Alaska - Day 8

Wednesday, August 6, 2008 – We awoke this morning around 8:30am. This is considered sleeping in for this past week. I was extra tired this morning. Last night we made our way to the Crow's Nest for a late evening. The Crow's Nest is a lounge on Deck 9 on the forward part of the ship, with about a 180 degree view of the bow. Last night was Disco night at the Crow's Nest. So after dinner and hanging out in Mom and Jack's room watching Shark Boy and Lava Girl in 3D, Buffy and I adjourned to the Crow's Nest. Dennis and Shari followed while Grandma Hootie stayed with Jack.

And it was last night I opted to order the bucket of Heineken as they were more economical in cost. That decision may have not made sense this morning, but it made perfect sense last night.

Anyway, we awoke and found ourselves docked in Haines, AK. It was a bit strange to once again see buildings and civilization as we spent the last 2 days looking at water, glaciers, clouds, and miles of undeveloped coastline.

It is a quaint little town that lies on the banks of the Chikat Inlet off the Lynn Canal. A small range of snow covered, jagged-peaked mountains border the town which was very picturesque. Haines appears to be a very dog friendly town. About every other car we saw had a dog in it. We noticed several of the locals walking into shops and their jobs with their dogs. And all the dogs are very well behaved and friendly.

The weather was perfect. The sun came out and it was actually getting near hot if you were in the sun with no breeze. Dennis and Jack headed out early as they scheduled an excursion that took them out to drive Kowasoki Mules. Mom stayed close to the ship as the town was a bit to hilly for her to walk far.

Shari, Buffy and I disembarked from the Volendam and walked into town in search of a diner. On our way, we encountered a live, adult bald eagle perched high in a spruce tree. Seeing it somewhat up close and in the wild was very cool.

We stopped at the Bamboo Cafe. The blueberry hotcakes were very good. The biscuits and gravy were respectable, though it's doubtful you can beat Track Inn in Chillicothe for biscuits and gravy. The hospitality was excellent.

After breakfast, we walked around. Surprisingly, there were very few souvenir shops. Eventually, we made our way back to the ship where we caught up with Mom; then later Dennis and Jack. At this point, most of us went separate ways. Jack just wanted to get back into the pool. Dennis and Shari went to eat lunch. Buffy took a nap. I trekked up to the local library to use their reliable Internet connection. I was finally able to upload all my posts from the past few days. I also caught up on some business, e-mail and read some news. It was kind of nice to get away for a while.

I did meet up with Dennis, Shari and Buffy later in the afternoon in town. Dennis was interested in going on yet another excursion; the Eagle Preserve where you can see nesting eagles and you might see bears feasting on salmon fish. We all eventually got back together at the pool on the Lido Deck. Dennis and Mom signed up for the Eagle Preserve excursion which left at 5:30pm and wasn't due back until 8:30pm. The Volendam is scheduled to depart at 9pm. Nothing like cutting it close.

At around 5pm, we all went separate ways again; I went to the gym, Buffy went to see a movie, Mom and Dennis went to see bears hunt for salmon and poor Shari had to stay at the pool with Jack. At least Jack makes new friends at the pool every day. But the kid has to be shriveled up by now from all the hours he's been in that pool. The pool closes at 7pm. And Jack got out of it about 7:05pm.

After drying and getting dressed, Shari and Jack discovered that they were locked in their room. The door handle had malfunctioned and would not allow the door to open. To make matters worse, the phone in their room did not have any directory. Shari wound up calling the Spa for help. They gave her the number for the front desk, but by that time, our steward came by while making his rounds. He made sure everything got fixed.

Dinner tonight was pork spare ribs and they were very good. Buffy joined us late after her movie. Jack and Shari went back to their room to order room service/cheeseburger for Jack and watch cartoons; Buffy and I went the Explorations Cafe on Deck 5 to watch the ship take off and write today's blog post (I hope to upload it tomorrow). We hope Mom and Dennis return safely and on time from their excursion.

Tomorrow we are scheduled to be in Juneau, the capital of Alaska. Buffy has scheduled a whale watching excursion while the rest of us are going on a helicopter ride to land on a glacier.

Photo info:

Top - Mom, Dennis, Shari & Jack get ready to board back onto the ms Volendam.

Bottom - Buffy and Shari walking through the town of Haines... maybe working the town of Haines