We finally made it up in the middle of the night to see how much light there was midway between sunset and sunrise. Actually, it was past and parcel with a bathroom break that just happened to occur simultaneously, and we said “why not get dressed at go out in dec”? So we did.
Lights of Juneau in the distance at 1:15am
I grabbed some tea from the buffet and sat on the border of the Terrace Pool (they don’t set up the loungers during scenic cruising) and watched for awhile, listening to the narration being given occasionally from the bridge. There were sea lions on bergy bits everywhere (I lost count of how many we saw) but I didn’t personally see any other wildlife. Still, the scenery was amazing as the rock walls on either side of the ship started to close in.
There were also waterfalls everywhere, and, being a music-free area, we were able to hear them. Some were thunderous and others quieter, but it appeared to be a function of falling height and width at the bottom.
I eventually got very hungry and stepped into the back of the buffet for breakfast, which I ate outside. We saw the excursion boat (sorry, no info on pricing for that one) come up behind the ship and then alongside, and, eventually we could see that the ship was turning, and so knew that we had reached the glacier.
I believe I heard the naturalist say that Dawes Glacier is 17 miles long and is advancing at 15 feet per year. She also said that it is known for its active calving as a result (but I didn’t see any). Still, I was very impressed. If it happens that your cruise goes to Endicott Arm instead of Glacier Bay, they are different experiences but in many ways I preferred Endicott Arm. Or maybe it’s just because the weather today was perfection.
After the Ruby had turned around and was part way out of Endicott Arm, the captain made an announcement that there was going to be a helicopter evacuation. I returned to the cabin for a nap, and G went to Skywalkers to watch our continued scenic cruising.
By dinner I was getting pretty hungry., and realized that I had skipped lunch despite an early breakfast. Nothing appealed too much on the menu, so I went with the standard salmon (which I seem to have at least half the time). We are going to miss Errol and Haifa. They have really made our dinners special. We also have great tablemates at the tables on either side of us. It’s nice to have someone to chat with but not be locked into dining at the same pace.
We had returned to the cabin two nights ago to find an invitation to an MTG cocktail party to be held in Adagio at 7pm tonight. What a pleasant surprise (shock) that was! Customer Service Director Luca told us tonight that they decided to have the party because the cruise was so long and the MTG luncheon was over two weeks ago. It was very nice.
Employee of the month Melyans
We sat with Laura and Brian who we’ve been waiting with for shows in the front row of the Princess Theater, and chatted for nearly two hours.
G is going to impressionist Mike Wilson’s 9:30pm show with Laura and Brian, but I more wanted to write this post and catch up with the news online. Scary times!
