Excellent Trip

Glaciers are always exciting on these trips and Hubbard is outstanding. It stretches for about 76 miles with a 6-mile face that ranges from 300-300 feet in height. There is no way a picture can do justice. Unfortunately Sue did not have much time to watch the glacier calve because of an extremely sick patient. When we got back out into the ocean near a small village, the captain stopped the ship and we sent Sue and the patient on the tender to connect with an ambulance on shore that rushed her to a waiting plane and on to the hospital. I believe that this was the busiest trip that Sue ever had as nurse.

The weather was absolutely fantastic which is amazing, especially at this time of year. We saw numerous whales, several of them bubble feeding which is most interesting. On a side trip I watched a mother bear teaching her two cubs to fish in a small waterfall. She was an expert but they were slow learners. The sea otters are fun to watch and watching the huge Bald Headed Eagles is a real thrill. I was surprised to see the Time Bandit (Deadliest Catch) ship in port and walked out to get a few pictures and a closer look. To my surprise the father of the guys was on board and we had a good chat about the guys and the workings of the ship. During our stop in Victoria BC I visited the Butchart Gardens that are filled with an amazing variety of flowers throughout the huge rolling area. It is a splendid example of what can be done with the remains of a limestone quarry which supplied limestone for Mr. Butchart's portland cement plant many years ago.

We left the ship at Seattle early in the morning and were not scheduled to fly out until late at night, so we rented a car and saw many sights in and around the city starting with the Pike Market and ending at a park overlooking the city. Sue has a friend that now lives in Seattle, so she gave us a good itinerary that included lunch at a charming deli (picture) with all sorts of exotic possibilities.

Thanks for your prayers, emails and phone calls. You are each a blessing!

Love, Chuck