" in Ketchikan
But they are all replicas of ancient Native American totem poles and Scott wasn't having that . . . he wanted to see the REAL ones. Luckily our walking tour took us to the Totem Heritage Center where we got to see some super old, authentic totem poles.
And Scott was a very happy boy.
This one was called the Raven - Fog Woman totem pole.
The highlight of the day for me was visiting Creek Street. Just look how adorable this place is!
Window boxes and chippy paint and banners . . . chills!
In my opinion, this little row of shops had the best shopping to offer among all the ports we visited. Like I said, Ketchikan just feels happy and when I'm happy I want to shop! Nothing crazy, but I picked up a wooden spoon made from Alaskan Birch, a small watercolor painting, and I actually found a super cute dress that I wore to dinner later that night!
On our walk back we stopped at the Alaska Crepe Co. and oh my, the crepes were perfection. Lots of unique flavors on the menu like Brie & Apple & Honey. I went with Black Forest Cake -- chocolatey goodness with raspberries.
And then it was time to say goodbye and sail on! Ketchikan was definitely my favorite of the three Alaskan towns we visited. Just so cute, good shopping, beautiful to look at, and it probably didn't hurt that it was a gorgeous day!
After spending the entire day in Skagway, we woke up Thursday morning to find ourselves in Glacier Bay National Park.
This is what an Alaskan cruise is all about! Getting up close to these magnificent glaciers! The waterways and shores are protected and there was a special kind of calm and stillness that permeated the entire area. It really felt like a privilege to be there.
The main glacier viewing times were 8am - 1pm so we were up and ready with our hot chocolate in hand! Again, having a balcony made this whole day just so wonderful. We could see everything from our stateroom, and didn't have to fight for elbow room on the main deck (which was just 2 levels above us).
This was the warmest I had to dress all week. And at that, it wasn't super cold.
Our first view of a glacier! I believe this was the Reid Glacier. I have to tell you that seeing the first bits of ice float by in the water an hour before this was a pretty exciting moment! We felt like little kids, anticipating what was coming ahead!
The color of the water was insane. It had this milky soft look to it, due to the mixture of fresh water (melting from the glaciers) and the sea water. The fresh water carries silt and stays closer to the surface, giving it this soft appearance.
For this experience we picked up a couple park rangers (as in, they drove a boat up to our ship and while in motion climbed a rope ladder to board the cruise ship). Pretty cool. They stayed on board through the duration of our sail through the national park. They had an info booth set-up on the observation deck, gave a presentation in the theater, but their main purpose was to provide commentary over the loudspeakers & our in-cabin televisions. They provided history of the park, explained what we were seeing, and pointed out fun things to look for as they came about. "If you'll look out the port side of the ship you'll notice an iceberg with a group of harbor seals taking a rest." I thought it was really cool to have them on board as our guides.
Again, no telephoto lens here, but we could see these guys pretty clearly through our binoculars. There were about 8 seals taking a rest on this chunk of ice.
We kept our tv on with the volume up, and the balcony doors open so we could hear it outside.
The previous night we received a map of Glacier National Park in our stateroom. I used my handy magnets to hang it up on the balcony wall for reference. I felt pretty smart for coming up with this. Just sayin'.
Here she is . . . the Margerie Glacier. This is what we all came to see!
It was kinda fun having a clear view of the control deck all week and running into the engineering captain in the hallways on his way to work.
And yes, the glacier broke about a half dozen times while we were there! The ice calving always happened on the far side of the glacier but it was pretty exciting to hear it break and see the water splash.
(side story: after Scott took this picture I looked at it and was taken aback - I felt like I was looking at my mom. A few days later I posted it to Instagram and my friend Paige messaged me, "Oh my gosh. You look like your beautiful mama in this picture!!")
The boat sat in the waters by Margerie Glacier for about 45 minutes. We sat still for about 15 minutes while our side got a good long view, and then they gradually executed a complete 180 degree turn so that the other side of the boat could also partake of the view. After I had snapped about 100 pictures and realized they were all going to look identical, we decided to hop out of our stateroom and check out what was happening on deck. They had opened up the bow of the ship for glacier viewing and I really wanted to go check it out.
Back to our stateroom and our trip continued on. We got to see 2 more glaciers. The Lamplugh Glacier
And the John Hopkins Glacier from a distance . . .
which is first concealed by Jaw Point.
These rocks just mesmerized me. Like I said, there was just a special feeling here and I'm so grateful that we got to experience it.
A panoramic view from Lamplugh Glacier on the left to Jaw Point on the right
That day we saw
at least 8 humpback whales
12 harbor seals
2 jumping fish
and 13 sea otters -- I was on the treadmill and was treated to fantastic show of sea otter after sea otter just hanging out in the water!
Such a wonderful day! A relaxing day at sea coupled with AMAZING sights to see. They only allow 2 cruise ships into Glacier Bay per day and that exclusivity keeps this place pristine.
We spent the rest of the afternoon in the observation deck playing cards (by this time the glaciers were gone and the crowds had cleared).
Stop #2 on our Alaskan Cruise . . . Skagway! It was also our longest port of the week (7am - 8:15pm) which gave us plenty of time to explore.
This town is super adorable. Just take a look!
That building on the left -- the Arctic Brotherhood Hall -- is covered in over 8000 pieces of driftwood. Wow!
Give me all of the cute window boxes ...
... old-timey cars
.... restaurant gardens
.... hints of gold rush days
... and totem poles.
The most popular attraction in Skagway is a ride on the Yukon Pass Railroad. And while the train IS super cute and we hear the views are amazing . . . we decided to explore the Yukon highway on our own and at our own pace by renting a car for the day.
There is one car rental agency in Skagway -- an Avis, and they gave us a little Ford Prius. Totally awesome. :) We set out on the Yukon highway ready to take in some sights! I did some research ahead of time to make sure we didn't miss anything along the way. This blog post (Travel? Yes Please) was super helpful. I took a lot of notes so we could feel confident driving in and out of Canada without getting lost. But really, it's an incredibly easy drive and everything you want to see is right on the highway.
Here are the highlights
The Yukon railroad follows much of the Yukon highway -- if you look carefully in this picture you can see the rail lines cut out of two of the mountains.
WELCOME TO ALASKA
We were actually driving towards Canada, but flipped a u-turn to take advantage of this photo-op.
TORMENTED VALLEY
First stop, and our favorite spot of the day. We got out of the car and this place had an other-worldly feel that I can't quite describe. The rocks are worn & torn, the moss grows in patches of green & brown, and the trees are no more than 3-4 feet tall for as far as the eye can see. This valley looks like it has a story to tell. Most of that story is due to the winds that can rip through here. As a result, the trees never grow more than a couple feet. Many of them are snapped off at the tops, their efforts for growth denied. I kept telling Scott - I feel like I'm walking on a movie set for Lord of the Rings and some Hobbits should appear from the next rock!
Super, super cool. We loved it.
YUKON SUSPENSION BRIDGE
Probably the biggest tourist trap of the day (it cost $18 per person to cross the bridge), but it was beautiful and between the gift shop (maple syrup everything!) & giant flags & historical displays it made us feel like we were actually in Canada.
I mean, look at that view. Totally worth $18, right?
I thought this built-in photo frame was super cute! They even placed a built-in wooden pedestal in front of the frame for you to set your camera on. Genius! I just set my timer and . . . snap! Perfect picture of BOTH of us and I didn't have to ask anyone for help.
TUTSHI LAKE (pronounced TOO-shy)
Just beautiful! And the waters were so calm -- the surface was like glass, giving us this amazing reflection.
You can find this pink plant growing all over Alaska. It is called Fireweed. I love it's brilliant colors!
YUKON SIGN
At this pull-out there was a lady with a jewelry stand/wagon. She also had a cooler full of Canadian candy bars for $2 (US). Heck yeah! Smart lady -- there aren't any food stops, markets, gas stations, for the majority of this highway and we definitely needed a snack!
We both agreed . . .
Wunderbar -- love it!
Mr. Big -- way too much sugar
BOVE ISLAND
A pretty spot to stop for a picture.
CARCROSS
Finally a town! Carcross is a little town about 106 km from Skagway. The Yukon train makes a stop here so there is a little hub of shops & food for the tourists. Personally, it was cute, but I thought it was a little underwhelming. We expected more (better) food options - because we were starving - and ended up with an egg salad sandwich and a tough cinnamon roll at the sourdough bakery. Note to self: bring food & snacks!
A highlight of this stop was finding a passport stamping station outside the general store. Eeee! I took my brand new passport on this trip and you can bet, sure as heck, that I was going to get a stamp in that baby!
CARCROSS DESERT
We found our home! haha! This is known as "The World's Smallest Desert." Although it's not really a desert, but rather the bottom of what used to be a glacial lake 10,000 years ago. More of a giant sandbox. There was a mom with a couple little kids here behind the trees, playing in the sand like you would at the beach.
EMERALD LAKE
Our final stop! From here we hopped back into the car and drove back to Skagway. In total we logged 150 miles, and spent 5.5 hours on our leisurely scenic drive. It was a beautiful day!
A finally, a couple views of and from our ship as we made our way out of port that evening.
After a full day at sea (Monday), we awoke Tuesday morning to find ourselves cruising through the Inside Passage of Alaska. This route is one of the things that made this cruise so enjoyable! With bays & inlets, islands, mountains, endless coastline . . . there was always something new and beautiful to see. And having the protection of land on either side meant that the swells were kept low and we never felt the boat rocking.
This morning was also the one and only time we had rain. And very little at that. But it was fun to wake up to the misty clouds, pull on a rain jacket, and peer out at the gentle waters. Fresh, beautiful air.
Fresh air that also turned me into a wind blown crazy lady! Ha ha!
This morning we saw our first humpback whale! And a second, and a third, until in all I think we saw over 30 whales that day! We saw other whales here and there throughout the week, but the journey into Juneau was definitely the highest concentration of whales for the entire week. I don't have a telephoto lens (my longest lens is only 24-70mm) so I didn't try very hard to get a shot. But I did take really good pictures with my eyes.
As we cruised into port we took it all in from our balcony. This is when we could really cheer - we're in ALASKA!! Pretty exciting to finally be there! Each port arrival was an exciting experience, so many new things to see & take in as we slowly got closer and closer. Just another reason why that balcony was so so so good!
When we chose this Alaskan cruise we decided that we would book just one excursion, but we were going to make it count. It needed to encompass the true Alaskan experience -- something that is impossible to get anywhere else.
So let me take you on our little adventure. Eek!
The tour company picked us up and as we drove to the location he pointed out this mountain range in the distance. It's called the Chilkat Mountain Range and on the other side you find Canada. He told us that those mountains are covered in clouds 95% of the time -- you can't see them. So they have a rule/saying in town, if you can see the Chilkats you're supposed to have a good day!
What a good sign for us!
We hopped into a helicopter that took us up, up, up over Mendenhall Glacier. This glacier is 13 miles long and runs through Mendenhall Valley. At the point where it ends, there is a visitor's center, hiking trails, a waterfall, and plenty of places to view the glacier from afar. We on the other hand, were going to LAND on the Glacier!
The views we were treated to were absolutely stunning. As we flew I found myself in complete awe at what we were experiencing and even got emotional over it. I was shaking my head back and forth at the wonder of it all -- (Scott actually thought that something was wrong, and being in a loud helicopter we couldn't communicate well). The magnitude and grandeur of this experience just filled my heart with so much gratitude for this amazing world our Heavenly Father created for us. (Later in this post I share a video of our experience -- putting that together brought back all the feelings!)
And then . . . . we arrived at a dog sled camp ON the glacier! And when you're at a dog sled camp in Alaska, of course you have to RIDE the dog sled! I was so looking forward to this excursion!
This is a summer camp for dog sledding teams. In all there were 281 dogs camped there. The dogs live on the glacier for the entire summer, never leaving. The owners and guys who run the camp will go up there to live & work in week-long shifts, coming down at the end of the week to finally shower and wash their clothes. It is a little stinky up there (281 dogs) but the helicopter guys joke that the stink actually comes from the mushers. The dogs are owned by various mushers -- each one has a max of 35 dogs, although when they do big races they only run with 12 dogs. Our musher, Matt Hall, has been doing this since he was 16 and even won the Yukon Quest (a 1000 mile race - said to be the toughest sled dog race in the world) in 2017.
The dogs just hang out on and around their little white dog houses. We loved reading their names printed on the sides. We looked for a Cooper, but no luck. The dogs are chained up for their safety (this is the Alaskan wilderness) and just wait their turn for a daily run. Even though colors & appearances vary, they are all huskies.
When we arrived Matt had the dogs all harnessed and ready to go. The dogs are standing in line, but barking like crazy. They are so amped and excited to get out there and run. This is what they are bread for and trained to do. The sled had 4 spots for us -- 2 seats up front, 1 seat in the back, and 1 standing position on the very back which was super fun! As we rode along we stopped every so often and switched seats so everyone had a turn in each spot.
These runs are the highlight of their day! I believe Matt said that he will run each group of dogs 4 times around the "track" each day.
Check out this video -- It gives a taste of what the whole experience felt like!
If you can't tell how much fun we had from that video, maybe these pictures will help . . .
After Matt introduced us to all of his dogs we got to pet & visit with them one by one. They were so well-behaved, friendly, and playful as they rolled around in the snow to cool off.
Such sweeties! Matt kindly offered to take our picture together at the front of the pack.
We were totally into loving on the dogs ... but then I had a strange feeling that something was creeping up on me
And next thing I know he's on my back!
It was hilarious -- as you can tell by the laughter captured in these photos. I'm so glad that Matt kept snapping away!
I've got a set of paws on my shoulders -- giving me a hug.
SO many great pictures! I'm having a hard time limiting myself to just a few. Here is one more
What a fun group of dogs!
As if that wasn't enough, the excursion reached cuteness overload when we got to cuddle with one of their newest husky puppies! Oh my gosh, she was so sweet & cuddly.
What an adventure! A truly once in a lifetime kind of experience. I would highly highly recommend this to anyone. It was definitely the highlight of our trip!
After this we had a few more hours in port so we walked around downtown a bit . . . . I fell in love with the beautiful flower barrels everywhere!
I wanted to grab some diner at Tracy's Crab Shack because I had heard good things. It is located right next to the cruise ship port which meant it was packed -- people sitting elbow to elbow -- and the wait was horrendous. Luckily, the van driver for our excursion tipped us off to a little-known second location that is a little off the beaten path. It was a short 10 minute walk and we were able to walk right up to make our order. Win!
Eating Alaskan King Crab Legs in ALASKA! It doesn't get fresher than this!
We went back to the ship to rest our tired feet and were delightfully surprised to find a pretty platter of chocolate covered strawberries waiting for us in our room. Along with a note from the crew telling us how much they missed us. :)
We didn't leave port until 11pm, so we spent the rest of the evening enjoying the beautiful sunset from our balcony.
Scott and I love to vacation together and Hawaii has been our go-to destination for the past 13 years. But then he started working with a new company that offers trip incentives (in lieu of bonuses) and he earned one of those trips in his first year. Yay! The catalog of trips to choose from had quite the variety and in the end we picked . . . . . ALASKA!
The idea of an Alaskan cruise actually popped up on my radar in the last year, so when we saw it was one of the options (and a cruise = meals included = budget friendly) we decided to go for it. PLUS, the idea of getting away from the Vegas heat for a whole week in the middle of the summer sounded absolutely heavenly!
This was our first cruise ever. In truth, we had always been a little averse to the idea of a cruise -- Scott doesn't like being around crowds of people. And I don't like watching him eat until he is sick (i.e. 24/7 buffets). But something shifted -- probably the fact that this opportunity was coming at us for free -- and we were up for giving it a go. Also, I have only heard wonderful things about Alaskan cruises so we knew we couldn't go wrong.
We were on the Norwegian Bliss (the biggest of the Alaskan Cruise ships and brand new - built in 2018) and took off from Seattle. It was a 7 day cruise (Sunday to Sunday) and we stopped in ports at Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and Victoria, British Columbia. The cruise also included a day sailing through Glacier Bay National Park which was ah-mazing! But I will share individual posts about each port later.
They take pictures of you before you get on the boat (and throughout the trip in hopes that you'll buy them). We were too cheap so here is screenshot of our embarkation picture complete with NCL watermarks! But really, a photo when you're fresh off an airplane, have been bussed through a big city, hauled your luggage to the port handlers, and went through multiple security checks . . . . not looking super fresh. Haha! But we're excited -- that's for sure!
Here is the good stuff . . . .
This is what we came for. Fresh air. Relaxation. Beautiful views. Time together.
We had a stateroom with a balcony which is the only way to go. We spent so much of our time sitting out there enjoying the view, spotting whales, reading books, and sipping on hot chocolate. Getting to watch the beautiful scenery right from the comfort of our room made the vacation a real treat. Aside from the 1.5 days at sea with endless water views, there is always something to see. The cruise takes you through the inside passage which navigates inlets & bays so there is an ever-changing landscape around you.
A look at our room . . . Just enough space. Not too cramped and the expertly designed storage spaces were just right for keeping all of our belongings out of sight. Our room was on the 14th deck on the forward end, port side. (Front, left)
Our next favorite place to be was the Observation Deck -- a 20,000 sq ft enclosed living room of sorts on the front of the ship with floor to ceiling windows, comfy couches, bar service, light food, and piano singers in the evening. We would go there to play card games or read and grab a virgin lava flow or milkshake just because.
Just so nice to be together and relax.
Our trip included the Premium Beverage Package which is kinda lost on us because we don't drink alcohol -- but Scott was sure to make up for it with many, many Diet Pepsi orders and creamy virgin drinks.
fish on the carpet swim toward the front of the ship - helps you keep your bearings!
You know that food is a big part of cruising. Especially the fact that it is available in unlimited quantities. To make sure I had a fighting chance against that, I went to the gym each day except for one. It was nice to jump on a treadmill and stare out at the ocean for 30 minutes. One morning I watched 13 sea otters lazily float by! Just hanging out in the sea.
leaving the gym // treadmill view
We were surprised to find how much we enjoyed our time on the boat. We did not participate in much at all of the ship's entertainment, but we were happy as can be to relax in our stateroom & balcony, visit the Observation Deck, sit down for dinner in the various dining rooms, and wander to the nearest bar to grab virgin drinks. That was pretty much our routine while on board! Oh, we did sit in on an art auction in the gallery just out of pure curiosity. We had never witnessed an auction before. The marine life artist who painted our boat - Wyland - was on board all week doing painting demos and one of his pieces sold for $29,000. Crazy. I'm more of a digital art from Etsy kind of art collector.
Okay, that's a quick summary of cruise life and now I can work on the REAL posts .... one from each port. Stay tuned!
