Alaska Weather September Question

[JRGAPI]

I know this question has been asked before but I can't find it.

We are looking into cruiseing the Alaskan Glacier Bay on the

Carnival Spirit on September 5, 2007. What kind of weather can

we expect this time of the year?

Any input will be greatly appreciated.

 

JR

[cruzy-sue]

I wish I could answer your question, but I can't and would also like to know. I hear it does rain A LOT>

 

We just booked ourselves on that sailing. My husband and I will be celebrating our 20th anniversary on Sept. 6 - so we will see you there if you book!!!

[cruisevers]

We took this cruise the first week of September. Yes we had some rain but nothing that hindered us at all. Just take a raincoat or poncho, just in case. The temps were very moderate and we only needed light weight jackets except for the day in Glacier Bay which was colder but we sat on our balcony the whole day. Even then it was only really chilly in the morning. We had an aft balcony which allowed us to see whales long after the ship passed them. The Naturalist on board said our cruise saw more whales than they had seen all summer.

 

One bonus all the shops had everything on sale and there were great prices. Almost everything was 50% off, even film and throw away cameras! Also it is cheaper to fly in and out of the same port which you do not do on the other (northbound or southbound) cruises.

 

We will do this cruise again and will go the same time of year!

[lucy2222]

We cruised during the last cruising week in September last year. It did rain a little but it wasn't enough to ruin our cruise. We planned a for the rain so it was fine.

 

It was about 15 degrees Celcius (I don't know the conversion) every day, so not t-shirt weather, but definitely not winter jacket weather either.

 

And it is true about the stores having everything very cheap.

[dderm]

We were in Glacier Bay Sunday. There was dense fog at the entrance both going in and coming out but it cleared while we were in the Bay itself. In a word, glorious!!!! We had many, many calving opportunities (it really is "white thunder". So many in fact that you could begin to predict the next fall by the popping sound just before it calved. Despite a forecast of rain the entire week, we've been pretty fortunate. It began right as we returned to the ship from whale watching with Capt Larry in Skagway (around 7:30). It was foggy and misty a bit in Skagway. Ketchikan did live up to it's reputation of rain, though it was a light rain. We went fishing with Ken at Northern Lights (4 Cohos in about 30 minutes!!!!). Today we have partly cloudy skies while cruising the inside passage back to Vancouver. Overall, I'd say the Good Weather Fairy has been kind. But, as everyone says, dress in layers and take raingear and you will be comfortable.

[see2sea]

We just got back yesterday from the Inside Passage. Everyone we met in Alaska said it was the 2nd rainiest summer on record....123 days of last 150 it rained. We're from Florida, so we made sure to bring lots of layers against the cold (41 - 58 degrees avg.) Days were cloudy, foggy, rainy, cold..but we're not complaining!! We still did helicopter/glacier walk and Midnight Sun Run train trip in Skagway, whale watching in Juneau (amazing!) and shopping in Ketchikan, where the sun finally came out! Hard to tell what the weather will be like a year from now, but even if it's cold and rain, you can have a wonderful experience. Just be sure to bring the rain ponchos!

 

Sorry it's over but thankful for the experience. Have a great time.:)

[kennicott]

Beautiful clear weather the last few days and the forecast looks good for most of the coast and central Alaska. Maybe we are going to get an Indian summer now. Figures. At least we didn’t have forest fires and smoke everywhere this summer.

[coralreefers]

Sounds like a great cruise !

Was wondering if one side of the ship is preferable for sitting on the balcony and viewing Glacier Bay.

Thanks for the help!

[Budget Queen]

Sounds like a great cruise !

Was wondering if one side of the ship is preferable for sitting on the balcony and viewing Glacier Bay.

Thanks for the help!

 

 

Yes, if you only want your glacier viewing from your balcony, you need a port side.

[Chenega]

Weather up here in September is so unpredictable. We just returned from driving into Denali National Park on the road (we won a road lottery ticket so got to join 400 other vehicles per day that are allowed on the park road for a four day period).

 

Although overcast for most of the time, the weather was pleasant at 50-55 degrees F. Two years ago we made the same trip on the same weekend at the weather was in the 20s with snow at Denali.

 

Best is to prepare for anything and be surprised.