Day 5 Ak to Ohio
Nautical
miles, same as north trip.
Awoke 7:30AM
to rain and the sounds of the engine and a dog barking. We are above the lower car park and dogs are
kept in the cars with periodic access.
We don’t know where this dog gets his stamina, it has gone on
continuously for all night. We feel
sorry for it. A mild sedative may have
helped. But it wasn’t enough to keep us
awake. Apparently, people have complained, there’s
talk of them offering ear plugs. The staff say the owner and dog are getting
off in Ketchikan; happy dog, happy travelers.
We passed through Petersburg and Wrangell during the night so we missed
the Narrows that runs between them. Luckily,
we saw it on the way north.
Fishing
vessels begin to appear and there are misty low hanging clouds, must be
Ketchikan. We have a surprise 8-hour
layover so we have a leisurely breakfast in the dining room and play a game of
Scrabble. Afterwards, walk over to the
local bus stop and take the local for $2.00 apiece. We opt to stay on the whole route and pass
through shoreline views and neighborhoods and the native village of Saxman
where we pass by the front and back view of the Totem Village and Lodge. We have visited in the past and it is
impressive. There are totems scattered all through
Ketchikan. We get off at Creek Street that retains the old boardwalk with
houses on stilts. This is the origins of
Ketchikan, bordello’s next to Casino’s next to a church. Lots of shops and a few restaurants now. But Dolly’s, the local bordello is open for
business – as a tourist attraction. The areas
natural plants are thick and luscious with a constant supply of rain and mist
in this rainforest climate. The Tongass Forest is a major source of
logging and environmental controversy with its effect on salmon spawning. This Creek has salmon swimming upstream to
the fish ladder above. A harbor seal is
eating them and sticks his head up every once in a while, for pictures. We walk over to the downtown, Celebrity and
Queen Elizabeth cruise ships are docked so everything is busy. We have enjoyed the Tongass National Park exhibit
in the past and stay for the film. Our
national park pass gets us in free. We
walk around the shops that are geared to the cruise ships with curios, themed
clothing and very expensive jewelry. We
are at the end of our trip, there is little interest for more stuff. Except the cute book store where we find some
things for the grandkids. Starting to
spit rain, it’s an off and on thing. On
the local bus back to the terminal, very efficient but one of our drivers was
speed and break happy giving us white knuckles.
We are back
hours before we depart. We saw
maintenance people coming on earlier.
Fingers crossed that we are actually able to leave and safe travel,
there is a fair amount of open water ahead without the protection of the narrow
passages. We have hotel reservations
already made for the rest of the trip and if we can’t keep our schedule, it
will require major adjustments. We have
been very lucky in past travels so this may be our challenge. Decided to do a late dinner and some more Scrabble. There is a case of books to borrow but other
than that, it’s scenery and relaxation that allows time to read, craft, etc. Since there is no Internet or TV there is no
distraction unless you are using downloads.
Cell reception is spotty. However,
there is a cocktail lounge, with limited hours and free popcorn, occasionally
someone wanders in to play a guitar or uke.
There is a piano available. No
alcohol allowed outside lounge or restaurant.
As if, there are some who are adept at the camouflage.
We decide to
dine late in the formal room. Baked cod
and pork chops with potatoes and baked cauliflower and a decent Chardonay are
had, all excellent quality and reasonably priced. Very attentive servers. We are able to sit in our favorite seat with
the full 180 window view off the back of the ferry. Misty clouds play hide and seek with the
hillsides. But the sunset is epic, rosy
pink and coral light surrounded by purple and lavender clouds, patterns change
as it sets. There were comments that BC
smoke is coming over the coastal mountains so not sure if sunset is
affected. It’s so misty, smoke is not
discernable at this time. The street
lights have come on in town and it is twilight.
In the lounge people are socializing and someone is trying to pound out
a song on the piano. Free popcorn!
We finally
get underway at 10:15PM. We overheard
the crew say a part had to be flown in to correct the issue. Fingers crossed it holds and gets us to
Bellingham, a long way to go. Part of
our further delay is due to a person on our deck who has had a medical
emergency and the Ketchikan EMS has been called in. Lucky for that person that we are docked at a
significant town with hospital. Wondering
how it would have been handled had we been sailing. There are no hospitals between here and
Bellingham. We wish them well and sorry for their travel interruption. It is a reminder of the risks of travel so
while planning is necessary, stuff happens.
Have lots of
sailing time, so blog is extra chatty. Nighty night.
