Doug's Photos

Saturday, June 21, 2025

Icy Strait, Skagway, Juneau

We'd just finished traveling through the heaviest concentration of glaciers in Alaska, so it was time to get back to more settled parts of Alaska. Not that they don't have glaciers, but they're not as close together and not as big.

Except for the picture below, click on a picture to see more pictures from that day.

June 18, 2025 - Cruising to Icy Strait

Just a relaxing day at sea.

June 19, 2025 - Icy Strait

We've been to Icy Strait a few times. The first time we were there we didn't see much but we learned that it is one of the best spots for whale watching. In many cases you can see the whales from the shore. We did a boat cruise, which is usually the best way to see whales, but our best whale shots were on the cruise ship... while it was docked!

We had just finished lunch and were back in our rooms when we saw the whales from our balcony. We don't always get a cabin with a balcony, choosing instead to save some money and get a cabin with just a window. But when we go to Alaska, especially on a glacier cruise, we always get a balcony. This time it was really worth it!

Aftter lunch, and our unexpected whale drive by, we took the Sky Peak Gondola for panoramic views of the area.

June 20, 2025 - Skagway

Most of our time in Skagway was spent on a tour to see Davidson Glacier. We boarded a small boat in Skagway and cruised down Chilkote Inlet, past Haines where we'd been a week before, to Glacier Point Wilderness. Once there we had a short hike to another landing where we boarded a 31 foot canoe for a short ride across a lake to a point near the glacier.

After the glacier tour we took the boat back up Chilkote Inlet where we had a view of some of the wildlife and waterfalls. Click on the pic above to see the photo album with some of those pictures. We had a little time to explore the town before we had to get back on the ship, enough to make our traditional stop at Klondike Brewing Company for a flight of some great local beer.

June 21, 2025 - Juneau

One of our favorite things in Juneau is the whale watching tour. We didn't see as many whales as we did in Icy Strait, or as many as we had on our last trip to Juneau, but we did a couple of distant shots.

The van that takes you to the harbor for the whale watching tour stops on the way back to port for a nice view of Mendenhall Glacier.

Click one of the pictures above to see more pictures for that day.

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

Glacier Bay, Hubbard Glacier, Valdez, Seward & College Fjord

Glaciers, glaciers, and more glaciers! Leaving Sitka we headed into parts of Alaska with some glaciers we'd seen before, but some we'd never even heard of. This was definitely the part of Alaska to see tidewater glaciers!

Click any of the pictures below to see more images from that day.

June 13, 2025 - Glacier Bay

First up was the classic Glacier Bay. If you only have time to see one glacier in Alaska, this is the one to see. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and for good reason. The glaciers are stunning.

June 14, 2025 - Hubbard Glacier

Our next stop was the Hubbard Glacier, which is the largest tidewater glacier in North America. I actually didn't know that until the AI type ahead in VS Code told me! But I double checked and it's true!

June 15, 2025 - Valdez

A lot of people have heard of Valdez because of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Not as many remember it as the town that was completely wiped out by a tsunami from the 1964 Alaska earthquake, which was a magnitude 9.2, the largest recorded equake in North American history and the second largest earthquake ever recorded. After that event the town was rebuilt in a different location.

Our tour took us to the Worthington Glacier near Valdez. After what we'd seen the previous two days it was a bit of a let down. But not to worry, Growler Bay Brewing Company, walking distance from the port, had a decent flight of beers. Click the picture below to see more.

June 16, 2025 - Seward & Aialik Glacier

Next up was Seward. Although it is one of two ports within driving distance of Anchorage, it's a 2.5 hour drive and we didn't have time to do that. So we just stayed in Seward and took a boat tour to see the nearby Aialik Glacier, one of the most active glaciers in Alaska. I think it was actually one of our best glacier tours so if you're in Seward we highly recommend it.

Click the picture below to see more from that tour.

June 17, 2025 - College Fjord

College Fjord is a beautiful fjord with more tidewater glaciers than any other location in Alaska. It actually puts Glacier Bay to shame. It's named College Fjord because the glaciers are named after colleges

Click one of the pictures above to see more pictures for that day.

Thursday, June 12, 2025

Ketchikan, Wrangell, Haines and Sitka

The first leg of our Alaska cruise was from San Francisco to Ketchikan, Wrangell, Haines and then Sitka. We'd never been to Sitka before but Ketchikan is one of our favorite ports with the George Inlet Lodge all you can eat crab feast!

Click a picture below to see more pictures from that stop.

June 6, 2025 - Leaving San Francisco

There are usually beautiful views leaving San Francisco and today was no exception.

June 9, 2025 - Ketchikan - Crabs & Beer

We've been to Ketchikan several times and one of our favorite things to do is to eat at the George Inlet Lodge. They have an all you can eat crab feast that is delicious and a great value. We also enjoy the local beer, which is brewed right there in Ketchikan at the Bawden Street Brewing Company, one of the most enjoyable ways to support a Vet!

June 10, 2025 - Wrangell - Wildlife & Sunrise

Wrangell is a beautiful island with lots of wildlife. We were lucky enough to see some eagles.

June 11, 2025 - Haines - American Bald Eagle Foundation

Another very small port with some beautiful scenery. We visited the American Bald Eagle Foundation and got to see some of the eagles and other birds up close. We also went to The Three Northmen Tasting Room and Haines Brewing Company, which was a great way to support local businesses and enjoy some delicious beer. All are walking distance from the port.

American Bald Eagle Foundation Rescue Eagle

June 12, 2025 - Sitka - Alaska Raptor Center

Beautiful sail into port followed by a visit to the Alaska Raptor Center, which is a great place to see some of the local wildlife up close and learn about the conservation efforts to protect these amazing birds.

Click one of the pictures above to see more pictures in the various photo albums

Sunday, April 27, 2025

California Coast Cruise

This was a short seven night cruise down the California coast from San Francisco to Ensenada, Mexico and back. We visited several ports of call including Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and San Diego.

Below is a map showing where I took pictures during the cruise. Click on the map to see a full size interactive Google map.

Boarding the ship in San Francisco we were greeted with an Easter display.

Our cruise started with a day at sea so we could just relax and unwind. Storm clouds may look gloomy but they make for some gorgeous views if you wait long enough.

In Santa Barbara we had to take a tender boat ashore, which is less convenient than a docking port where you can just walk ashore. Luckily there were a number of attractions within walking distance of the port, including multiple brewpubs which served beer flights.

Our next stop was Los Angeles, where we had a food tasting tour in the Venice Beach area. The biggest problem with the Los Angeles port is that it's not near anything. So expect to spend some money to get anywhere and, of course, given L.A. traffic allow plenty of time. Click the picture below to see pictures of some of the local surfers and Venice Beach canals.

The highlight of the trip was probably our visit to the San Diego Zoo. Click the picture below to see more pictures from the San Diego Zoo including a panda! The Karl Strauss Brewing Company is an easy walk from the cruise port so we stopped there as well as another nearby brewery for beer flights on our way back to the ship.

The final stop on our trip was Ensenada, Mexico. We had a tour of some of the local breweries for a few more beers. I hadn't realized how big a part of the local culture beer is in Ensenada. There's even a yearly beer festival. Click the picture below to see some of the local beers we tasted.

Click this link or one of the pictures above to see more pictures in the April 2025 Californa Coast Cruise photo album

Monday, February 17, 2025

Nov 2024 to Feb 2025 Asia trip

Did a long three month trip starting in Korea and Japan. Next boarded a cruise from Tokyo to Hong Kong with stops in various places along the way. Then flew from Hong Kong to Manila and spent most of the month of December traveling in the Philippines. And finally, we flew to Singapore, staying there a few days before boarding another cruise from Singapore to Hong Kong with a lot of stops along the way, including a snorkeling trip at Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Click here to see some of the best pictures from this trip.

Below is the map showing where we took photos. Click the picture to see an interactive map. Click any of the pins in the interactive map to see more details on that photo and a link to the blog entry.

Sunday, February 16, 2025

Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam

After our January cruise from Singapore to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia then back to Singapore, we stayed on the ship to cruise onward to our final destination for this trip, Hong Kong with stops in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Click here to see some of the best pictures from this cruise.

Feb 03, 2025 - Nathon (Koh Samui), Thailand

Buddhist Temple Phra Sangkachai Wat Plai Laem

Feb 4 to 5 - Ayutthaya & Bangkok Overnight Tour

At the stop for Bangkok we had an overnight tour, spending the night in Bangkok and visiting a number of nearby sites including Ayutthaya which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Mahanakhon is a 78-story, 314-meter-tall mixed-use skyscraper in Bangkok’s Silom/Sathon CBD. Known for its unique "pixelated" design, it is one of Thailand's tallest buildings.

Feb 06 - Sihanoukville, Cambodia

This was by far our worst excursion of the entire three month trip. A long dusty ride in an old bus with multiple stops where we were pretty much dumped off with little explanation of where we were or why we were there. A fairly decent lunch followed by another long dusty ride. This 12 hour tour was worse than a waste of time, it was torture.

Durians are so stinky that many hotels specificially prohibit bringing durians into your room.

Feb 8, 2025 - Phu My (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam

Today we had a private tour which took us from the port city of Phu My to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. The tour included a visit to the former Presidential Palace, since renamed Independence Palace, then renamed again to Reunification Palace.

Feb 11 to 12, 2025 - Hue, Da Nang & Hoi An, Vietnam

We had an overnight in Da Nang. The first day we took a private tour from Da Nang to the former Imperial City of Hue. The second day we had a tour to Hoi An and Da Nang.

Hoi An is a UNESCO World Heritage site, renowned as a former 15th-19th century trading port featuring exceptionally preserved, yellow-walled Chinese, Japanese, and European-influenced architecture

Feb 14, 2025 - Halong

Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is renowned for its thousands of towering limestone islands This was tthe most scenic stop on this leg of our trip.

Luon Cave is a stunning, 100-meter-long natural tunnel on Bo Hon Island in Halong Bay, renowned for its arch-shaped entrance leading to a serene, enclosed emerald lake.

Sung Sot cave is the largest and possibly the most frequented by visitors of all the caverns in Halong Bay.

Click one of the pictures above to see more pictures for that stop.

Thursday, January 30, 2025

Singapore, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia

From the Philippines we headed to Singapore for a few days before boarding a cruise that took us to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia including the Great Barrier Reef before returning to Singapore.

Click here to see some of the best pictures from Singapore to Australia and back cruise.

Below is the map showing where we took photos during the cruise. Click the picture below to see an interactive map. Click any of the pins in the interactive map to see when and where the picture was taken and a link. Click that link to go to the picture in the blog post below.

Jan 2025 Singapore to Australia and Back Cruise

Click one of the pictures below to see more pictures for that day.

Jan 1 to 2, 2025 - Singapore

We had a few days in Singapore before we boarded a cruise... to Singapore! Yes, our firstof two cruises was a Singapore to Singapore cruise.

This iconic structure, built since we were last in Singapore almost 25 years ago, consists of 3 55 story hotels topped with the 340 meter long Sky Sands Park. We never made it to the park but I bet there's a great view from there. Next time!

Jan 3, 2026 - Singapore Zoo

This was probably our most interesting day in Singapore when we visited the zoo, including a Panda!

Jan 7, 2025 - Puerto Princesa, Philippines

The highlight of our day in Puerto Princesa was the underground river, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The cave was interesting but it doesn't photograph well. So don't expect too much from this day.

Jan 9, 2025 - Bitung, Sulawesi, Indonesia

Today we took an excursion that drove us to a volanic lake, Lake Linow. Along the way we stopped at a Buddhist temple (for a rest stop), a local produce market, a cemetary and a local village that builds houses without any nails. If that doesn't sound very exciting, it wasn't and I struggled to find any good pictures.

Jan 12, 2025 - Jayapura, Papua Indonesia

Today we were supposed to take a tender boat to shore. Due to weather we were unable to do that and the stop was canceled. But we did see a bit of Jayapura from the ship as we hung out offshore to see if we'd be able to use the tender boats or not.

Jan 14, 2025 - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea

Today we had a tour which took us to the Vulcanological Observatory which monitors 14 active and 23 dormant volcanoes on Rabaul.

Mount Tavurvur is the most active volcano in Rabaul caldera, and erupted most recently on 29 August 2014.

Jan 15, 2025 - Kiriwina Island, Papua NewGuinea

Today we stopped at Kiriwina Island. There wasn't much there but we were able to walk to a snorkeling spot.

Jan 16, 2025 - Conflict Islands, Papua New Guinea

Today the snorkeling was much better than our previous stop. A small boat took us to a somewhat remote, but still very busy, sand beach from which you could snorkel. For shore snorkeling it was actually pretty good!

Jan 18, 2025 - Cairns, Australia

In what was probably the highlight of the trip, we stopped in Cairns where I was able to do some of the best snorkeling of the trip in the Great Barrier Reef! Note that getting to the Normal Reef took a long boat ride. We were also required to wear a full body suit to protect from potentially deadly jelly fish. During the snorkeling we had to keep an eye out for the tour guide calling us back to the boat if there was any danger.

That strange looking fish is the bumphead parrotfish. It's really quite large, up to four feet long, and startled me a few times when a group of them came up behind me. Did you know that parrotfish each coral and rocks and excrete it as white sand? Know that white sand beach you love to lounge on? In the Carribean and Hawaii it's estimated the 70% of it has gone through parrotfish intenstines.

Jan 22,2025 - Darwin

We had a walking tour followed by a beer tasting. Not a real exciting day.

Jan 24, 2025 - Scenic cruising Batu Tara Volcano

Jan 25, 2025 - Slawi Bay, Komodo Island, Indonesia

Jan 26, 2025 - Lembar, Lombok, Indonesia

Today we did a fairly strenuous hike to multiple sets of waterfalls.

Jan 27, 2025 - Benoa (Denpasar), Bali

Our full day private tour took us to see a Barong Dance a sacred Balinese traditional performance representing the eternal battle between good (Barong) and evil (Rangda), aimed at restoring balance in the world.

We also visited a batik store and a local producer of kopi luwak, also known as civet coffee. This is a coffee that consists of partially digested coffee cherries, which have been eaten and defecated by the Asian palm civet. The coffee does taste smooth, but maybe a bit bland. It's also the most expensive coffee in the world with costs from $100 to over $1,000 per pound.

Jan 29, 2025 - Tanjung Priok, Jakarta

Today's stop in Jakarta was canceled due to weather.

This was our last stop before returning to Singapore.

Click one of the pictures above to see more pictures from that day.