Skagway to Anchorage, AK

Obviously we made it successfully from Juneau to Skagway.  However, no more ferries for us (at least for a while).  We plan to be land-based for the next few weeks.  Skagway was quite the quaint little tourist town.  We preferred it to Juneau.  It did however have numerous jewelry shops, which have absolutely no historical relevance, but do cater nicely to the Cruise tourist.  Caroline even managed to get some free diamond ear-rings (value undeclared...).  The drive from Skagway North to Whitehorse was rather spectacular actually.  Dramatic mountains along the South Klondike Highway and up the pass to Carcross.  This is one of the two historical paths followed by the early gold-rushers.  Had no hassles from immigration entering Canada.

Whitehorse, not much to say...

Headed more North and West to re-enter Alaska on the Alaska Highway.  Very annoying immigration dude, who gave us 10 minutes of grief.  But hey, he let us back into the United States.  I am not sure he knew what to do with our documents, and decided it was just easier to let us go.  More beautiful mountains and lakes along the way.  Stopped the night in Tok (in a campground with a WiFi access point).

Stopped at the Matanuska Glacier and went for a bit of a walk on the Glacier.  It was quite stunning.  First time Caroline had been on a Glacier.  Stayed the night in Palmer, which is famous for nothing.  In Anchorage today.  Signing off from N61°12', W149°50' >> Photos...

Juneau, AK - continued

Hokey... we're back. As said we were chased out of the cyber cafe by the fire alarm. Made one addition to that previous blog: a photo link of the Inside Passage.

Juneau, Alaska's State Capitol - a city that can only be reached by plane and boat. And oh boy do the boats know how to reach it ... especially the massive cruise ships. It looks like at any given time there are 4 cruise ships docked in downtown Juneau (probably a summer thing). As a result of that downtown is crawling with tourists during the day; in the evening they go back to thei cabins and life on board. Downtown is filled with 'tourist shops' selling jewelry, jewelry, more jewelry and plush animals.

Very dramatic setting though, hemmed in by moutains and glaciers. One of which is very close to the city and very accessible: The Mendenhall Glacier. So naturally we went for a closer look!

Ferry sailings gave us 2 choices: either 1 or 3 nights in Juneau. The weather and the cruise ships made us decide on 1 night.
So on Wed Jul 21 we took the ferry to Skagway. >> Photos...

Goodnight from Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada.

Juneau, AK

We will keep this post very short (as internet and phone seem to be a real problem here).  Just wanted to let you know that we touched down in Alaska.

Took the ferry from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert - 15 hours on the water (all in Canada).  The Inside Passage was absolutely amazing.  So was the weather - on the first leg.  The boat was full of dutch speaking tourists.  Very enjoyable way to travel I must say.

Spent a day in Prince Rupert, before boarding the ferry to Juneau - 24 hours.  Prince Rupert was ok!  Unfortunately managed to lose my wallet there, so had to spend several hours looking for it, advising the local police and cancelling all our credit cards.  A bit of a bummer not to have credit cards while travelling.  The Alaskan Inside Passage was not too bad either, unfortunately it kind-of rained the whole time.

Currently in Juneau, land of the cruise tourist and yucky shopping.  Saw the amazing Mendenhall Glacier.  Got to go, fire alarm just went off.  >> Photos...

Host Olympic City 2010

Greetings from Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia.  Crossed the border from the US to Canada on the 9th of July (Friday) and headed up to Whistler.  Hiked a local trail with Dad where we discovered that there is no rainbow at Rainbow Lake (although it was chucking down with rain).  Caroline discovered the comfort (and bar) of the new Four Seasons Hotel where she shared wine and nibbles with Penny.  On Sunday, headed to the foothills of Vancouver where we had a chance to enjoy the city and prepare for the trip (things in San Francisco were a little hectic, and maybe we were not as organized as we could have been).  On Monday, Sterling was fitted with front bars at the local Land Rover dealership.  I also managed to squeeze in a few camping stores.  Not too sure what happened on Tuesday and Wednesday, but I am sure it was enjoyable.  Funny how the days tend to drift by.  I do remember buying some expensive glacier glasses and a rather expensive pair of fleece pants.  These being critical items for the now confirmed High Altitude Mountaineering trip to Bolivia.  Great to savour some home cooking from Mum.

 

Today was a milestone day.  We have just confirmed ferries to Alaska via the Inside Passage.  It feels like we are actually on our way (first sailing from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert and second sailing from Prince Rupert to Juneau, AK).  So we are setting off tomorrow morning at 10:30am.

 

Signing off from Vancouver.

'Northern Exposure'

Hi All!

Remember the TV show 'Northern Exposure'? It was set in a fictitious place called 'Cicely, Alaska'.
Well, on July 8th we drove east out of Seattle on Hwy 90 for 80 odd miles to get to Roslyn, Washington, the township that stood model for it! Thought that one deserved a mention here as I absolutely adored that show!

In 'Dr. Fleishman's office', 'KBHR' and 'Ruth-Anne's General Store' filming was done inside and outside.
'The Brick' was used for the outside only. Or so I was told. >> Photos...

Good afternoon from Vancouver!

Mt Rainier, Washington (14,410 ft)

Thought I'd better send a quick post to let you all know that I was successful in my summit of Mt Rainier!

I set off at 10:30am Monday from the car-park arriving at Camp Muir around 3:00 pm. After a light dinner, we were all tucked-up and in bed by 6:00pm. Although it was somewhat hard to sleep as it was still bright sunshine outside. Got woken up at midnight and set off some 90 minutes later. After six hours of hiking and four rest stops, successfully gained the summit. Yihaa!!! On the descent, the gods decided it was time to reward the fine weather of the previous day with high winds and driving rain. Due to poor weather, it took eight hours to hike back down to the car-park (completely soaked I might add). Nothing a quick beer can't fix however. Would I do it again; probably not - certainly not with RMI, but maybe as an independent (meaning, without a professional guide). >> Photos...

Goodnight from Seattle, Washington.

Portland, Oregon

What a surprisingly pleasant and nice city! There's a bit of a European feel to it. Lots of funky, trendy, leafy neighbourhoods: Hawthorne, NW23 (reminded me a bit of Balmain in Sydney), Downtown.
I loved the Japanese and Rose Gardens: 2 very different and very enjoyable gardens; spent quite some time in both. Fabulous views over the city, Mt Hood and Mt St Helens.
Powell's Bookstore is enormous, they give you a map at the entrance so you wouldn't get too lost! But it's fun just to wander around. Couldn't leave without visiting REI and Columbia Sportswear.
I enjoyed the '4th of July' fireworks on the Willamette River at the Hawthorne Bridge.

Alison and Eduardo, thanks very much for showing me your new city and home and for a most enjoyable BBQ!!!!!
Olivier, thanks for suggesting I'd visit this city!

In a few hours I'm taking the Greyhound to Olympia, WA. Stephen will drive there from his climb of Mt Rainier. Can't wait to find out how that went! >> Photos...

Greetings from Portland, OR.

Lassen Volcanic and Crater Lake National Parks.

After numerous previous trips whizzing up and down the I-5, we made the right decision to go a little inland and visit these two great national parks. Mt Lassen (10,457 ft) remains covered in snow, with the various lakes just starting to thaw out now. This would be an absolutely magic place to visit in winter, and I am sure I will be back to ‘knock off’ the stroll from the car-park to the summit. From Lassen we regained the I-5 at Mt Shasta, where we camped the night at Lake Siskiyou (near Mt Shasta township). I think Caroline might even have enjoyed camping. Of course this camp-ground did not have Internet Access (hmmmm).

The following day, we were totally blown away with Crater Lake. What a beautiful Lake (which I think tops our list of most beautiful Lakes – along with Lake Louise in Canada). So we spent several hours on the rim road just soaking up the views.

We continue to head north. Caroline to Portland and me to Rainier National Park. Goodmorning from Bend, Oregon.>> Photos...