Paradise at Mt. Rainier!

The definition of the word "Paradise" according to Webster's Online Dictionary is

1. a place of rest, bliss or delight; 2. Eden..."

Last Monday (8-23-10) we visited one of our favorite places in the world.... Paradise @ Mt. Rainier! We truly had a taste of this "heavenly" place as we hiked among the meadows and hills covered with incredible wildflowers. We took the picturesque Skyline trail then out to the Paradise Glacier from the Visitor Center. The further from the main area we went, the more quiet and beautiful it became. God's delicate handiwork on full display! And then in addition to the visuals was the fragrance. Beyond description! Since pictures are worth a thousand words, I'll let them speak of the wonders we saw on our hike!

Noteworthy of mentioning, is the event that we witnessed after we headed back down the hill. It was at dusk that we saw a the marmots. There were Marmots everywhere- laying in the sun, eating flowers, running through the meadows and then some were...well...it looked like they were doing some type of wrestling dance. We found a video that shows what we saw...

We were amazed when we saw them wrestling like this right in front of us. Needless to say, we learned something new about marmots on Mt. Rainier.

To top it off, we stayed on the mountain to see it illuminated by the full moon. I'm glad we stayed! It was quite a sight to see. A perfect end to our day.

If you ever get a chance to visit Paradise @ Mt. Rainier (especailly in July, August months) maybe you'll see a glimpse of "heaven" also.

Running on His Course.
The Schillings (Jay, Vicki, Hannah & Grace)

Race Update: We have approx. 40 days until the Royal Victorian Marathon on Oct. 10th. We've been training and are looking forward to it!

The Last Frontier - ALASKA!!!

When they say that Alaska is the "Last Frontier," . . . . we NOW understand why. It is truly a land of incredible beauty, majesty and for lack of a better phrase - BIG WILDERNESS! After months of anticipation, we had the chance of a lifetime to travel to Southern Alaska on a cruise with my parents from Oakland, CA.

We boarded the Celebrity Infinity at Pier 66 in Seattle on Friday afternoon July 23 very excited and ready for an unforgettable adventure. And Alaska surely didn't disappointment!!! Once, we were joined up with my parents, we quickly prepared ourselves for life at sea aboard a cruise ship.

It was sunny and warm when we left Seattle, with clear blue skies. What a start to our trip!

With the first full day at sea sailing past Vancouver Island, our ship headed through Alaska' inside Passage to its first destination. We spent the time catching up with Grandma & Grandpa and got a chance to experience the varied and excellent dining experiences onboard. We arrived early on Sunday morning and were alerted promptly at 7am with "Good Morning and welcome to Ketchikan!" followed by instructions for getting on and off the ship while at port.

We explored much of the city and its unique stores and visitor areas including a totem pole museum that held carvings created before the turn of the 19th century. Ketchikan contains the largest collection of totem poles in the US. We also saw salmon thick in the river that ran through the town. And we even did a little shopping with Grandma Janet!

Once we reboarded, the ship headed on overnight to take us to the Tracy Arm Fjord. We had been alerted to the beauty and majesty of this leg of our trip, so we were up early (some earlier than others) and on deck ready to take it all in. Boy were we glad! We got front row seats as the cruise ship navigated its way to the doorstep of the Sawyer glacier. What a breath-taking sight!!! We were told by the staff naturalist that we were very fortunate to get that close to the glacier, since most ships are hindered due to the amount of fallen glacier ice in the water.

Once we turned around and started heading out, together we took in the beautiful scenery coming the opposite direction. We even saw a seal on an iceberg just hanging out!

From there it was on to Juneau, the capital city of Alaska. (Intrestingly, Juneau is the only US capital that is accessable ONLY by boat or plane. There are no roads into or out of the city area.) It is a dramatic port with towering mountians right out of town. Also the green of the landscape was vibrant and deep. The sun was shining and the port had a very attractive downtown area that was full of tourists from the 4 cruiseships that were docked. After we enjoyed the town, we reboarded and ate another wonderful dinner in the ship's formal resturant called, "The Trellis." Afterward, we decided to go onto the upper deck and enjoy the peaceful and dramatic sunset! What a great end to our day and the halfway point of our trip.

The next morning, we docked at Skagway at 7am. It was cloudy and cool. However, as the morning went on, the clouds parted and the sun shined brightly the rest of the day. It was easily the warmest day of our trip with temps into the upper 70's. We enjoyed this incredible little town nestled at the bottom of some incredible mountains that towered all around. We realized quickly that Skagway, with a regular population of approx. 800 year-round residents, exponentailly increases when 2 or more ships pull into port. (This day there were 4 cruise ships docked in Skagway). We walked the main street and shopped a bit just enjoying the history and scenes from this historic Yukon gold rush town.

After a delicious lunch back aboard the ship, we got prepared for the White Pass train ride that took us up one of the famous pathways that thousand of gold-seekers used to travel heading for the Yukon where the last big gold rush took place in the late 1800's. It was a scenic and soothing ride with incredible vistas of the surrounding mountains. What a blessing to be together in such a wonderful place and we enjoyed every minute of our time in Skagway.

The next day, our ship headed out of the inside passage and then south following the Canadian coastline. We enjoyed our second formal night at dinner and lots of great memories.

After the full day at sea, we rounded Vancouver Island and headed eastward into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. During our sailing, we saw several humpback whales surface amid the foggy ocean. The next day we reached the final stop Victoria, B.C. for a short stay before we headed back home. We had a beautiful walk into this elegant city and enjoyed our time strolling by the Empress Hotel and surrounding streets. Time seemed to fly by as it was time to head back to the ship. Feeling thankful and a bit tired from all the walking, we quickly went to sleep. When we awoke the next morning we were already docked right back in Seattle where we started this adventure.

What a wonderful journey to Southern Alaska we enjoyed and our time with our family was priceless. We have great memories (and pictures) from a 7 day trip that will last us a lifetime! It was relaxing and awe-inspiring all at the same time! How thankful we are to have had such an opportunity! (Thanks Dad and Janet!)

On to our next adventure. We're looking forward to returning to Victoria in a few weeks (10) for our marathon run. It's time to hit the road and train hard!!!!

Until next time.... on course for His glory!

Jay, Vicki, Hannah & Grace