We’ve been trying to take an Alaskan cruise for three years. We originally booked this cruise in 2019 for the summer of 2020. As fate would have it, the pandemic made the trip impossible. That cruise rolled over to a Caribbean in 2021, which rolled over to another Caribbean in 2022. Finally, cruises opened back up again and as you’ve read, we’ve already been on two this year. With COVID restrictions lightening up throughout the year, it seemed positive that our trip would be successful. We ordered our home tests and both tested negative ensuring that our trip would finally become a reality.

Beginning our cruise in Seward, Alaska meant that a full day of travel was necessary before boarding our ship, even though we were not scheduled to sail until 8:30 PM. We left Boston the day before our sailing around 11:00 AM and flew 5 hours to Seattle for a two hour layover until our 3 hour journey to Anchorage. Our Delta Gold/Silver medallion status bought us some perks though, so our time in the air and in the airport wasn’t quite so grueling. On our way into Seattle, the skies were blissfully clear giving us excellent views of Mount Rainier and many other ridges in the Cascade Range. Likewise, from Seattle to Anchorage, the Olympic Mountains of Western Washington as well as the coastal mountains of British Columbia’s inside passage were awesome to behold.

We spent the night in Anchorage under a sun that never sets. In the summertime, this area only gets about 2 or 3 hours with no sun. We quickly realized we were not in the lower 48 anymore and bundled up in the coats we’d brought. It felt quite strange to be experiencing temperatures in the lower 50s in late July.

As nice as it would have been to explore Anchorage and nearby Denali National Park, we rose early to board a train that would take us to Seward to board our ship. Little did we know that the adventure would begin the moment the train pulled out of the station. Immediately we were plunged into the beauty of the Alaskan wilderness as the train chugged past tidal mud flats, glaciers, waterfalls, mountains, and lush forests. Though it rained, the beauty shown through bright and clear. The train moved too quickly for a picture, but we were fortunate to see two moose calves grazing in a meadow. Eagles were plenty along the route, but unfortunately that was the limit of our wildlife experience.

The train passed three glaciers in its three hour journey through the mountains and to the sea port. These frozen rivers are marvelous to behold in person. As we climbed the mountain passes, beautiful gorges with glacier filled rivers captured the attention of most of us on the train, and our cameras were filled with beautiful memories.

Coming into Seward Station, the train ride felt like a pre cruise excursion. We quickly disembarked and began a walking tour of the tiny seaside village. This was our first opportunity to act as Alaskan tourists. I bought a Puffin Christmas tree ornament. Apparently they are abundant in the area, however none were to be found during our short stay.

The town was small, and our stomachs began to crave food. Knowing that the ship contained an endless bounty of food, we headed toward the cruise terminal. We’ve been on many cruises now and are used to being herded through embarkation like cattle. To our great surprise, the terminal was practically empty. As we approached, we were virtually the only cruisers entering the facility. We made our way onto the ship with ease, and were soon seated at the Windjammer buffet enjoying lunch.

The Radiance of the Seas is the same class of ship we sailed on in April. With only slight differences, it felt extremely familiar and more than appropriate for exploring the Alaskan wilderness. We dinked around till our cabins were ready, then unpacked our cabin and settled in. When sail away finally arrived, we were blessed with plenty of sunshine and a bald eagle to send us off.

It’s hard to believe we’d only experience one day of the cruising and yet seen so much. Sleep was quick to come by knowing that tomorrow would be the beginning of a week filled with awe and adventure.