Russian Orthodox Church in downtown Sitka, Alaska

It’s always sunny in Sitka, Alaska. Well, at least the two times we visited this town, it was. You know how we reason about things;  if two people are doing it, then we claim “everyone’s doing it”. Every port we visited, it was cloudy and cold, in the the summer. But Sitka, was different. It’s a comfotable little town that is great to walk. Most of what you want to see is within walking distance. This little church seem to find my camera and an HDR shot was just what it needed to amplify it’s coolness. Hope you agree.

Russian Orthodox Church, Sitka Alaska
Dave Morgan, Creative Commons

Cruisin’ Through Glacier Bay, Alaska

I don’t think I’ve felt farther from civilization, then I felt in Glacier Bay, Alaska. It’s like you get a flat tire there, you’re gonna be eaten by wolves. Well being on a cruiseship, it could break down. I guess that’s not a bad thing. By the time you eat up all the food, another cruiseship is barreling through. You might get a little tired of the entertainment.

Not many people go out on deck, when cruising in Alaska. The air, even in the summer is quite cold, when the boat is moving. But the scenery is like nowhere else in the world. My guess is the only place close, would be up in Sweden and Norway, through the fjords, and down in New Zealand through Fjordland. Got to put those on my bucket list.

Daily Photo:

Glacier Bay, Alaska
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

All Hands on Deck! Glacier Bay, Alaska

Well maybe not. The rain kind of kept people in while approaching Margerie Glacier. The deck was quite slippery. Good thing we were in a calm bay. On a cruiseship, traveling up through the bays was my favorite part of cruising. You get to see quite a bit, including wildlife up closer. Don’t forget the binoculars!

Daily Photo:

All Hands on Deck
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Tour Boat at Margerie Glacier, Glacier Bay, Alaska

Little late getting this photo out. Busy time of year.

Doesn’t this look a bit frigid. Well it actually was. Pieces of ice float by the tour boat as it approaches Margerie Glacier off to the right. I decided to go with a black and white HDR photo, with a little green showing through. You can see photos of the Margerie Glacier under “Categories”, then “Alaska”. We were watching from a distance on the comfort of a Cruiseship. Though it wasn’t that comfortable because it was raining at the time. Keeping the camera from the weather is always a challenge in circumstances like this. But you do what you can and just marvel at the majesty of it all. That is Alaska!

Daily Photo:

Click “Categories” to the right to see more photos of Alaska

Glacier Bay Tour Boat
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Totem Pole, Sitka, Alaska

Many Totem Poles can be found as you hike the paths through Sitka National Historic Park in Alaska. Thought I’d turn the photo to black and white, and then colorize back in the original colors in Photoshop. It’s interesting to see how many different variations the native indians came up with, for their unique totem pole. Sitka is one of my favorite Alaskan towns. It’s easy to walk and enjoy this quaint part of Alaska. For some reason, each visit here has had the best weather, and maybe that’s why I want to keep coming back.

Daily Photo:

Click on any Photo to see Entire Gallery

Totem Pole, Sitka, Alaska
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Cruise Ship Pier at Juneau, Alaska

Pulling into Alaska’s capital of Juneau almost looks make-believe from atop a cruise ship using a bit of HDR. It was raining and that made it fun and different for us Arizonians. We spent the day walking all over Juneau, with umbrellas and a nice steady rain. What more could you ask for. We don’t get much of that in the desert, so it truly was a pleasant experience, soaked shoes and all.

Daily Photo:

Click any Photo to See Entire Gallery

Cruise Ship Pier, Alaska
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Light House near Sitka, Alaska

You truly feel like you’re at the top of the world, in Alaska. Everything there is larger than life, raw and wild. Heading back out to the Inside Passage from Sitka, you pass Rockwell Lighthouse. The area is peppered with small islands underneath towering mountains to the south. The cloud formations constantly moving, constantly changing, perfect for HDR-type shots. I think I could spend days traveling around and photographing this beautiful corner of the world. My second trip here and it only gets better each visit.

Daily Photo:

Click any Photo to See Entire Gallery

Rockwell Lighthouse

A Glimmer of Sunset in Alaska

Quiz:

The TravelBugster is out traveling on “The Romantic Road” this week. Anyone want to guess where in the world this is? Leave a comment and let me know if you can guess it? No Google, No cheating!

Daily Photo:

It had been cloudy, and the expectation of a sunset were pretty slim. But I waited, talking to a couple sitting on the cold, windy deck, trying to stay warm under some blankets from their room. As I was adjusting my camera for the sunset, right in front of me, in the water, a whale came up and spouted his spray, which reached all the way up to the deck I was on. I yelled to the couple, come check out the whale, but as quickly as it came, it was gone. I had a great view of it, but the couple didn’t. You can’t plan for these things, but it doesn’t hurt to be at the right place at the right time, at least waiting for something to happen. In my case a fleeting sunset. It wasn’t much, but it turned out to be an event worth going out for.

Click on Photo to Enlarge and see Entire Gallery

Alaskan Sunset on the Volendam
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Margerie Glacier in Glacier Bay, Alaska

Daily Photo:

You feel like you’re about as far away from civilization as you can get when you’re here. The cruiseship gets about as close to the glacier as is safe and your eyes are completely focused on catching the sluffing off of ice called calving. We saw this huge arch-shaped piece of ice, more like something you would see at Arches National Park in Utah. We waited and then it came crashing down. I caught it all on video. Pretty exciting.

This photo caught my attention because of the dramatic clouds that crawled up the side of the mountain heading towards the blue-hued glacier. The mammoth size of this flowing ice is quite awesome to see.

Margerie Glacier
Buy a Print-See Gallery
Dave Morgan-Creative Commons

Cruise Ship Westerdam in Sitka, Alaska

Daily Photo:

Love cruising! You unpack once and you’re done for the week. Somebody else takes the wheel, and you do whatever it is you want to do. Recently we spent a week cruising out of Seattle to Glacier Bay and back. Imagine leaving 112 degrees in Phoenix to an area that is 40-50’s. We spent most of the time with jackets and gloves on and loved every minute of it. I think one of these months I’m going to do a whole month of cruising photos from the Caribbean, Alaska, Mexico and Europe. That will take some putting together, but I think I’m up to it. If you want to know about some of our favorite cruising spots let me know.

Westerdam in Sitka, Alaska