Sydney to North America (62 Nights)

Menu

• Introduction
• Map of cruise (zoomable Google map)
• Cruise #1 - Sydney to LA Repositioning
  
• Cruise #2 - Pacific Wine Country
• Rocky Mountaineer - Discovery Circle
• Cruise #3 - Voyage of Glaciers (Northbound)
• Cruise #4 - Voyage of Glaciers (Southbound)
• Other Key Links

Introduction

The adventure begins 11 April 2025 when we board the Royal Princess in Sydney for the start of the 2025 - Pacific North America adventure and this blog. The blog will be updated when we find a few spare moments. Please check regularly as multiple blogs might be uploaded on the same day. The same is true for the photos.

This adventure covers 62 nights and includes:

• Sydney to LA repositioning on the Royal Princess (27 nights)
• Pacific Wine Country cruise continuing on the same ship (7 nights)
• Discovery Circle Journey Lake Louise on the Rocky Mountaineer (8 nights)
• Voyage of the Glaciers (Northbound) on the Coral Princess (7 nights)
• Voyage of the Glaciers (Southbound) returning to Vancouver on the same ship (7 nights)
• 6 extra nights in Vancouver

Cruise #1 – Sydney to Los Angeles repositioning

Cruise #2 – Pacific Wine Country

Rocky Mountaineer - Discovery Circle

Cruise #3 – Voyage of the Glaciers (Northbound)

Cruise #4 – Voyage of the Glaciers (Southbound)

Other key links:

• Just the photos:
• Cruise #1 and #2 - Sydney to Vancouver
• Rocky Mountaineer - Discovery Circle
• Extra days in Vancouver
• Cruise #3 and #4 - Voyage of the Glaciers (North and South)
• Full list of blog pages
  
• List of videos:
• Silent Disco Experience - 13 April 2025 (35 seconds)
• Tauranga sail-away (timelapse) - 15 April 2025 (30 seconds)
• Rough seas crossing the Pacific Ocean - 21 April 2025 (20 seconds)
• Our welcome to Moorea - 24 April 2025 (26 seconds)
• Love boat tune on ship's horn - 24 April 2025 (32 seconds)
• David's self-guided walking tours (with KMZ map files):
• San Diego, USA
• Victoria, Canada
• Other walking tours:
• Historic Downtown Honolulu (day 1)

Welcome from David and Lyn.

The format of our site is in three parts:

1. Blog server - our day-to-day travel blogs (this website)
2. Photo server - some of our key photos
3. YouTube channel - our videos (many linked directly from our blogs)

The site includes hundreds of searchable travel blogs. Some of our longer trips are listed below. 

General travel

• Bridge cams - Princess
• Unofficial Travel Awards
• Equator Crossings
• International Date Line

About

• David
• The Thalassophile (lover of the sea)
• The Musician - Uke resources
• The Presenter
• The Photographer
• The Ham (VK4DCP) - Ham resources
• The Vexillophile (flags)
• Lyn
• Countries visited: #1 to #25 | #26 to #50 | #51 to #75 | #76 to #100 | #101+
• Summary of cruises - Pre COVID-19 / Post COVID-19 

Thank you for visiting our website.

Best regards

David and Lyn
e-mail: brizzy@outlook.com.au

Cruise countdown

2025 Pacific North America - Blog Starting Page

2026 New Zealand Cruise - Blog Starting Page

2027 Circle Pacific Cruise - Blog Starting Page

Links to major adventures
2025 Pacific North America Cruise Blog - Apr 2025 to June 2025 Cruise #1 - Sydney to LA Repositioning Cruise #2 - Pacific Wine Country Rocky Mountaineer - Discovery Circle Cruise #3 - Voyage of Glaciers (Northbound) Cruise #4 - Voyage of Glaciers (Southbound)
2024 - World Cruise on the Coral Princess Blog - Apr 2024 to Aug 2024 Photos Segment #1: Sydney to Tangier - 35 Days Segment #2: Tangier to Dover (via Baltic) - 21 Days Segment #3: Dover to New York - 18 Days Segment #4: New York to Brisbane - 38 Days
2020 – Indian Ocean & South Africa Odyssey + Southern Australia Explorer Blog - Jan 2020 to Mar 2020 Photos
2019 - Hawaii, Tahiti and South Pacific cruise on the Sea Princess
Blog - Aug 2019 to Oct 2019 Photos
2018 - World Cruise on the Sea Princess
Blog - Jun 2018 to Sept 2018
Photos Segment #1: Brisbane to Dubai - 19 Days Segment #2: Dubai to London - 30 Days Segment #3: London to New York - 20 Days Segment #4: New York to Brisbane - 37 Days
2017 - Cherry Blossom cruise (a.k.a. China - Japan cruise)
Blog - March 2017 to April 2017 Photos
2016 - World Cruise on the Sea Princess
Blog - May 2016 to Aug 2016
Photos Segment #1: Sydney to Dubai – 20 Days Segment #2: Dubai to London – 35 Days Segment #3: London to New York – 11 Days Segment #4: New York to Sydney – 38 Days Home Leg: Sydney to Brisbane – 2 Days
2015 - Hawaii, Tahiti and South Pacific cruise on the Sun Princess
Blog - Jul. 2015 to Aug. 2015 Photos
2014 - South East Asia on the MV Voyager
Blog - Feb. 2014 to Mar. 2014
Photos Leg #1 Treasures of Asia Leg #2 Colours of the Indian Ocean
2012 - Caribbean cruise on the MV Voyager
Blog (by Lyn) - Nov 2012 to Jan 2013
Photos (by David and Lyn) Leg #1 Voyage to the Caribbean Leg #2 Caribbean Gems Leg #3 A Tapestry of Central America
2011 – Far East cruise on the MV Discovery
Blog (by David) - Dec 2011 to Feb 2012
Photos (by David) Leg #1 Treasures of the Orient and Vietnam Leg #2 Empires of the Sun Leg #3 South East Asia and Australia
2010 - Caribbean cruise on the MV Discovery
Blog (by David) - Nov 2010 to Jan 2011
Photos (by David)  Leg #1 Discovery of the New World Leg #2 Colonial Trails of the Caribbean Leg #3 Tales of the Old Spanish Main
2009 - Grand Voyage of Discovery from Mumbai (India) to London on the MV Discovery
Blog (by David) - Mar 2009 to May 2009
Photos (by David) Leg #1 India and The Persian Gulf Leg #2 Red Sea and Eastern Mediterranean Leg #3 Black Sea, Turkey and Greek Isles Leg #4 European - mainly the Mediterranean

Kamloops to Vancouver - Rocky Mountaineer
Thursday, 22 May 2025
Train left on time this morning following the Thompson River on the Canadian Pacific rail line to Vancouver. It was -2^oC degrees yesterday when we left Lake Louise, but this morning it was a balmy 7^oC degrees.

Kamloops has four seasons and is very dry … temperatures can reach 30^oC degrees in summer and drop down to -30^oC in winter.

The scenery began to change to desert-like. At some points it was lush and green on one side of the river and harsh and arid on the other.

As has happened numerous times during our journey, we could see the Rocky Mountaineer snaking around the mountains and over bridges. Today the 23 carriage train carrying 540 passengers travelled around the mountain, through Black Canyon Tunnel to Little Black Canyon … pretty impressive. Also went through many snow tunnels.

Lots of longhorn sheep on the mountainside, osprey and bald eagles in their nests (one even had a baby in it).

The Jaws of Death Gorge is a popular spot for white water rafting. The name also describes the large six-metre waves that can form in this area. This stretch of river is known for its challenging class III-IV rapids, making it a popular destination for whitewater rafting and kayaking. The most feared rapid is called the mother-in-law … he he.

Passed where the Thompson and Fraser Rivers converge at Lytton, and through Cisco Crossing where the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National Railway lines cross the Fraser. Hell’s Gate is the Canyon’s most popular and renowned tourist attraction.

Another fantastic day.

We arrived at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver at 7.45pm, signifying the end of our spectacular Rocky Mountaineer train journey. We transfer back to the Carmana Hotel and Suites tomorrow for 5 nights before boarding the Coral Princess for our Alaskan adventure.

Snapshot of our Gold Class Rocky Mountaineer Journey
Would definitely recommend this journey to anyone who loves spectacular scenery, learning a little about Canada and the Rockies, and interacting with others … as long as you like train travel and don’t mind a few early mornings! Yes, it can be tiring but also exhilarating … so worth it. We have experienced sea legs before but weren’t aware of train legs (a feeling of rocking or swaying) which is much worse!

Hosts were wonderful … very friendly, fun, helpful and informative; service was excellent; food was great … Ala Carte menu and a chef’s special for lunch every day; nice Canadian Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay; and the seats have plenty of leg room, options to heat and change lumbar support settings, foot rest, and recline. Beds were comfortable in all of the hotels we stayed.

For more photos / album slideshow:

Previous | 2025 - Pacific North America | Next

Lake Louise to Kamloops - Rocky Mountaineer
Wednesday, 21 May 2025
Unfortunately, the train was delayed by 1 1/2 hours this morning, so we didn’t leave the historic Lake Louise station until 9.30am … a lovely open fire to keep us warm and plenty of photos and memorabilia to see.

We travelled alongside the Bow River passing Castle Mountain, then through the Continental Divide (the boundary between Alberta and British Columbia).

The upper spiral tunnel (993 metres) and, shortly after, through the lower spiral tunnel (891 metres), reduced the gradient from a dangerous 4.5% to a more manageable 2.2%.

Along the Kicking Horse River through Kicking Horse Canyon, past the town of Golden, then following the Columbia River which flows 2011 kms from the Rocky Mountain Trench. Over the Stoney Creek Bridge … 147.6 metres and towers 90 metres above the creek bed … then through the 8.5 km Connaught Tunnel. We crossed the Illecillewaet River (meaning running or swift waters) 10 times during our journey.

Passed the Three Valley Gap … a 200 room hotel resort, and Ceaigellachie, where the last spike was driven on the Canadian Pacific Railway.

We had almost given up hope of seeing a moose, but this afternoon two females ambled past us. Our host said that they were lucky to see one moose a year, so we were pretty excited about seeing two. We also saw a coyote.

We didn’t arrive in Kamloops until 9.30pm … a very long but wonderful day. Overnight stay at the Delta Hotel.

For more photos / album slideshow:

Previous | 2025 - Pacific North America | Next

Jasper to Lake Louise
Monday, 19 May 2025
Travelled by coach from Jasper to Lake Louise along one of the most scenic highways in the world, the Icefields Parkway … constructed in 1940 and 230 kms long.

Our journey began when we crossed the Athabasca River to the magnificent Athabasca Falls. A quick stop to view Stutfield Glacier and Tangle Falls … both waterfalls were impressive.

Once again, the devastation from last year’s bushfires is evident, but the beautiful green evergreens appeared once again … stunning against the snow and ice covered mountains and blue/green lakes and rivers (the minerals from the stones and rocks giving them the unique shades).

The Columbia Icefield is one of the largest accumulations of ice south of the Arctic Circle and one of the most accessible icefields in North America. The Ice Explorer slowly transported us to Athabasca Glacier … 30 minutes to explore, take photos, and, if you wanted, drink the glacial water (or fill your water bottle for an evening tipple). The ice was a little slushy as it had been graded to avoid slips and falls. The glacier is between 100 and 150 metres thick. Unfortunately, it currently loses depth at a rate of about 5 metres per year and has receded more than 1.5km and lost over half of its volume in the past 125 years. Global warming?

After a buffet lunch at the Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Centre, we walked the Skywalk … a 400-metre boardwalk and a glass-floored observation platform extending 30 meters out over the Sunwapta Valley. Wow … pretty spectacular.

After crossing into Banff National Park, a huge black bear (quite content eating grass and totally unfazed by all the attention) welcomed us at the Saskatchewan River Crossing. We couldn’t believe our luck. Big horn sheep, Rocky Mountain sheep, and a pretty little chipmunk (which may take your finger off if you try to feed it) were also spotted today.

Snow began to fall at Bow Lake … it was a bit too cold and wet for us to brave the elements to see the frozen lake and cabin.

We encountered five rivers today … Athabasca, Sunwapta, North Saskatchewan, Mistaya and Bow.

Even though we had some inclement weather, we were really lucky as the skies cleared or cloud lifted at the appropriate times.

A wonderful tour today, made even better by Carson (our driver and guide from Brewster) … lots of information, some stories, and a good sense of humour. Carla kept everyone on point, so the tour was seamless.

We arrived at 5ish at the beautiful Fairmont Hotel Lake Louise for two nights before our return train journey to Vancouver via Kamloops.

For more photos / album slideshow:

Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada
Tuesday, 20 May 2025
Lake Louise sits at an elevation of 1,600 metres, making it Canada's highest community. It’s almost summer and the temperature was -1^oC this morning (it can drop to -30^oC in winter).

A sleep-in (until it warmed up a little), then the free shuttle into the town’s open air plaza.

A short stroll away was the Post Hotel … originally built in 1942. The concierge was more than happy for us to wander around. He particularly wanted us to see what he believes is the most beautiful room in the hotel … the library. We understand why it’s his favourite … it was really warm and inviting. The company’s vision - making a better world through cuisine and hospitality.

1. To preserve the diversity in cuisines and hospitality in this world;
2. To share our passion for all that is good and beautiful in this world; and
3. To work together to create a more humane world.

Would definitely stay at this hotel if we visited again.

It began to snow when we returned to the Fairmont. It finally stopped at 3.30, so we were able to begin our hike to Mirror Lake (7.6km return). An impressive gradient, it was up, up, up. The ground was slippery and muddy at times. Our friend Sharon was returning and was kind enough to give Lyn her hiking stick … thank goodness. The higher we got, the more snow we had to navigate. It was certainly worth the effort, as Mirror Lake (although frozen) was gorgeous. It snowed lightly while we were there … quite magical.

Lake Louise is so beautiful. The lake was frozen this morning, but by afternoon you could see the colour of the water as the ice began to melt. So pleased the weather improved and we were able to do the hike.

Jasper, the Ice Parkway experience, and Lake Louise have been absolutely incredible. We are still pinching ourselves!

We begin our two-day return rail journey to Vancouver tomorrow. Looking forward to more spectacular scenery, great food and nice Canadian wine.

For more photos / album slideshow:

Previous | 2025 - Pacific North America | Next