Alaskan Cruise
Jolayne and I wanted to celebrate finding re-employment as well as our 20th Wedding Anniversary by escaping reality aboard a seven-day cruise. After much deliberation between tropical or scenic, hot or cold we chose an Alaskan Excursion via Celebrity Cruise Line aboard the Millennium. Accompanied by the love of my life we boarded our Ship leaving behind all worries and responsibility as we were immediately overwhelmed by the food, spirits and hospitality of the crew. We participated in the ships activities, as well as found time to snuggle on our balcony to take in the astounding view of the northern west coast drenched in heart-warming sunshine. Eagles constantly soared overhead, we watched whales majestically rise from the depths and brown bears meandered along the shorelines keeping a wary eye on the trespassers into their bountiful domain. The mountain range and glaciers were the icing on the cake-ever present, with one word to accurately portray this Alaskan Landscape – Phenomenal. But, as all vacations do, our vacation came to an end, but the memories remain. All I can say is thank God for such a beautiful world and I look forward to our next opportunity to experience more.
Submitted by:
Timothy G., Chatham
Alaska is the largest state of the United States of America by area at 1,477,277 square km and is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait. As of 2007, Alaska remains the least densely populated state, with a population of 683,478 with approximately 50% residing along the Anchorage metropolitan areas. Alaska has more coastline than all the other U.S. states combined. It is the only non-contiguous U.S. state on continental North America; about 800 km of British Columbia separate Alaska from Washington state and therefore Alaska is an exclave of the United States. Juneau, Alaska's capital city, though located on the mainland of the North American continent, is inaccessible by land-no roads connect Juneau to the rest of the North American highway system.
According to an October 1998 report by the United States Bureau of Land Management, approximately 65% of Alaska is owned and managed by the U.S. federal government as public lands, including a multitude of national forests, national parks, and national wildlife refuges. Of the remaining land area, the State of Alaska owns 410,000 square km; another 180,000 square km are owned by 12 regional and dozens of local Native corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. Alaska is administratively divided into “boroughs”, as opposed to “counties” or “parishes”.
The climate in Juneau and the southeast panhandle is a mid-latitude oceanic climate in the southern sections and a subarctic oceanic climate in the northern parts. On an annual basis, the panhandle is both the wettest and warmest part of Alaska with milder temperatures in the winter and high precipitation throughout the year. The climate of Anchorage and south central Alaska is a subarctic climate due to its short, cool summers but mild by comparisson to the rest of Alaska due to its proximity to the seacoast. The climate of western Alaska is a subarctic oceanic climate in the southwest and a continental subarctic climate farther north. Finally, the climate of the interior of Alaska is best described as extreme and is a good example of a true subarctic climate. Some of the highest and lowest temperatures in Alaska occur around the area near Fairbanks. The summers can have temperatures reaching into the the low to mid 30s°C, while in the winter, the temperature can fall below -52°C. Precipitation is sparse in the Interior, often less than 25 cm a year, but what precipitation falls in the winter tends to stay the entire winter.
Capital City: Juneau
Currency: US Dollars (USD) - Order Online
Language(s) Spoken: English
