Day 15 - Saturday - 09/07/24 - Skagway

 Today we returned to Skagway where we visited a couple of weeks ago on our northbound leg of this trip.  This time we were parked at the railroad dock which required us to take a shuttle to the end of the pier.  This was due to the rock slide that occurred several years ago. We were berthed at this same dock on the Quantum of Seas not long after the slide occurred, but we could still walk the pier.  Further concerns about passenger safety changed all that.


We met our contact person, signed the waivers, and were escorted to the Haines Skagway Fast Ferry which takes about 1/2 hour to sail to Haines.  Along the way we saw a number of harbor seals.  At Haines we were greeted by a tour representative and drove about 45 minutes on the highway alongside the Chilkat River.  At the landing, we were served a light lunch, enjoyed a nice wood fire, and were issued heavy coats.  We then boarded two jet boats and headed upriver on two different paths.  While we didn't see any large animals, we did see a number of bald eagles.  After about 1.5 hours we returned to the dock and reboarded the bus for the trip back to Haines where we arrived just as the fast ferry arrived.



On the ferry ride back we hugged the south shore and were passed by the oncoming Alaska Marine Highway ferry Hubbard which put up quite a wake.  Back at the dock we took a shuttle back to the ship and joined a long line to get back on the ship. It was nice in Skagway today which was much better than the forecast. 


At 4:30 there were puppies in the Piazza which is a regular part of Princess' Alaska programming..  The 2023 winner of the Iditarod, Ryan Redington,  along with 2 of his 10 week old puppies.  Nobody could hold the puppies, but they were prominently on display.  He also answered questions about the mushing and the Iditarod.  We then ate a light dinner before attending a singing and story teller, Steve Hites, who is a 50 year resident of Skagway and who has been presenting on Princess for 39 years.  His singing and stories were especially powerful for me as an Alaska native.  Afterwards we attended the cast show of Soul Music which once again was a very high energy show.  


As part of Princess' immersion into Alaska program they did a fun event in the Vista lounge featuring country music with an Alaskan twist.  Kevin, the CD, did a funny skit, and Angela participated in some square dancing lessons.  I even did a slow dance with her which was thrilling for her as I don't often dance. The rest of the program was a lot of country music before we adjourned to the Explorer's lounge for a karaoke session that featured a number of singers who are also in the Voice talent show.  Again, there are some amazing talents among the passengers.


Tomorrow we'll be back in Juneau, which is the city I grew up in and the one I have the most memories of.  We're planning to attend church with my cousin, Janet, and we need to be back on the ship by 2pm for a special presentation.


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