We had spent the previous day exploring Seattle. It was now time to board the NCL Encore for our 7-day cruise to Alaska.
The NCL Encore is one of the cruise company’s larger ships. The kids were excited to receive their room key cards.
Boarding the ship
The first order of business according to Wyatt was FOOD…
The Encore had a go-cart track. Wyatt got 1st in one race and 2nd in another, he is a speed demon
Whitney was abit more cautious.
We found it is helpful to have a magnet by your door, to help you find the room, but the kids think it is fun.
We spent the late afternoon enjoying the sights and sounds of Seattle and reminiscing about our adventures the day before. We surprised the kids, with a balcony up-grade, which we were able to get for a very small price.
Whit and Wyatt enjoyed our Latitude perk…lol
We enjoyed the rest of the day with more food, at the late afternoon buffet and the evening buffet..LOL
The following day was a sea day and we went to the Digital Lab and did an Escape Room. It was fun and we solved all the puzzles, but we were abit over the time limit. We did have a language barrier as the other members of our group only spoke Spanish…lol
There was also virtual technology and digital games.
It was very windy on deck so we went back to the room, to take an afternoon nap and “somehow” juice got spilled on Cindy’s bed. She woke up to two kids standing over her with towels…haha
We had dinner at the Teppanyaki restaurant. The kids loved the jokes, singing, and entertainment.
Dinner was delicious and Wyatt gave it a two thumbs up.
One advantage of taking a cruise with NCL, is the opportunity to watch movies…UP, Thor, Maverick, just to name a few.
The next morning we were up bright and early to watch the sunrise. It was pretty spectacular.
We spotted whales from our balcony, but had to bundle up as it was cold, like really cold!!
As our ship worked it’s way to Juneau the landscape was amazing.
Our port call wasn’t until 2:30, so we ate lunch, then played games in our room.
Juneau, Alaska has a population of 33,000. It is named after Joe Juneau, an early gold miner from Canada. It is one of only two state capitals that can’t be driven to.
When you are in Juneau, you have to take a picture in front of the Red Dog Saloon and a totem pole.
Since it was the end of the cruising season, there were not many permits left to visit Mendenhall Glacier, but we were lucky to book a tour at the dock.
We went to Douglas Island, which is across the inlet from Juneau, to get a view of our ship.
We made a quick stop at the whale fountain, north of Juneau. It normally has a water spout, but since it was only 10 degrees, the water was turned off.
Mendenhall Glacier is part of the Juneau Ice Field which covers 1500 square miles. The ice field has 38 active glaciers. Mendenhall extends 13 miles from the ice field, ending at Mendenhall Lake. We had a great view of the glacier in the afternoon sun.
From the visitor center, we walked the trail to Nugget Falls. We encountered two Huskies and Wyatt just had to say hello. The trail is 2 miles round trip.
Nugget Falls is located at the base of Bullard Mountain. It is 377 feet in height and is the runoff from Nugget Glacier.
The setting sun was amazing across Mendenhall Lake
Mendenhall in the afternoon shadows
Whitney and Wyatt wanted to play on the ice covering the sand bar. There was no water here, as the lake level was falling as the cold temperatures had slowed the runoff from the glaciers.
We didn’t get a great picture of our bus driver/guide, Kenny, but he was wonderful. He actually could be a stand-up comedian.
Before going back to the ship, we did some shopping at the Alaska T-Shirt Company, as they had an end of the season sale. We then headed back to the Encore, where we were greeted with hot chocolate at the dock. That doesn’t happen very often…lol. The buffet dining was full, so we ate by the pool, with our coats on.
