An Alaska Cruise (and, of course, some brews)!

8/4 - The night before our big Alaska trip, I bought take-out dinner delivered for everyone who was staying here in Lebanon (a total of six) from Demos' and we enjoyed it outside on the patio since it had cooled somewhat from the blistering day.  It was $100+ of poker winnings well spent! 

8/5 - We flew direct to Seattle this morning and the flight went smooth.  On the flight, I caught up on some of my streaming shows and watched a pretty good movie called Tuner that I had rented.  

Despite a large number of wildfires in the state of Washington and somewhat overcast skies, Mt. Ranier still rose above it all as we neared Seattle.  

We killed some time near the airport waiting on our AirBnb to be ready at the very cool Museum of Flight.  I especially liked the "big stud" poker-themed WWII fighter plane.  We also had lunch here at their Wings Cafe and with my sandwich I had the pretty good Johnny Utah pale ale from Georgetown Brewing here in Seattle. 

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Near our AirBnb in the very nice Magnolia neighborhood of NW Seattle I picked up a pint can of Hop Venom, an enjoyably bodacious (9% ABV) DIPA from Boneyard Beer (OR) at a gas station and enjoyed it at the nice house we had rented.   It seemed like a worthy candidate to receive the UNTAPPD badge pictured above.  

I treated everyone to their first (and mine as well) Seattle Mariners game tonight at the beautiful T-Mobile Park.  The seven seats cost around $20 each through StubHub.  

Our front-row, left-field-foul-line seats were pretty awesome.  The Mariners game beat the Detroit Tigers 4-2 and I enjoyed a pint can of the solid IPA from Georgetown Brewing here in town called Bodhizafa.  

8/6 - We took a great food tour down at the famous Pike Place Market on the Seattle waterfront today and one of the stops included beer...well, ginger beer...well, non-alcoholic ginger beer...but still delicious and worthy of an UNTAPPD check-in.  Rachel's Original Ginger is a long-time staple here at Pike Place Market. 

After the food tour while looking for a brewery that I saw a sign for nearby, we stumbled upon The Taproom at Pike Place.  Very nice place with a great list of local beers!   I started with the tasty and excellent-named News Cancelling Headphones, a pale ale from Urban Family Brewing here in Seattle. I had a taste of Ashlee's rather pungent Charli Oak Puncheon Saison from Fair Isle Brewing also here in Seattle. I finished with one from the nearby brewery we were looking for to start with called Old Stove Brewing.  Their Belgian Blonde was decent.  

Ashlee's knee pooped out on her just after starting an afternoon Underground Seattle Tour we had booked.  I finished it solo and thought it was pretty good.  This town has a rather wild history!  My favorite stop was below today's sidewalks where these light crystals were installed to provide illumination to the underground passages similar to how old sailing ships used prisms to cast sunlight into dark quarters below deck.  

Ashlee obliged me a quick visit to the lovely and historic (circa 1881) West Point Lighthouse at the end of the giant Discovery Park near our AirBnb late this afternoon.  She stayed in the car since we were parked kind of illegally and I ran over and snapped a few pics.  The sunset was an added bonus to the charm of this little beauty.  

A dinner tonight at the fun little Dreamland Bar and Diner in the quirky Fremont neighborhood, I had a very good Citra IPA from Stoup Brewing here in Seattle.  

8/7 - Nothing like a good A.M. beer!  Since we were cruising out of Seattle this morning and I had intended on drinking this one last night back at the AirBnb, I had to "five o'clock somewhere" out on the deck of the house this rather good Megathrust (2026) DIPA - another rousing 8.4 ABV pint can from the gas station nearby.  It's made by Aslan Brewing over in Bellingham, WA. 

Then again.  How could I not have a brew on this day!! 

Such a great place!  I love ya, Jet City!!  We will see you again in a week! 

My biggest pet peeve about cruising is that the beer on board is notoriously awful overpriced sheeple choices and unfortunately the Celebrity Edge was no exception.   I could find no beer of any quality on board, so I stuck with chai tea and other fancy coffees instead. 

We got a beautiful sunset tonight along the coast of Vancouver Island (a future waterfall/brewery trip destination, by the way). My brother-in-law, Andy, I tried to watch all of the outdoor movie, The Mandalorian and Grogu, but had to abandon it halfway through when we literally got "fogged out" - it rolled in so thick that it started creating enough condensation that it felt like cold rain on us.  Crazy! 

8/8 - We had a day at sea and did a tour of the spa on ship and usually I don't have a lot of interest in this sort of thing, but they had a great sale (about $30 a day vs. $80 if you buy access day by day, and a pretty good sales pitch which sold me over (more or that later).  My first spa enjoyment was a solo stint in the crystal hot spa.  Interesting affect.  My skin definitely felt smooth and less dry. 

Another beer/liquor alternative on board was Sanpellegrino flavored sparkling water from Italy.  I usually don't care for sparkling waters, but these are less harsh than seltzers and have no weird aftertaste like many others do.  

My red snapper tonight for dinner at the specialty restaurant, Eden, aboard the Celebrity Edge, was pretty great.    

Hey, a man's got to have his priorities straight when heading to Alaska!   I was researching breweries in Ketchikan, our first stop tomorrow and when I went back to see where we were on the map tonight it showed my last searched place as well.  This got a lot of likes and laughs in the Facebook group I belong to called "Have Beer Will Travel."  

8/9 - Welcome to Ketchikan!  Bursting with amazing light!   Ashlee and I started our visit here with different objectives but would meet later in the morning for a waterfall and wildlife tour that I booked through Viator. 

While all the others in my group went to what I thought would be a lame lumberjack show, I headed out on my own to a few pre-planned destinations that I could walk to in town.  First up was technically, my first Alaska waterfall, here at Ketchikan Creek Falls and Salmon Ladder.   

Man, such a struggle to get home for these salmon.  It's amazing to me that they constantly fight current, fight gravity and dodge predators on this long journey that still ultimately leads to their demise.  Such a great lesson on the will to survive and procreate.  

While I waited on the town's two breweries to open (10 AM - hooray!!) I visited the quaint and historic New York Cafe (thanks, Brent Nixon, for the suggestion) for some of their delicious signature coffee.

I ambled by historically bawdy (and now touristy) Creek Street on my way to my first brewery.  The buildings were first built on stilts because prostitution wasn't allowed "on land" in Alaska.  

My first Alaska craft brewery to visit was Bawden Street Brewing.  I was the first one in the door at 10:05 AM and first to order a taster flight that consisted of their decent IPA called Like a Boss; their not so great stout called Zero Dark Thirsty; their very tame spiced beer called Tip of the Tongass; and finally, their best of the flight, the very nice farmhouse ale called Shut Up, Donna!.  Not a great start to Alaskan craft beer, but - spoiler alert - it only got better from here! 

I met back up with Ashlee at my next Ketchikan brewery stop, Baleen Brewing.  The beer here was much better overall.  I did another taster flight starting with their excellent Czech-style pilsner called 1959; their tasty pale ale called No Agenda; their slightly underwhelming IPA called Elusive; and finally, their somewhat disappointing altbier called Strange.  I had a taste of Ashlee's Belgian dubbel called Absolution which was great.  I finished strong with a full of pint of their very good Russian stout called Gubina Russian Imperial.  

Our afternoon wildlife and waterfall tour booked through Viator was a bit lame, but it did deliver what it promised, even if what it delivered was pretty simple and a bit touristy.  We stopped at the roadside Rainbow Falls (aka South Tongass Falls) which was pretty, but barely out of town and didn't feel very "remote."  

We were in search of bears next, but the allure of looking for them poking around in people's yard and crossing the suburban road kind of took the air of the search.  So, we made the best of it with some funnies.  Dang! Just missed him!! #scathumor 

Hey, there, bear!  So again, the tour did what it said it would do and found us some wildlife...unfortunately it was just crossing the road we were on (after sitting on said road and scratching its ass), so this shot out the back of the van was about it.  In all fairness, the tour did take us to the pretty Herring Cove where we saw another bear from a distance patrolling the creek there for some lunch.  

I continued my search of good spruce tip taste and found this Frontier Alaska Craft Soda at a roadside stand during our tour.  It was pretty good and had a better spruce kick than the beers I'd had so far.  I also bought a small portion of some awesome smoked salmon at the same roadside stand from Ketchikan Sam's.  Delicious! 

Another cool wildlife encounter was seeing these huge Steller Jays.  Again, with the right cropping you won't know these guys were on top of a pickup truck in a parking lot.  LOL  

Is there anything cooler than a floatplane mini airport?
After our tour, I also had a beer at the nice Cape Fox Lodge before we left Ketchikan.  It was the solid 8503 IPA from Icy Strait Brewing in Hoonah, AK.  

8/10 - It was postcard shots everywhere as we continued cruising north along the Inside Passage toward the Endicott Arm.   

Iceberg!  Right ahead! 

Inside the Endicott Arm the waterfalls started appearing fast and furious.  Too many to count (or name). 

There's nothing like that first peek at Dawes Glacier at the end of Endicott Arm..and we had all to ourselves as only two cruise ships a day are allowed here.   

Glacier fed waterfalls are hard to beat! 

NOT a screengrab!  I caught this with a photo, not via video!  And the sound of the ice cleaving is like thunder.

Now THAT is some TENNESSEE TITAN blue!! 

"And a big shout-out to Larry for reserving this iceberg for today's meeting."
Man, I miss "The Far Side."  

Well, I'm easily over 400 waterfalls seen in person after this trip.  

OK, one more and that's it...

Just kidding, here's another banger! 

OK, last one... at least for a little while...

I did get some craft beer in Juneau before our afternoon adventure at Alaskan Brewing out on their nice waterfront patio deck with Ashlee where I had another taster flight consisting of their excellent blonde all called Wildness; their solid White wheat beer; their very good pale ale called Class 5; and finally, their yummy Smoked Porter (2025).  I also had a sip of Ashlee's choice - the nice and light pale ale called Ascender.  

Another sweet seaplane shot here in Juneau.  Go Vols! 

Thanks, AtlasObscura.com, for clueing me in on the beautiful story of Patsy Ann and her commemorative statue on the docks of Juneau. 

I submitted this shot of the Aquilean Whale Tail Sculptures on the Juneau docks to AtlasObscura.com where I learned about them, because they don't have a picture of multiple ones on the website.  

8/10 - I skipped a craft brewery tour in Juneau today for a once-in-a-lifetime helicopter ride to atop a glacier with Ashlee.  It was pricey, but so worth it!  We took off from a small heliport in Juneau and landed directly on the Mendenhall Glacier! 

And, of course, there were waterfalls! 

Yep!  We landed and took off from there! 

Walking on a glacier...now that's pretty "cool." 

Like you are on a different planet...

The ride back was beautiful as well. 
Quite a day from start to finish today! 

8/11 - We pulled into beautiful Skagway, Alaska, fairly early today and I opted for a waterfall tour on my own instead of riding the White Pass train with everyone else.  I knew you would see some waterfalls on the train, but I wanted to focus on them, and I read that our road trip covered a lot of the same area at the train ride.  

Since my tour started later than the rest of our group's (and most of the boat's) train option, it gave me a chance to take a solo morning dip in the popular (and usually crowded) outdoor hot tubs on the ship.  I think it's kind of a cool design that they look like a wine glass - check that, beer glass! - from below.  

Despite the foreboding-looking skies, we continued to have good weather on this trip.  The morning air was cool and crisp and the hot tub felt great! 

Our waterfall guide was bit of grump - she's from Cali and evidently hates being here - but she was a good, professional guide.  She got us going quickly out of town on the Klondike Highway headed north toward Canada.  It was a bigger crowd for this tour than I was expecting, but overall a good one with no lollygaggers or slowpokes.  Our first stop just out of town was an across the valley look at the gigantic Pitchfork Falls.  Falling nearly 2,000' in a series of cascades, this behemoth is hard to capture well with a phone camera.  The line to the right of the falls is a pipeline used to generate hydropower for the town of Skagway.  

This zoom-in shot of a lower tier of Pitchfork Falls with the railroad bridge that Ashlee and the others in our group went over earlier today.   This area is part of the famous White Pass area and is located inside the Tongass National Forest.  

The next stop was just a few miles up the road to pretty Bridal Veil Falls which is roadside, but still very nice as it drops through Keystone Canyon.  

International Falls was pretty hard to photograph from the road with some of its cascades hidden from view with just a phone camera.  Looks like a good one for a hike sometime if I ever return.  As the name indicates, this set of falls sits on the border of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada.  

Hey, Canada!  Nice view! We didn't stay long in Canada, but it was worth the view here at Chilkoot Pass at over 2,800' in elevation.  

Welcome back! Is tRUMP still president?  Hmm, maybe I will just stay in BC.  

William Moore Falls also dropping along the Klondike Highway was named after an early founder of the Skagway area.  

It just a bus window view of some of the White Pass, but still spectacular.

Another fun stop on the way back was at The Overlook where cruise ships seem to dwarf the town of Skagway.   

Our grumpy guide said she was saving the best one for last and I have to agree, Lower Reid Falls which we got take a short hike to, was tremendous.   It's located just behind the Gold Rush Cemetery which was interesting as well.  Reid Creek drops here over 100' in a series of booming falls.  

I still had plenty of time after the waterfall tour to grab some craft beer in town at the Skagway Brewing Company.  The place was hopping, but I was able to secure a taster flight and a table outside.  First up was the outstanding Spruce Tip Blonde (best one of the trip!); the Chilkoot Trail IPA was solid; their Farmhouse Saison was very nice; and finally, the Off Broadway IPA was just a soapy mess, yuck.  I had to get the taste of that last one out of my mouth, so I got a pint of their highly rated Red Star Amber which was purely delightful! 

After meeting back up with Ashlee and our bunch in town, I spied another small craft brewery I had not heard of called Klondike Brewing and set off on my own again with time before the ship left this evening.  I earned another badge - still not sure it's accurate at 400 breweries with 6,000+ check-ins - but I will take it.  The brewery was situated in a cool old building and much less busy (and touristy) at Skagway BC.  I did yet another taster flight with the following consumed:  their Whipsaw Spruce Ale was pretty good, but I still give the nod to Skagway BC's brew; the Naku Haze NEIPA was terrific; the Hammerstone DIPA was very good; and finally, their Dewey Dry Hop blonde ale was solid.  I give little KPC the Alaska Consistency Award for not having a bad brew in the bunch.  

I know buzzed driving is dangerous, but you know what else is?  Buzzed shopping!  This was my first good buzz on the trip this afternoon and I needed to do some Alaska shopping since it this our last AK port.  I bought ten knit cabs for office presents that probably exceeded my intended budget and this overpriced $30 T-shirt that I thought was hilarious.  I am sober now and still think it's pretty funny.   

I made it back to the ship in time with only buzzed one wrong-way detour.  Whew!  So long, Skagway!  You were awesome! 

Alone again - just me and the Inside Passage. How can you miss this for some sit-down dinner inside the ship? Idiots.  

Waterfalls and vistas!! 

The Chilkat Mountain Range in the distance from the front deck of the spa.  

One of my favorite shots from the trip.  Since we came by it in the dark last night, there was no way I was missing seeing the pretty little Eldred Rock Light (1906).  This was one of the last manned lighthouses in Alaska - turning automated in 1973.  

Sunset and the golden hour from our room balcony.

Breathtaking light all throughout Alaska.  I'm gonna miss you.  

8/12 - It was another day at sea with no real beer, so it was back to crafted drinks of another kind like this excellent mocha latte.  

How do I sneak this off the ship and into the airline overhead luggage compartment?   This beauty was our landmark to our room on the 11th floor.  This ship by far has the most amazingly appointed interior decoration I've ever encountered.  

Lovin' in salt forevvvs!  I enjoyed more of the ship's spa amenities including the salt sauna, the Turkish steam room and the front deck as we sailed into our last stop of the trip, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.  

8/13 - While sailing into Victoria, British Columbia this evening wasn't that scenic, the sheer bank of fog that we cruised out of was kind of amazing. 
Ashlee and I had a Canadian ale trail tour set up for this stop, so my sad days of no craft beer were over!  

Hello, Whistle Buoy Brewing!  Man, Victoria looks to be a great beer town!  This is good news for my return trip to Vancouver Island ASAP to hit their waterfalls and now I know I need another day or two here to close out or start that tour.  We had a great and funny tour guide and a fun group with us on this city tour.  Here at WBBC you could pick your own pint, so I had to try their Spruce Tip Pale Ale which was very good, but my spruce tip heart remains in Skagway.  I had a sip of Ashlee's choice, the Strawberry Hefeweizen which I thought was solid. 

Herald Street Brew Works was my favorite our three stops. We got a brewery-picked taster flight here and all four were top-notch.  We started with he Splash Zone: Salted Watermelon Lager; then their Kolsch called Coast Side; then it was their NEIPA called Strata Burst; and finally, the Pineapple Ice Cream smoothie sour.  

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Our last stop was Swan's Pub and Brewing where we got two half-pints chosen by the brewery.  First up was the decent Vikes Lager and then we closed their fruited sour called Dinosour Pink Lemonade that was surprisingly good.  The best discovery here, however, is the fact that they also have a hotel above the pub (London-style!), so I know where I am staying at least one night on my return to Vancouver Island! 

8/14 - We cruised back to Seattle this morning, and by sunset were sailing out again but this time on a much smaller sailboat in the Puget Sound with Ashlee and our entire crew.  It was a perfect afternoon/night on the water, and the boat even had some craft beers on board that I haven't had.  First up was a can of the very nice Robust Porter from Reuben's Brews here in Seattle.  

Can't miss having a brew on this day!  Salute!  

I toasted the setting sun with a can of the excellent Dragon Tail IPA also.   This one's made by Icicle Brewing in nearby Leavenworth, WA. 

Beforehand after getting off the ship and having pretty much a full day in Seattle, Tom and I let the girls go shopping and we checked out the very cool Gasworks Brewing on the west shore of Lake Union in North Seattle.  It was a beautiful day to sit out on the lake and watch the comings and goings by boat, paddleboard and kayak to this very fun spot.  We had lunch too which was very good.  Beer-wise, I started with their excellent IPA called Drip is Forever.  Next up was another great brew, their NEIPA called Goose Down.  I finished with yet another of their tremendous NEIPAs called Dance Floor.  What a place! Man, I love Seattle! 
Afterwards, back near our airport hotel, I had an appetizer of decent burnt ends and a nice pint of the SunSlayer Pilsner from Diamond Knot Brewing in Mukilteo, WA, at Sharps RoastHouse Bar and Restaurant.

8/15 - We were in Seattle for one more full day before flying home tomorrow, so I decided it was time to go to Mt. Rainer National Park and found a tour I was fine going on by myself, but Ashlee and our entire crew decided to go as well.  I was a little worried that the wonders of Alaska might make this day a little ho-hum.  I was so wrong!  What a fantastic place!  We had an excellent guide, great weather (we got to see Mt. Rainer burst from the clouds!) and a good group that made it a very fun and special day for all of us.  

Out first stop inside the park was the amazing Box Canyon.  So cool!  

Our first official waterfall stop, another reason I booked this tour is that there are several, was pretty and delicate Martha Falls seen here across Stevens Canyon. 

Sluiskin Falls is visible across the valley from the hike to Myrtle Falls from the Paradise Inn parking lot.   

More Mt. Rainer, sans bus window reflection. 

The idyllic Myrtle Falls.   

The incredible Narada Falls. 

Picturesque Christine Falls.  While the mountain is king here, this national park has some of the most beautiful waterfalls I've ever seen just one after the other! 

One last glimpse of Mt. Rainer's slopes was over pretty Nisqually River.  The milky white water is because it's glacier run-off.  

We even stopped for ice cream at the Elbe General Store after our tour - what a great guide - thanks, Mark!  But while everyone else was grabbing ice cream (I did try the huckleberry and it was great), I found a cold can of Pacific Northwest IPA from Talking Cedar Brewing (a Native American owned business) in Rochester, WA.  Man, I think I need a shave and haircut after this trip! 

I even had time when we got back to the SEA-TAC airport hotel to walk around the corner to a summer pop-up location of Stoup Brewing.  I started with their Cap Hill Magic Hazy IPA that was awesome.   I kind of had the outdoor area to myself which was very nice with comfy chairs, a big screen TV and a chill vibe to be near the airport.  

Awesome! Proud to hoist a cold one (or two) for this UNTAPPD badge. My second brew at Stoup was their NEIPA called Sandals & Flannels (a very Seattle name for sure).  It was tasty!  Got me a cool hat here too! 

8/16 - Our flight home from Seattle was as smooth and easy as these clouds over Wyoming.  We even got home in time to take a dip in the pool (cuz it's still damn hot here in the South) and I enjoyed a can of the solid Peach White Tea Gose from Hi-Wire Brewing (Asheville) which came in my last BeerBox order.   

I rented a couple movie for the flight home that were pretty good.   In the Grey was a little goofy, but overall enjoyable. 

I really enjoyed Fuze which had some good action and a pretty neat twist at the end as well. 

I dropped a little more coin on gifts for my co-workers this trip, but everyone seemed to really like them.  #buzzedshopping   

Yikes!  I forgot one from Mt. Rainer NP! This is Edith Gorge Falls and just a drive-by, but what a beauty! 

AWESOME TRIP THAT HAD A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING I LOVE!!