What a Day in Skagway

Skagway, Alaska

Skagway, Alaska is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. Count it in the same column as the Badlands for me. When we booked our cruise, I expected to see things nature wise that I would connect with. Skagway checked all the boxes. We reached port around 7:00 a.m. and by 8:30 a.m. we were off the ship. The town used railway to survive in its infancy and now uses those same rails to give visitors a easy way to see its beauty. Once off the ship, we headed on a hike on the Dewey Lake Trail System. We found a stream with hundreds of salmon swimming. Salmon have become such a fascinating species for me but more on that when we get to Ketchikan. We had rain the entire day, but our adventures more than made up for it. The hues of green seemed never ending. In a word, it was stunning. We hiked to the Gold Rush Cemetery which was a little under a mile and a half walk. If you are short on time, there are plenty of ride options to get there. We wanted to hike it so off we went. The Gold Rush Cemetery is Skagway's most famous cemetery and while some might think it's strange to make that a destination, it's one of the spots we wished we could have spent more time at. Once we walked back, we stopped for a quick snack and readied ourselves to board the White Pass rail excursion.

White Pass Rail Line

Our one excursion that we booked on this trip was a ride to the White Pass Yukon Summit. It was a trip back in time that relives the days gone by. During the gold Rush the first to touch the lost frontier made their way through this rough terrain seeking treasure. The view up the mountain was spectacular and the engineering, crazy. One wrong step and you find yourself tumbling down a long way. The other side, you are up against granite rock at times and amazing waterfalls at others. The views are in my top two from a nature perspective. The train navigated through tunnels built into the mountain and over wood bridges that appeared to be just holding on. As we ascended, we came across the "Ghost bridge" which appeared out of nowhere. The broken down bridge looked haunted as it appeared through the fog and mist. We reached the summit and then began our way back down. We captured things we missed on the way but our 2.5 hour tour seemed to end as quickly as it began. Food wise, there were a couple of spots I looked forward to on our trip. Skagway Brewing was one. One of the best parts of social media is being able to see really people and their experiences both good and bad. Skagway Brewing was one that was raved about and I'll give you a sneak peak preview. It DOES NOT disappoint. We ordered the fish and chips. It was prepared perfectly and it tasted like it was just reeled in and put on our plates. The homemade tartar sauce was so good and gave the fish the perfect balance of flavors. Once we were done on the train, we walked Skagway and found the Happy Endings saloon and the Morningwood hotel.

After an amazingly full day of adventure, we headed back to the ship.