Sitka, AK Part 3

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After finishing at the historical park, we loaded back on the bus and then had a decision to make.  The bus driver drove us into the town of Sitka and from there we had the choice of getting off in the town and taking a shuttle back to the port or staying on the bus and going back to our ship.  We chose to walk around the town of Sitka.  St. Michael’s Cathedral is a Russian Orthodox Church was established by missionaries in 1848. It and the Russian Bishop's House chapel are filled with Orthodox icons. Below are a couple of photos that I took of the outside of the church.  It was hard to get a photo that showed the onion dome that was a part of the structure and shows the Russian architectural influence in this structure. 

Next we walked up and down a street and found some souvenir stores, of which are in abundance in these small Alaskan tourist towns.  My main souvenir interest for my Alaskan trip was to get a Christmas ornament to represent each port of call.  I can report that that was an easy task to accomplish!  

I will end Sitka's tale with some excerpts from the brochure that we were handed when we got off the ship in Sitka:

“Alaska was one of the last places in the Americas to be settled by Europeans.  The Russian American Company took the lead…coming over from Siberia. It expanded its fur-trading operations via the Aleutian Islands to Alaska in the late 1700s.”

“When they tell the story of Sitka…

…thy remember a land of plenty and the people drawn to its wealth. The forest shrouding the land, the rivers running through it, and the sea around it provided everything needed to sustain a vigorous human community. The Tlingit had thrived on the island they called Shee for countless generations before ambitious traders came  from the west in search of new goods. Here the Tlingit and Russians met, fought, and then uneasily consisted for a time. When the Russians departed after six decades, both groups had changed by the encounter. The Tlingit preserved their traditions, while the Americans who replaced the Russians wrought their own changes. In the 1960s after decades of acculturation and population decline, the Tlingit began to reassert their culture.”

What was pleasing for me to learn is that today the Tlingits and other Native American tribes are behind many of the cultural and learning programs and also are in charge of some of the excursions that one can take in the ports.  One we went on…the whale watching and mammal excursion, which I will be telling you about in my ongoing tale of my Alaskan adventure!

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Sitka, AK Part 2

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After the museum we headed to the Sitka National Historical Park. We gleaned all kinds of information about several Alaskan Native American Tribes, totem poles, and the Russian and Native American conflict. 

One fact that I learned about totem poles is that they were made intending that they would go back to nature and weren't meant to last through generations. Many totem poles today are replicas of those made years ago. 

The walk we took into the forested area was awe inspiring…quiet and peaceful…among the very tall Sitka Spruce and Western Hemlock.  The path that we took could have taken us to the place where the Native Americans and Russians battled over the land.  A place that the Native Americans chose to settle as it would be easier to defend themselves from both sea and land.  We did not make the whole walk, as I am not the fastest walker, and we had to be back at the bus at a specific time. So we walked a ways along the path and enjoyed quite a few different types of totem poles before we turned back to head for the bus.

Our next stop was the town of Sitka.  I’ll continue with that part of our tour tomorrow.  I’ll end with a neat picture that I took along the path before we got back to the bus.

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! 

An Open Door Policy?!?

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I’m going to skip Alaska for tonight and update you on what went on today.  I got my front door replaced!  At least the work has started, and, as you will see below, the new one is in place.  It took most of the afternoon.  Then this evening Nathan and I went to our new Ace Hardware store and got a doorknob and a deadbolt lock for it.  He just got those installed so I will be secure for tonight…more than I ever have been before, as I have not had a deadbolt lock on the front door.  Jacob and his dad worked hard and got it in place this aftrtnoon.  Now, I need to get the paint and Jacob will come back and paint it inside and out.  I’m glad to have that job done.  I have been wanting a new door for some time.  It will take some getting used to the glass in the door.  It surprised me when I come around the corner upstairs and start down the stairs and am able to see out!  

Not a lot else has happened today. I continue to work on my Alaska photos.  There are a lot of them.  I don't think that I have seen all of them yet.  I am pleased with what I got…brings back lots of memories of the trip as I go through them.  It was such a memory filled trip…one that I will look back on for the rest of my life!  I still can't believe that I actually went on a cruise to Alaska…never in my wildest dreams did I think I would go on a cruise…now have been on two…just this year!  And, never thought that I would get to the Last Frontier, Alaska!  But I pinched myself and I really did!

Today is the two year anniversary of Woody's death…in some ways it seems like much longer ago and in others it doesn't seem possible that it has been two years.

Woody's two year anniversary means that Abigail and Payton celebrated their 2nd anniversary yesterday. 

Happy anniversary to them!

And, now here is the installed front door. I am pleased with it. 

To be continued…more Alaska tomorrow night! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Second Port City: Sitka, AK June 4, 2026, Part one

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The excursion in Sitka started out on a bus that took us to the featured places: Alaska Raptor Center, Sheldon Jackson Museum, and Sitka National Historical Park.  

Sitka is known as the heart of the Russian influence in Alaska and once served as the capital of Russian America in the 18th century.  So this day's tour was about Russian influence, the Native people's of the area and their response to the Russian influx for fur trading, and about rescuing injured raptors…and seeing beautiful forested land.  

Our first stop was at the Raptor Center and we learned how they rehab birds to go back into the wild…or if they are injured too much then they take care of them in the center for the rest of the birds' lives.

This is an inside area that they use to get the birds ready to go back into the wild…they can relearn to fly after injuries, etc. There is screening on all of the viewing windows so the birds can not see the people looking in at them.

The golden eagle is the most formidable bird of prey in Alaska.  It is capable of hunting young Dali sheep and caribou. 

After the Raptor Center we made a stop that I didn't know was included in the tour.  It was at the Sheldon Jackson Museum.  This gentleman realized the importance of preserving the crafts of the Natives of the area and collected all sorts of memorabilia and it is on display in this fantastic little museum that is located on the campus of Sheldon Jackson College. It was purchased by the State of Alaska in 1984.  We got to see all kinds of Native American treasures in displays and even got to look in the drawers! It would be a fascinating place to spend hours in!  We only got a quick taste of all its treasures!

I’ll pick up with more of the Sitka excursion tomorrow!

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Sunday Favorite

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First Port City: Ketchikan, Alaska June 3, 2026

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Here is our ship docked at Ward Cove Port.  Ward Cove, where we docked is part of the history of Ketchikan…part of the lumber industry that began in the 1800s with actual felling of trees directly into the water. Post-World War II, the Ward Cove Pulp Mill was going full steam providing pulp that was used globally for products like rayon, cellophane, and cosmetics. (We were told that it was even in our Wheaties Cereal at one time…fact or not…I do not know!) In the 90s they were forced to close due to changing political policies, reduced timber activity availability, and environmental regulations within the Tongass National Forest. That is when tourism took over and Ketchikan shifted its focus toward cruise-ship tourism.

Ketchikan is located on an island 679 miles north of Seattle, WA. It is Alaska's most southeastern city and its first port of call for northbound Alaska cruises.  It is known as the Salmon Capital of the World.  It also has the claim to fame of being the rainiest city in the contiguous and larger U.S. averaging 150” per year! We "almost" had a dry day, but it misted on us for a very short time near the first of our time on land. It does not snow very often there. They have a rain forest climate…record high is 89° and record low is -1°.  They are surrounded by the 17 million acre Tongass National Forest. 

Ketchikan has only about 32 miles of drivable road (we may have driven on most of that road. I'm not sure!) The speed limit is 40 mph.  No roads in or out…have to come and go by boat or plane.  Have to take a 5 minute ferry ride to another island to get to an airport.

Our excursion on this stop included an all you can eat crab feast. Mmmmmmmmm! Yum!  And, I managed to go through quite a bit of crab myself!  There was a challenge to have the highest crab shell stack.  You will see Wade's, Melany's and mine in the photos that follow. It was Dungeness crab. Soooooo good and messy! I didn't take many pictures as I didn't want to get my camera dirty…plus we were more interested in eating than photography!

Melany and I were dressed in our plaid shirts for the next part of the excursion…The Lumberjack Show. There was a glitch at the lodge where we are the crab…it was about a 40 minute or so drive back to the dock and the bus that dropped us off failed to return to get us.  So the lodge grabbed some vans and got us back in time for the lumberjack show.  

This show was about the late 1800s till the mid 1900s when they were still felling trees and various lumberjack camps would challenge each other to contests to see which camp was best.  We got to see various things that lumberjacks did in each of the challenges.  The teams we saw represented the U.S. and Canada.  U.S. won!  Here are some photos from that part of our excursion.  It was quite entertaining along with shedding insight into the lumber industry or old.

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

The Surprise On Our First Full Day At Sea

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Our first sighting of whales came much sooner than we expected.  On our first full day at sea, June 2, we started seeing whale spouts off in the distance.  It was a large group of humpback whales on their migration to Alaska from Hawaii.  We were traveling faster than they and we saw water spouts for quite a ways…Melany guessed there might be a hundred, but we don't know for sure how many.  I did manage to get photos of them spouting and then a couple of their backs and their dorsal fins.  Here's a little information I looked up about the dorsal fins of humpback whales: 

The humpback whale dorsal fin is a small, stubby fin situated atop a distinct "hump" on the lower half of the whale's back. Its unique size, shape, and surrounding scars act as key identifiers for researchers tracking individual whales. 

Because it is relatively small, the dorsal fin provides little hydrodynamic stability compared to the whale's massive pectoral fins. Instead, it functions primarily as a thermal regulator, releasing excess body heat during intense physical activity. 

We were pretty excited to find whales prior to our whale excursion!  On the photo that shows the dorsal fins, you can see the water spouts for dissipating. We didn’t see any of these whales breach…so dudn't get to see much of their bodies at this time on our trip. On the whale and mammal watching boat trip we did see more of the humpback whales…I even got a photo of the pectoral fin out of the water…waving at me!  Also got to witness them bubble-net fishing on the whale watching day…I will show more photos of that when I share that day with you.

Our first day at sea ended with a pretty pastel sunset…at 10pm!

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

WOW! What a Trip!

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Taking a bit of adjustment today from being away for 10 days!  I have done a lot of snoozing. I haven't downloaded (or is uploaded?) very many of the photos that I took.  We were pretty much off the grid a good portion of the time and I wasn't able to move the photos easily so just waited.  So far today I have unpacked my suitcase and sorted the clothes into piles on the floor in the family room.  I decided that it was best to unpack in the family room…close to the washer.  I just took a shower and added today's clothes to the piles of clothes.  I "may" wash a load tonight or…I "might not" find the energy! Nothing pressing to get it all done since most of the clothes are winter clothes…and I will say we did not come back to winter temperatures!  The high humidity along with temperatures almost 30° higher than any temp we experienced on the trip and was a bit of a rude awakening to the fact that the trip had come to an end!  The temperature while on the trip averaged in the low to mid 50s.  We had very pleasant weather…next to no rain…one day it drizzled for a very short period of time.  I will share photos and experiences of our trip over the next…probably weeks!! 

Tonight I am sharing some of the first photos taken from my stateroom's balcony. The top photo shows the skyline of Seattle while we were still docked.  The next is a closeup of Seattle's Space Needle.  You can see it, too, in the Seattle skyline from the dock photo. So you can see that we weren’t all that close to it.  My lens helped me get closer! My various lenses proved to be good binoculars!  The third photo I posted tonight, I took as we were pulling away from Seattle and when the ship's angle gave a good view of Mt. Rainier.  Mt. Rainier was in a bit of a hazy fog at the time…but thin enough to be able to capture even the top of it…not always possible as it is often in the clouds.

It's good to be home…now to get back to normal…planning to get back to normal slowly…while thinking back on the memories that were made on this trip…Alaska is an amazing place! I look forward to reliving the memories as I go through my MANY photos! I did have a funny feeling when I walked back into the house the way Cheryl, Rachel, Julianna, and I left it…felt like they should still be here!  It has been quite the month…lots of time with family!

To be continued! Be safe! be well! be cautious! 

Let The Cruise Begin!

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My guests are in flight on their way to AZ…it was not the best night for any of us, but especially for Julianna.  As the night wore on, it was determined that perhaps she was having a gall bladder attack.  For a while we weren’t sure that they would be able to fly today.  But by morning, her nausea had passed and it was determined that she would be able to fly and get home so she can head to her own doctors this week.  She was still pretty miserable.  I just got a text from Cheryl and they are starting to descend. So they are getting closer to home.

They dropped me off and said their goodbyes to Wade, Melany, Erin, Alex and Brooke…and, I guess, me.  Then we came in and had brunch without them.  I did a pretty good job of dozing throughout the afternoon. This evening we went out to eat to celebrate Brooke's birthday.  It was an Italian/Cuban restaurant.  I felt like I was already eating cruise cuisine.  They are playing Five Crowns card game. I am watching and blogging. Note my place at the table has my iPad at it in place of cards.  I prefer watching to playing card games. 

Well, one short sleep till we head to the airport.  We plan to load up the vehicle this evening…but so far not able to, as it started raining.  When it stops we will attempt loading again.

I am not sure that I will be able to blog while on this cruise.  We are off the grid quite a bit and I don't know if we will have connection when I have my iPad…time will tell.  But figure that, if you don't hear from me, that I am just cruising and not abandoning the blog!  I will attempt to have a "few" photos to share when I get back! 

Arizona relatives just texted: "Landed!" So that part of my 4 week vacation has ended…now on to the next ten days! At the moment, I feel like it is all a dream!

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! 

A Bit Distracted

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Sort of running around like this chicken!  We have been busy getting packed for trips to Arizona and Alaska!  I had Nathan come over and haul my heavy bag downstairs, weigh it, and load it in the car…so I am ready…I hope.  What has gotten us off schedule tonight is that Julianna isn't feeling well…hate this for her on this last night of her trip.  She has really seemed to enjoy hanging out with us and hate to have it end on this note. We think that these last couple of days our diets haven't been the best…as we try to empty the refrigerator.  Plus she ate out this afternoon with her mother when they went to do a little shopping in downtown Tullahoma.  So we don't know what set her off, but hope that her tummy settles quickly.  Rachel DoorDashed again…this time from Walgreens for stomach settling meds. 🙁 I have been introduced into a whole new world with this door dash concept! 

Nathan, Kathy, and Isaac stopped by to say their goodbyes to the four of us!  We visited for a little while.  Then I called on Nathan to return this evening to help me with my bag.  He weighed it…and I am just under the maximum weight…I tried hard to pack light…but for ten days and for Alaska's need for layered clothing…I guess I wasn't very successful.  I hope that my scale and Nathan's math are accurate.  Oh, well, I am packed and not thinking about it any more…I hope!  

We will head out in the morning, to take me to Melany's and Wade's and maybe for brunch…depending on the condition of our current patient.  They will at least drop me off! Oh, my…so sorry she is feeling so bad.  

I plan to blog from Melany's tomorrow…not sure about after that.  We may be pretty much off the grid once we embark on our Alaskan adventure! 

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! 

A New Experience…For Me, At Least

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Door Dash!  I was in the other room copying a cross stitch graph for Julianna…I’m teaching Julianna how to cross stitch.  I come back into the living room to the comment:  “I’ll bet Aunt Lois has never door dashed before.” Which was a true statement.  What surprised me the most is what was ordered…Julianna was hungry for a Snickers bar and some Gatorade…so they ordered a bag of small snickers and a Gatorade!  😳 The way this came about was that Julianna wanted to drive to the grocery store down the street…but because they have a rental, only her mother can drive it. And, it was raining and her mother didn’t want to get out in the rain. So…they Door Dashed!  

We have had a quiet-off-and-on-rainy day.  Rachel and Julianna made a short trip to Lynchburg, TN to do some souvenir shopping.  Cheryl and I stayed home…porch sitting.  We continue to dine at the Dorrell Diner…emptying the fridge of leftovers that have accumulated over the week. Tomorrow is the day to finalize the packing.  It is three days till cruise day for me and two days to flight day for Cheryl, Rachel, and Julianna.  

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Farm Day!

Cheryl, Rachel, Julianna and I paid a visit to Nathan's and Kathy's farm today.  Julianna wanted to see the animals.  I think she enjoyed getting to see their menagerie. Cheryl, Rachel and I went on part of the tour…but ended up inside much before Nathan, Joy, Joseph, and Julianna joined us. While we sat in the cool of the inside, Abigail stopped by with some cookies for us to test.  She is hoping to add cookies to her cheese cake offerings to sell.  We all said, "mmmmmm…good!" 

We all ran errands today…Rachel and Julianna went off together and Cheryl and I went together. Cheryl and I got a couple of things for our larder to fill in till we leave.  We are having what I am calling Dorrell Diner…Nathan originated that term when his family just chose what they wanted out of the leftovers in the fridge.  We are to that point now…needing to empty out the fridge before we all leave for our travels. Time is getting close…three days for them and four days for me. 

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Wednesday Wanderings

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Rachel and Julianna headed off to Nashville this morning.  They had a day planned to make special denim jackets at a place called Gigi Pip and eat brunch at Milk and Honey and do a little shopping.  They have just returned and had a fun day.  They said it got really hot when the sun came out.  I guess they have not experienced true TN weather…hot and humid. 

While they played in Nashville, we worked on getting me the rest of the way packed…and, I am…sort of…can't really pack some things till just before we leave.  We also did a couple of errands.  I had planned to run three errands, but forgot to bring the list for one of the planned stops.  🙄 So we will do that errand tomorrow, Friday, or Saturday. At times I wonder if I will ever be ready!  But…I will say that I am much more ready than I was. Once we leave on Sunday for Melany's and Wade's, all will have to be done!  The plans are for us to have brunch at Melany's and Wade's and then Cheryl, Rachel, and Julianna will head to the airport to head AZ way.  I will stay the night at Melany's and Wade's and Alex will take us to the airport early Monday morning.  Five more days till I will be cruising! 

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious! 

A Good Day!

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Tonight I’m using one of Rachel’s photos of one of my balloon flowers. It has been a very good day for several reasons…having Cheryl, Rachel, and Julianna here and it was hair cut day…which is always a very good day for me!  The four of us headed off to do a little shopping. This shopping trip met the wishes of Julianna…she wanted to go to my drugstore that has neat gift items and wanted to go to Hobby Lobby.  Granted her wishes!  Rachel has spent time in the kitchen making us a Mexican meal.  I helped a little…mainly finding pans and utensils that she wanted/needed.  It was a yummy meal.  We are all feeling rather full!  And, I am feeling noticeably sleepier!  Struggling to stay away while writing the blog.  Cheryl is trying to get a photo of me sleeping…her goal on this trip…to get her sister sleeping in as many places as possible.  She missed getting one yesterday and so far for today,  I will get up and move after I post and hopefully wake up!  

To be continued! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!