This began innocently enough in April or May 2008 when Gary asked, “are you and Gail interested in an Alaska Cruise?” “Sure,” I responded, “when?” Gary went on to explain that his sister Sandy and her husband John wanted to do something to celebrate their 40th anniversary and they with Sue and Gary were considering an Alaska cruise for the event. Almost instantly we began researching the possibilities.

Within a few days we began pooling our research. With Gary and Sue being Holland America cruisers and Gail and I being Princess cruisers, it was no surprise where we looked first. It was at this point we began considering extending an Alaska cruise with a land tour and a Princess cruise tour listed as “13 NIGHTS EXPLORER: KENAI” caught our fancy.

As we continued to investigate Gary once again posed a seemingly innocent question. “How many do you suppose we would need to get group rates,” he mused. “Don’t know,” said I, “but I can soon find out.” An email exchange with the Princess group booking department got the answer. I initiated a group identity with Princess and Gary, Sue, Gail and I began casting about for others with a potential interest.

We were looking for five to eight couples but almost immediately there were potentially two dozen expressions of interest. Suddenly the reality of trying to organize a group of that size fell at our feet. After further discussion with the initial group of three couples we decided to retreat and began looking for a professional travel consultant.

Gary and Sue had previous experience with Laurie at CAA Hamilton so we approached her with our ideas. Laurie immediately made us feel welcome and after an initial meeting with the four of us we felt comfortable making arrangements through CAA with Laurie’s guidance.

It is now near the end of May 2009, a year since the idea took root. The group stabilized at eight couples. Laurie, Jamie and Diane at CAA Hamilton have assisted greatly in organizing a complex itinerary into a travel experience that promises to maximize individual flexibility and group enthusiasm. We have finally arrived at the point of no return, nearly, when we have to get out the cheque book. As of this date Thursday, May 28, 2009 only 100 days remain until the plan matures into reality.

The purpose of this web site is to document our group experience from as many as 16 view points. The initial chronicle will be the pages of this web journal. I also hope to be able to migrate this journal to print and publish it as a memoir for all. A third product that may evolve from this experience is a photo book for our coffee tables. It is my sincere hope that everyone will contribute in his or her own way.

Prior to departure, the web site has been populated with a couple of pages with photos taken during the latter stages of the planning process and a template describing briefly each segment of the tour. They are organized in chronological order so it should be easy to follow. The first page of each segment provides the dates of travel.

Here we go!