Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, who lives in Rivesville, took her first trip to Alaska.

Her reaction: Cool!

Jackie went with her daughter, Renee, a pharmacist at WVU’s Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown.

Since Jackie, like me, is a graduate of WVU School of Journalism, I’ll let her tell the story:

John, as you well know, Renee and I went on the Alaska cruise.  We flew from Morgantown airport to Dulles airport (in D.C.) and on to Vancouver, British Columbia and boarded the Regatta ship. 

While it is impossible to describe everything we saw and did, I will highlight the parts that we were excited about. 

The weather was lovely with temps between 57-62 and no rain on us during any of our excursions. 

We saw hundreds of Bald Eagles on our Ketchikan trip and later we went on a small boat and went out to see the whales. 

We saw 5 humpback whales diving in and out of the water.  We went whale-watching in Maine one year so we knew how playful they can be, knowing they have an audience. 

Later we went through the Tongrass National Park that has trees and more trees, moss and Redwood trees.  My picture was taken by a Redwood tree that was 500-600 years old billed as the second oldest Redwood in the USA.  

The next day we were off to see the Mendenhall Glacier and Gardens in Juneau, the capital of Alaska.  This is a rainforest and colorful gardens. 

At the end of the tour, we saw a glacier that was impressive! 

Since we went more than 5,000 miles by ship, some of our tours were 24-36 hours apart. 

We went on to Icy Point (Hoonah) where our tour guide was a 17-year-old Tlingit Indian girl. 

She told us about their ancestors and struggles they faced.  They don’t have a long growing season so they can't grow vegetables.  All of their supplies come by boat or plane twice a week. 

Walmart came in but would sell all of its wares in two days and the Tlingit had to wait another two days before new supplies arrived.  Walmart closed after one year. 

We enjoyed the Tlingit tribal dancing with a narration of happenings. 

This island is isolated and has a population of 300. 

We were on the ship 36 hours and saw and took many pictures of the icebergs that broke off the Hubbard Glacier (which is called "calving").  The pieces were much larger than a huge house! 

The Captain let us take pictures for 30 minutes on the port side and then turned the ship for the other side.  Unbelievable and impressive! 

We went to Skagway and experienced the Yukon passage which is 3,290 feet above sea level. 

John aside: Skagway is where Paula and I flew with a bush pilot, sending moose scattering everywhere.

We boarded a catamaran to see the wildlife near Sitka.  Injured Bald Eagles and owls are nursed back to health and set free.  Those who never heal completely are kept at the center. 

We moved on, driving to the Fortress of the bear rescue facility at Silver Bay.  These bears were injured by car or other animals and brought here to live the rest of their lives. 

Alaskan state law does not allow the bears to be released to the wild again.  They had a forest type arrangement for them but humans throw food to them from a high bridge.  We were allowed to take pictures from this bridge. 

Our last day of exploring brought us to the gorgeous Butchart Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia.  We spent 3 hours in the gardens and certainly could have been there all day.  They have uninterrupted blooms from March to October. 

There is an Italian garden, Japanese garden and a sunken garden and many more around the widening paths. 

There are many waterfalls and fountains.  The flowers are beautiful and breathtaking with the rose garden being so special. 

I know I made this a long narration but I couldn't stop myself from reliving the precious memories we made. 

Love, Jackie

As always, if you email photos in jpeg format to John Olesky at jo4wvu@neo.rr.com with details of YOUR trip I’ll put them on this Monongah High Alumni blog.

The leap in the number of hits shows me that other Lions want to know about the adventures of their former classmates and neighbors.