White Pass RR + Glacier Hike?

My husband and I are sailing on our first ever cruise in June. We will be on Norwegian Spirit going to Alaska June 11-18. We are looking for some "invigorating" but not exhausting shore excursions to do and hiking on the Glacier seems like a unique opportunity.

The excursion we are considering is the White Pass Railway + Glacier Hike (allegedly 8 miles long). Has anyone actually done this excursion? How hard is it? We are in our early/mid 40s and in reasonably good health. We enjoy hiking but won't be doing any 14ers anytime soon. Our reservations are based upon the numerous warnings about the "difficulty" of the hike. We enjoy a nice long hike but don't want to be too sore/exhausted to enjoy the rest of the cruise. Can anyone recount their experience with this excursion? My thanks in advance!

[Karen16]

There is quite a walk to get to the glacier. I instead suggest the glacier trekking with Northstar out of Juneau. Consistant raves from this long standing company., with most people recommending the 4 hour tour instead of the 2 hour. Plenty of reviews on www.cruisecritic.com I have glacier trekked and it is not real difficult, but a great unique experience.