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Visiting a Friend’s Special Log in Sitka’s Rain Forest

Posted on September 6, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 5, 2024 Majestic Japan Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024; Sitka, Alaska We lucked out today in Sitka, Alaska, as earlier forecasts for rain today disappeared. The sun tried unsuccessfully to peek through low-hanging clouds, but for this town where it rains two out of every three days, we’ll count today

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2024 Majestic Japan
8 comments

Exploring, Painting and Candy Shopping in Historic Vancouver

Posted on September 5, 2024September 5, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 3, 2024 Majestic Japan Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024; Vancouver, BC, Canada Normally cruise ships start or end their Alaska cruises in Vancouver, so unless cruisers plan to extend their trips, they don’t see much of this beautiful city. We have the full day here, so I took advantage and

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2024 Majestic Japan
9 comments

Victoria Offers Opportunity for New Adventures in Watercolor

Posted on September 4, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 2, 2024 Majestic Japan Monday, Sept. 1, 2024; Victoria, BC, Canada What a rare treat – a full day in Victoria on a cruise! Typically, ships call here for just a couple of hours in order to satisfy the peculiarities of U.S. maritime law. We docked at 7 a.m.

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2024 Majestic Japan
11 comments

After Eight Weeks on Land, A Return to Life at Sea

Posted on August 31, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day -1, 2024 Majestic Japan Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024; Gig Harbor, Washington I’m just about as envious as I can be, watching the sunrise from the home of dear friends Jan and Jim in Gig Harbor, just outside Seattle. What a perfect place to live! Jim was instrumental in drawing

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2024 Majestic Japan
24 comments

Grizzly Bear Adventure Caps Amazing Four-Week Alaska Cruise

Posted on July 9, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 27, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Friday, July 5, 2024; Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada Cruises should stop more often in Prince Rupert, Canada. It’s a nice deep-water port in British Columbia and fulfills the requirement that ships stop in a non-U.S. port when sailing round trip from Seattle. Typically cruise

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
9 comments

Humpback Whale Frenzy Highlights Full Port Day in Juneau

Posted on July 6, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 24, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Tuesday, July 2, 2024; Juneau, Alaska. Sometimes I just have to put the camera down and soak in the view. Whale spouts erupted all around us – I didn’t know where to focus my zoom lens. Perhaps a dozen humpback whales were blowing, slapping tails

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
6 comments

Haines Tour Delivers Photo Opportunity with Brown Bear

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 23, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Monday, July 1, 2024; Haines, Alaska Lions and tigers and bears – oh my! OK, no lions or tigers, but today I did see a bear in the wild – a highlight of the trip so far! I’m not sure whether there is an Alaskan

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
12 comments

Homer’s Spit — Quintessential Seaside Town with Alaskan Twist

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 20, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Friday, June 28, 2024; Homer, Alaska When I first stepped ashore in Homer this morning, it looked unfamiliar. We tendered to a dock near the end of the Spit – a 4.5-mile sandbar jutting into Kachemak Bay south of Anchorage. But once we got from

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
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Two Days Prove Anchorage Is Not Your Typical Big City

Posted on July 1, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Days 18-19, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Wednesday & Thursday, June 26-27, 2024; Anchorage, Alaska Friends make for the best port visits, and Anchorage was no exception. We’ve sailed with Cleta and Ray on grand world voyages, where we’ve cheered on our Kansas City Chiefs to Super Bowl victories. They retired to

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
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Finding Solitude in Foggy Rain Forest on Kodiak Island

Posted on June 29, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 17, 2024 Ultimate Alaska Tuesday, June 25, 2024; Kodiak, Alaska In a state as big as Alaska, you might think it would be easy to get away to be alone in nature. Not so much, especially when you are cruising on a ship with almost 2,000 passengers. But today,

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2024 Ultimate Alaska
15 comments

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