Our last three days on the cruise included Glacier Bay (no port, just cruising), Ketchikan and a quick pit stop in Victoria, Canada.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect on our day cruising through Glacier Bay – I was just excited to sleep in some. The demographics of this cruise leaned considerably older so everything seemed to have an early wake-up call and after biking 25 miles the day before I was excited to relax. I slept in – Steve did not and I got a text telling me to dress warm and to come outside – We were turning in front of the main glacier. I bundled up and met Steve and the rest of the family on the deck and we marveled at the magnificent nature of the glacier. There were some National Park rangers on the boat while we traveled through the National Park and they were available to answer questions which was helpful because my glacier experience is pretty limited. We were hoping to witness some calving (chunks breaking off with loud cracking sounds) but instead of witnessed serene beauty. The captain said this is the clearest day they witnessed in Glacier Bay all summer.

The next day we ported at Ketchikan which is known for it’s salmon and totem poles (rich in Alaskan native culture). We didn’t have any plans for the day so the night before we booked a 14 passenger with a young guy named Matt who promised to show us the best parts of the area and he did not disappoint.

At one point we were standing on a bridge watching seagulls attack the salmon in the stream. Without notice all the of the seagulls flew away and then we saw a bald eagle had landed near the stream – clearly king of the hill. As we were watching the eagle, we saw a bear running across the stream. It seemed a little too good to not be staged!

We were fortunate to witness the end of the “salmon run” – we were afraid we were too late in the season, but there were still plenty of salmon trying to migrate home. This little pitstop was far more impactful than I anticipated it would be. We stood above the stream and watched and learned. I feel like I have a dozen life analogies after learning about the salmon. One of the things I found most interesting was learning how they travel back to the place of their birth which can be thousands of miles. It’s not an easy journey. In the stream we were watching, the terrain was treacherous and we could see the salmon physically struggling to make it upstream. Our driver pointed out the “Salmon ladder” that had been built on the side of the river and it aids Salmon it making a safer upstream journey. I’m watching the majority of the salmon struggle as the ladder saw minimal use. I had to ask our driver “How do the salmon know to use the ladder? What draws them to the ladder?” His answer was simple – it’s happen chance. They’re drawn to the sound and turbulence of flowing water and sometimes that draws them to the ladder and sometimes they take the hard road. So many life lessons.

We visited a totem pole carving hall and walked through a clan house and learned of the First Nations. I wish we could have spent a little more time here but we were running short on time and we needed to make it back to the ship.

Our last port was Victoria – originally we were supposed to arrive at 6pm. A few weeks before our departure we received notification that our itinerary had changed and instead we were going to arrive at 9pm. I could not figure out why a 9pm-Midnight stop in Canada made any sense – didn’t seem worth it.

However, our tour guide in Ketchikan explained the antiquated Jones Act (Merchant Marine Act of 1920) that regulates the shipping of cargo between U.S. ports and in coastal waters. The law’s main requirements are that: Vessels must be crewed by Americans and cargo must be transported by U.S.-built, U.S.-owned, and U.S.-registered vessels. The law says that if an itinerary begins and ends in a U.S. port, foreign-flagged cruise lines (which is every cruise line) must call on foreign ports of call as well. So we visited Victoria Canada at 9pm. And yes, we got off the ship for just an hour to see the harbor, Parliament building and the Empress. And even at night I was so impressed with the landscaping and flowers that surrounded the area – beautifully manicured.

And then we loaded back on the ship to make the couple hour cruise through the night back to Seattle.

Our once-in-a-lifetime family vacation wrapped up and we now have a cumulative 5000 pictures to tell a hundred stories. 🙂