Jackets and Shoes for Alaska

[majormomma]

Hi Everyone,

I have been enjoying your posts. What do y'all think, will the same outfits I wore when we cruised around Cape Horn suffice in Alaska? (Turtleneck, long sleeved shirt, heavy sweater and light-weight raincoat with hood.) I only needed another layer when the winds kicked up and it was 45 degrees. :)

A lined jacket is included in the land tour we are taking before we get on the boat. I'm only bringing one pair of walking shoes, one pair of sorta dressy flats, and my dancing shoes. If I need more I'll have to find the Wal-mart !

 

It was 60 and sunny here today so people were starting to go out without coats! It appears to be spring in Minnesota finally! I'll think of you all when we head north June 21.

[tangerinebunny]

Several people have mentioned a spare pair of walking shoes in case of rain/damp. But if yours are waterproof, you may win the 'fewest shoes award.' It will be presented by the lady wearing the Mickey Mouse Ears.

[Set2travel]

What a night we had. We were up from 3:30am until 5:00 am huddled in the basement! We had two tornados touchdown a couple of miles from our house. The scariest was the constant lightening for 45 minutes then the wind and golf ball size hail!

Glacierlady...thanks for the website. Yes I noticed the clothing (or should I say lack of clothing) the riders were wearing. I told you I am working up to 65 and no sweater. By the time I arrive I should be able to handle 60 with no sweater!

Majormomma...I have wanted to cruise the Cape Horn itinerary, but have been scared off by the post of serious rough seas. I would hate to be barfing the whole trip. What Alaska cruise are you taking?

Tangerinebunny...I'm with you two pair of walking in case one gets wet. We are having to ship our luggage ahead of time so if I need to over pack I can. When I booked our airfare the first time I booked Delta refundable ticket...rethought that and got my money back and booked Airtran and Continental one way to Anchorage. I thought they were partners for luggage...NOT...we only have 1.5 hours between flights so we are shipping the luggage.

[hopelea]

Okay, I win the award.........I have the gortex tennis shoes & the Mickey Poncho.......

I get the award!!! :D

[hopelea]

SET2TRAVEL..........I know what you mean about being up last night. We get the weather before you do. It started in my area about 11 PM and lasted a long time. We had tornados south of us. It made for a really long night. One daughter slept threw it, but that didn't surprise me, she slept through the earthquake we had here too!!! :eek:

[6Arabianhorses]

Right next to the zoo at a place called www.horsetrekkinalaska.com I ride in a nice 400 acre park and except for a plane overhead here and there, you would never know your actually in a city. I see moose almost everytime. They are open year around and also have wagon and sleigh rides and a really big house as a B&B. They are listed in the toursaver book as a 2 for 1 :)

 

Ohhh and look at what they are wearing...heehee

 

I love to ride too, but my Arabs are show horses and only 2 of them are trained under saddle........we show at halter because we just don't have the time to maintain the training of performance or dressage. Plus, it's A LOT more expensive! My babies would be brrrrrrr cold up in Alaska. We blanket them when it gets below freezing here in the mtns of western NC. But then we also have some wicked wind where we live and the wind chill factor can be ridiculous.

BTW, thanks for letting me know my bean boots will be ok........(drat, now no excuse for DH for me to buy another pair of shoes! LOL :p )

[tangerinebunny]

Our tornado sirens started just as I was getting dinner on the table. And they went on for hours. We huddled near our 'safety' closet with the critters and listened to the weather guy earn his massive paycheck. But looking at Gallatin, that closet wouldn't have done us much good. Ladies, we three lucked out.

 

All kidding aside, this thread has been a great help. When do we move on to packing tips? :confused:

[6Arabianhorses]

Another thought I had about how to keep warm for all the folks who aren't acclimated to colder weather..............if your head and neck are warm, your feet will be warm. That's why hats, scarves and turtlenecks play a big part in your layers and cold weather wardrobe. Layers around your trunk work especially well because they trap heat in. When your body is cold, it will divert the blood flow to the critical areas of the body........heart, lungs, brain, etc., which is why our hands and feet get cold and stay cold if we are not dressed appropriately.

OK.......sorry for "preachin' to the choir" for everyone who already knows this stuff. :rolleyes:

[hopelea]

I know you are suppose to wear hats, but can you imagine what our hair would look like for all of the pictures we will be taking? :rolleyes: I will have a cold head, but good hair :D

[tangerinebunny]

I know you are suppose to wear hats, but can you imagine what our hair would look like for all of the pictures we will be taking? :rolleyes: I will have a cold head, but good hair :D

 

I'm opting for the hat and pictures of other whales.

[katpaul]

I love reading this thread. You all give me some good laughs. Only wish I could meet some of you. My DH, our best friends, and I are on the Dawn July 8th. Are any of you on that particular cruise?? We're doing the Canadian Rockies the week before the cruise and I'm so excited about all the beautiful scenery we're going to see. Sure hope we don't run into any of those eagles that like fuzzy things!! Majormomma, what land tour are you taking that they provide jackets. It truly is going to be hard to pack because the land tour only allows us 1 bag per person so we really do have to plan on what is critical for the cruise that we won't need in the Rockies.

[Cruise_More_Often]

I'm opting for the hat and pictures of other whales.

My concern exactly! :eek: I'm going to keep mine in my backpack. If I REALLY need it, I'll put it on. If I put it on, it STAYS on.

 

We're on one of the first Alaska cruises -- May 13. I promise to take some photos of the funniest outfits I see, and I'll post them here.

[CA traveler]

Thinking about being in Alaska the beginning of May, on Mercury's repositioning, I get cold (and smell the bleach). This has made me search the deep recesses of my closet to find a ski type jacket - although a little longer, over the hips, with a removable fleece lining. It is a bit big and bulky but I think it may be what I need to weather the whale watching and Misty Fjord boat trips. Scarves, gloves and woolen hat do not take up much room. I'm not sure how I'm going to pack the ski jacket. I wonder, has anyone ever tried fitting a ski jacket into a compression bag? We usually use those for dirty clothing.

 

I was on a ship in the Baltic last summer where the weather can be cool - the Star Princess - was very comfortable at night - but if you wanted to walk outside, you needed some covering to be comfortable - a wool shawl worked well - I can always go back to my room for the big old ski jacket. I hate being cold. It must remind me of my school days in Albany and Buffalo.

 

Another thing I'll be taking is silk long underwear - a great liner to keep out the wind. Washes and dries pretty quickly.

 

How I am going to fit all my stuff in one 25 inch suitcase? And, we have 3 formal nights!

 

Susan

[hopelea]

CRUISE MORE OFTEN.............please do a trip report. We are on the 27th of May sailing of the Sun. I can't wait to hear what you trip was like. Just think 5 Saturdays from now and you will be on the ship. It is 7 Saturdays for me!!!

[Set2travel]

One bag per person...for a two week trip?? Oh my....I would need therapy to deal with the stress! Honest to Pete...I have clothes laid on the bed in the guest room and have been weeding out what is essential and what can be left home. All of the tips on here have helped immensely...my DH would disagree and swear I have spent twice as much to assure no "Death by Cotton":D

[Set2travel]

Hey 6arabianhorses...we are in horse central outside of Atlanta (Crabapple) do you show at the Atlanta events?

[NHCruisr]

We're from New Hampshire. I guess we probably dress pretty much like the folks in Alaska do. I've been to Alaska once, and have my next trip planned for June. Here are some of the things I'm packing:

 

2 lightweight fleece (lighter than sweatshirts or sweaters)

2 "performance" long sleeve tops with zip turtle neck (not cotton!)

short and long sleeve tee shirts

1 Heavyweight fleece with windbloc

1 Gortex jacket with hood

Fleece hat and gloves

lightweight hiker/sneaker type shoes (leather is too heavy and doesn't dry)

comfortable walking shoes

 

All of the above can be gotten from LLBean, EMS, REI

 

For the evening:

One formal dress for 2 formal nights

one pair dress slacks

2-3 dressy tops/blouses

One silk skirt with 2 tops blouses

dressy shoes that are closed toe and have a sensible heel

(Remember, it is light all evening and you will want to go out on the decks to see wildlife, mountains and glaciers. Pink capri pants and open shoes can get might chilly.)

 

One pair jeans

One pair casual slacks that can be worn during the day or for a casual dinner.

 

This is a partial list but you get the idea. On most cruises I plan my dinner/evening wear first then throw in some daytime casual wear. For Alaska, I do the opposite. I want to comfortable, warm and dry during the day. If it gets hot (and it can) I have short sleeve shirts and casual pants. And I can always buy more if needed. If it's cold, warm clothing is more expensive and harder to find. As for colors, those of us in the north tend to wear more muted colors. We can always tell the tourists by their outfits!

[Scrumpy]

I haven't read the entire thread, but what I like to do is bring zip-off pants for the daytime. If it's warm, I have shorts. If it's not, I have pants. They aren't the prettiest things, but they are very comfortable and functional. They also dry quickly if you get them wet. I have the parachute-material type. They also have heavier cotton ones, but then you might have to worry more about wrinkles or staining.

 

I live in Colorado and am used to layering. We got several inches of snow yesterday and it was quite cold and blizzard-like in the morning. Today, the temp is going to be in the 60's, so luckily I am used to weird weather. I may bring some lightweight long underwear on the trip since I'm bringing the thinner pants for daytime.

 

Also, if you have access and feel the cold a lot, fleece-lined or flannel-lined blue jeans are great. I live in them almost year-round. This time of year, you might have to order them online. I think LL Bean and/or Land's End carry them. If you have a sporting goods store or ranch supply store, you can get Carhartt's there if they have any left. (Doubtful, but worth a shot).

 

Our weather last trip was perfect in late June and quite hot on some days. Onboard, the indoor temp is usually fine. I wore a sleeveless cocktail dress one night without being cool. I recall DH being a bit warm in a suit, but dining room temps vary from frigid to warm, even in the Caribbean, so a lightweight pashmina or similar for ladies in the dining room is a good idea.

[Scrumpy]

Another thought I had about how to keep warm for all the folks who aren't acclimated to colder weather..............if your head and neck are warm, your feet will be warm. That's why hats, scarves and turtlenecks play a big part in your layers and cold weather wardrobe. Layers around your trunk work especially well because they trap heat in. When your body is cold, it will divert the blood flow to the critical areas of the body........heart, lungs, brain, etc., which is why our hands and feet get cold and stay cold if we are not dressed appropriately.

 

OK.......sorry for "preachin' to the choir" for everyone who already knows this stuff. :rolleyes:

 

My stepdad got me a combo hood/neck warmer at Wal-Mart. I hate hoodies and wear a cowboy hat here at home (which would be dorky on a cruise and is covered with horse slobber anyway), SO I have worn this a few times under my hat when we had sub-zero temps. It ROCKS! If you could find one this time of year, I would highly recommend getting one.

[Set2travel]

Hey NHCruiser thanks for the packing list...I have copied it and am going to take it upstairs to the packing station and see if I have any of the mentions items. I bought some REI thermal silks and I wore them to exercise a few mornings ago. It was 44 that morning which to me is Cold. They worked quite well. The fleece I am working on. I have a couple fleece tops and 1 fleece jacket but they have snowflakes and christmas bears on them (I told you I was a Nerd!). I don't mind looking like a tourist but even I have my limits.

Yea Scrumpy I'd probably leave the horse slobber at home! Is the combo hood/neck warmer just a bigger neck warmer? I love the neck warmer I wear when we come to your lovely state. My son just returned home from Breckenridge.

[Scrumpy]

Hey NHCruiser thanks for the packing list...I have copied it and am going to take it upstairs to the packing station and see if I have any of the mentions items. I bought some REI thermal silks and I wore them to exercise a few mornings ago. It was 44 that morning which to me is Cold. They worked quite well. The fleece I am working on. I have a couple fleece tops and 1 fleece jacket but they have snowflakes and christmas bears on them (I told you I was a Nerd!). I don't mind looking like a tourist but even I have my limits.

Yea Scrumpy I'd probably leave the horse slobber at home! Is the combo hood/neck warmer just a bigger neck warmer? I love the neck warmer I wear when we come to your lovely state. My son just returned home from Breckenridge.

 

Hi Set2travel :) My combo piece is (purple) fleece and it has the hood, the pulley where you tighten the hood, then maybe 6 - 8 inches of extra material at the bottom that covers your neck. You can tuck it into a jacket, but there's not a whole lot of length; it kinda folds like a turtleneck. I'm not sure what a regular neck warmer is - those things that go over your head and go around your neck? I like scarves - long ones that I can wrap over my head and cover my ears, then wrap around my neck, so I don't have a separate neck warmer. I used to always wear ear muffs, but with a scarf, I don't any more... Yeah, the horse slobber - what can I say? Sometimes they grab my hat, LOL! Thanks for the compliment on Colorado - would you believe we have never been to Brec and never been skiing here? I bought ski pants one year thinking maybe we would go sometime and ended up wearing them to the barn, LOL!

 

Uh - I am sure I'll look like a nerd. I have 8 or 9 winter-themed button fleece shirts that I adore (and got on sale). I will probably bring at least one of those - my very favorite is embroidered with penguins. Considering how I look here at home traipsing around in a robe and snow boots, it's actually an improvement :eek:

 

And - YES, thank you VERY MUCH to NHCruisr for a great list!!! That is very helpful and very similar to what we'll be bringing. GMTA, right?;)

[6Arabianhorses]

Hey 6arabianhorses...we are in horse central outside of Atlanta (Crabapple) do you show at the Atlanta events?

 

No, we've not shown in the Atlanta area. Usually we pick a couple of Class A shows close to home (to qualify for regionals) and then we've shown at Region 14 in Lexington, KY and Region 15 in Lexington, VA.

...........and yes, I know all to well about horse kisses.......er...slobber. Remember, it's the thought that counts, although sometimes I could swear my gelding just loves to slobber me on purpose! :p

[deevmo]

Ok, at the risk of sounding very ignorant - What exactly does "death by cotton" mean?

[NHCruisr]

Some other things I forgot to mention....lightweight rain pants, "smartwool" socks....and that shawl for evening

 

It was 70 here in NH last week, today is 35 and windy

[alaskamt]

This is the hypothermia that results in death when cotton sweatshirts, socks, etc. get wet and cold during the Alaska summer. Usually happens at least a couple times in the spring summer and/or fall to hikers or campers who go out in the wilderness unprepared for the possible weather changes. Fleece dries a lot faster and stays warmer (even in a wet phase) than does cotton. Alaska is wonderful unless you are cold - then it can be miserable. So just dress for it and have fun. We don't care if you have snowflakes on your fleece as long as you have fun! Just remember - dress for comfort and not to impress. Up here, even the Joneses are wearing Carharts and Xtra Toughs....