Sitka

The next stop on our trip was Sitka, a small town of about 9000 people.  We found out later that the addition of our ship’s visitors and those of the two other (larger) cruise ships docked basically doubled the size of the town for the afternoon.  Yikes!  Unfortunately, but not unsurprisingly, the weather was cloudy and the rain was on-again, off-again.  It was noticeably colder than Ketchikan, with the combination of cold and wet really seeping into my bones much more. Dressed accordingly in multiple layers we prepared to go ashore. It was necessary to take a tender into the town, but it was only a short trip and in a covered boat so it was not unpleasant.

We had selected an excursion that was all about animals and culture and our bus driver, a young college student working in Alaska for the summer from Idaho, was waiting with the bus as we disembarked the tender.  The group was quite large, almost filling the whole cabin.  Like Ketchikan the road hugs the shore and we soon found ourselves driving out of town and winding along, following the serpentine twists of the land.  Our first stop was a raptor rehabilitation center.

The goal of the rehabilitation center is to rescue injured raptors, treat their wounds, which were typically the cause of humans or human activities, help them heal, then release them back into the wild.  In the cases where the birds are injured to the extent that they no longer can survive in the wild, the center provides a lasting home for them.  Some of the birds become “bird ambassadors” and are introduced to the public to tell the story of the rehab center and the importance of supporting wildlife.  There were about a half dozen resident birds because they could no longer fly.  The bird ambassador we were introduced to was a beautiful white snowy owl who was originally found in Illinois by the side of the road believed to be the victim of a collision with a car.  The Illinois rescue group could not help the bird, and it was sent to the Sitka center.

After spending some time admiring the birds we moved on to our next stop which was a bear rescue center (yes, there is a theme!).  The rescue center takes care of orphan bears and once the bears are rescued they cannot be released back into the wild according to Alaskan law.  We were told that there is already an overpopulation problem and even releasing the bears several islands away, it is likely that they will swim back.  The center currently is housing five brown bears and three black bears.  The living condition for the bears has a zoo-like feeling to it– but at least they are safe….

 

Our third stop departed from the animal theme and moved on to local culture.  A former governor of Alaska collected totem poles from the different indigenous peoples and placed them in a park along a wooded path at the edge of downtown Sitka.  Along with the totem pole path is a small visitor’s center explaining the art and symbology of totem poles.  Apparently totem poles served multiple different functions- some were celebrating a person or their deeds, some were warnings, some were designed to document stories and there is even some that are “shaming poles” directed at an individual or group in condemnation.  I had no idea that totem poles were so variable.  Taking a walk along the path was wonderful, both from the viewpoint of stopping occasionally to view the amazing totems and the pleasure of simply walking through a beautiful, green, vibrant rain forest.  The loop was about half mile in length with a few side trails and despite the rain, I really enjoyed it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The final stop was lunch at a local restaurant which was–wait for it– salmon!  We’ve had a lots of salmon already; it is available at all meals, but yet, I predict I will not get tired of it.  In this case it was grilled over rice with a very tasty sauce.  The owner of the restaurant used to be a fisherman and he explained the various types of salmon, the types of fishing that happens in the area and the life cycle of the salmon.  He also happened to mention that the largest fish he had ever caught was a 500lb(ish) halibut.  He had a picture and I have never seen such a massive fish!

Since it was raining fairly steadily and chilly, we decided to forego walking around in downtown Sitka and headed back to the ship when the excursion was over.  I headed for the gym (and then the hot tub) before winding down for the day.  The cocktail of the day was a green lagoon (featured liquor- rum).