North to Alaska

G'day all,

After cleaning up and moving out of the house we headed off to Canada place in Vancouver to board our cruise liner. After getting settled in our stateroom we set out to explore the ship. With 4 stateroom levels and 5 and a half entertainment levels we quickly learnt where we would be spending most of our time. The main areas we were interested in was the pool and bar Lido deck and the deck with the library and a couple of other bars.

After participating in the obligatory evacuation drill at 4pm we headed up to the Lido deck where there was a embarkation BBQ. After some awesome food and some Alaskan beers we headed for an early night after a big day.

MS Volendam

Embarkation BBQ on the Lido Deck

Thursday morning, after a sleep in, as it was our first day full day on holiday's, we headed up to the Lido deck for our buffet breakfast. Following breakfast we found the Explorer's lounge and started to think about what we were going to when we arrived in port. Because it was a full day of sailing we decided we needed to be active so we visited the gym for an hour and then had some lunch.

After lunch we had booked in for a Beer tasting for the Alaskan brewing company. We tried 4 different types of beers: white ale, summer ale, American pale ale (APA) and an amber ale. It was entertaining and we managed a few top-ups from other guests who were not finding the beer as tasty as we were. Erin's favourite was the summer and Marty's was the amber ale.

Selection of Alaskan Beers

On this night the dress code for the ship was formal so we were supposed to dress up. Turns out this was only for the dining room but we got dressed up anyway (in our smart casual) as we weren't sure. After dinner we played a game in the library and then headed to the theatre to watch Skyfall.

The service was so good on the ship that our house keeper would make our rooms twice. Once in the morning to make the bed, and again in the evening to turn down the bed and leave us towels folded as some type of Alaskan animal, as shown below. We got a seal, crab, bear, whale, eagle and turtle.

It's a Bear

After the beauty of getting an extra hours sleep due to a change in time zone we headed to breakfast on the Friday morning. Following breakfast we went for a swim in the pool on the lido deck and had a time relaxing by the pool until lunchtime.

Day 3 bought about our first port of call at Juneau. When we were allowed off the ship at about 1.30 we went to get the bus to go to the Mendenhall Glacier. The Mendenhall glacier is the only glacier of the Juneau Ice-fields that can be accessed by vehicle. The rest is only accessible by plane or helicopter. At the Mendenhall glacier we did a short hike (3km) around to Nugget Falls in order to get a better view of both the falls and the glacier. As it was raining we were very soaked by the end of this so we went to dry off in the visitors centre and learn about the retreating glacier.

Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls, Juneau

Juneau is the capital of Alaska and has about 30,000 people living there. The only way you can get into Juneau is by plane or boat as there is no roads heading in or out. There are roads in Juneau but they don't go anywhere out side of Juneau.

After this we got the bus back into downtown Juneau. We had a look around the shops and had a drink and dinner at the Red Dog Saloon. This was a stereotypical American pub with moose heads on the wall and a country singer playing the guitar. After this we were still very wet and cold so we headed back to the ship. After showering and getting changed we decided we would head to the library to play some trivial pursuit and relax quietly.

A Saloon with real Saloon Style Swingin' Doors.

Day 4, Saturday, of the cruise was a stop in port at Skagway, Alaska. The ship arrived at 7am and after breakfast we headed into Skagway by 8. Our first stop was the National Park Service Visitors centre to grab a trail map. We then headed on a 3.5km hike to Yakatania Point and Smugglers Cove. This was a fairly light hike but gave good views of the inlet and mountains around Skagway. This hike took us about an hour. When we got back it was still early so we had a look around town for a while. We did a bit of souvenir shopping and Erin started her holiday charm bracelet that is going to have a charm symbol from every place we visit. From here we headed back to the ship for lunch.



Mountains surrounding Skagway from Yakatania Point

Following lunch we headed back out for another hike, this time on the Dewey lakes trail system. This hike involved a 500ft climb over 0.5mile up to Lower Dewey Lake. We then hiked around Lower Dewey lake before heading further onto Icy Lake. Icy Lake was the strangest colour green, it looked amazing. Further on from Icy lake was Upper Reid falls but as we tried to find it the path got a bit confusing and we could not find our way. After a while we turned around when we were worried we were going to get lost and backtracked our way to Lower Dewey Lake and back down to Skagway.

Lower Dewey Lake, Skagway

Old White Pass - Yukon Train

When we got back into Skagway we headed to Skagway Brewing company and had a taster of a pale ale, IPA, brown, porter and a blonde. After this we were very tired so we headed back to the ship for a soak in the hot tub before dinner. After dinner at 7pm there was an event in the crows nest bar for all Aussies and Kiwis where we got discount drinks. We headed to that and as we were having our drinks we saw a seal frolicking in the water next to the ship.

at 8pm we went to check out the ship comedian, Kevin Jordan. He was very good but a lot more focused on the general older crowd on the ship. There was another show after him in the piano bar which was a guy playing a mix of Billy Joel and Elton John. We had another drink here before heading back to the Crows Nest for the classic rock section with a band playing. We had a few more beers here while watching night come in. The sun set at 10pm but we could still see the surrounding mountains until midnight.


On the Sunday we cruised Glacier Bay. This was a entire day on the ship. But by the time we had breakfast the ship was almost at the end of Glacier Bay and by 11am it had anchored near two Glaciers, Marjorie Glacier and Grand Pacific Glacier. On the way it also passed the Reid Glacier and the Lamplugh Glacier.

Marjorie Glacier was 21 miles long coming from the fairweather mountains and 1 mile wide where it reached glacier bay. It moves at 7ft a day and is therefore a expanding Glacier. As we watched we saw parts of the glacier continually fall off into the water. The sound that went with it was like a thunderclap. As it was an expanding glacier there was many different shades of blue through the ice.

Margerie Glacier, Glacier Bay

Erin and Marty at the Margerie Glacier

Near the Marjorie Glacier was the Grand Pacific Glacier which was black because of it building over boulders and the rock face. It went 33 miles back from where it met Glacier Bay, over the border and into BC, Canada. The Glacier mouth at Glacier Bay was 2 miles wide.

We were anchored at these Glaciers for a while and when a passenger saw a bear on the opposite side the captain swung the ship about to try and see the bear. We didn't see it.

After doing some stuff on the computer for a bit and having lunch we headed out to the back of the ship to watch the scenery go by as the ship sailed out of glacier bay. On the way we passed some good animal viewing points and we saw some humpback whales, some sealions on an island and some otters playing around the boat.

Sunset over Glacier Bay

It was the formal night on the ship and as it was not practical for us to bring formal clothing we decided to have an easy night. So we had a few beers before dinner and then played cards on the Lido deck for a while. Also due to it being the formal night they had a dessert extravaganza with lots of different cakes and pastries and many chocolate sculptures. This was open to everyone and was at 10.30pm. After we had enough sugar we decided to head to bed.

Port of call for the Monday was Ketchikan. The boat docked at 10am so after we got up at 9am and had some breakfast it was time to get off the ship. First we headed to the visitors centre to get an idea of what to do. We picked up a walking map of the town and we did the downtown walk, which focused on the river where salmon return to spawn in the fall and the older part next to the river, which was once the prostitution district now called Creek Street. Near the end of the walking tour we were back near the ship so we went back on board for some lunch.

Creek Street, Ketchikan

After lunch we headed back onto shore and headed toward the west end of Ketchikan. From the map we had we saw there was a hike up to some good viewpoints behind Ketchikan. This was the rainbird trail and gave some really good views of the bay and surrounding islands and mountains. After this we walked back along the waterfront and returned to the ship.

After a rest in our stateroom we got ready for our fancy dinner in the Rotterdam dining room and headed to the Ocean bar for some pre-dinner drinks. After our fancy dinner in the dinning room we headed to the piano bar for a night cap and to listen to the piano man once again. He was playing songs from New Orleans which was enjoyable.

Marty and Erin with view from Rainbird trail, Ketchikan

Tuesday was our last full day for the cruise which was a day of sailing the inside passage back to Vancouver. After losing an hour sleep as we changed time zones again we woke up late and headed to breakfast. After breakfast Marty went to a disembarkation info session and then we relaxed for a while in the explorations lounge.

We again played on the computer for a while, then we headed to lunch on the lido deck. We spent most of the day playing tabletennis, going to the gym and watching the scenery go past as the ship made it's way back to Vancouver. We spent the afternoon doing washing and uploading our photos onto the computer. After dinner we packed everything up and then went to watch the movie for the day, Silver Linings Playbook.

After this we had an American style late night snack and then went to bed as we had an early start the next day, disembarking the ship at 7.15am.

We had an awesome time on the ship and in Alaska but we were ready for the next leg of our trip, 2 weeks camping through the Canadian and American Rocky Mountains.


Cheers, Erin and Marty

View from Lookout on Rainbird trail, Ketchikan.

The Final Countdown

G'day all,

So the end is almost near but we have trying to make the most of our last few weeks and have been doing trail runs on the North Shore in Vancouver, Marty went Mountain Biking with friends in Squamish, Erin went away for a Cabin weekend with friends and Marty went to Washington State for a 50 km trail run.

The first 2 weeks of May were quiet, just doing small hikes and trail runs on Vancouver's North Shore, working and organising our trip. Then midweek, after some creative scheduling at Marty's work, Marty and 3 of his work friends from Reckless went Mountain Biking in the trails around Squamish, about an hour from Vancouver.

On a sunny Thursday morning, Marty and three of his bike shop co-workers, Lee, Hywel and Gordo, went off to Squamish for a day mountain biking.  With sun out we made the most of the dry trails and long days and rode until 8pm before heading to the local brewery for burgers and beers.  The highlight of the day was Marty's first bear siting on the side of one of the access roads on the mountain.

It's a Bear!

Concentration is the key

The next weekend Erin took the Saturday off from work and headed to the Sunshine Coast of BC to stay at a Cabin in the woods with friends from work. The Cabin belonged to someone from work and is on a lake near Egmont, BC. It was such a beautiful place and Erin and 6 friends and Cleo (the dog) sat around and had a relaxing weekend in the forest. The cabin had a fire pit by the water and we spent the first night sitting around the fire and relaxing. Most of the Saturday it rained so it kind of put a dampener on things but we still had a lot of fun, food and a few beverages.

Cabin in the Woods

 

North Lake near Egmont, BC

 

The next weekend was the May long weekend for Victoria Day and it saw Marty head to Winthrop in Washington State with two friends, Nick and Hannah, to do the 50km Sun Mountain Run.
After a 2hr border crossing and then a beautiful drive through the Cascade mountains we arrived in the town of Winthrop, which closely resembled the set of an old western movie. Saturday evening involved setting up camp, burger and beer dinner (I feel there is a pattern here!), and taking photos of the buildings and the young buck that was having a wander through the town as well.

Winthrop, WA

Young Buck

Race day arrived and after a leisurely morning the race started at 10am under beautiful blue skies. The first 30km went quite well, before I started to lag a bit and was having trouble taking in any more food and water.  Hannah, Nick and myself all found ourselves running together for the 30-35km section before Hannah started to put some distance between us.  The big climb of the day was 37-41km and really took a toll, but that left us with a (mostly) downhill run to the finish.  In the end I finished with a time of 5h10min which I was quite happy with. Hannah finished with an excellent time of 5hrs and Nick was only a minute or 2 behind me.  We all left Winthrop quite satisfied with our fun (and tiring) weekend.

I look better than I was feeling

The 2nd last week of May had Erin and Marty both finishing up their jobs and packing and cleaning up to leave Vancouver. Erin finished work at ALS on the Friday after having a farewell lunch and cake in the few days leading up to her last day. (I had a lot of fun at ALS Vancouver and have made so many good friends. The time I had here I thought I could only dream off, it was amazing). Marty finished at Salomon on the Friday as well, after buying a few more pairs of shoes (he now has 6 pairs of Salomon runners). Marty's last day at Reckless Bike Store was on the Sunday.

That Saturday night we had our going away party at Cats Social house Granville Island. We had people from Erin's work, both of Marty's work and Marty's Running Club. We had a very good time and were very happy so many people came out to see us off. We really have been very privileged by the people we have met here in Canada and are already looking forward to returning someday.

The ALS WQ Girls

The next part of our adventure involves a 7 night Alaskan Cruise (leaving May 29th), a 2 week camping trip through the Canadian/American Rocky Mountains, a week in cities on the east coast (Toronto, New York and Boston) followed by 6 weeks through Europe (Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, Spain, England, Scotland and Ireland).

We are super excited for the next part of our trip but are also sad to be leaving such wonderful people in such an awesome place. We will always consider Canada, particularly Vancouver, as our second home.

We will keep up with our blog while on our travels.
Cheers, Erin and Marty

Spring has sprung

G'day all,

In the last 2 months we have been to see the Canucks in the hockey, played in the snow a lot, had Erin's birthday which included a weekend trip to Whistler, been able to get back into hiking and Marty had a run in Birch Bay. Also the 11th April marked 1 year since coming to Canada, how time flies.

On a Tuesday evening early March we headed to Rogers Arena in Vancouver to watch Vancouver Canucks play San Jose Sharks in the hockey. It was very exciting for us and although Vancouver lost it went to overtime and then onto a shootout.



San Jose Sharks vs Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena

That weekend, on a nice sunny day, we headed to Mount Seymour to do some snowshoeing again. This time, instead of doing the snowshoe park, we headed to Dog Mountain and Brockton Point. This was a bit more strenuous but gave us some great views of Vancouver and the surrounding mountains.

Erin snowshoeing up to Brockton Point at Mount Seymour

Marty and the view from Brockton Point

Being March it was obviously Erin's birthday. In order to celebrate a party had to be had, so all my Canadian friends came over on the Saturday night to our place for Pizza and drinks. Two of my immensely talented friends even made me Cookie Monster Cupcakes for my birthday cake. A good night was had by all.

Cookie Monster Birthday Cake

Sunday morning saw Marty (snowboard in hand) and Erin heading to the bus station to head to Whistler. After checking in at the hotel we had a look around whistler village with the snow around (as this was the first time we had been in Whistler in winter) and got our lift passes and ski rentals sorted out for the next day. As the weather had started to warm up a bit before this, there was not that much snow around the village and everything was very slushy from melting snow. After this was organised we headed to the pub to watch the Canucks in the hockey.

Blackcomb Mountain behind Whistler Village

Monday morning was a sunny day and after picking up Erin's ski rentals (thanks to a birthday present from Jenny and Tony Phillips) we headed up the gondola to hit the slopes. Erin spent most of the day on the learning area but still had a lot of fun and also had a break by going over the peak to peak gondola for some scenic winter shots of the area. Marty had fun trying out all the slopes higher up with his snowboard.



Erin on Whistler Mountain

View of the Valley from the Peak 2 Peak Gondola

When we woke up Tuesday morning we were pleasantly surprised to see it had snowed all night in the village and there was a foot of snow everywhere you looked. This was what we had hoped Whistler during winter would be like. After checking out we headed out to the Lost Lake Trails just outside of Whistler village in order to give Cross Country Skiing (Nordic) a go. Erin enjoyed this a bit more than Marty but we still had fun trying to figure out how to do it, Erin having a bit more experience because of the 3 times I had been skiing before then. Tuesday afternoon we headed back to Vancouver saying goodbye to Whistler most likely for the last time, for now anyway.

Whistler Village with Fresh Snow

Marty Nordic Skiing

In order to get as much snowboarding/skiing in as possible the next Monday saw us getting a bus to Cypress Mountain this time. After getting there and Erin picking up ski rentals we both hit the slopes again. This turned out to be Erin's last time on the slopes and although I can ski okay, I still have a long way to go to be any good. It has been immensely fun learning though. Marty went a couple more times after this on his days off but he has recently also accepted that the winter is over (mainly because all the ski resorts are closed).

With the weather getting better coming into spring we have been able to get out and do some more serious hikes again. So the following weekend we hiked from the bottom of Grouse Mountain to Lynn Valley which was about 13km. A smallish hike to get back into it. Also the weekend just gone we did a hike around Buntzen lake in Port Moody called Diez Vistas. This was a 18km loop that we did last year but as it was raining very heavily last time we decided to do it again in order to actually see the views. It was an exhausting hike but gave some really good views of Vancouver and the surrounding mountains.

View from Diez Vistas over North Vancouver

Easter ended up being fairly uneventful with Marty working all weekend and Erin working on the Saturday and Monday. Erin still kept up the family tradition of roast chicken for dinner and apple pie with ice-cream for dessert.

The first weekend in April, Marty took the Saturday off work and headed down to Birch Bay in Washington to do a 15km running race with many other members of his running club. Marty finished with a time of  59min 38sec which was 4th overall and 2nd in his age group. He even got a red ribbon for coming second, like the ones you used to get in school. Other people from his running club also finished in the top three for the races or in their age groups (the other races being a 5km and 30km) and the running club won the club award for the race.

Pacific Road Runners at the Birch Bay race

With only 5 more weeks in Vancouver until we head on our Alaskan cruise we are getting excited for our trip but sad to be leaving Vancouver. Also we are busy trying to plan everything as well as fit as much more in as we can before we leave.

We hope everyone is well back home.
Cheers, Erin and Marty

Lots of Snow!!

G'day all,

Well we have had a fun filled 7 weeks since our last blog. This has included a amazing week long snowboarding trip to the Canadian Rockies, an Australia Day party for our Canadian friends, a work trip to Ontario for Erin, a new job for Marty, Skiing lesson for Erin and watching a lot of Hockey.

First time experiencing -10deg

In the first few weeks of January we laid low after the excitement of Christmas and the New Year. On Monday 14th Jan we headed to Banff, Alberta for our first taste of the Canadian Rockies, lots of snow and snowboarding. We arrived in Banff on the Monday afternoon and after a tour of downtown Banff went back to the hotel for a early night.


Downtown Banff

Tuesday morning dawned with a sunny day in Banff and we headed to Sunshine Village ski area for our full day Snowboarding lesson with our instructor, Ryan. We had an immense amount of fun in our lesson, although Erin tired a lot quicker than Marty, and we came out of it feeling like although we didn't know everything at least we had gotten the basics and could work from there. We were extremely lucky, because even though we had signed up for a group lesson we were the only people that day so essentially got a private lesson. After this day on the slopes we headed back to Banff town and after a visit to the hot tub went out to the pub for dinner and drinks.

Sunshine Village

Erin with Snowboard

Marty with Snowboard

Marty with our instructor Ryan

After this first lesson we had bought a 4 out of 5 day tri-ski area pass which meant we could go to any of the three ski areas, Sunshine, Mt Norquay or Lake Louise, for 4 of the next 5 days. On the Wednesday we woke up very stiff and sore (at least Erin did) but, after picking up our snowboard rental, we headed back out to Sunshine to practice what we had learnt the day before. Erin only managed a half day because she couldn't move, but Marty spent the full day on the slopes practicing turns and zigzag moves. Wednesday ended with another visit to the hot tub and then to a different pub in town.

On Thursday we decided we were too stiff and sore to go the slopes again, so we took our day off from the slopes and instead went to climb Tunnel Mountain. In order to do this we rented some crampons (metal studs to attach to the shoes) and headed off. Tunnel Mountain is very close to downtown Banff and it took us about 2 hours return and we got some amazing views of the snowy valley behind Banff. In the afternoon we headed to Banff Hot Springs, a naturally occurring spring, to soak the muscles and relax.

On Tunnel Mountain with Banff in the background

On Friday we were back to the slopes and decided to hit Mt Norquay.  Mt Norquay has night skiing on Friday evenings, so we took a break in the afternoon and hit the tube park.  Tubing essentially entails the user sitting in a inflated tractor tire tube while they get pushed down an icy chute, picking up speed to about 40-50km/h until the chute slopes upwards at the other end. Fun! After they groomed the runs Marty went back out for some night snowboarding. Erin was too tired and sore after the day snowboarding so went to the pub to wait.

Slopes of Mt Norquay

Mt Norquay Lodge

Mt Norquay Tube Park

Saturday we decided to head to the third ski area, Lake Louise. Which was the most enjoyable for Erin, as it had a gondola to the top of a really long green run (easiest run), which cut out the chairlifts altogether, which she was struggling with. Marty also really enjoyed Lake Louise as there were many different styles of green runs on which he could practice different things. Unfortunately late in the day Erin had a fall which jarred her hand and wrist and meant that she could not get up in order to snowboard. Saturday night was the first game of the hockey season (after the lockout ended) and we went to a pub in town to watch the Canucks. Unfortunately they lost (badly) but it was good to finally see some hockey.

Lake Louise Ski Area

View of Lake Louise

Lake Louise Ski Lodge

Sunday took Marty back out to Lake Louise, but due to Erin's hand/wrist injury, she joined later and did not snowboard that day. Marty again had a lot of fun trying out more runs and trying to get all the turns to flow properly. Sunday night again saw us at a pub to watch the hockey, the obsession had begun. Monday morning we headed to the Sulphur Mountain gondola and went up to see some fantastic views of the Rockies. It was immensely cold but we got some really good photos. After this we got the bus back to Calgary and then the flight to Vancouver.


View of Banff and the Rockies from Sulphur Mountain

The week after we returned from Banff was Australia Day, 26th January. We decided that because we couldn't be in Australia we would bring Australia Day to our friends in Canada and we had a party at our apartment. Complete with Mini Kangaroo Burgers, Lamingtons, ANZAC biscuits, Shrimp on the Barbie, Coopers beer, Australian wine, Australian music and a Didgeridoo, we informed our friends about Australian culture and history. A good night was had by all.

Getting our Aussie on

The next day Erin headed off for a two week work trip to Ontario, specifically Thunder Bay and Waterloo with a weekend in Toronto. The trip to Thunder Bay was fairly uneventful but I had a Cool Runnings moment when I arrived as it was so cold. Thunder Bay is in Northern Ontario, on Lake Superior, and it gets very cold with a lot of snow. My week in Thunder Bay was good, when I wasn't at the lab, the person I was working with took me for a driving tour of the area and then out for dinner, as well as a few other dinners with other people from the lab throughout the week. Getting from Thunder Bay was a little more eventful, with a 5 hour delay at Thunder Bay airport, before finally getting a flight at 12.45am to Toronto.

Sleeping Giant from across a frozen Lake Superior in Thunder Bay

My weekend in Toronto involved many touristy things, with a walk through downtown and then around the older district, involving a visit to St. Laurence Market. After this I headed towards the CN tower which is the main tourist attraction of Toronto, to get good views of the city and surrounding areas. I then headed to the Steam Whistle Brewery across the road to do a brewery tour, which was very good and in the process of the tour I ate dry hops, which is super bitter. After this tour I headed back towards the hotel to find a pub where I could watch the Toronto Maple Leafs play in the hockey. The next day I decided to grab the ferry and head over to Toronto Islands. The Toronto Islands is a collection of lots of islands that is a 15 minutes ferry ride from the city and is basically a nature reserved/theme park. In the winter there is not much going on but in the summer there is beaches and rides. On the winter day I went I had a look around and watched the ice break around the Island. I also watched some locals (there is some people who live on the islands) play hockey on a frozen over inlet. Later on the Sunday I got the bus to Waterloo in preparation for my second week of work.

Downtown Toronto from Toronto Islands

Steam Whistle Brewery

Waterloo was also very cold and again there was a lot of snow, but it was a different sort of climate to Thunder Bay. It was not as dry as Thunder Bay and the snow seemed to be lighter and a lot more of it somehow. The hotel I was in at Waterloo was very fancy, with a hot tub in the room as well as a fire place. My week in Waterloo was fairly uneventful, working during the days and just relaxing at the hotel of a night. On Friday, however, when I was meant to get a flight back to Vancouver, a snow storm hit the east coast of Canada and USA and all flights were cancelled. After some quick rearranging by work, I was on flight leaving from Toronto on the Saturday, so after an extra night stay in Waterloo I headed to Toronto to get my flight. This flight was then delayed as well, although not due to the weather this time, but the plane had broken down. I finally arrived back to Vancouver late on the Saturday night exhausted but having had a really good time and experience through my work trip.

Snowstorm in Waterloo, ON

While Erin was away Marty started a new job at Salomon in West Vancouver, part time while also still at the bike store. Salomon sell mountain gear, clothes and equipment for trail running and snow sports, right up Marty's alley.  He has also been snowboarding once a week on the local mountains.

After the Hockey lockout finally finished we have been watching a lot of hockey as it is on every couple of days.

On Monday just gone we decided to hit the slopes again on Grouse Mountain in order for Erin to try out skiing. I had a lot of fun skiing and it was heaps easier for me than snowboarding, also I didn't spend as much time falling the snow. Marty spent the time snowboarding.

We hope all is well back home,

Cheers, Erin and Marty