Day Five –Cruising the Inside Passage – September 5, 2009

The Inside Passage - a protected waterway approximately 950 miles long. Along this route you’ll see snowcapped mountains, forests, waterfalls, glaciers, and deep, narrow channels. Just great scenic and peaceful beauty.

I woke up pretty early, before the sun came up. We’re 3 hours behind Central time. Hope this doesn’t continue! I sat and watch out our porthole while Ray slept and watched the steep mountains rising right out of the water as we pass by. We’re cruising pretty slowly. The water’s calm and it’s foggy with a light rain. I think the weatherman was right. Looking on the bright side, I’d say it’s going to be a beautiful misty day. I love to photograph things in on a foggy day – especially at night!

Most of you remember this shot I did back in December ‘08 in New Orleans?

For those of you who haven’t seen this - it’s actually Ray walking down Pirate’s Alley.

As the sun rose, we were able to get a better view of what lies ahead on our journey through the Inside Passage. It’s approximately 8 hours of the same scene – but all beautiful. The only thing that’s a bummer if you’re not actually there, is it all looks the same in pictures. Being there is one thing, it’s miles and miles of lush forested misty mountains and peaks. Ray and I headed out to get some shots.

The water was deep, deep green color. You can tell it was cold.

Periodically, a fishing boat would pass by. And they would wave at our large intruder in their lush, quiet world.


There were areas where the fog was so thick and dark, all you could see was a bit of the coast. Otherwise, when it rose, you only got a glimpse of the smaller mountains along the passage.


Ray and I sat on the 4th deck where the life boats hung above our heads. It’s the only place where we’re protected from the light rain and the cold wind.

It was interesting watching the mist rise from the forest on the side of the mountains. It’s almost like it created all this mist lying over the tops.

There was a section of the Inside Passage we went through that was only a fifth of a mile wide at its narrowest point and dropping to a depth of 400 feet. Amazing how these huge ships can maneuver through such a tight space.

The rest of the afternoon we just relaxed on a lounge chair and watched the passage go by.

Tomorrow we stop in, Ketchican, Alaska. I hope the weather clears!