Talkeetna #1

It was a beautiful day in Ketchikan this morning with brilliant blue, cloudless skies and mild temperatures (mid 50’s). Although excited for the next leg of our adventure, I think we were all a little sad to leave. We really enjoyed out time there and would love to go back someday.
We checked out, got a ride to the airport, and began loading the plane. We have done this so many times now, it is becoming a routine. I pull out all the bags and lay them on the ramp. Then, I do my preflight while Michele gathers clean clothes and repacks them in a new bag. I swear we haven’t purchased much of anything, yet the baggage compartment seems to be getting stuffed full. We’re almost “cubed out” as they say in airplane-speak (out of cubic inches, no more room for stuff).

Michele snapped a few nice photos as we took off and climbed out to the Northwest. Initially, we leveled off at 6,500 feet to enjoy the view, but I knew from the forecast that poor weather lay ahead. When I saw the clouds in the distance, we began our climb to 10,000 feet. We were on top of the clouds most of the way, but had to descend down into the clouds as we approached our planned fuel / lunch stop in Yakutat. We picked up a little ice, but it was nothing serious. I flew another instrument approach and we soon touched down to the wet runway under dark, gray skies in a light rain.

Yakutat would probably not be my first choice of stopping points, except for its location. It lies almost exactly halfway between Ketchikan and Talkeetna. The fuel pump there is self-serve, so I taxied right up to the pump. Michele and Sandy took the kids inside to get warm while Roland and I wrestled with the pump. We finally got it working and pumped 50 gallons into each wing tank.

After we finished fueling, we pushed the plane back away from the pump a bit (hard to push!) and joined the rest of the family in the restaurant. I wish I had my camera with me, but I left it inside the plane. This place had character! The sign out front said “Food, Shelter, Booze” and had a big, stuffed bear inside. We ate a quick lunch and then headed back out to the plane for the next flight.

We climbed back up to our cruising altitude and soon the weather began to improve. As we neared Anchorage, we were in the sunshine with blue skies above. However, there was a solid layer of clouds below. The tallest mountains poked out like islands in a cloudy ocean. I took a bunch of pictures from the plane as we headed inland toward our destination. We even got a glimpse of Denali (Mt. McKinley) in the distance as we began our descent.

Cameron had a fever last night and was not acting like himself today, so Michele and Sandy took him to see the doctor while Roland and I took the older boys and got checked into the hotel. The Talkeetna Lodge is BEAUTIFUL! It sits on a hill with a nice view of a creek and the mountains. You can see Denali when the weather is clear.

Before too long, Cameron was back with a bottle of antibiotics. After dinner, we went for a walk around the lodge and the kids had fun playing on the grassy hills. Cameron really perked up and it was great to see him back to his old self again. After a while, we sat in a grassy spot in the shade with a view of Denali and just relaxed for a while. It was really nice and I hated to end it, but it was getting late and it was time to start getting the kids settled for bed.

It’s really weird how it doesn’t get dark here. It’s 11pm as I’m writing this and its broad daylight outside! Good thing they have heavy curtains here in the hotel room. Tomorrow, we’re scheduled to take a ride on the Alaskan railroad and go river rafting.

Ketchikan #2

Fun day today! After breakfast this morning, we took a walk downtown to look around. Michele and Sandy did most of the shopping while Roland and I tried to keep the kids entertained. There was a little square with some local artists and one guy had an owl and a bald eagle. Brandon and Cameron enjoyed seeing an eagle up so close.

At 11, we picked up our box lunches from the hotel and headed back to the airport for our sightseeing flight. It had been sunny all morning, but it started raining on the way there. We hoped it wouldn’t affect our flight. We met our pilot / guide, Scott, and he didn’t seem concerned about the rain as he walked us out to the Caravan with amphibious float (retractable wheels on pontoons). We all got strapped in and we took off.

It was nice being a passenger for a change. I rode up front and took lots of pictures while Scott flew us away from the airport and over downtown Ketchikan. We gained some altitude and skimmed the ridges heading toward the Misty Fjords. We flew down into valleys, over glaciers, and landed on a lake. After landing we saw some bears on the shoreline. He maneuvered the plane up to a big rock in the middle of the lake and we all got out and had lunch. It was so BEAUTIFUL! After lunch, we took off again and flew low-level down a glacier –what a rush! Everyone really enjoyed the flight.

Once we got back to the hotel, Michele and Roland went back downtown to do some more shopping while I did some flight planning for tomorrow. We’ll be flying from Ketchikan to Talkeetna with a fuel / lunch stop in Yakutat.

Ketchikan #1

After breakfast, we got checked out of the Four Seasons Vancouver and headed to the airport. The weather had changed a bit overnight and it was chilly and breezy as I performed the preflight. Everything check out fine, so with the luggage all loaded, we piled in and took off for the frozen North!

I knew that it was going to be cloudy and overcast most (if not all) of the way to Ketchikan, so I requested 12,000 in order to get on top of the clouds. It worked –just barely! As we climbed out of Vancouver and into the murky clouds, the temperature kept dropping and we picked up a little ice. I kept a close eye on it, but it was not accumulating and we were soon skimming the clouds in the sunshine at our cruise altitude.

We all know, what goes up, must come down…eventually. As we approached Ketchikan, I listened to the airport conditions on the radio: Overcast clouds at 3000 feet and light rain –no visual approach this time! We got back into the clouds as we began our descent and maneuvered for the instrument approach. Because of the mountainous terrain in the area, this approach was a bit complex with lots of altitude step-downs, and tight turns. I executed the approach as published and, sure enough, the runway came into sight as we finally descended below the clouds a couple miles from the airport.

The customs agent came out to greet us as we taxied in. He was polite, but thorough and I spent about 15 minutes with him poking around the airplane and examining my documents while everyone else cooled their heels inside. Finally, we were free to go.

Our hotel , the Cape Fox Lodge, is really pretty. It’s at the top of a big hill overlooking downtown Ketchikan. It even has its own tram to take you up and down! We hadn’t eaten lunch yet, so we went to the lounge and had a couple appetizers after we got checked in. Then, Michele went to the room for a nap while I took the boys for a walk. We found a nice footpath through the woods leading down to a big creek. We followed the path and ended up near the base of the tram. There really scenic shopping area built on stilts at the river bank. All the shops were closed for the day, but we did a little window shopping. I think Brandon really loved our walk –he seemed really happy and thanked me for taking him to Alaska.

After our walk, I had time to shower and change before we headed down to the hotel restaurant for a delicious dinner. I got some fantastic king crab legs and seafood chowder –yummy! We took another short walk after dinner and now we’re getting ready to go to bed. It’s just now getting dark at 10:15pm. Tomorrow, we’ve got a sightseeing flight scheduled to see the Misty Fjords and land on a glacier. We might get to do a little fishing as well.

Vancouver #2

After breakfast this morning, we decided to head to the Vancouver Aquarium in Stanley Park. The weather was beautiful today (sunny, 70’s) and we considered walking there (1 hour walk), but decided to take a cab so we would have more time there.

Although we were mainly there for the Aquarium, the rest of surrounding Stanley Park is beautiful and I would love to spend some more time there if we are ever back this way. The Aquarium was very nice, but quite crowded. I am getting more crotchety in my old age and I am getting to hate crowds, so I was kind of itching to get out of there from the time we walked in. Despite the lack of elbow room, the kids had a great time. They especially enjoyed seeing the newborn Beluga whale and the frog exhibit.

We cabbed it back to the hotel and started looking for someplace to get lunch. We tried the food court in the mall next door, but it was PACKED! We decided to eat in the hotel instead and then went up to the rooms for some rest. The kids took a nap while I poured over my Alaskan & Canadian aviation charts, flight planning, and weather reports to get ready for our flight to Ketchikan tomorrow. I also called my buddy Howard who lives in Alaska to get some pointers.

This evening, we walked a few blocks to a nice little pizza / Italian restaurant and then went to see “Kung Fu Panda” at the theater next door. It was really funny and I think everyone liked it.
With any luck, I’ll be writing you from Ketchikan, Alaska tomorrow night. I am excited for the flight tomorrow and hope to get some good pictures, even though the forecast is not the best for sightseeing (cloudy / overcast). The weather is supposed to clear up as the week goes on.

Vancouver #1

Whew –what a long day! We got up this morning just after 6:00 to vacate our cabin and get to breakfast by 7:15. We set all of our luggage out the night before, so we only had to gather up our carry-on stuff.

By about 8:15, they announced that we could get off the boat. We lingered a few minutes over breakfast and said our goodbyes to Mom & Dad, Kent & his family, Pi & his family, and Cristina’s relatives. We had to stand in line about 20 minutes after we got off the boat to get through customs, but after that, it was a breeze. We got a porter, found our luggage, and got out to the curb just as our driver was pulling up at about 8:45. Traffic was light and we had no trouble getting to the airport. They were pulling our plane out of the hanger as we drove in the gate. I love it when a plan comes together!

Once we got to the plane, I took some time to do my preflight while Michele sorted through all the boys suitcases removing shorts & swimsuits and adding long pants & jackets for the next phase of our journey. Before long, we had everything stuffed back in the plane –except… Justin couldn’t find his Nintendo DS games. Michele was already irritated from shuffling clothes on the tarmac and just about had a fit about Justin’s games.

Roland and I herded everyone in the plane as quick as we could, shut the doors, and got ready for take-off. When I called for my clearance, they gave me a SID (standard instrument departure) procedure that I wasn’t expecting: Anaheim-3 departure, Lake Hues transition. I dutifully programmed it in the GPS and realized that was just a fancy way of saying they were giving us the sightseeing tour. After take off, we had to fly South for a while (we are trying to get to Canada!) and then East before we could finally begin to turn North and West. While it was frustrating because it added about 30 minutes to our flight time, I must admit, I enjoyed the scenery.

Finally, we climbed away from Los Angeles heading Northwest. The weather was perfect for flying: Clear blue skies, good visibility, smooth air. In pilot-speak it’s CAVU (ceiling and visibility unlimited). We stopped for fuel and to pick up lunch in Redding, CA. There were some forest fires nearby and, unfortunately for us, a bunch of tanker planes landed right after us and got priority on fueling, so we had to cool our heels for an extra 30 minutes. I used the time to call Canadian Customs our driver in Vancouver to let them know we were running late.
After departing Redding, we flew over some mountainous terrain for about 50 miles and had a bit of turbulence, but things smoothed out after that. We ate our lunch on board and then settled in for the remainder of the flight. The air temperature continued to drop as we headed North, which is great for the engine performance. We were making good time in zero degree C air temps as we approached Vancouver. The arrival into Vancouver was beautiful! I wish I wasn’t so busy on the radios & instruments so I could take more pictures!

After landing, we taxied to the Canadian Customs facility and shut down. In the US, we would typically be greeted by a customs agent right away, but I didn’t see anyone around. I called them on my cell phone and they informed me that they wouldn’t be coming out today and that we should consider ourselves cleared. Cool! I got back in and taxied us to our parking area where our van was waiting.

We decided to spoil ourselves a bit here in Vancouver before we head off into the bush country, so we are staying in a nice suite at the Four Seasons. After check-in, we had dinner and then came up to the rooms. It felt so nice to shower & change after a long day of traveling. Hard to believe I was on a Cruise ship in LA this morning!

What about Sandy? You may recall that Sandy was not feeling well earlier in the trip and has been staying with family in Texas while we were on the cruise. We got her a ticket to Vancouver and she was supposed to arrive about the same time as us this evening. During the ride to the hotel, I checked my voice-mail and Denise had called from Texas. Sandy didn’t make the connecting flight in Los Angeles (schedule change?), but that she was coming in at 8:50. She made it to the hotel safely and we’re glad to have her back with us for the rest of the trip!

Day at Sea #3

Ahh… Another day to sleep in… We got up late and I spent some time this morning doing a little flight planning for our trip North from Los Angeles to Vancouver via Redding, CA. My cell phone was working, so I also took the opportunity to finalize some tours we are planning in Alaska. Later in the morning, we went and had a character breakfast with Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip & Dale. The kids seemed to have a good time and we got some nice pictures.

We dropped off the kids in the camp just before lunchtime. After lunch, a bunch of us meet up for a beer tasting and then Michele & I took a galley tour, which was fascinating! Next, I came back to the room to pack up my suitcase and help Michele get the room organized.

Tonight, I am writing my journal entry a bit early, so I can pack up the computer, cords, etc. We’ll have our last dinner onboard this evening and then I plan to turn in early and get ready for a long day in the saddle tomorrow. Knowing Michele, she will probably try to maximize her fun and stay our late –hopefully, she’ll tip-toe on the way in.

Day at Sea #2

We enjoyed a relaxing day at sea today, which was a nice change. We woke up late and Michele went off to the spa while I took the boys to breakfast. Next, we went up on deck to watch Mulan on the Jumbo-Tron screen by the pool, but it was too cold & windy, so we came back inside. I took the boys to the arcade for a while and then we went back to the room to meet up with Michele after her spa treatments.

Michele took the boys out for a walk while I picked up our voice mail and returned a few calls & e-mails. After lunch, Michele & Roland took the boys to see the new Chronicles of Narnia movie while I had my afternoon siesta.

When they got back from the movies, we had just enough time to shower and change for our big group photo at 5pm. We had our family, Kent’s family, Pi’s family, Wes & Mary + Cristina’s Mom and 2 aunts and their families. There must have been 30-40 of us altogether!

After the photo shoot, we dropped off the kids at camp and then most of the adults went to Palo’s for dinner. The food was wonderful and we all had a great time. About 9pm, the pagers started going off, so we quickly settled the tab and picked up the kids.

Tomorrow, we have one more day at sea and then we’ll be back in Los Angeles.

Puerto Vallarta

By the time we set our clocks ahead one hour last night, it was nearly midnight, and boy was it tough to get the boys up this morning at 7:15am for our Dolphin Encounter shore excursion! We finally got everybody up, dressed, fed, and off the boat by 9am.

Puerto Vallarta seems much nicer than the other two ports of call. We had a short bus ride to Vallarta Adventures Dolphin Encounter and were pleasantly surprised to find a very nice facility. After waiting only a few minutes, our trainer came by to take us out to the docks. Kent & his family and Pi & his family joined Brandon, Justin and me. Michele, her dad, and my parents were observers and watched from the dock.

We climbed down a ladder into the 16’ deep pool and stood on a platform about 4 feet below the surface. We broke up into two groups and started by petting the dolphin while the trainer gave us a little dolphin education. Afterwards, we took turns kissing kissing and shaking hands with the dolphin. After we finished our encounter portion, the trainers had the dolphins do some jumps and high-speed swimming. Once we got out of the water, we showered off and then got a quick photo-up with a Sea Lion. They served a nice Mexican lunch and we had some time to relax before boarding the bus for the return trip to the ship.

Back on board, we had our customary afternoon siesta and then headed up to the deck to swim. I read my book a bit while the boys played in the pool. Before long, it was time to get cleaned up for dinner. Tonight’s theme was pirate night and everyone was dressed up with bandanas, eyepatches, and the like. In addition, we celebrated Brandon’s birthday (next month). After dinner, Kent challenged me to a Karaoke showdown which I naturally accepted. It was Disney Karaoke, so we had to pick from a narrow list of songs and we both ended up singing Smashmouth (All-Star & I’m a Believer).

At 9:45, we headed up on deck for the Pirates IN the Caribbean Party (never mind, that we’re not actually in the Caribbean right now) which is always a lot of fun for the kids. There’s lots of dancing and Disney Characters and the grand finale is a fireworks show.
After three days of shore excursions, Michele and I are looking forward to sleeping in and relaxing more during our two days at sea on the return trip to Los Angeles. We’ve got nothing much planned tomorrow and that’s just fine with us!

Mazatlan

We pulled into Mazatlan this morning and the view of the port was not very inviting. The weather was gray overcast with occasional rain sprinkles and the port area is very industrial. It is quite different from scenic Cabo San Lucas yesterday. At least we were docked at the pier and didn’t have to take the tender boats.

After breakfast, we met up with our tour group, got off the ship, and boarded a big bus for a 40 minute ride to the ranch. The town seemed really poor and run down. I had no desire whatsoever to spend any time there.

Luckily, by the time the kids started to get really antsy, we were almost there. We first pulled off the road to tour a small chapel and take pictures at the scenic overlook. Then, we piled back in the bus for the short ride to the ranch.

The ranch used to be a working Blue Agave farm and tequila factory, but now it is a nice little hotel. The kids jumped right into the pool when we got there, while some of us walked around and explored the area. The tour advertised a petting zoo, but the animals were filthy and smelly, so we didn’t bring the kids over.

They served a Mexican lunch and then I got in the pool for a while with Cameron, Kent, and Sophie –we had a great time! Meanwhile, Justin was playing near some flowers out front and got stung by a bee on the cheek. I felt bad for him, but he recovered quickly and was soon swinging away at the piñata.

Everyone took a nap on the bus ride home. Naturally, they dropped us off outside the market, so we had to walk through a bunch of shops on the way back to the ship. We got through unscathed and went to the room for our afternoon siesta.

After dinner tonight, Cameron & Sofia went to “his club” for a while Brandon went to his camp and made “Flubber”. We all met up later to see the show, Twice Charmed, which we all enjoyed.
Tomorrow, we are scheduled to do a dolphin encounter. We have done this a couple times before in the Bahamas, but we thought we’d do it again just to spend time with the family. I’m sure we will have fun.

Cabo San Lucas

We pulled into our first port of call this morning, Cabo San Lucas as we were eating breakfast this morning. The waiter pointed out several rock formations that looked like Scooby Doo and Drinking Dragon. I had a little trouble seeing them, but it was nice to see land, anyway. There are lots of cool looking rocks out in the water and much of the town is built onto the side of hills. Much different from what we are used to seeing at our Caribbean destinations.

Most of the family went on the Nikki Beach Break excursion. After tendering to the pier, we boarded buses for a short ride to a nearby resort (I forgot the name). The resort was beautiful and seemed very relaxing. They had a really nice pool with lots of cabanas & beds all over the place to relax in the shade.

We were lead through the resort to the beach area where we grabbed a couple lounge chairs with umbrellas and a cabana with a bed. Mom & Dad got comfortable in the shade on the bed, while we took the kids down to the water to play. It was too chilly for me, but the kids had a great time playing in the surf.

Later on, we got some lunch at the little buffet they had set up for us on the beach. After lunch, everyone was starting to get tired of being in the sun, so we jumped in a cab to the pier and got back on board our home-away-from-home. We went up on deck for a while and it was almost empty, since everyone was on land in Cabo. We got some more to eat, swam in the pool, and played ping-pong. Finally, we decided to retire to the room for our afternoon siesta.

After dinner tonight, Cameron & Sofia went to the kids club for a while. Cameron was so cute –he took Sofia by the hand and showed her around “his” club. They both seemed to be having fun, so Kent & I ducked out and left them to play. Brandon has been enjoying his freedom on board and has been handling it pretty well so far. He spent most of the night playing with Bailey & Alexsis. Michele picked up Cameron and then joined Justin & I at the comedy show.
Tomorrow, we’re scheduled to join the rest of the family at the Mexican Family Ranch Party in Mazatlan.

Day at Sea #1

We enjoyed a nice lazy morning today, the first of the trip. We slept in a bit and then rolled out for a late breakfast. Later on, Michele had a spa appointment and I took the kids to the video arcade for a while and then for a walk around the ship. Around lunchtime, I checked them into their camps and then met up with Michele for lunch at Palo’s, the adult-only gourmet restaurant. It was delicious and relaxing!

After lunch, we picked up the kids and then came back to the room for a little nap. Later on, Brandon & I met up with Kent, Mom & Dad for the Mickey 200, where we built & raced a car made of vegetables (we came in 2nd).

After dinner tonight, we went to see Jutin Kredible, a magic / comedy show, which was really terrific. Then, we went to the Golden Mickey’s broadway-style show. Tomorrow, we will be arriving in our first port of call, Cabo San Lucas. We are meeting up with the rest of the family on a beach excursion. I’m looking forward to another relaxing day!

Los Angeles

We really enjoyed seeing Kyle & Kirsten, but I don’t think I’ll be back to Phoenix in the summer –man, it’s hot! Walking out of the hotel doors at 8am felt like sticking your head in an oven.

Kyle & Kirsten picked us up at the hotel and gave us a ride back to the airport. We spent a few minutes getting loaded up and took off into (warm) clear, blue skies. The flight into Long Beach was about 2 hours and went very smoothly. We touched down at a few minutes past 11am and an SUV was waiting to take us to the Cruise Terminal.

Our timing was perfect: We bumped into Kent & Cristina just as we arrived. The check-in process was quite a bit slower that we’ve experienced in Port Canaveral, which threatened to put me in a foul mood, but I felt much better after we got on board and ate some lunch.

After the mandatory life-jacket drill, we invited everybody over to our room for a bon voyage party as we pulled away from the docks.After dinner we went to the show and then finally came back to our rooms to collapse after a LONG day! Tomorrow is a day at sea, which should be much more relaxing.

Phoenix #2

We had a very relaxing day today! We at breakfast downstairs here at the hotel and then headed out to the pool. Kyle & Kirsten joined us at the hotel and we spent the morning relaxing, swimming, & floating around the lazy river. After lunch, I took the boys back to the room for a quick nap.

Later in the afternoon, we all went out to the Desert Ridge Market, a big outdoor mall nearby the hotel. We stopped in Dave & Buster’s and went bowling for a while and then enjoyed a nice steak dinner. Aftwards, we got some ice cream and took in the live music in the courtyard.

Now, it’s time to get ready for bed. Tomorrow, we’ll be checking out & flying to LA to board the Disney Cruise.

Phoenix #1

Roland & Denise went to the hospital early this morning to try to speak with Sandy’s doctor to find out what’s going on. Her salt levels had fallen again overnight and they planned to keep her another day. They still didn’t have any idea what was causing the problem.

Michele and I discussed the matter over breakfast and, though we were reluctant to leave without Sandy, ultimately decided to go with plan “B”: We would continue on to Arizona to visit Kirsten & Kyle, and hope that Roland & Sandy would meet up with us in Los Angeles in time for the Disney Cruise. We checked out of the hotel and headed to the airport.

Once we finished loading the plane, Michele called her Dad for an update. He said that he would be joining us after all. Aunt Denise & Uncle Marvin assured us they would take good care of Sandy until she was ready to travel. We grabbed a quick lunch in Boerne, picked up Roland at the hotel, and headed back to the airport for departure.

It was a great day for flying. The weather was terrific all along our route and I took a bunch of pictures of the passing scenery. We stopped for fuel and to stretch our legs in El Paso, TX. As we took off, the controller vectored us Southwest, putting us over Mexico for a short time. Our departure route paralleled the US / Mexico border for about 50 miles. It was fascinating to see the big line in the sand from the air.

Kyle & Kirsten were waiting for us at the airport when we arrived in Phoenix. After we got the plane secured, we all went out for dinner nearby and then to our hotel to check-in. This place is really nice and it has a huge pool with a lazy river. I don’t think we will need to leave the resort at all the next couple days!

We’re all feeling the effects of the time change (3 hours difference from Eastern) and I can barely keep my eyes open, so that’s all for now.