This day we boarded the Denali Express train taking us from Denali National Park down to the cruise ship port in Whittier.
You would think that a 10 hour train ride would be boring and uncomfortable. But this one wasn’t. The seats were very plush. Everyone had a great view of everything with the glass-domed observation railcars. And there was a Princess Cruise Line “guide” of sorts who told us a lot about the area. His name was Paul. And as it turned out, he was celebrating his 48th wedding anniversary that day. His wife, Doris, was a cruise line employee as well.
I saw probably the most moose I’ve ever seen in my life while riding on the train. Besides the moose, there was quite a lot of beautiful scenery traveling the almost 300 miles from Denali to Whittier.
The train had a nice dining car where I tried another unusual meal: macaroni and cheese with reindeer kielbasa. It was quite yummy.
There are two different itineraries for cruise-tours on Princess (and I’m sure other cruise lines do the same thing) where you can either cruise before or after your land portion. We choose after so that we could relax on the latter half of our vacation. The land portion did tend to be hectic, changing hotels every night. So we were glad to be able to have the last seven days be onboard the Island Princess.
TEDDY’s RATING: 
At this point, I have to say that I wasn’t all that happy or impressed with Princess Cruise Lines. I had been on a Princess ship way back in the early 1990s on a cruise of the Mediterranean. But since I’ve sailed on Royal Caribbean, I much prefer that line. But Princess had more offerings in Alaska, so we went with them. There were just a lot of little things about Princess that annoyed me, things that I wouldn’t have encountered on a Royal Caribbean ship.
The first was that embarkation was unbelievably slow. We got on the ship much later than expected, which meant we got to dinner much later and in turn missed the first stage show that night. Then when they had the mandatory muster (drill in case of emergency, wearing your life jackets, etc.), the audio didn’t work where we were so we had to wait until it got fixed and then listen to the entire presentation again, all while standing cluttered with about 100 other passengers in a hallway.
But anyway, we were onboard the ship looking forward to seven days of cruising to Glacier Bay and the three ports: Skagway, Juneau and Ketchikan.
Dates of Visit: June 2011
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If you’re a native to North Carolina, you probably know who Zeb is. The third of 
eight children, Zebulon Vance practiced law in Asheville and at age 24 was elected to his first public office. His mountain upbringing helped him achieve success. He was a man of the people, promoting basic human rights, and was “a champion of local self-government and individual liberty.”
High in the Mount Pisgah National Forest, about 40 miles from Asheville, is the Cradle of Forestry, the birthplace of forest conservation. It was established over 100 years ago during the construction of the nearby Biltmore Estate. This is where the first school of forestry, the Biltmore Forest School, was established by Dr. Carl Schenck, chief forester for George Vanderbilt’s Biltmore 
Estate.
My advice – immediately ask to see the OLD movie. They’ll play the old movie by request. I sure wish I had known about that option earlier in my day. I was expecting to see a film about the history of the area, no such luck.
sense. And honestly, it doesn’t deserve as much space as I’m giving it here in this post!
This family owned business is just north of Asheville, North Carolina, near Marshall. They offer 1 hour, 2 hour, 3 hour and 4 hour scenic trail rides, the longest ones stopping at their 200 year old Little Pine Garnet Gem Mine where you can explore the mine and keep any gems you may find.
One hour was plenty of time for me. I was happy with the peaceful ride through the countryside. The landscape was beautiful and we had wonderful weather that day, just perfect.
Chimney Rock State Park is about 25 miles southeast of Asheville and located near Lake Lure. The centerpiece of the park is, of course, Chimney Rock, the base of which rises to an elevation of 2,280 feet. Climb to the top of Chimney Rock, another 315 feet, and you can see for 75 miles. In spring, summer or fall, it’s a lovely sight.
There are several trails throughout the park, some easy walks, some very 
challenging. I always opt for the easy-going trail to the base of Hickory Nut Falls, one of the highest waterfalls east of the Mississippi. It may be one of the easiest of the trails, but it’s still a bit of a walk. However, deep into the forest it’s so quiet and relaxing. You really feel like you’ve escaped from the stress of your every day world.
The highlight of your journey to Grandfather Mountain is the Mile-High Swinging Bridge, which is a mile above sea level and affords 360 degree views, on a clear day, of up to 100 miles. Built in 1952, this 228 foot steel structure is America’s highest suspension footbridge.
Mount Mitchell State Park was the first state park in North Carolina, established in 1915 and named after Elisha Mitchell who was the first one to determine the mountain’s height. At the summit, which is fogged in most days, lies an observation platform and a memorial to Mitchell. In addition to Mount Mitchell, there are several other peaks in the area over 6,000 feet above sea level including Mount Hallback, Mount Craig, Big Tom and Balsam Cone. With 8 miles of hiking trails throughout the park, you can truly get back to nature here.
