The Golden Princess is heading toward Juneau. Off the balcony is the hazy outline of the mountainous Queen Charlotte Islands. It’s one of those places you see on a map and never give a second thought. It is wilderness in a far away and often inhospitable place.
It’s 9:20 PM PDT. There’s still an hour of daylight to go! You get that when you’re this far north and west.
Today is the lazy day on this cruise. We’re in transit at sea. The noontime announcement from the bridge said we were making 22 knots and over 6,500 feet of ocean beneath the keel. It’s tough to estimate, but I’d say we’re at least ten miles offshore.
Helaine and I got up early and headed to breakfast. There’s a large buffet on the Lido Deck. By law all ships must have a buffet on the Lido Deck, right?
I loaded bagels and lox on my plate and set out looking for somewhere to sit. A couple seeing our plight asked if we’d like to share their table. Breakfast with Joe and Michelle from San Francisco was very nice.
There was a poker tournament this morning. I placed second. $60 in, $150 out. I’m happy.
We’ve done a lot of walking, both vertically and horizontally. This ship is a few city blocks long and in spots goes to Deck 17. We walk everywhere… even to get pizza (Deck 14 24 hours a day) or coffee.
After dinner tonight we headed to the theater for Alexander, an illusionist. He was very good. The audience not so much! I felt his pain when the act was strong, but applause weak.
Tomorrow around noon we arrive in Juneau. We’ve got reservations to go whale watching with Harv and Marv. We’re psyched. Pictures we’ve seen lead us to believe we’ll be up close and personal with the whales.
To guarantee success I’m bringing a bag of Purina Whale Chow… and there’s always Photoshop.
Hey Geoff,
Do you guys get to go to shore at the ports? If so, I’d like to know if it really is all that expensive there. I’ve seen plenty of pictures from that way and everything looks really beautiful. Not sure I could take the cold though as even our winters tend to kick my butt these days, although last winter was a breeze-lol.
Have an awesome trip.
Joe
Wow! That is one humongous lens, Geoff! (or is it a bullhorn?) How do you hold it up and keep it still? But it must help you take these fantastic photos….I love them! Is it warm enough to use that beautiful pool? I look forward to all your blogs about your cruise…vacationing vicariously through you! 🙂 Hope you both are having a great time!
Geoff-
That looks to be a Vacation of a Lifetime. Looking forward to seeing even more pictures.
Don
PS I am also looking forward to seeing Al Terzi, along side Geoff on Fox TV. Two recent, great on air additions!
We did the wildlife cruise out of Juneau when we cruised – it was awesome. Saw an entire family of Orcas that spent a half hour just playing around the boat. Be sure to stop at the Red Dog Saloon for a beer while in Juneau (don’t ask for any foo-foo drinks, and be sure to tip the piano player). Do you stop in Skagway? If so, I recommend the White Pass & Yukon railroad trip.
Such WONDERFUL naration. I ALMOST feel like i’m there. I sometimes wish I were as smart and lucky as you Geoff. Back here on land have you heard they welcomed Al Terzi to the FOX Newscast yesterday?
I did the Whale boat from Juneau – you won’t need the Whale Chow. It’s AMAZING. Actually, my favorite part was the bouy in the middle of the area – there were seals ‘lounging’ on the bouy, with a waiting line to get on. One got off, three tried to get on. It was comical. You may even see some Orcas off the ship.
Patty – I completely agree about the White Pass and Yukon Railroad trip. It was fantastic.
Joe, I’ve been to Alaska and I can attest that it is HELLA expensive. The transportation costs to get supplies all the way up there are prohibitive.