A summer cruise to Alaska

Sheila Colmenares of Leisure Travel by the waterfalls near the glacier.
Sheila Colmenares of Leisure Travel by the waterfalls near the glacier.

IT was at the tail end of summer when we boarded the Emerald Princess for an Inside Passage Alaskan cruise. Embarkation was in Seattle but since Philippine Airlines (PAL) does not fly there, we took the PAL flight to Vancouver and proceeded on coach to Seattle--an easy, breezy, two-hour ride which we enjoyed on a chilly September afternoon. As for our 13-hour flight from Manila, it was most pleasant as expected from our flag carrier, a four-star airline known for its service from the heart.

Alaska is not your typical tourist destination with a pulsating night life and all kinds of diversions. In fact, the place is quiet, even a bit lonely with its sparse population, but somehow it is appealing with an unusual kind of charm. Its varying terrain of open spaces, magnificent fjords, majestic mountains, gushing waterfalls, lush forests, abundant wildlife and its famed glaciers beckon.

First cruise stop was Ketchikan, a waterfront town founded in 1883 when an enterprising man called “Snow” opened the area’s first salmon saltery. Yes, five different species of wild Pacific salmon are found in Alaskan waters. Small wonder then that Ketchikan is dubbed as the salmon capital of the world.

The little town flourished by the late 19th century when gold and copper were discovered in the surrounding mountains and Ketchikan became a supply center. Then the inevitable Red Light District came into the picture and the notorious Creek Street with its more than 30 brothels came to be. Of course we couldn’t miss this intriguing site.

With Aida and Mitch Uy (they are Alaskan cruise veterans) in the lead, we made our way on foot to the antique boardwalk on wooden pilings over the Ketchikan Creek. Not only was it a place that aroused our curiosity (how did a red light district in the 1900s look like?), it was also the perfect spot for salmon viewing where hordes of salmon make their way upstream in what is called the Salmon Ladder. Creek Street with its provocative past and colorful rows of old bawdy houses is now home to curio shops, art galleries and restaurants.

Another distinction Ketchikan is proud of is its being the home of the largest collection of totem poles in the world. The more than 80 varieties displayed all over the city is a grand manifestation of Alaska’s native art, and a powerful testament of the traditions and values of tribal culture. The original Alaska inhabitants were the Tlingit natives. Today, Ketchikan is the seventh largest Alaskan city with a population of a little over 8,000.

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Part of our cruise itinerary was winging around the Tracy Arm Fjord to get glimpses of the amazing glacial scenery. It was a cold, cold morning when the Emerald Princess made its way along the narrow waterway surrounded by sharp cliffs and dotted with floating chips of ice (remnants of winter). We braved the chill up the ship’s open deck just to take in all the beauty around us.

A few hours later, our ship docked in Alaska’s capital city of Juneau, which was founded in 1880 as a gold mining camp. It has an area of approximately 3,081 square miles with a population of a little more than 32,000.

The most popular natural attraction in the place is the Mendenhall Glacier formed some 3,000 years ago during the “Little Ice Age.” It flows 12 miles from its source and is fed from an ice field high above Juneau. An awesome sight!

Other come-ons in the area include river rafting, dog sledding excursions, wildlife viewing, and more. Oh yes, we caught sight of a humpback whale from afar, and while on a city tour, got to see two bald eagles (the country’s national symbol) up a towering tree by the lake.

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At the height of the Klondike gold rush, Skagway (our final stop in Alaska) was once upon a time a booming town. Nowadays it is a place where one feels like he is stepping back in time. A walk around the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park shows lovingly restored storefronts with turn-of-the-century architecture and wooden sidewalks. Its present population is just over 1,000.

A “must-do” in a Skagway visit is taking the vintage train on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad, passing through breathtaking vistas of luxuriant mountain peaks, mini waterfalls, running brooks, and distant glaciers, all the way to the spectacular Yukom Hanging Bridge in Canada. The White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad dubbed the “Scenic Railway of the World” is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, an honor shared with the Eiffel Tower, the Panama Canal and the Statue of Liberty.

After the Alaskan interlude, Emerald Princess sailed to Victoria, British Columbia, before finally docking in Seattle, Washington where we said our goodbyes.

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