Our first stop of the cruise was the small city of Ketichikan, although by Alaskan standards, at a population of 14,000 it ranks in the top five most populous cities in the state.  It is easy to forget how utterly huge Alaska is and how few people reside there until you are experiencing it firsthand! Like all cruise ports the downtown area, immediately adjacent to the dock has evolved into a mish-mash of tourist outposts, jewelry stores and eateries catering to the incoming visitors anxious to get a taste of Alaska.  Nonetheless it was fun to meander around and especially take in the variety and creativity of the native art on display.  We were the third ship, and by far the smallest, to dock and I believe, in total, we added about 50% to the population.

Downtown Ketchikan

We had about an hour and a half to stroll through the downtown area then had to be back to the pier to meet up with our excursion.   Our tour was a bit of a planes, trains and automobiles experience.  We were getting on a bus to drive 30 minutes north around the perimeter of the island to a marina, where we would get on a boat and go a further hour up the channel to a salmon hatchery adjacent to a creek where bears have been known to hang out, taking advantage of the abundant salmon to fatten up for the winter.  After spending some time watching the bears (hopefully) the trip was made in reverse to get back to the dock, just in time to board the ship and move on.

Well, in short, the excursion was one of the better ones I have been on from a cruise ship. Our bus driver had a very dry sense of humor and kept us entertained with stories about the local area on the way to the marina as well as describing the life in the town.  About 5000 people or so move south for the winter, with the remaining living there year round.  Their winters are not too harsh, but the fact that they get somewhere between 13-16 FEET of rain a year, means that “cold and wet” is the normal state of things.  The beautiful greenery comes with a price….  Luckily for us, even though the day started off a bit damp and rainy, as we transitioned to the boat and got out into the channel, the clouds parted and the sun came out-it was a beautiful day.

WHALES!!!!!!!

The boat trip was fantastic.  No sooner than we had exited the marina, then had we spotted to mated eagles sitting high in their nest in a tree located on a small island in the middle of the channel.  Another 25 minutes up the channel and we were watching a group of six or so humpback whales bubble feeding.  It was really quite dramatic to see multiple whales, mouths open in wide grins to scoop up the fish that they had herded into tight condensed schools near the surface, suddenly erupt from the ocean several feet into the air and dramatically splash back out of sight.  We were able to witness it twice, but it happened so fast I was unable to get a picture of it. Majestic is probably the best description.

Reluctantly we said good-bye to the whales and continued on our way up the channel to the salmon hatchery, our final destination.  At the back of the hatchery a stream, very popular with bears, was located and it was to observe the bears that had prompted us to sign up for the excursion.  The hatchery was interesting though, it was a private enterprise, partially funded by the surrounding community to ensure the continuity of salmon.  They released a couple of hundred million (!) salmon every year and when the salmon returned to spawn, harvested the necessary eggs and sperm to fertilize the next batch.  Clearly not all of the released fish made their way home, but if only 2-4% returned the hatchery is able to maintain the population.  Even though it was nearing the end of the spawning season, there were salmon everywhere, jumping randomly out of the water, skipping along, trying to get into the creek where they were born.

BEARS!!!

And, yep, the bears were there to feast.  When we arrived three bears were poised along the stream to take advantage of the bounty.  I could hardly say that they “hunted” since all they had to do was dip their snouts into the water to get the next course.  Apparently when the fish are this plentiful the bears get picky and more than once I saw a bear select a fish, move its head a bit side to side, drop that fish, then pick up a different one. The guide said that the bears have a taste for salmon roe and are looking preferentially for the females.  It did not take long, by the way, for a bear to consume a salmon, so the fishing was fast and furious.

SEA LIONS!!!

We watched the fascinating tableau for about an hour and then it was time to make the long trek back to the city in order to ensure we would not miss our departure time.  On the way out of the inlet where the hatchery and our bear friends were situated we ran across about 50 sea lions sunning themselves on rocks that poked out of the water now that the tide was lower.  There were males and females and the males indulged, from time to time in a type of “king of the hill” behavior, trying to knock each other off.  Unfortunately we did not have time to watch them for long, as we had a deadline in the city.

It was a great exposure to many of the amazing species that populate Alaska!

And our cocktail of the day theme today was “bourbon”.  We tried one called “The Old Pal”, which we did not like because of the bitter flavor and one called “New York Sour” which got two thumbs up.  Exploring takes many forms…..

New York Sour

The Old Pal