Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay is an excursion where you don't have to get off the ship. There are no buses waiting, no jewelry stores being set up, no Internet Cafes: if the ship wasn't there it would look as it has done for hundreds of years. It's not "on the road" to anywhere so you have to come looking for it, miles from the open sea.

It's cold. There are gigantic fields of ice, hundreds of feet thick and receding back into the mountains for many miles so it's like opening the door to your freezer and standing there for hours. It's a good feeling when you are nicely wrapped in a winter coat and have a hot breakfast inside you.

Up in the Santuary, where we spent part of the day we had warm blankets and constant refills of hot chocolate brought by the "Serenity Stewards". Day prices were hiked to $60 a person (not us as we had paid for the week) and many took advantage.

Of course I was up early that morning! (video)

The foghorn was sounding as I took my after-breakfast coffee up on deck to my usual spot by the Tradewinds Bar.....