Halibut Fishing

We woke up quite early this morning (5am) to head to Homer to do some halibut fishing.  It doesn't get dark here until very late, so we went to bed while it was still light out (11:00pm).

When we got to Homer we met our guide, Keith, at the dock. Of course, it had to be RAINING! I wore a tanktop, t-shirt, long sleeve, sweatshirt, and raincoat and I was still cold! We took a quite a long ride out to our first spot. Keith said he usually doesn't fish here because the tide is too high and the waters are rough, but they were calm-ish today.  I am proud to say I caught the first fish. :)

Keith would put the bait (which was about a 10" fish) on a HUGE hook. Then he'd squirt herring oil in it to attract the halibut.  Then we'd drop the bait and weight into the water and wait for a bite. I could never tell what was a bite and what was the roll of the waters, but Keith would tell me when to reel.  Thom caught the biggest fish. It was 80 pounds. All of my fish got put back into the water, apparently they weren't good enough-but I'm fine with that! Drew got the second biggest fish.  We were having great luck right away, and then it really died down.  Three of us caught starfish. They were amazing to see. They were moving around- it was cool!

Thom (let me remind you, grew up on the river) was the only one who got seasick. He threw up off the side of the boat. I think it scared the fish away because we didn't have much luck for awhile.  There were birds who were following us because they wanted our bait.  They continually squawked at us.

After we gave up on that spot we moved to another one. On our way we saw a big rock that had a TON of sea lions on it! It was so awesome to see!! There were probably 15 sea lions on the rock.

We then moved to our next spot where we were really lucky right away! Thom caught 2 right off the back and Drew caught one. However, we only needed 2 fish so we had to put Thom's second fish back.  The rule with halibut fishing is that you could have one "over" and one "under" per person. It means one fish over 29 inches and one under 29 inches.  So I was told you wanted as close to 29 inches for your unders, and wayyyy above 29 inches for your over.  That is why my fish never made the cut.

After we docked Keith filet the fish and we made our way back to Sterling.  I slept the ride back. Then we stopped at Magpies for pizza. We got a 20" (extra large) meat lovers.  We are now back at the cabin and the internet is working which is why I can post. Everyone is a little exhausted from the fishing today.  Tomorrow we head to home. :(

Whittier to Sterling

August 2

This morning we had to wake up early to eat breakfast before getting off the ship.  Dad's friend left a big white van at the port for us to use.  After finding the van we headed out of Whittier. To get out of Whittier there is a one lane tunnel. It only opens for your direction every half hour. So we waited for 20 minutes to be able to go through the tunnel.

Once we were through the tunnel we headed to a Wildlife Conservation Park.  There were so many amazing animals there! We saw reindeer, brown bear, musk ox, bald eagles, buffalos, a red fox, an owl, moose, and caribu.  We were able to get very close to them, but of course, not touch or feed them.  Thom and I found the red fox very amusing. He was found in a wood pile when he was very young, and people kept him in their home for a couple months before giving him to the Conservation Park.  He had the playfulness of a puppy.  He was also very smart; he wanted water so he was hitting his water tub to tell the worker he was thirsty.  Then the worker came in and pet him. The fox rolled to his back and made the cutest sound. It almost sounded like a laugh! The worker got out a ball on a rope and tossed it from side to side. The fox would chase it. He was so cute!

Then we saw another worker who had a reindeer, Chuckles, out and was walking him around on a leash.  We were able to pet him.

After we left the park we headed towards Sterling.  We made occasional stops to look at the scenery. We stopped at the Princess Lodge, which is where we could have stayed if we did the Land and Sea combo.  We also stopped to watch some people who were lined up fly fishing.

When we made it to Sterling we checked in to our cabin.  Our cabin is 1 of 3.  It is right next his house. It is cute! There are two twin beds upstairs, a bunk bed downstairs, and a pull out couch.  It is right on the Kenai River.

After we checked in we headed to Fred Meyer to get some groceries and fishing licenses.

We then headed for a short drive to the Cook Inlet.  It was beautiful.  There is a very very LARGE volcano in the distance.  The locals said it erupted 15 years ago and they saw it smoking again this year.  It was stunning. Unfortunately I couldn't get any good photos because it blended into the sky.

We then came back to the cabin for dinner. Thom and I made grilled chicken breast, wild rice, and salad.  It was an easy delicious meal! Now we are relaxing. It is fun to watch what everyone does because we have no internet or no TV.

College Fjord

Friday, August 1

This morning began with a bit of relaxing.  Thom and I woke up and watched a little tv before heading to breakfast.  We decided to go to the Horizon Buffet again. Thom didn't eat, he just had a latte, but I had french toast and sausage.

Then we headed to the culinary performance and galley tour.  It was put on by the Executive Head Chef, Head Materi d' and the pastry chef.  They made a smoked salmon pasta, a "Devil's Shrimp", and a Black Forest sponge cake.  They were quite goofy with it so I found it quite enjoyable.  Thom was a little less enthused, but I loved it.  We also got to take home the "Devil's Shrimp" and Black Forest cake recipe.  On the pice of paper with the recipes it also gave facts about the food service on the ship. There are 52 dish washers, 70 waiters, 33 bartenders, and many more positions. Over 250 of the 800 crew work in dining.  After that, we got to go to the galley.  I was amazed at the size of it! They had special sections for vegetable preparation, meat preparation, bread preparation, and pasta preparation. There was even an elevator in the galley to help transport from one level to the next. Of course, all the machines were huge. Large mixers, pots, pans, and appliances.

After looking at the at the galley we went to the 75% off sale, but didn't purchase anything. We then headed up to the pizza restaurant so Thom could eat some lunch.  While up there we met up with Mom, Dad, and Drew who were headed to the Horizon Buffet for lunch.

Once we finished lunch we went to the atrium because there was going to be a big balloon drop at 12:30.  So we placed ourselves under the balloon drop.  What made it more fun was that there were prizes in the balloons.  We got two! We won an Alaskan photo album and a $5 match card for the casino.  We gave our match card to Dad, who won with it and gave $5 to Thom. Then Thom lost his single hand of black jack. Oh well! Drew on the other hand was more lucky! He also had a $5 match card and had it in his pocket. At the exact right hand (thanks to the reminder of his lovely sister) he got a black jack! It was by pure chance, but made me laugh that it worked out that way.  Drew and Dad also entered the slot tournament, but did not do as well this time.  They are now both out of the tournament.

After that fun I headed to the art auction. It wasn't with the intent of purchasing any art, but I had a couple raffle tickets to put into a drawing that I needed to be present to win.  So, I put in my raffle tickets, enjoyed a glass of champagne, and watched an art auction.  I have now found a new artist who I think is wonderful- Peter Max. He uses beautiful bright colors and has a very American theme.  Unfortunately his works go for in the upwards of $16,000.  Anyway, part of the week's fun was to guess a cost of his print. Thom and Drew sweet talked the girl working and she slipped the cost.  So, Drew and I both wrote down correct guesses and so we both won TWO pieces of artwork! Oh yeah, remember the raffle tickets I mentioned? I won on a raffle drawing too so we get an additional piece of artwork! The auction was quite successful for us! We have an appointment tonight to pick out our pieces.

Once we finished with that auction Mom, Drew, and I decided to play Bingo.  I thought with my good luck at the art auction I should try it at Bingo. I had no such luck.

At 5:00 I turned in our papers for the scavenger hunt that we did in the ports.  If we win we get an Alaskan themed treasure trove! I'm just hoping not many other people  did it!

Now I am sitting out on Deck 7 as we are now in College Fjord.  As I type, I am looking at some of the most majestic mountains I have seen. It amazes me how a glacier can go down a mountain, and then all the sudden it turns to green trees. The Naturalist just came on the speaker and said that we are now closer to Harvard Glacier than they have gotten all year. Apparently the ice as thinned out so we are able to get close to the glacier.  The glacier is absolutely beautiful.  We were able to see a big chunk of it fall into the water.  There were also seals close to the glacier.  The glaciers seem so small until you have something to put it in perspective. There were a couple kayakers next to the glacier.  They were just tiny little specks.

We then had to get ready for our art consultation and dinner.  Drew got to pick out one piece of art, and Thom and I got two.  Drew got a bright piece with instruments on it. Thom and I got an abstract piece of art. The artist is from Germany and is ambidextrous. The second piece is a beautiful scene of boats by a French artist.

Then we went to our last dinner on the ship. For appetizers we had a seafood trio (I ordered it, but didn't care for it- everyone else liked it), a vegetable soup, salad, a clam linguine, and mushroom and chicken biscuit. For dinner we had New York strip steak, mussels, and turkey. For dessert they did the parade of Baked Alaska. The waiters and junior waiters came in with the Baked Alaska.  We all twirled our napkins and clapped.

After dinner we had to head up to the room to pack because our suitcases needed to be out by 11:00. Once we packed up, we headed to the karaoke finals.  Thee were six contestants.  Some were definitely better than others, but it was enjoyable to watch.  After the contest we headed to the Explorer's Lounge.  Once that closed we headed back to the room, watched part of Frozen, and went to bed.

Glacier Bay

After we walked around Skagway we loaded the boat.   We were really starting to go through some beautiful terrain.  For dinner we had a lamb, chicken, veal combo, fried chicken, spice rubbed tri tip roast, beef filet medallions, orange roughy, and scallops.  Between meals we had strawberry sorbet.  For dessert we had New York cheesecake, coconut cake, and a chocolate trio.
After dinner we headed to the Explorer's Lounge to listen to the Solutions.  We all went out and danced.  Drew and Thom played a game called bang and Drew ended up winning a bottle of champagne.  Drew made friends with a girl named Caitlin and she danced with us too.  We stayed there for awhile before they closed. We then headed to the International Cafe for a late night snack. I had white and chocolate mousse.  Then we headed to bed.  Well, I headed to bed. Drew and Thom stayed up until about 4 chatting!


Glacier Bay

The next morning Dad woke me up because he said we were in Glacier Bay. So we sat on Deck 7 for the majority of the day.  The views were absolutely beautiful.  First we went to one Glacier, then we went to another Glacier.  We stayed there for about an hour.  After that we decided to go to the Pizzaria.  I had a ham and mozzarella pizza.  It was very good.  After lunch we relaxed for a bit again on Deck 7 because we were told there would be wildlife sightings.  I saw a whale, otters, and a seal.  The seal was resting on a chunk of ice.

At 3:00 Drew and I went to a wine tasting. We tried 2 white wines, 2 red, and a dessert wine.  All were very good.  We also enjoyed a plate of cheeses.

After the wine tasting we relaxed for a bit longer before getting ready for dinner and going to the Explorer's Lounge. Mom and Dad went to the Captain's Circle for a drink and snacks.  For dinner appetizers we had escargots (delicious!), shrimp cocktail, salad, BBQ chicken broth, and veal ravioli.  For dinner three of us enjoyed the lobster tail and king prawn.  Mom had the tri tip and Drew had the beef medallion. Thom and Drew also requested to try the Indian meal of the night because they saw the lady next to us eating the Indian food.  It was a chicken meal. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it, but I didn't care for it.  For dessert we had floating islands, chocolate souffle, and petit fours (spelling?).

After dinner, Mom, Dad and I went to the Princess Theater to see the Coral Princess singers and dancers.  They did a nice job.  Then Mom and I went to see the comedian, Ed Regime.  Some people found him very funny, Mom and I were less entertained.  While all this was going on, Drew and Thom were watching a "How well do you know your partner" marriage show. Mom and I caught the end of it. It was hilarious! Then they watched karaoke.  After the comedian, I joined Thom and Drew in the Explorer's Lounge for karaoke.  There is the finals of the karaoke contest tomorrow.  Drew's friend, Caitlin, joined us again for a little dancing before we headed to bed.  While we were listening to the music (taking a break from dancing) one of the waiters came over and showed us some magic tricks.  Then we headed to bed for the evening.

Skagway

Wednesday, July 30

Today we are in Skagway.  Thom and I started our day by sleeping in, so I'll start with Mom, Dad, and Drew's morning.

Here is Brian:
Kathy, Drew and I started our morning with the White Pass Railroad Train ride.  The train was waiting for us outside the dock area and we got right on the train.  It was a very scenic ride, even though it was overcast and rained part of the time.  The original train was built over 100 years ago but stopped being used commercially in the 80's.  It became a tourist ride in the late 80's and 20 locomotives make numerous trips each day.  The train "turned around" at the British Columbia border and made a much faster trip back to Skagway.  Numerous waterfalls and steep mountains were the highlights of the trip.

Back to Becca:
After waking up, Thom and I got hot chocolate and a latte on the ship before eating lunch. After lunch of a cheeseburger and pizza we headed to shore.  It just so happened that Mom, Dad, and Drew were getting off their train at the moment that we were getting off the boat so we met up with them.  We then proceeded to walk around Skagway. It is a very pretty town. Has an "old" feel.  There are many jewelry stores.  We kind of skipped many stores because we are finding they have a lot of the same souvenirs as the other ports.

When we were at the Harley Davidson store, the clerk told us of a waterfall that was a short walk away, so we decided to go to that.  It was about a mile and a half away.  To get to it you had to go through the Gold Rush Cemetery.  Then we climbed another 10 minutes or so to the waterfall. It was absolutely stunning.  It was very big. We were able to climb up next to it for some photos.  The rocks were a little slippery, but not too bad.  We both made it down safely.

We were then able to catch the Smart Bus back to town so we didn't have to walk overly far.  We then walked the other side of the street before heading back to the ship.

The town of Skagway is beautiful. It is my favorite of the ports.  The scenery is absolutely gorgeous and the town is quaint.

I forgot to mention that yesterday Mom, Dad, and I listened to Libby Riddles the first woman to win the Iditarod speak.  She talked about how much she loved her dogs and some of the difficult things she went though on the race.  The first day of the race, her dogs ran away from her and drug her 4 miles though the snow! She has a children's book that is her biography so I bought that for my class. I thought they would like to hear about her and I could use it in our biography unit. Also she signed it!

Thom is now working out on the ship, while I am at an Internet cafe on land.  Mom and Dad are walking around the town. I'm not sure if I will be able to post the next few days due to lack of internet on the ship, but hopefully look for a post on Saturday night.

PS. I love the 4th picture down.

Juneau

Whelp, I made a mistake this morning. Dad said we needed to be up by 7 to eat breakfast so we could get on shore. So I got up at 6:45....or what my phone said was 6:45 (really it was 5:45). Oops!

So we got breakfast at the Horizon buffet before heading into town.  When we got off the boat we hiked along the highway to another dock to get our rental car.  Once we got our rental car we headed to the Mendenhall Glacier. It was BEAUTIFUL!! We could not go up to the glacier, but I took many pictures.  There was also an amazing waterfall. You could walk out on the sandy beach below it and get really close to it. You could see the strong power of it.

We then went to a Shrine for St. Therese because we were told there was great whale watching happening there. Unfortunately we didn't see a whale. They had a nice trail up to the chapel.  The main purpose of the shrine is as a retreat house, so they had a chapel up at the top. It was a beautiful stone chapel.

After that we headed to the salmon hatchery.  It was very interesting. There were THOUSANDS of salmons. We found it interesting that after the salmons make their way up the salmon ladder, they cannot be used for food. They rot from the inside out so they cannot be eaten.  The ladder is approximately 450 feet and the salmon need to swim upstream it. As they go it prepares their bodies for spawning. It can take hours to weeks for the fish to reach the top. Once they reach the top they are sorted by what kind they are.  Then their eggs or milk are harvested and used.

We grabbed a quick lunch at Red Dog Saloon. They had sawdust floors! The food was good. Drew had the reindeer sausage pizza and Thom and I shared a delicious barbeque beef sandwich.

Thom and I are now at a coffee shop using their wifi. We don't have internet, so I'm sorry for all the late posts.  The internet isn't strong enough for the pictures to load so hopefully I'll find a stronger connection in Skagway.  We are all having fun! More to come later!

Update: After the coffee shop we were able to walk around the town of Juneau. We are doing a little scavenger hunt thing at each of the ports because if we answer all the questions right, we are able to put our name in for a drawing back on the cruise ship for an Alaskan themed treasure trove.

Drew went for a looong run on the port. Approximately 11 miles he said.  Then we headed to the hot tub before dinner. For last night's dinner we went to Sabatini's, an Italian restaurant on the ship.  For appetizers they brought amazing bread with olive oil and vinegar, proscuitto with a foccia (spelling is wrong) bread, and olives.  Then we could order our own appetizers. Drew got a tomato soup with seafood, Dad got calamari, Mom got a salad, and Thom and I got the chef's pasta. The chef's pasta was spaghetti with calamari, shrimp, oysters, and mussels.  Very delicious.  For dinner, Dad, Drew and I got lobster 3 ways, Thom got the veal, and Mom got a steak. Again, all were wonderful. For dessert, we got an espresso creme brulee, an almond, hazelnut, piscaccio creme dessert, and a white chocolate mousse.

After dinner we were exhausted so Mom and Dad went to bed. Thom, Drew, and I went to the Explorer's lounge to watch the band Solutions. They were having a 50s and 60s dance party.  Then I went to bed.  Thom and Drew met up with some new friends that they have made on the boat.  On to Skagway!