North to Alaska!

 Tuesday, July 1, 2025


At this point in our travel lives, LeRoy and I have seen more of the world than we have of our own country.  To remedy this, we will embark soon on a journey to "The Final Frontier" (no, wait .... that's Star Trek).  We are headed to the furthest North we have been ... to the so-called "The Last Frontier", Alaska!  



In preparation for this adventure, we have perused so many FaceBook Alaska groups that are eyes our crossed.  We have repeatedly heard the words, "dress in layers", "raincoat", and "water-proof", but then who knows what we will need.  We are trying not to overpack, but that is difficult.

Compared to our World Cruises, we both have wondered at times, why are we worried about this?  We have prepped for 113 and 128 day long cruises, this should be a piece of cake.  Yet, we both feel a little discombobulated because we haven't had to prep so very much.

Also in preparation for this trip, Vialula has read James Michener's book Alaska, all 868 pages of it, one and a half times!  It is an epic history of Alaska.  In the book, he links Alaska's very beginnings through the present day (1988) with the "gradual interlinking of several families."  It is masterful and captivating.




The bonus for us is that our kids, Melba Jean & Jet Plane, are going with us!  We are looking forward to spending time with them.  We haven't cruised with Melba Jean since 2012, and though Jet Plane did a semester at sea, he hasn't cruised in a while.  So, just being aboard the Holland America ship, the Nieuw Amsterdam, will be fun all on its own.

Our trip will see us first on land in Denali National Park for a few days, and then we will board the ship in Whittier for a 7-day voyage.  The sea part of our trip will sail us along Hubbard Glacier and Glacier Bay to three ports, Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan, wrapping up with a sail back through the Inside Passage to Vancouver.  So many people tell us how amazing and majestic Alaska is, and we are so excited to experience it!

After the Alaska portion of our adventure, LeRoy and I are heading down the Pacific Coast Highway, where apparently if "Life is a highway, then the PCH is the scenic route!"  We are going to make our way from Bellingham, Washington to Seattle, over through the Puget Sound to Olympic National Park, down the coast of Oregon, to the Redwoods to San Francisco.  We will save the Southern California stretch for another trip.



Come along with us, as you wonder "where in the world are LeRoy & Vi?".  Thanks, as always, to those keeping the home fires burning and the grass cut, (and, as our friend, Maurice, says ... thanks to those who keep on working to pay into FICA for us retirees!)







Vi & LeRoy

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