The last four days of the trip were very peaceful and relaxed. We drove from Anchorage to Denali on Saturday, and ventured into the park as far as we could. 
Along the way, we saw four moose including one that ran right in front of us and a bear. At about Mile 10, we were stopped by park rangers and asked to turn around because of an ‘active bear’; we later learned the definition of ‘active’ – the bear had attacked a hiker, slashing her side and biting a chunk out of her leg. Here’s the story.
Most of Sunday was spent on a school bus, bouncing along the pitted muddy road that is the only way into the park. We took an 8-hour tour to Eielson Visitor Center, at mile 66 of the 90-mile road. This is typically the best place to see Denali, the tallest mountain in North America. 
But not this day. It was rainy and chilly, with a low fog hanging over the mountains. Still, the ride was beautiful, and we saw more wildlife – five bears including a momma and her two cubs and what apparently is a really unusual sighting – a wolf walking along the road. The trip was great and marred only by the fact that about 20 of the same group that had been on the ship with us was on the bus. They were loud, they were slow to follow rules, and they brought along smelly food that they pulled out about halfway through. After about 10 days of these folks has brought us to the point of just rolling our eyes and moving on. So irritating. The day was still great, and we topped it off with an excellent pizza at a local pub.
Monday saw the return trip to Anchorage, a surprising lack of wildlife and the return of the sun. We walked along a great trail in Anchorage and then 
discovered that Anchorage is home to one of the top 10 pizzas in the United States – #3 actually – as voted by Trip Advisor. And the Moose’s Tooth Pub and Pizzeria did not disappoint. We actually discovered we’ve already eaten at the #10 spot – John’s Pizza in NYC. And that the #1 pizza in the U.S. is made by the same family that makes our fave pizza in Houston – Grimaldi’s. Trying the rest of the top 10 may just become a conquest for us!
Our last day in Alaska – Tuesday – was marked by yet more rain. We had hoped to take a bike ride on the great trails around Anchorage, but instead we went to a wildlife conservation center 
and took a beautiful drive that took us past glaciers, inlets and through a 2.5-mile tunnel to Whittier. Our plane left Anchorage at 8:30 p.m. local time, and we arrived in Houston at 6:30 a.m., ready to be home.
It was a fantastic trip, and fueled our desire to travel and see more of the world. In fact, plans for next year’s trip are already started to form!
We hope you’ve enjoyed our trip blog. We’ll keep doing this when we travel, and I’ll keep blogging about other items as well. Stay tuned …
Here’s how it worked – men would come into the saloon downstairs and “choose” their working girl by motioning to one of the dolls behind the bar. The dolls apparently resembled the girls, in hair, eye and dress color. That doll would then be laid down, indicating that girl would be busy for the next 15 minutes. The man would head upstairs to visit his chosen girl for $5 for the 15 minutes. (the tour guide joked, “wonder what they did for the other 13 minutes?”) . The rooms were tiny and the beds minuscule, as shown at right; the bed was a normal length but probably only 3/4 of the width of a twin bed. After the “activity” was completed, the girl would send the $5 coin down a money hole in the floor, and this would indicate to the bartender that he could sit up the doll. The girl was available again. These girls worked 12-hour shifts. Holy cow, what a life.
Thursday morning dawned cloudy and rainy, and it was our day for the big glacier viewing. We had been told the best viewing would be 7-9 a.m., so we were up super early, had a quick and warm breakfast, and put on all the clothes we could manage. We headed out to the bow of the ship (through the ship’s theater!), and came out onto a breathtaking scene of calm water with chunks of ice floating in it. (the rain had stopped and it was clearing) As we neared the glacier, the crowd and the excitement grew. 
We were plowing through increasingly large chunks of ice; we learned that there are four categories of ice chunks – up to 3 feet above water are called brash, 3-7 feet above water are called growlers, 7-15 feet above water are called berry bits, and more than 15 feet above water are technically icebergs. And of course, as we’ve all heard, the part above the water is just 10 percent of the total piece of ice. We didn’t go through any icebergs or berry bits, but we did see them. 
And we plowed across many brash and growlers. We were told we were extremely fortunate to get so close to the glacier – about 1/2 mile from its face. Hubbard Glacier’s face is nearly 7 miles long, and we could see the whole thing. We saw the glacier calving and heard the popping and cracking of the ice. When a glacier calves, there’s a delayed thundering sound. It was so beautiful, and we stood on the bow of the ship (kings of the world!) for the full hour it was in view. The captain was great, and turned a full 360 degrees so every person on the ship could have a chance to see the glacier before we started our trip back out of the bay. The whole experience was amazing, and that word doesn’t really cut it. Full-on trip highlight.
On to the bucket list – mushing a dog sled! I was beyond excited to do this, and it did not disappoint. After a quick ride to the heliport, and getting a safety briefing and weird ice shoes, we got on the helicopter. 
A 15-minute helo ride later, we were standing on the Mendenhall Glacier. The scenery was beyond stunning. The dogs – about 150 of them – were barking and super excited to pull the sleds. These Alaskan Huskies are bred and trained expressly for this purpose. These dogs are all being trained for competitive mushing; many of them have or will run the Iditarod. We also met two men who are signed up to do the 2017 Iditarod. This is their summer training camp and part of how they are raising money for the race. We got their card and will definitely be following them next March as they make the grueling 1,000-mile run.
One other quick note about the beauty of the scenery in Alaska in general.
at Icy Strait Point. The natives here started a corporation for the sole purpose of showcasing their culture and opening to cruise ships. It’s a lovely, largely unspoiled and very small port. Everything is brand new.
out after lunch to explore the area. I was excited to put my fingers in the cold water,
so we walked along the beach trying very hard not to step on the thousands of mussels clinging to the rocks.
Alaskan towns have histories of salmon fishing and canning, as it was their main source of income for generations. We’ve seen many old and a few still functioning salmon fisheries and canneries. At Hoonah, we toured a small cannery museum, then decided to hike the nature trail. The minute we stepped under the canopy, the light took on a beautiful luminescent quality. It is actually considered a temperature rainforest. Reminded me of the Forest Moon of Endor, where the Ewoks lived. 
Our 4-hour train ride from Seattle to Vancouver was largely uneventful. We met two nice Kiwi couples whom we continue to run into on the ship. And we took lots of pictures of the pretty scenery as the train made its way north.
We have discovered our favorite area to sit. It’s a combination coffee/wine/dessert shop. Bonus! That’s where I’m typing this right now, enjoying a glass of champagne and the violin/cello duo that’s playing nearby. We spent much of our first day here. It rained most of yesterday, an “at sea” day, so it was a great day to curl up and read a book. Which I did lots of. We also ate and drank waaaay too much. So much for keeping to the diet.
It was a fun show, though. Then we did a tour of a nature preserve and got a demonstration of totem pole carving and storytelling. Interesting stuff. The city here is extraordinarily clean and really well suited for and welcoming of cruise ships. After all those stops in Mexico and the Caribbean, it’s refreshing to not be accosted the instant you step off the ship. Oh, and there are TONS of bald eagles here. They’re everywhere. The locals act blasé about it, but we thought it was very cool.
at Amazon this summer. Tomorrow morning, we’ll take the train to Vancouver where we’ll board our ship. We’re very excited and ready to feel that cool air and take in the beautiful scenery. Stay tuned …
The Biker's Wife 