Need some tips on visiting Alaska:

[69bronzeT5]

  THE JOB OR THE 8 HOUR LAYOVER ON THE MAINLAND?... 
HUH LITTLE BUDDY?..

What?

[Neal_J]

OK, The  plan is a Princess Cruise

Gonna get some tips from Captain Stubing, Skipper?

[draftingmonkey]

My wife and in-laws have been on the cruise.  Sign up for all the excursions you can to get ashore and see the sites. I forget what they said about Ketchikan, but Skagway is part of the Alaska/Klondike Gold Rush so some interesting history there.  Juneau is a nice city, accessible only by sea/air. Interesting for a capitol city not to have driveable access.  Victoria is really a nice place.  Don't know when you are going, but if it is this summer sometime check out Bushard Gardens. One of the nicest I've been to.  Very beautiful city, at least the last time I was there many moons ago.

Make sure to wear pants with an elastic waist as one of the main entertainments of cruises is eating. And there is plenty of it all day and night long.

BTW have fun and lots of it, and as the other said take lots of pictures.

[Brock Samson]

 I've never been on one of these multi thousand cruises (2000 passengers) before, I did go around the Mediterranean islands in the late '80s on a Greek flagged cruise ship that only held 200 Passengers,.. I really enjoyed that,..  this will be a different animal I'm sure, they say it's raining in the mid 60s there,.. I hope it dries out before Tuesday..
I'm going with three friends and I've been studying the cost of the excursions and incidentals and WOW! $11.95 for their special on 5 sodas... what a fantastic bargin!!   
  then there's the $5 per minute phone calls out going and $10 per minute incoming,.. to use their computer is 75 cents per min. 
I am doing the whale watching and a glacier helo ride - the combined cost of that makes me wince... 
overall though It's a dream Vac.
  I've allways been partial to the native culture of the area from the pacific northwest up to Alaska,.. the art and culture of that region allways being of special intrest to me.
Im fascinated by the tradition of the potlatch which seems to make perfect sense in a sublime way yet has been almost totally forgotten and neglected and actively suppressed by the Govt.   
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potlatch
I've been to Vanc. B.C. three times and really love it. Portland a half dozen times and Seattle once.
Jack London is one of my Favorite writers so I'm bringing White Fang which I haven't read in 40 Years.

and this one I'm well into.

  Also bringing 8 mgs. of memory chips three batteries, good German binoculars and I'm going on board the ship in an elaborate  rented pirate costume.   





   pic by Edward Curtis

Currently I'm trying to locate a realistic suffed parrot to complete my boarding ensemble..

 

[4aThrill]

Take snow shoes, a warm coat and a bottle of whiskey..............


Todd

I swear on how many times I heard your from Alaska oh did you ride your polar to school, so is this your first time seeing grass.  ya know I realy wonder what they teach you all in school down here.  :scratchchin:hhmmm go look at a map.  anyways we have no state tax we get paid every October just from living there    Brock Samson what would like to do fishing, hunting, skiing, hanging out with all the women that we have mind you some are missing some teeth thou    but it does feel good too    we have everything up there and more

[4aThrill]

Curl up into a ball on the ground if you see a Grizzly bear. Don't run. I'm serious.   

someone has this backwards black and grizzlys don't mess around up there you'll better run as fast as you can trip someone hide somewhere safe now brown bears you can play dead with. 

[4aThrill]

if your going in that area just to warn you, you do know what Alaska's state bird is right?

it's the mosquito    so you better bring alot of off spray if theres no wind your in for a treat well the mosquitoes will be