Whale Watching? Sounds boring.....
If you’ve been following along, you know that my family and I sailed the Disney Wonder to Alaska this summer. If you haven’t been following, shame on you. Haha Don’t worry though, you can read the first installment here https://www.bluepineappletravel.com/news-notes/2019/8/12/36mnoilo3724f49z8ejolvxggehqgp and the second here https://www.bluepineappletravel.com/news-notes/2019/9/2/i-just-want-to-go-dog-sledding Now you’re caught up!
Juneau
I was tempted to leave this day open just in case the dog sledding excursion was canceled in Skagway. LOL This wasn’t really fair to the rest of the family, so with some research, decided to go whale watching which is very popular in Juneau.
A friend I met in my cruise group, had booked a private whale watching tour and offered to split the cost with us if we wanted to join them for the day. A boat with just the 5 of us? YES please!! I always prefer smaller tour groups when possible, so this was perfect for us!
The day started off a bit drizzly and continued for most of the day, so I was incredibly happy that I had booked the dog sledding tour for Skagway!!
The tour company sent a taxi to pick us up right at the cruise port and dropped us at the marina 15-20 minutes later where we met our wonderful captain and first mate. These guys were awesome!
The boat was topnotch and equipped with cinnamon rolls, coffee, hot chocolate, sodas, and snacks. All necessities when whale watching.
To be honest, I was not expecting much from this day. Whale watching sounded kind of boring to me. I’m happy to report that it was a wonderful adventure and anything but boring!
We literally chased whales and it was so exciting!! My friend and I deemed it “extreme” whale watching. We had an absolute blast!
Just when you thought there were no whales nearby, our fabulous crew would spot a “spout” or “spray” and we would chase it down. I can’t tell how exciting it was to help spot these amazing creatures. Make sure you bring binoculars!
I only had my phone with me for photos so they aren’t the best, but we saw lots of tails, a partial breach, and countless fins. Not to mention, some really huge splashes!
Did I mention eagles? Just look at this!!
After our adventurous whale watching, we asked the driver to drop us off for some crab. I mean, did you even go to Juneau if you don’t try the King Crab?
Ketchikan
I had a very hard time deciding how to spend our time in this port. We ultimately booked the Deadliest Catch Fishing Tour. My husband is a fan of the show, so we were excited to give this a try.
The tour proved very informative and fun! The crew was awesome and informative! Plus, we got to hold crabs and prawn!
I had made it my mission to eat in each port, so we headed to lunch once we were off the boat. I enjoyed fish tacos and a beer flight. Notice a theme here? haha
Each excursion was delightfully unique from the others and we thoroughly enjoyed them. I mean, how often do you see a calving glacier, dog sled on a glacier, go “extreme” whale watching, AND hop on a former boat from a TV show while learning about crabs? Ummmm…..never!!
Thoughts on the ports: While they were all fantastic and unique, Skagway was my absolute favorite! Why? We went dog sledding on a glacier which was truly a bucket list item for me and in my opinion, Skagway Brewing Company had the best food (and beer). Second would be Juneau and our incredible “extreme” whale watching along with those delicious king crab legs. That puts Ketchikan as my least favorite but seriously, there were no bad ports, excursions, or food on this cruise. Everything was amazing!!
I desperately want to go back to Alaska but at the same time, I know that I can never “top” this trip. We had incredible weather and just absolutely loved everything about it. I mean, dog sledding on a glacier!! What?!?
Ready for your Alaskan adventure? Let’s get started planning!
Trina Weischedel
CFO & Travel Advisor
trina@bluepineappletravel.com
