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masterdrago

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Posts posted by masterdrago

    Southern Itinerary from Anchorage - Which Ship?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    We are booked on the Radiance of the Seas for the May 24th sailing from Seward. We are doing a DIY land tour prior to the sailing - flying into Anchorage. I have seen much advice to go after June 1 into Denali so that you can get the bus all the way to Eielson Visitors Center. Prior to June 1, you can only go to mile 53 (located at the confluence of the east and west forks of the Toklat River) not 66. I'm not sure why the extra 13 miles has been so advised, although it is. We decided to not let that 13 mile difference influence our complete Itinerary. But doing the land tour DIY makes not only $$$ sense but freedom to work your own spreadsheet of plans.

     

     

    ISP whale watching

    in Alaska

    Posted

    We're booked with Glacier Winds for a May '19. Both Teresa and Shawn McConnell are great folks to work with. You might want to check out Shawn's two books, Night Vision and Icy Passage. Night Vision is a good thriller that I could not put down. They both went to college in Seattle and hints of where they grew up are in the book.

    How Much of Denali Will We See

    in Alaska

    Posted

    1 hour ago, Cruise_More_Often said:

    I looked up places to buy bear spray prior to our Denali visit. I found an outdoors store right near the Park that carried bear spray. Here is the link to their website:  http://denalimountainworks.com/

     

    We ended up going for a hike with a local guide who carried bear spray, so we didn't need it. 

    Thanks for the link. I added the page to our tour folder.  I also found an ATV guided or self tour that we may add. https://www.blackdiamondtourco.com/home----.html

    Best Of Skagway Train Tour

    in Alaska

    Posted

    6 hours ago, AKStafford said:

    What about just booking something directly with the White Pass & Yukon: https://wpyr.com/

    That's the page that I ended up trying to book on 27 May. As it turns out there are only the shorter tours on Mondays no matter which tour company arranges it. It may be that by running more shorter tours they can accommodate the ~7,000 folks that will be in Skagway on the two RCI ships (Radiance & Ovation) May 27th.

     

    And to answer the note from Coral, we are looking at catching the 6:45 train out of Anchorage to Seward after we drop the rent car. Also we are looking at the Amtrak ride from Vancouver to Seattle. It's just all about getting the timing right.

    Best Of Skagway Train Tour

    in Alaska

    Posted

    Before I ask on the RCI thread, I'll post here. Joy is wanting a good train ride and it looks as if while in Skagway we can reserve a "Best of Skagway" through RCI excursions. Looking closely at the details make me think it is mostly fluff (bus ride, salmon bake, Red Onion Saloon visit, & watch costumed characters perform) and a 1 hour train ride to see the countryside. Has anyone done this excursion that can shed a bit more detail? Unfortunately, the 8 hr 120 mile bus and train Bennett Scenic Journey that we had hoped to take is not running tours on Memorial Day next year. Or for that matter on any Monday.

    Glacier boat tour before boarding ship in Whitter?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    Right. It's a pretty appalling list. Have to go up to Alyeska and Girdwood to find the real deals. We've spent a lot of time looking through our options for our May '19 DIY land tour. The OP should have no problem getting to Whittier from Anchorage in time to do the glacier tour and make their boat. I think her hubby can get past his fear.

    Glacier boat tour before boarding ship in Whitter?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    We'll be staying in Alyeska with a rent car and catching the 9:30 tunnel to Whittier. Had we not been in Girdwood/Alyeska, we would have stayed in Anchorage or Whittier VRBO and tried a one day car rental or worked with Phillips to do the full transport thing. We had just made up our mind to do Alyeska and Lazy Otter instead. It really can be a logistical nightmare.

    Glacier boat tour before boarding ship in Whitter?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    I looked at the 26 Glacier Cruise fairly closely but chose another. The two boats that Phillips uses are the M/V Bravest - 120' length, 285 guest and the M/V Klondike Express - 137', 332 guest. Both large boats. Phillips says " largest, fastest and most luxurious catamaran in Alaska ". They claim it explores over 140 miles of Prince William Sound. If you figure that the full 5 hour tour is in the water cruising, then your average speed will be ~28MPH. It's top speed loaded is ~32MPH. That's a pretty fast clip for sight seeing. You can read a lot more about the Klondike Express at http://www.nicholsboats.com/portfolio/project/klondike-express.  That's twice what we cruise Lake Conroe in our 25' pontoon party boat. I choose not to book their tour due to big crowd and fast touring speed.

    Anan Bear Viewing Trip - Some Questions

    in Alaska

    Posted

    On 10/16/2018 at 11:27 AM, Hitchens97 said:

    I'm thinking of booking for my day in port on July 8th 2019. I've done some research on some other posts, but I had a few more questions:

    1) Is this too early in the season, and am I better off going somewhere else?

    2) Island Wings seems to have great reviews. Any other recommendations?

    3) My wife suffers a bad back. How tough is the trail and stairs to the entrance?

    4) Booking: Seems like I need to book now or very soon. Is that right?

    Thanks in advance

    Michelle books up quickly so I would contact her ASAP

    http://www.islandwings.com/anan-creek---traitors-cove-bear-viewing-tours.html

    michelle@islandwings.com
    Local (907) 225-2444

    Toll-free (888) 854-2444

    Glacier boat tour before boarding ship in Whitter?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    B4 I would give up on a glacier tour while in Whittier, I would Bing search "whittier hotel alaska" and also do a VRBO search for that area. Also Alyeska Resort in Girdwood might be an option. Check with their Concierge staff at 907-754-2108 for transportation options. Make sure to know when you will need to be at the Whittier Tunnel - looks like the 11:30 opening would work for that glacier tour you mentioned. One more thing. Consider looking at glacier tours with Lazy Otter Charters. They have some 4-5 hour tours that use small boats instead of the massive "fastest boat in Alaska" that Phillips uses

    Bennett or Caribou Crossing?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    I think it's always better to book direct rather than through a broker like that:

    - the WP&YR at https://wpyr.com/excursions/product/bennett-scenic-journey/

    - or Chilkoot Charters (same but with a smaller bus for the return trip) at https://chilkootcharters.com/reservations/

    Thanks rvocruise. I shot wpyr an email and got a quick reply from Stephanie Larson. She said she will alert me when the info is available. I also made their web page my home page to keep my eye on them.

    Planning considerations

    in Alaska

    Posted

    The spreadsheet idea was my lovely wife's. I started with a spiral pad and pencil. She has done a master job listing Date, Activity, Location, Address, Phone#, Reservation#, Room Info & Time Reserved, Cost, and a Comment Section with $$$ due & names of Contacts, etc. Fortunately, our printer has a way to feed legal sized paper ;=| My little contribution is pretty simply mostly to have access to backup tour & excursion contacts. I also added notes to mine concerning stuff that still needed booking - air, bus connections, and restaurant reservations. I also made me a small timeline calendar - page for each day (17 of 'em). The only thing on the last page is an entry @7am Fly to IAH from Seattle. All in pencil to be easily erased and changed. It might seem overkill, but for me, it buffers "old man memory problem". And don't get me on "check lists"! Did I unplug the iron, turn off etc. Hey, this is the biggest, most complex trip that Joy and I have planned.

    Girdwood to Seward drive times

    in Alaska

    Posted · Edited by masterdrago

    I will look into this. We were looking at arriving on the 5th. I've never heard of a bore tide, will have to look into it. Thank you for the suggestion!
    The info for the 5th - Monday, August 5, 2019. Sun 5:43am-10:28pm. low tide 5:05am (0.80ft), high tide 10:44am (28.30ft), low tide 5:21pm (-1.01ft), high tide 11:21pm (28.74ft)

    I've underlined the one that is best, so if you observe from the below mile post, add the times listed. These are only approximate times but from real data. If you just miss one, you can drive to the next mile post since the Bore Tide moves 10-15 mph.

     

     

    1. Beluga Point—MP 110.5 1 hr. 15 min. later

    2. Indian—MP 100.5 1 hr. 30 min. later

    3. Bird Point—MP 95 2 hrs. 15 min. later

    4. Girdwood—MP 90 3 hrs. later

    5. Peterson Creek—MP 84 3 hrs. 45 min. later

    6. 20 Mile Creek—MP80 4 hrs. later

     

    So if low tide at Fire Island is at 5:21pm, add 1hr 15min and another 10-15 min to observe at 6:40-6:50 from Beluga Point.

    Girdwood to Seward drive times

    in Alaska

    Posted · Edited by masterdrago

    I would go with two home base. Spend time in both Girdwood and Seward to get your activities done. In my experience I would practically double the travel time between destinations in Alaska just to be on the safe side. Good luck!
    Great suggestion - two home bases. Why spend time on the road unless you just have a big need to sight see from the car. Don't know your specific dates in August but you might want to check out viewing the Bore Tide as a group activity. Info can be found at http://wikimapia.org/4909714/Beluga-Point-Beluga-and-bore-tide-observation-area Then look for the specific time of best low vs high tide - usually near new or full moon. This page will point to times https://www.tides.net/alaska/910/?year=2019&month=08 Look for the time with most extreme low the high tide (i.e. August 3, 4, 29, 30, 31) during daylight.

    Glacier boat tour before boarding ship in Whitter?

    in Alaska

    Posted

    I doubt that any train would be off schedule unless there is a catastrophic failure. And as someone said, Phillips Cruises are very careful with their times. I've even read stories of other boats coming to rescue folks on a broke down charter. Although with the 26 Glacier tour that could be an issue since the tour boat, the M/V Klondike Express, hold over 300 folks.

    Do it yourself Alaska cruisetour

    in Alaska

    Posted

    It's been awhile since I, or anyone, posted here. Almost time to close it and begin talking about the plans that have been made.

    Come Monday, I can make my reservation at the place we will stay for three nights.

    Hard to tell from a post, but I'm super excited

     

    Sent from my Pixel using Forums mobile app

    "Super excited" almost doesn't cover it. We've been planning our cruise and pre tour since our last cruise June 3rd. Except for flights, rent car, reservations at 7 Glaciers, & a few loose ends, we are set. Joy, my wife and sidekick will be glad when I can step away from the keyboard. So far ours looks like this.....

    Fly Seattle ovnt Hilton Seattle Airport

    Fly Anchorage rent car, Bore tide 1:30-2:30 drv Talkeetna

    2 nt Talkeetna Alaska Lodge Talkeetna Air Taxi w/glacier landing

    2 nt Grand Denali Lodge maybe ATV tour

    Denali Jeep Excursion

    2 nt Alyeska Resort 7 Glaciers for dinner

    Lazy Otter Glacier tour

    drv Anchorage drop rent car Uber to museum 3pm bus to Seward Windsong

    Shuttle to cruise ship these two days are a bit wasted with driving & bus ride

    Cruise Hubbard Glacier onboard Radiance of the Seas

    Juneau Harv & Marv's Whale Watch 10a 5 Glacier Sea Plane 3:30p

    Skagway train "Best of Skagway"

    Icy Strait Point Glacier Wind Charters Whale Watch

    Ketchikan Island Wings Air - Misty Fjords Nat'l Mon. tour

    Cruise Inside Passage

    Vancouver debark bus to Seattle 1 nt Hilton Seattle Airport

    Fly Seattle to home

    One thing I discovered early on. The DIY turns out to be only slightly more $$$ than having the pre tour done by RCI and we have much, much more freedom to roam and discover. Another thing I did is to make a spreadsheet with the help of Joy that has a big list of alternate tours and excursions with phone numbers in case one of the planned get cancelled due to mechanical issue, weather or rough seas.

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