Thanks for your review. I'm glad you mentioned that the scenery was beautiful and that Liz is a qualified naturalist. We are very fortunate to have her on our team. As far as the number of eagles, a dozen is actually a pretty good number. The Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve boats thousands of bald eagles in November. But in the summer, eagles are on the nest and are territorial, so you don't find large concentrations of bald eagles until they are off the nest beginning in September. The great thing about the trip is to see the eagles on and near their nests; the area where we float has a high concentration of nesting bald eagles because it is a rich and pristine environment. Another great aspect of our rafting trip is that it gets you completely away from the road and out in the wilderness where it is quiet and the air smells fresh and clean. I am sorry to hear that your boots leaked. Hopefully, you told our guide Liz about them. Our protocol is to replace or repair any and all leaky boots right away. Fortunately, most tours do not involve walking in the water- the boots are mainly to keep your feet dry in case there is some splashing water that gets into the raft. The nature of glacial rivers are that they are shallow, and occasionally a raft gets stuck on the gravel. If the guide can't get the raft floating again, participants may need to get out in the shallow water while the guide moves the raft from shallow to deeper water. This rarely happens but does happen now and again. As far as the transfer in Skagway, I am sorry if you misunderstood what we provide. At the beginning of the tour, we meet you in Skagway at the cruise ship dock just past security. We provide a meet and greet service and transfer to the Fast Ferry dock. At that time, our Skagway rep tells all guests about the return protocol. When you return to Skagway, there is a bus service that provides regular transport from the Fast Ferry back to the ship. My Skagway guides explain to all guests that this service is paid for by Rainbow Glacier Adventures- all you have to do is inform the bus driver that you are with our company and they do not charge you-they bill us. So our guests are never forced to walk back one half hour from the Fast Ferry back to their ship.I apologize if that was not make clear to you.

I'm sorry to hear that our trip did not meet your expectations. This is a rafting trip in the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. The birds are wild and so the quality and number of eagle sightings vary with each trip. We do not advertise that we go to the Center for Injured birds on this tour. If you had desired to see injured birds in captivity, there are opportunities in Haines, Sitka and Juneau. It is true that this is not a white water trip, nor do we advertise the trip as such. The emphasis is getting out in pristine nature and experiencing uniquely wild and beautiful place- The Chlkat Bald Eagle Preserve. There are five species of wild salmon that run up the Chilkat River and many active bald eagle's nest along our route. We often have great eagle sighting on our tour. I am also sorry to hear you say that there was no real educational element. Rainbow Glacier Adventures prides itself on offering a high quality educational experience in a small group setting. I am the author of the book Where Eagles Gather, the Story of the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, Haines, Alaska and i have 30 years guiding experience in the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve. I personally train all our river guides, and the vast majority of those who go with us are impressed with the quality of our guides.

I love that you said that Dave was both educational and humerous. We understand that folks like you are on vacation, not taking a college course, but that you want some good solid information about the Eagle Preserve. But its also important to present the infomration in a way that easy to digest. Dave's easy-going style and Southern accent belie the fact that he is an expert river guide, always wathcing out for your safety. Dave loves rafting and the Preserve and his enthusiasm is contagious. We're glad to have Dave back with us for another season. Joe

I am sorry to read this review. It does not sound like our company. Safety is our number one priority and I can't imagine one of our employees driving in an unsafe manner. Our company policy is to fill our vehicles with gas when they reach a half tank, so I can't imagine us having to change a bus during a tour because it was out of gas. There has been some road construction that can affect the return time of the tour. We do all we can to get passengers back to the ship on time and have been in business for over 20 years and have never missed the ferry back to the ship!