Review on our Alaska Cruise aboard the Radiance

[jennat]

Thank u so much for this. We r going in September and I'm even more excited after enjoying ur review...normally I'm just a lurked on here, but u made me finally pop my posting cherry...lol. Thanks again

 

Im so glad.....you will have a ball.

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

We arose this morning bright and early. We had to go and get a box lunch and find the place by 8. Being from a big city, you give yourself plenty of time so we were real early.

We checked in with Sarah and had a cup of coffee at her lovely office/home. She has several really nice cabins behind the check in building and I wonder if she serves breakfast from the look of the inside. Don't know for sure but the whole outfit looked really nice.

 

 

 

 

Sarah and me

 

 

With my fashion sense, I'm sure to make a few Grizzly friends today. Loving the waterproof pants and hip waders.

[jennat]

 

I can't remember what kind of plane Craig had but I know they were proud/fond of it and I know it was really well cared for (based on the fact that I didn't freeze due to bad seals, at least).

We all hopped in the plane and headed out to start our adventure. The flight to Katmai is a little over an hour.

We taxied down the lake, turned around and made a super smooth take off.

 

 

 

Looking across the Bay, you find Seldovia, an isolated town that you have to take a ferry to.

 

Sarah continued to be our guide and explain what we were seeing to us as we flew to our destination.

This is Mt Augustine, one of many active volcano in Homer's area. These volcanoes are included in the Ring of Fire.

[jennat]

Katmai was stunning. Definitely one of the prettiest places I have ever seen.

 

 

 

 

 

[jennat]

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jst4fun715]

Jen, I just have one word for all of this.....spectacular! Thanks so much for sharing.:)

[gangof 5]

Thanks again Jen for the information. Yes I did read your information on the "crazy people" and I agreed for the most part and I have reviewed all of the pictures you show of people to see what they are wearing as far of length of pants, especially the gentleman without pants, but your point about the shoes was exactly my thoughts. Capris means different shoes and do I really need them. Your balmy comments threw me. I think I have figured out my compromise on this. Part of my dilemma is that we are doing the land portion of our trip before the cruise. Hard to pack for 14 days so I am "trying" to pack smart.

 

Again thanks for the review you have made me so excited for our upcoming cruise and I love all of your photos.

[jennat]

Craig flew over the area of Halo Bay and spotted a bunch of bears. He chose the best landing site and we got off the plane.

We waded to shore, bid Craig a farewell and off he flew (since he is Sarah's husband, I felt quite sure that he would be back. On second thought, I hope they have a good marriage!) We were left alone on this isolated paradise.

 

 

 

We had to traverse several tributaries (basically low points that didn't drain entirely from the tide going down....some were quite deep and swift....no unnavigable but they certainly increased the sense of adventure. I have to say at this point, that even if there were no bears, walking alone, completely cut off from everything in this remote area, traversing the different terrain alone would have been worth the price of this excursion.

The bears that live on this island are coastal brown bears, more commonly known as Grizzly Bears. The are about 30% larger than there contemporaries on the Alaska mainland because there is such a food source here. For my research, you are much less likely to be attacked by a bear here than jogging in Anchorage. There as never been an attack on a group of people and there has never been a tourist killed by a bear in Katmai.

SPOTLIGHT ON JENNIFER MOMENT

I have to tell you a little (very little, I promise) about me for you to understand this adventure

I am scared of everything. Seriously, everything. BUT I usually don't let it stop me from doing things. I never want to miss an opportunity to LIVE my life (except for that cliff in Jamaica but that's another story) I shove the fear in the back and move forward but it is always there. When I am snorkeling, I am always thinking about sharks. I think about the noises the airplane makes when flying. You get the point.

This learning moment brought to your by Subway....Eat Fresh

 

You need to know this to understand what an incredible, amazing day this was. It was like this bubble of peace and tranquility was surrounding the area. I ask my husband and he said he knew what I was talking about. It was almost like a religious experience of something of the like was at play. I know how that sounds but there was absolutely NO fear. How is that even possible. Like I stated earlier.....I am always scared.....or at least aware of the potential for things going wrong.

Nothing. While we are on the subject....no fear in the sea plane also. Another weird anomaly.

Okay, so peaceful bubble, alone on island.....oh, right, we started off in our search for bears. It wasn't long until we spotted our first one, clamming along the low tide shore line. We walked to about 50 ft from her and took photos. Sarah kept saying we could get closer and we would. Next she said we should walk around in front of her and we did. Soon we were right by her. Maybe 25 feet away. It was like being invisible. Of course she knew we were there but she never even glanced our way. Think about how close 25 ft is. It was amazing to watch this wild animal

 

[jennat]

Thanks again Jen for the information. Yes I did read your information on the "crazy people" and I agreed for the most part and I have reviewed all of the pictures you show of people to see what they are wearing as far of length of pants, especially the gentleman without pants, but your point about the shoes was exactly my thoughts. Capris means different shoes and do I really need them. Your balmy comments threw me. I think I have figured out my compromise on this. Part of my dilemma is that we are doing the land portion of our trip before the cruise. Hard to pack for 14 days so I am "trying" to pack smart.

 

Again thanks for the review you have made me so excited for our upcoming cruise and I love all of your photos.

 

I would say the temperature for our trip was between 50 and 65. The Balmy day was sunny and 65 (it's all about context).

Really, my best advice to you about packing is don't over think it. It totally stressed me out and looking back I truly think pack whatever you want to be comfortable (and by that I mean some people are uncomfortable not looking nice every night, some are uncomfortable not being in sweats or jeans.....)

We were absolutely fine with our fleece jackets. We used our rain coats twice (but once it wasn't raining so needed them once)

You definitely need light gloves (like the kind they sell for a dollar at Target)

I used my scarf several times....my husband never used his. We really didn't use our hats.....dh once for a half hour until he realized he didn't need it.

Definitely need tennis shoes or hiking boots. (I only took this and some cute flip flops)

Definitely want binoculars, cameras etc and please have them on you at all times.....unlike us! Buy extra batteries for your camera (do a search on google for the battery type (not the brand...for instance NB-5L 3.7v/1120mAh that is written on the battery. You can get 3 of them for $10-$20 including shipping...obviously depends but that is what I do and we have 5 different cameras at home so I would assume this is pretty universal)

you fly through batteries and memory cards. We went through 3 8gig and 3 4gig.....granted we take a lot of pics and we had 3 cameras going, coupled with the HD movies which sucks the life out of a memory card but a 4 gig memory card on the ship is $30 (you don't want to know how we know....anyone want to return that for us?)

Be prepared, they are dirt cheap at home.

Remember your continuous shot feature on your camera. It makes editing hell but you are certain to get a good shot. This also uses a ton of space until you can delete the photos you don't want. This looks like a stack of boxes over lapping each other on your camera. without this we wouldn't have gotten nearly the great moments we did. We used it a LOT.

Backpack is super important. One that you can fit your rain coats, camera, scarf/gloves, binoculars and coats in if it gets hot.

 

That's all I can think of now. Packing for this trip seems like a daunting task but really you see everyone wearing everything. I didn't ever use short sleeves unless I was dressing for dinner on the ship.....as far as excursions....I was comfortable in long sleeves. Of course, everyone and every week is different.

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

 

 

 

 

Here she is eating her clam.

 

How'd you like to meet those claws in a dark alley?

 

Incredible, right?

[jennat]

This bear was behind us (not too close) so we got used to being between two bears.

 

Here is Sarah giving us instruction

 

 

This was when we first spotted the bear.....we got a lot closer than this.

 

Maybe about this close.

 

It is funny to me how one moment you can be having the experience of a lifetime and the next you are "ready to move on" How quickly we adjust to the extraordinary. We were all ready to go see what was next.....we turned our backs to the crazy big grizzly and walked away without a thought. (sounds stupid, can't explain it...bubble, remember?)

[jennat]

Off in the distance we spotted a bald eagle and made our way toward him. Once again, stop, take photos, get closer, stop, photos, closer.....fully expecting him to take flight any moment we took a ton of photos. Well, let me tell you, nothing was scaring this bird off.

 

 

"I'm going"

"I'm going"

 

"Just kidding"

 

"Oh beautiful, for spacious skies...."

 

[jennat]

 

 

We spotted about 5 bears in the distance all heading toward the same place so we headed there too.

 

 

Meanwhile, the alpha male, with one thing on his mind....came over and starting chasing the girls away....."Thanks, Dude!"

 

We sat down and had some lunch....with the bears. Hello!

Of course we had been carrying it around with us in our backpacks so if they wanted it, they could have gotten it by now.

Apparently, they have never had "people food" so it is fine here?!

 

After lunch, we headed out in search of more bears. Here are some "moments" we experienced that day.

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

The "Let's get it on" Moment

 

Hey baby!

 

Come on over here.....

 

You smell nnnnice!

 

Wanna make a memory....?

 

Not now, I have to go to the bathroom....

 

I'll call you.....

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

Or how about this one....

This is called the

"Oh Crap, He is walking straight toward us" Moment

 

also known as the

"Are you kidding? Now is when my memory card fills up!" Moment"

 

 

 

 

 

 

you can see the red jacket in the foreground...that is how close he was.....and he was a big sucka.....definitely the biggest bear we saw out there. Probably 900 lbs and 10+ feet standing.

 

You can tell how he is not worried about us at all. It was like we were a wall in his way. He walked to within about 5 feet of us, turned and walked around us. I was fumbling (in really small movements) trying to replace my memory card so I didn't run off screaming like the bait that I am.....I kind of missed the moment but I'm not sure that is entirely a bad thing. Even during this time, there was not "fear"....certainly "awareness" and "anticipation" but mostly "wonder" and "awe" with a side of "fearless shaking"

[jennat]

Next we come to Peaches and her baby....He is about 3 seasons old. This made me a little nervous just because you can never tell what kids will do and how mom will react. Sarah said that Peaches is one of the sweeter bears out there. Famous last words, right?

BTW, I kept picturing one of those horror adventure movies.....the ones where the group is dropped off on a sunny day, smiling and laughing ready for the best day of their lives.....they wave good bye to the pilot who will pick them up in a week.....and then terror strikes. They spend the week fighting for survival while being picked off one by one.....

Yeah, well, thankfully that didn't happen to us. Whew!

Back to Peaches

 

we will pretend her baby is named "cream" for these purposes

 

Eat up, Cream, or you won't get any dessert.

 

 

 

"Do you smell something, Mama?" "Yes, baby, that is people food"

Just kidding!

 

"I love you , mama" "I love you too, Cream"

 

More to come.....

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[Catperson]

Best report ever, Jen, thanks so much for recording this. Now about these bears, OMG, bears are a definite phobia of mine, I cannot walk in any woods that might have a bear in it. What did Sarah say about the possibility of one of the bear's coming after you? Were you to behave in a certain way? Did Sarah tell you what to look for if the bear seemed to be becoming aggressive? You had no protection at all? I am absolutely fascinated but I could never do this adventure. Good for you!:eek:

[nomoreknothead]

Reading and Looking at your review.....There is only one thing that comes to my mind.....OMG!!!!!! I can't believe the experiences you had on this cruise! I'm so excited to see this stuff for myself! Makes me want to run out TODAY and stock up on memory cards, batteries & motion sickness meds........ALASKA here I COME!!!

 

Your review is Wonderfully done. You should do this for a living....Cruise & Write!

[shutterbug285]

Jen

It is awesome that you got to have that experience. You took me there with you, I can picture you and mike standing speechless and mesmerized!! ( I can also hear the under the breathe swear words as your camera ran out of memory! ...grin)

thanks for bringing us all along in spirit

[jennat]

Here is more peaches 'n cream

 

 

 

 

 

 

How cute are they? It was like they were posing for us....so cute. Unfortunately, my husband was just far enough from me that he didn't get the same angle=the same poses and his camera was so much better on this day. Dang it!

[jennat]

Best report ever, Jen, thanks so much for recording this. Now about these bears, OMG, bears are a definite phobia of mine, I cannot walk in any woods that might have a bear in it. What did Sarah say about the possibility of one of the bear's coming after you? Were you to behave in a certain way? Did Sarah tell you what to look for if the bear seemed to be becoming aggressive? You had no protection at all? I am absolutely fascinated but I could never do this adventure. Good for you!:eek:

 

I would be absolutely terrified to walk in the woods because of bears...did you not pay attention in the "moment about Jennifer";)

Sarah basically said nothing would happen. She said if a bear did get too close, to step together, shoulder to shoulder and the people on the outside could pull their jackets out to the side to look like we were an imposing force. She would step forward and clap loud.

She indicated that in 20 yrs that her friend had been doing this everyday, the only close calls were 1) when two bears were fighting and got to close (nothing to do with the people) and she felt the blood splatter hit her in the face :eek: and 2) when she was by herself sitting on a rock, a bear walked up, smelled her and left but that it was scary.

 

She told us to stick together. She told us each bear has a comfort zone and some are bigger than others. You would be able to tell. She said there wouldn't be a problem but if something happened she would deal with it. She instilled confidence and was very alert and knowledgeable out there.

 

I had also done a lot of research on these bears in particular.....and there had never been an incident with a tourist group.

 

I promise you, amazingly, I don't think you would be scared. Even now I look back and think "what the hell was I thinking" but Mike and I talk about the amazing sense of calm and safety we felt. It was a magical experience.

 

I would HIGHLY recommend challenging yourself and doing this. It was the most amazing experience by far we have ever done. Larger than life.

[jennat]

Jen

It is awesome that you got to have that experience. You took me there with you, I can picture you and mike standing speechless and mesmerized!! ( I can also hear the under the breathe swear words as your camera ran out of memory! ...grin)

thanks for bringing us all along in spirit

 

I would NEVER swear...you must have me confused with someone else ;)

[jennat]

Reading and Looking at your review.....There is only one thing that comes to my mind.....OMG!!!!!! I can't believe the experiences you had on this cruise! I'm so excited to see this stuff for myself! Makes me want to run out TODAY and stock up on memory cards, batteries & motion sickness meds........ALASKA here I COME!!!

 

Your review is Wonderfully done. You should do this for a living....Cruise & Write!

 

Thanks

Do you know anyone who is hiring?

Actually, funny you should say that. my girlfriend travels and researches her trips (which make for phenomenal trips) as much as I do and we are working on putting together a website to review and give advice on all the places we have been. Kind of all the information we have accumulated, both prior to, during and after the trips so that people can go to one spot to both get excited for the trip and to learn all the ins and outs of the area, etc.

A little like this but less of my family and more in general. We also want to incorporate videos, webinars etc so that our audience can get to know us and our personalities to help them figure out if they would like the same things, etc. My friend and I are very different (of course I am the cool one) ;) so it will be very different perspectives (do you think she is reading this!). The thing we have in common is we love to travel and see different places and live life to the fullest.

 

Our problem is, we are too busy traveling to get any work done on it. :D

We are taking good notes on the hotels, areas, ships etc and trying to answer all the questions we had prior to the trip, for everyone else.

 

It will just be informative (we are not selling travel). I will let you know when it is done. I hope it is a fun site.

Edited July 1, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

This is the local Metro-sexual bear.....he gets his manis and pedis regularly and dental hygiene is very important to him because he knows "a healthy mouth equals a healthy body"

 

Doesn't he look well groomed

 

 

 

 

[jennat]

It was time to catch our ride back.....what I thought was completely interesting was how complacent you get in this setting....

some of the guys were standing back taking pics. the tight formation we had earlier had gone away...and we were all stringing out. (I'm telling you...not scary!)

 

 

 

My, what big hands you have...

 

 

Do these hip waders make my butt look big? (no your butt makes your butt look big)