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2016 Mexican Riviera Group Photo
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Our Diary with Photos for our 2017 Alaska Cruise!
A 7 day cruise with a 4 day land tour in Denali National Park!
Below is some information on where the 2017 Spirit of the West Cruise is going. We hope you enjoy the diary as we head to Alaska.
See the map below (or scroll down).
We will sail on Holland America's ms Noordam - below is a photo showing what she looks like.
See the map below (or scroll down).
Go to the Itinerary below (or scroll down).
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2017 Group T-Shirt
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Holland America's ms Noordam!
Diary for June 17th to 28th, 2017
The following photos will all enlarge if you click on them.
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June 17th & 18th
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The day before was sushi night in Vancouver... yes Billie & Hugh too!
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Hugh checking out his order of beef short ribs ... hmmm ...
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Jim passed on an old music book from a past S of the W cruiser
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We're off, and the turn out at the welcoming reception was great!!
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June 18th
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The center section of the Queen's Lounge (with the King's Lounge sign)
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The left right hand side ... probably around 190 of us at the reception
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At dinner the first night Hugh Fleming celebrated a birthday
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L to R, Flossie and Lorne Bodell and David & Pat Durie
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June 18th,19th & 20th
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Karen, Steph, & Rich working while Jim socializes with Brian Roberts
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All in all a great start to the 16th Annual Spirit of the West cruise
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In Ketchikan ... with three other cruise ships - ours is the black hull
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We had the day to walk around and explore Ketchikan
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June 20th
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In Ketchikan on Creek Street ... looking right
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In Ketchikan on Creek Street ... looking left
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The river rolling down and under the bridge alongside Creek St
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Further up the river, close to the fish ladder built for the salmon
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June 20th
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Back at the dock in Ketchikan as we get ready to reboard
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Colleen Hovey (in black) on the gangway as Richard & Charlotte Preston approach
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Colleen with Calvin and Judy Bishell looking up at Lorne Reay on the ship deck
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Irene & John Romaniuk on the dance floor at the first sing-a-long
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June 20th & 21st
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Ellen & Dave Brown dancing to the Spirit of the West Cruise Band
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The Cruise Band this year is Wayne Terpsma, Hugh, and David Woodruff
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Hugh telling everyone where the 2018 Spirit of the West cruise will go
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Juneau, Alaska as we dock and prepare for the group tour
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The 2018 Spirit of the West Cruise will be starting in Quebec City!! and will then take in the fall colours through the Maritime
Provinces and down the US Coast line to New York City! WOW ... and with Royal Caribbean!! See the
Cruise Page for details.
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June 21st
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In Juneau our private tour went to the Mendenhall Glacier
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A spectacular view of an amazing piece of nature
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Films and talks informed everyone on how these glaciers are formed
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One of three Spirit of the West buses returning to Juneau
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June 21st
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Back in Juneau we popped in to the Red Dog saloon
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can you believe it - there we found others from S of the W group
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and then more ... they were at table after table
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all were celebrating after a great group tour!!
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June 21st & 22nd
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Even the cruise directors took time out to celebrate a great day
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and as we were leaving we found even more ... !!
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Bright and early most of our group boarded the White Pass Rail
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We had 5 cars for our group, this is the first and next photos are the other 4
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June 22nd
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Our ship and a Princess ship behind us as we pull away from the dock
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One of the many sights along the way was this local graveyard
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We rounded corners, crossed rivers and climbed almost 3,000 feet
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Standing on the platform I could touch the rock we were so close
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June 22nd
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Carrie Mashon taking photos and the conductor getting some fresh air
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Wooden trestle and wood timber shoring for the tunnel entrance
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They made us think we were going to cross this old trestle ...
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but I think we were thankful that we rerouted to this newer one
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June 22nd
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Photos don't do justice to the spectacular views that we had
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The engine dropped the cars and went to the other end to pull us back
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At the end of the train ride we were in Canada (the flags are the border)
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20.4 miles out of Skagway we were at the summit and 2,888 feet
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June 22nd
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Lots of water was running off the rocks and crevices and down rivers
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Alot of blasting happened to make this route passable
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Almost back in Skagway we passed the local cemetery again
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Hard to imagine these old steam engines pulling those hills
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June 22nd
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Downtown Skagwag ... a neat little town with lots of shops
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This Princess ship gives perspective - the town, ocean and mountains
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Can you believe it ... some of the group found another bar / brothel!
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Everyone having fun in the Red Onion Saloon in Skagway
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June 22nd
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No shortage of entertainment by the girls in the Red Onion ...
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and the guys were definitely taking it all in !!
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In fact it was probably the highlight of Skagway :-)
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Then Rachel & David Woodruff celebrated their anniversary
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June 22nd & 23rd
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Jim and Karen took the 5 year S of the W cruisers to a special dinner
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Heading up towards Glacier Bay there was a fair bit of wildlife
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The weather broke for us leaving a truly amazing blue sky
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The sea was blue / green and clean and the mountains were spectacular
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June 23rd
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As well as the colour we couldn't believe how calm the waters were
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There were the mountain goats, seals, and a couple of whale sightings too.
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As we got into Glacier Bay we started meeting icebergs
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The mountain peaks and the huge snow pack was awesome to see
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June 23rd
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Colors and layers of compact ice!! Amazing!!
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Again, look at the size of the boat compared to the glacier.
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Spotted this guy - as nimble as a mountain goat on the rocks
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The land looks like rock, but its actually a dirt covered glacier
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June 23rd
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Look at the boats in front and you can see how huge these glaciers are
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You can also see the blue colour in places that's the pure clean ice
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Then the group gathered for the Annual Spirit of the West Group photo
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We're not sure if all 197 made it or not but definitely most are here
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June 23rd
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Lorne Reay and his daughter Colleen Hovey in their group tee shirts
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Photos started with Billie and Hugh posing with Gordon and Irene Trost
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Then Charlette and Richard Preston posed for their photo
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This is Calvin and Judy Bishell taking their turn
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June 23rd
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Then it was Vicki and Gary Hetrick's turn with Billie and Hugh
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David & Rachel Woodruff with daughter Julianne & James Sanders
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Jim and Fontella Reinbold taking their turn with Billie & Hugh
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Lorne & Flossie Bodell wrapped things up for the photo session
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June 23rd
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At the Sing-a-long Richard Preston read a couple of his poems
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New this year, Erma Kastner played a couple of songs with her autoharp
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Billie joined the guys for a song, too, which is always nice to hear
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Jim read a poem written by Ed Peak (who didn't make it this year)
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June 25th
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Off the ship and on the bus to Denali National Park
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Spectacular views to the left, right and center
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On the bus Mark yelled out "Moose, left side 9:00 o'clock!"
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A few of our group enjoying lunch with a view at Wasilla
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June 25th & 26th
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We were all treated to a pretty good selection at the feed trough
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Really cool accommodation at the wilderness setting of McKinley Lodge
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The gateway to Denali National Park
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Part of our group were extremely lucky, as our driver said "because of clouds only 28% get to see the top of Mt Denali
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June 26th
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(used to be Mt McKinley) and only 4% get to see the whole Mt" - & we were welcomed us to the 4% club!
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A crew built & stayed here when building the original road into the park
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Bear proofing on the back side of the window shutters
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On the side of the road we saw the National Bird of Alaska, the Ptarmigan
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June 26th
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and with mom and dad were a whole bunch of baby Ptarmigans running around
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Forget-me-nots ... the National Flower of Alaska grow wild
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The tail end of the lineup at one of two pit toilets after two buses unloaded
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Mary & John Dafoe pose for a photo with the Native Alaskan interpreter
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June 26th
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"Wildlife - 9:00 o'clock" on the walking trail was only about 8 inches long
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Volunteers walk the park sled dogs down the road every day
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Hurricane Gultch from the bus as part of the group headed to Talkeetna Lodge
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In the lobby of Talkeetna Lodge was a massive fireplace and chimney
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June 27th
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Fontella and Jim Reinbold pose as Kathy takes a photo for them
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Talkeetna Lodge was a very nice clean lodge not far from town
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that seemed to stretch a long way from left to right !
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A few of the goup went on a dog sled tour - 65 dogs all yelling "pick me"!
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June 27th
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Kathleen, the owner, with the help of two hired hands, hooked our dogs
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Jim, Fontella and Henry (with another couple) in the "summer sled" ready to roll
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The dogs pull so hard they have to keep their front feet off the ground
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The last dog is here and now they all get harnessed & tugs hooked
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June 27th
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As the last dog is hitched Kathleen hurries to the driver's seat
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The lead dogs are released and they are off and running!! Amazing!!
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A very quick 5 miles later we swap passengers for the return trip
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The last turn on the road where they stopped at a creek for water
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June 27th
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Back at home they are unharnessed and fed a pretty nice looking salmon steak
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At that point the passengers are allowed to go and socialize with the very
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friendly dogs ... which Steph just hated to do :-)
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so did Fontella ... but Jim thought he might stick to horse teams
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June 27th
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Kathleen shows us the "mail" that they have to deliver at the end of the Iditarod
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They have run this 1000 mile race 15 times & one of their dogs has done it 7 times
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Kathy & Fontella holding a couple of the four puppies from this year's litter
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For Henry, I think this was the highlight of his whole trip!
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June 27th
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The view from the back of the Talkeetna Lodge was great (even when cloudy)
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A photo from the train station platform of the McKinley Explorer
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The last of the Spirit of the West group getting on the McKinley Explorer
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The dome cars were roomy, comfy, and we had an awesome view
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June 27th & 28th
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Our tour guide even sang and played the banjo - very entertaining
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And speaking of entertaining - The Sons of the Pioneers were amazing!!
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Hugh being interviewed by Dennis, the Sons' sound man & media guy
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Promoters Aurele & Margaret, Elizabeth Drake McDonald (Bob Nolan researcher) with Hugh and Mark
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Our Itinerary!
Top of Page
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Day |
Date |
Port |
Itinerary |
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Day 1 |
June 18th |
Vancouver, BC |
Early afternoon board the ms Noordam in Vancouver.
4:30 - Sail away and Spirit of the West Welcome Reception.
We sail under the Lions Gate Bridge and head North to Alaska! |
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Day 2 |
June 19th |
Cruising Inside Passage |
The Inside Passage - one of the most scenic sea-lanes in the world - unbelievable scenery!
11:00 am till noon - S of the W hospitality desk will be open for questions and information.
8:30 pm to 9:30 pm - Spirit of the West Concert and Sing-a-long under the stars.
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Day 3 |
June 20th |
Ketchikan, Alaska |
This unique Alaskan port is famous for its rich native culture and scenery.
8:30 pm to 9:30 pm - Spirit of the West Concert and Sing-a-long under the stars.
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Day 4 |
June 21st |
Juneau, Alaska |
A day exploring Alaska's capital with our included shore excursion and extra time to shop.
Arrive 10:00 am and we head out on our private group Mendenhall Tour
10:50 am for group one and 11:50 am for group two.
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Day 5 |
June 22nd |
Skagway, Alaska |
Back to the days of the great gold rush - optional shore excursion and extra time to shop.
Arrive 7:00 am. 8:10 am the Spirit of the West group departs on the White Pass railway.
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Day 6 |
June 23rd |
Cruising Glacier Bay Park |
Cruising the ice-studded fjords for a full eight hours as a Park Service Ranger narrates.
8:30 pm to 9:30 pm - Spirit of the West Concert and Sing-a-long under the stars.
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Day 7 |
June 24th |
at sea |
A leisurely day of cruising
3:30 to 4:30 Bon Voyage Group Cocktail Party!
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Day 8 |
June 25th |
Seward (Anchorage) to Denali |
6:00 am disembark and take the narrated motor coach tour to Denali National Park.
4:00 pm approximately arrive at the Denali National Park McKinley Chalet Resort.
An evening of entertainment (with a possible sing-a-long).
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Day 9 |
June 26th |
Denali National Park |
Denali Tundra Wilderness Tour. 6:00 am or 9:00 am - a 4 to 5 hour sightseeing excursion in Denali National Park.
Our group splits in two at this point with half staying at the McKinley Lodge and half transferring to the Talkeetna Lake Lodge.
This is because of our large numbers (close to 200 of us).
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Day 10 |
June 27th |
Denali to Anchorage |
9:45 am one half leaves the McKinley Lodge and boards the luxurious domed rail cars of the McKinley Explorer. The second half
of the group will join the train at 2:30 pm ... bound for Anchorage and the Westmark Anchorage Hotel.
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Day 11 |
June 28th |
Anchorage, Alaska |
7:40 am ... our Alaska Journey concludes this morning in Anchorage with flights home.
7:00 pm (with a lot of luck) we'll be at the Sons of the Pioneers concert in Kamloops!
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Top of Page
Here is a map - showing the Alaska Cruise stops - click to enlarge.
For information on the cruise, and contact info on how to join us, see this flyer
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2017 Group T-Shirt
click to enlarge
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2017 Alaska Cruise
click to enlarge
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