Bigger picture thoughts on excursions?

Hi all,

I’m all a jumble try to sort excursions out for our Alaska cruise. We are leaving Mid May. And we have never cruised before. I booked a cruise with 3 shore excusions (basic excursions only.)

We are active people and I’m interested in:

Whales – particularly the humpbacks – not sure about seeing whales in May– trying to decide if it’s worth the extra for a small boat whale excursion at ISP

Bears – I understand there might not be abundant sightings because it’s not time for the salmon runs

Rainforest – hiking

Kayaking

Native culture

Ports we stop in are:

Astoria

Ketchikan

Juneau

Icy Strait Point (Hoonah)

Prince Rupert

Here are my thoughts on excursions:

Ketchikan –Eagle Island Sea Kayak

Junea – Mendenhall Lake Kayak

ISP – ISP Kayak Adventure

Sitka – we will likely hike and/or go to Raptor center and/or Fortress of the Bear – depending on what we’ve seen along the way – this is also the town that seems the most interesting to me

Prince Rupert – do on our own and/or nature walk and/or kayak

I was considering a splurge in Juneau for the canoe and trek to the ice caves. But I contacted the operator and they say it’s not always a go for the ice caves which would really be a bummer for me.

Second possible splurge would be whale watching at ISP on a small 6 person charter.

Would we see whales kayaking?

For the charter would we see whales – particularly humpbacks in May?

Ultimate splurge might be the Orca Cove/seaplane combo in Ketchikan. Seems to be rather weather dependent.

We normally hike more than we kayak – I’m leaning towards active shore excursions.

I know it’s all subjective – I’ve seen some solid feedback and insight on this site – your thoughts are appreciated.

Thanks.

Vic

Whales start arriving in April, which is the best option for seeing them seems to be based on luck. (Maybe the ships excursion will have the best viewing that day? Maybe not. Day to day, you might see dorsal fins & tails or breaching - just depends.)

You might see whales while kayaking at ISP - I saw a whale repeatedly diving and surfacing just yards offshore, near the large pub/restaurant in ISP. But if you definitely want to see them, going on a whalewatch is a must - doesn't matter who you go with, ISP and Juneau have 100% humpback sighting right through cruise season as there are extensive feeding grounds.

Small boat or big, info is shared and the boats go where the whales are - but in kayaks you'll have a much shorter range so the chance of viewing is much reduced (and I'd imagine that the tour has a regular route, rather than being focused on just paddling around looking for whales).

Even then - expect backs & blows. It's pretty easy to get decent fluke shots - eventually a whale is going to present their tail the right direction for you to get a good pic if you're ready with your camera. But any kind of lunge/breach is a bonus, and a really spectacular almost-full-length lunge or bubble-net feeding are very rare things to see.

If you like hiking consider hiking the trails at the top of the tram in Juneau. The tram takes you to 1800 feet. The tram might be crowded, but then there are free trails that go up another 1800 feet and hardly anyone on the trails when we were there in July. The view is spectacular. You can go as far as you want and turn around if you don't want to go all the way. The trails are fairly easy, well marked, no hands and feet climbing or anything. However, you are going up so it does take some energy. Note when you are on the ship / ground it appears that the tram goes to the top of the mountain, but it does not. There is plenty of mountain left !

We did the tram and hiking in half a day then went to Mendanhall on the shuttle the other half. Both of these are pretty inexpensive DIY excursions, the hiking is free if you buy a tram ticket. Maybe save some $$ and splurge elsewhere !

have fun !

Update on our Mid may 2017 cruise

Astoria – it rained like crazy. We walked the down to the pier with the small cannery museum and back. Nice to see waterfront property that’s still used for everyday businesses. We also stopped in a fantastic local game shop called Purple Cow Toys. Super helpful.

Ketchikan – we took the free shuttle to the Totem Center. The driver told us which direction to head for the Deer Mountain hike. We followed the signs –were slightly confused when a local pointed towards the trailhead. He also told us that it was likely to still be snowy above the 1 mile mark. Great introduction to the rainforest. We hiked up the mile which was 1000+ ft elevation gain. Fantastic views and lots of interesting elements. We did not go much further because the trail was getting wetter and wetter. And I had not anticipated how quick the elevation gain would be. We took a brief walk through the Totem center and took the shuttle back into town. Per the drivers recommendation we had lunch at the New York Cafe – they had some great veggie options. We went back to the ship about an hour early – just before heavy rains started.

In Juneau we stopped at Glacier Gardens – although it felt early for the gardens we received a personal tour and were thrilled to have Bald Eagles flying directly over our heads up at their viewing area. We headed to Mendenhall next. Per my other post - picnic lunches are not an option at Mendenhall. We did the trail to the falls and then two side trails - the time loop and creek trails. I wasn’t sure about timing for the larger loop. But one of the rangers had clued us in to some baby salmon in the creek. At the last bridge just when I was about to give up I spotted them. Rangers in the center are super helpful – ask your questions. We did not have time for the tram – although the skies had cleared on our way to Juneau and stayed clear for the remainder of the cruise. Unbelievable.

Hoonah turned out to be the big surprise. Another couple on the roll call was looking for additional people to join them for a Glacier Winds whale watching excursion. We signed up. Saw lots of eagles on the way out of the harbor. The captain found a pod that we followed for some time seeing multiple bubble net feedings. We saw a larger more active pod not too faraway and also followed them for a while. Based on reports back on the ship we had the best luck for wildlife activity.

At Sitka we caught the 10 shuttle right where the tenders come in. We went out to the Fortress of the Bears. We were thrilled that they had so many people to answer our many questions. We learned a lot about the bears. Take your time – and ask all your questions. We took the shuttle to the Raptor center but skipped it in favor of walking across the street and through the park and totem trail. We also walked back to the tender port.

At Prince Rupert we took the local bus out to Butze Regional Park. Did the loop and headed back. We had lunch and took a walk towards the railroad station. Get Canadian money before you get on the bus (just buy a coffee at one of the local shops and eat the exchange rate.) The locals were super helpful at making sure we got off at the right stop.

Thoughts – I was kind of overwhelmed by the touristy nature of many of the ports. But the hiking and walking we did got us away from these areas.

Hiking in multiple areas was interesting because it was all rainforest but at different latitudes. You could really see the difference – particularly with the skunk cabbage. The only place we saw wildflowers was Prince Rupert. I think we were too early for flowers.

In retrospect I would have tried to find more ranger led talks and/or found some guidebooks. We gained some knowledge along the way – but especially in the beginning at Ketchikan we did not know what we were seeing during our hike.

Super lucky – we had fantastic weather. And were delighted by all the friendly locals.

Thanks for all the contributors here - other's questions and answers helped me make decisions about what to do and where to do it.

Check out this museum in Prince Rupert - http://museumofnorthernbc.com/. It is a wonderful museum on the native peoples.

I also recommend the North Pacific Cannery Museum - https://www.northpacificcannery.ca/# - although it is a bit out of town.

DON

Thanks for your up date. Some good ideas on where to go & what to do for our cruise in Jul.

Allan

Hi all,

 

I’m all a jumble try to sort excursions out for our Alaska cruise. We are leaving Mid May. And we have never cruised before. I booked a cruise with 3 shore excusions (basic excursions only.)

 

We are active people and I’m interested in:

 

Whales – particularly the humpbacks – not sure about seeing whales in May– trying to decide if it’s worth the extra for a small boat whale excursion at ISP

Bears – I understand there might not be abundant sightings because it’s not time for the salmon runs

Rainforest – hiking

Kayaking

Native culture

 

Ports we stop in are:

 

Astoria

Ketchikan

Juneau

Icy Strait Point (Hoonah)

Prince Rupert

 

Here are my thoughts on excursions:

 

Ketchikan –Eagle Island Sea Kayak

Junea – Mendenhall Lake Kayak

ISP – ISP Kayak Adventure

Sitka – we will likely hike and/or go to Raptor center and/or Fortress of the Bear – depending on what we’ve seen along the way – this is also the town that seems the most interesting to me

Prince Rupert – do on our own and/or nature walk and/or kayak

 

I was considering a splurge in Juneau for the canoe and trek to the ice caves. But I contacted the operator and they say it’s not always a go for the ice caves which would really be a bummer for me.

 

Second possible splurge would be whale watching at ISP on a small 6 person charter.

 

Would we see whales kayaking?

 

For the charter would we see whales – particularly humpbacks in May?

 

Ultimate splurge might be the Orca Cove/seaplane combo in Ketchikan. Seems to be rather weather dependent.

 

We normally hike more than we kayak – I’m leaning towards active shore excursions.

 

I know it’s all subjective – I’ve seen some solid feedback and insight on this site – your thoughts are appreciated.

 

Thanks.

Vic

Sounds like you already have a great game plan. Or are you looking for someone to change you mind to do something else. Do you plan on visiting Alaska again or is this a one shot deal. After over 30 Alaskan cruises I rarely book tours. I like playing "find the needle in the haystack". That being said in all my cruises I have never seen a Puffin. I booked a private tour last week in Sitka (set up by Budget Queen) and paid to see my puffin. We also saw whales, seals, sea otters, starfish, various other types of birds and oh yeah, Bears. My first paid tour in the last 10 cruises and I think I did OK. If you have lots of money to spend you can do anything you want. Or you can plan for another Alaskan cruise and get what you missed the first time. :D

Update on our Mid may 2017 cruise

 

Astoria – it rained like crazy. We walked the down to the pier with the small cannery museum and back. Nice to see waterfront property that’s still used for everyday businesses. We also stopped in a fantastic local game shop called Purple Cow Toys. Super helpful.

 

Ketchikan – we took the free shuttle to the Totem Center. The driver told us which direction to head for the Deer Mountain hike. We followed the signs –were slightly confused when a local pointed towards the trailhead. He also told us that it was likely to still be snowy above the 1 mile mark. Great introduction to the rainforest. We hiked up the mile which was 1000+ ft elevation gain. Fantastic views and lots of interesting elements. We did not go much further because the trail was getting wetter and wetter. And I had not anticipated how quick the elevation gain would be. We took a brief walk through the Totem center and took the shuttle back into town. Per the drivers recommendation we had lunch at the New York Cafe – they had some great veggie options. We went back to the ship about an hour early – just before heavy rains started.

 

In Juneau we stopped at Glacier Gardens – although it felt early for the gardens we received a personal tour and were thrilled to have Bald Eagles flying directly over our heads up at their viewing area. We headed to Mendenhall next. Per my other post - picnic lunches are not an option at Mendenhall. We did the trail to the falls and then two side trails - the time loop and creek trails. I wasn’t sure about timing for the larger loop. But one of the rangers had clued us in to some baby salmon in the creek. At the last bridge just when I was about to give up I spotted them. Rangers in the center are super helpful – ask your questions. We did not have time for the tram – although the skies had cleared on our way to Juneau and stayed clear for the remainder of the cruise. Unbelievable.

 

Hoonah turned out to be the big surprise. Another couple on the roll call was looking for additional people to join them for a Glacier Winds whale watching excursion. We signed up. Saw lots of eagles on the way out of the harbor. The captain found a pod that we followed for some time seeing multiple bubble net feedings. We saw a larger more active pod not too faraway and also followed them for a while. Based on reports back on the ship we had the best luck for wildlife activity.

 

At Sitka we caught the 10 shuttle right where the tenders come in. We went out to the Fortress of the Bears. We were thrilled that they had so many people to answer our many questions. We learned a lot about the bears. Take your time – and ask all your questions. We took the shuttle to the Raptor center but skipped it in favor of walking across the street and through the park and totem trail. We also walked back to the tender port.

 

At Prince Rupert we took the local bus out to Butze Regional Park. Did the loop and headed back. We had lunch and took a walk towards the railroad station. Get Canadian money before you get on the bus (just buy a coffee at one of the local shops and eat the exchange rate.) The locals were super helpful at making sure we got off at the right stop.

 

Thoughts – I was kind of overwhelmed by the touristy nature of many of the ports. But the hiking and walking we did got us away from these areas.

Hiking in multiple areas was interesting because it was all rainforest but at different latitudes. You could really see the difference – particularly with the skunk cabbage. The only place we saw wildflowers was Prince Rupert. I think we were too early for flowers.

 

In retrospect I would have tried to find more ranger led talks and/or found some guidebooks. We gained some knowledge along the way – but especially in the beginning at Ketchikan we did not know what we were seeing during our hike.

 

Super lucky – we had fantastic weather. And were delighted by all the friendly locals.

 

Thanks for all the contributors here - other's questions and answers helped me make decisions about what to do and where to do it.

I know this was a while ago, but just wanted to say thank you for the great report on what you ended up doing. It's especially helpful to hear about the conditions in May. I'm looking at a 2019 sailing, and this really helps!