Alaskan Adventure - Day 9 - Thursday, June 8, 2006

Hubbard Glacier Sunny and clear, temperature in the mid 50s. Gorgeous day!

Woke up at 0430 and read for a little while. Decided it was too early to get up, so I went back to bed until 0630. Just as I was about to go to the gym to workout, we entered Yakutat Bay and began our approach to Hubbard Glacier. I wisely decided to bag the workout and go on deck to view and photograph the glacier. It was awesome! Absolutely incredible! We were at the terminus of a river of ice 600 feet thick at this spot (up to 2000 feet thick in other places), 7 miles wide and 70 miles long! The ship got very close and there was ample time to view it. In addition to the view of the glacier, the SOUND of it was incredible; loud cracking and a roar like thunder as seracs 3 or 4 stories tall tumbled and crashed into each other. Often, we were treated to the sight of the glacier "calving", (the name for when part of the face of the glacier shears off and falls into the sea). Cindy slept through most of it. I finally got her up and out by 0915. We ate breakfast in the Rotterdam Dining Room and had a magnificent view of the glacier from our table.

The ship sailed from Hubbard Glacier at 10:00, bound for Seward, AK. At 11:00 AM we went to the Van Gogh lounge for a disembarkation briefing which closed with the entire (well, almost) crew coming out on stage for applause and a song. It was the formal end to the cruise. Tomorrow, we will disembark at 12:15 PM.

Cindy took a nap in early afternoon and I wandered around the ship. After being on board for a week, there were still a few nooks and crannies I had not yet seen. On the Sports (12th) deck, there were shuffleboard courts, a volleyball court and a basketball court. If the whole family was here, I just know we would have had a 3 on 3 volleyball game. There is also an entire section called Club HAL, that is reserved for kids and teens. It has a playroom for small kids, a video game arcade, a teen's lounge as well as the outdoor teen area, called the Oasis.

Cindy woke up, met me, and we had a drink and a snack at the Lido Bar by the pool. At 4:45 PM, Vanguard Tours hosted a cocktail party in the Van Gogh Lounge. The sea was a little rough, with rolling swells, starting about 7:00 PM and lasting until after midnight. At 7:45 PM, we enjoyed our last dinner on board in the Rotterdam Dining Room. The evening was spent packing our suitcases. They had to be left outside the stateroom by 1:00 AM

Sleep at 1:00 AM.