Whale Watching & Mendenhall/Gastineau Guiding (Juneau)- any recent?

I did a search and there are several threads that say Gastineau Guiding Company's Juneau Whale Watching & Mendenhall Glacier Photo Safari is good, but they are all a couple of years old. Anybody done it more recently? I definitely like that it's limited to 14 people, those are always the most worthwhile. I'd be interested in hearing any experiences, especially the time spent on each segment of the excursion (travel from ship, Mendenhall, whale watching).

TIA!

We used them in 2010, absolutely loved them.

We used a different operator in 2012, disappointed.

We used them (Gastineau) in 2014, absolutely loved them, and the "product" was exactly what we expected when compared to our 2010 trip. As a bonus, the bus driver suggested to the guide that we do the Mendenhall Hike portion faster than normal to allow for some time on the drive back to town for a quick stroll out to the creek (during low tide), where we got to see LOTS of eagles and other birds feeding on salmon, really up close and personal. Quite a neat addition to the tour we chose.

We used them in 2010, absolutely loved them.

We used a different operator in 2012, disappointed.

We used them (Gastineau) in 2014, absolutely loved them, and the "product" was exactly what we expected when compared to our 2010 trip. As a bonus, the bus driver suggested to the guide that we do the Mendenhall Hike portion faster than normal to allow for some time on the drive back to town for a quick stroll out to the creek (during low tide), where we got to see LOTS of eagles and other birds feeding on salmon, really up close and personal. Quite a neat addition to the tour we chose.

Thank you for the information! That's just what I was looking for. I love smaller guide outfits that will change the plan based on the conditions of the day. When we were on Hawaii we did a Kilauea tour with a naturalist guide and as we left the port he said "The lava is flowing right now, do you want to skip looking at flowers and go straight to that?" And of course we all said "YES!" It was the most amazing experience.

We did this tour this past June and had a great time.

We really would like to do this one. How strenuous is it? My Grandmother is coming along but has no mobility issues.Would this work? Is it very tiring?

We really would like to do this one. How strenuous is it? My Grandmother is coming along but has no mobility issues.Would this work? Is it very tiring?

According to the cruiseline's description of this particular excursion the activity level is "2" and involves "considerable level of activity like substantial walking on uneven terrain." For this tour it says "Participants must be able to walk on their own for approximately 3/4 mile on an improved gravel trail."

If you take a look at Google Maps in Satellite view, search for "Skate Lake Juneau AK". Zoom out enough to find Mendenhall Glacier from there. You'll see a parking lot just south of the glacier welcome center, and about half mile down the road you'll see a gravel lot. The bus goes there, and participants walk a gravel trail perhaps 3/4 mile to the glacier.

Take a look at for an overview of the trail. We started from the P in the bottom right (note that north points to the left on this map), joined the trail at "You Are Here" (how convenient...), then headed East (up), crossed over Steep Creek, then took the dotted line shortcut, and proceeded to the Visitor Center.

I suspect it'd be no challenge to have the shuttle bus driver take her directly to the visitor center. I'd contact them directly (http://www.stepintoalaska.com/) to make arrangements and/or confirm if it'd be suitable.

One other note: the boats have perimeter bench seats, so everyone faces each other in a U shape. The back bench might be best for grandma so any acceleration doesn't send her sliding down the bench, cozying up to the next passenger. ;)