{"id":10116,"date":"2020-02-08T06:56:00","date_gmt":"2020-02-08T11:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/?p=10116"},"modified":"2020-03-08T16:08:44","modified_gmt":"2020-03-08T20:08:44","slug":"08-14-2019-alaska-cruise-part-8-skagway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/08-14-2019-alaska-cruise-part-8-skagway\/","title":{"rendered":"08-14-2019 Alaska Cruise, Part 8: Skagway"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Day<\/a>
Day 4: Skagway<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Today was our visit to Skagway and one of our favorite Alaska activities (next to whale watching), the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad!  We got up and headed to 270 Cafe to get some breakfast. <\/p>\n

\"270\"<\/a>
270<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We had already reserved our tickets for the train (through a Royal Caribbean excursion), but our excursion wasn’t until noon.  We decided to get off the ship and spend some time in Skagway, which we didn’t get a chance to do last time we were here.<\/p>\n

\"Port<\/a>
Port of Skagway<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once the ship was docked, we headed off the ship.  There were two other ships in Skagway that day as well.  One was Radiance of the Seas, another Royal Caribbean ship.  I’m not quite sure what line the other ship was from, but it was a much smaller ship.<\/p>\n

\"Ovation<\/a>
Ovation of the Seas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once we left the ship, we had about a half a mile to walk to get to the main portion of town.  The route is pretty easy to determine and follow (with sidewalks the entire way).  We got to town and decided to walk down the main street, looking into the shops on both sides.  We stopped to see some of the old engines and train cars from the railroad, including the snow plow that was used to keep the tracks clear.<\/p>\n

\"Snow<\/a>
Snow Blower Train<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

All of the buildings on the main street have been restored somewhat to their 1890’s look.  Some of them offer tours and other events related to what their original uses were during the gold rush times.<\/p>\n

\"Red<\/a>
Red Onion Saloon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This building has the front made completely out of driftwood.  The large A & B on the front stands for the Arctic Brotherhood.<\/p>\n

\"Camp<\/a>
Camp Skagway of the Artic Brotherhood<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

With three ships in town (two of them being fairly large), there were a lot of people in town walking around.  While it didn’t feel overly crowded, you definitely had to step out of the way a lot to let people pass.  Nancy and the girls went into several shops to find stuff for themselves and friends.<\/p>\n

\"Shops\"<\/a>
Shops<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Main<\/a>
Main Street<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once we got to the far end of main street, we decided to get some snacks.  There was a shop that sold fudge and popcorn, so we grabbed a bag of popcorn to share and one for the train for later.  After some popcorn and soda, we were refreshed enough to continue our souvenir hunting.  After another hour or so of looking, we headed over to The Skagway Brewing Company for another snack and a beverage.<\/p>\n

\"Skagway<\/a>
Skagway Brewing Company<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After our second snack, we headed back to the ship so we could find our excursion.  The tickets said we should meeting in a certain area of the pier.  Unfortunately, nothing was marked.  I finally went up to a bus driver that was there to ask him where our bus was.  Fortunately, he was actually our bus driver so we hopped on board the bus. <\/p>\n

\"Ships<\/a>
Ships at the Docks<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Having a bus from the pier to the train was kind of a waste, because once we started moving, we only stayed on the bus about one minute.  We were then directed to a train car and told to take whatever seats we wanted.  They also told us additional people would be getting on the train.  The bus driver said to look for him at the other end of the train ride and he would drive us back down to the ship.<\/p>\n

\"Train<\/a>
Train Car<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Most people from our group immediately sat on the left side of the car, since that would be the side with the most scenery to look at.  A tour guide walked through in a few minutes to offer us water as well as to explain the route (and give out route maps).  They said we could go outside on the end platforms but we couldn’t move between the cars.<\/p>\n

\"Route<\/a>
Route Map<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The train got moving and we were soon surrounded with awesome views.  There were creeks, waterfalls, bridges, and tunnels.<\/p>\n

\"Creek\"<\/a>
Creek<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Bridge\"<\/a>
Bridge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Bridge\"<\/a>
Bridge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Tunnel\"<\/a>
Tunnel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We also eventually crossed over the border into Canada. <\/p>\n

\"Canadian<\/a>
Canadian Border<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One interesting thing about the route was the number of different climates we passed through.  There is definitely a Boreal Forest and lots of other ones I’ve never experienced anywhere else.  The trip climbs a total of 3,000 feet in elevation from the beginning to the end.<\/p>\n

\"Waterfall\"<\/a>
Waterfall<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You can event see the original trail the miners took when they walked up the route.  They said there were so many miners, that if you stepped out of your place in line to tie a shoelace, it would take you an hour to find another spot in the line. <\/p>\n

\"Original<\/a>
Original Gold Rush Trail<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There are spots along the route where you can see they altered it.  Here is a trestle bridge that isn’t used anymore.<\/p>\n

\"Abandoned<\/a>
Abandoned Bridge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We eventually reached the top of the route and got off the train to go find our bus.  Sure enough, we found our bus driver waiting for us. <\/p>\n

\"Caboose\"<\/a>
Caboose<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There was a beautiful lake at the spot we stopped at.  I don’t think we completely finished the route, but we had gone far enough for us.  We took some pictures, and then got on the bus to come back.  The bus trip back was much quicker, about 30 minutes compared to the 90 minutes it took to reach this point.<\/p>\n

\"Mountain<\/a>
Mountain Lake<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once we got back to town, the bus driver offered to drop people off in the town instead of back at the ship, if they preferred.  We got off in town and did some more shopping.  We also headed over to the Alaska Fry Bread store.  They serve huge pieces of fry bread, which is really just fried dough.<\/p>\n

\"Alaskan<\/a>
Alaskan Fry Bread<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This piece was about eight inches square and was covered with sugar.  It was delicious.<\/p>\n

\"Alaskan<\/a>
Alaskan Fry Bread<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After stuffing our faces with fry bread, we finally started back towards the ship.<\/p>\n

\"Ovation<\/a>
Ovation of the Seas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once we re-boarded the ship, we dropped off our stuff in the room and went back to the Royal Esplanade.  The girls had been asking us to order drinks from the Bionic Bar since we got on board the ship, so we decided to do it now.<\/p>\n

\"Bionic<\/a>
Bionic Bar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We sat down at the Kiosk and put our orders in.  I don’t remember what we ordered, but after a brief wait, the robots began our orders.<\/p>\n

\"Ordering<\/a>
Ordering Kiosk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here is the robot making both of our drinks. First is Nancy’s, then it made mine.<\/p>\n