Terra Firma… our arrival in Haines

The Fair Weather is a pontoon ferry, capable of moving much faster than the Matanuska.  In fact, it skims on the water at twice the speed, reducing the sail from Juneau to Haines from six hours to three.  We had to be at the Juneau ferry terminal by 6:00 in the morning to make the 8:00 sail.  Although gray clouds lingered and hung heavy over the mountaintops, we were grateful that it was not raining. 

Haines, Alaska

Our arrival in Haines meant that we were on terra firma.  Our voyage up the inside passage was now finished… at least for this trip.  We were happy to once again be on our own time rather than the ferry schedule.  Our main goal now is to arrive in Anchorage in plenty of time to pick up our young friend, Morgan.  Morgan is a 13-year-old friend of ours.  We have known her since she was two.  She wanted an adventure, and we were more than happy to share ours with her.  In fact, we are quite excited about the opportunity. 

Our only concern had become Morgan’s mobility.  Three weeks ago she broke her ankle when a friend collided with her on a trampoline.  Her mom had reported that the cast was scheduled to come off the day before Morgan arrived in Anchorage.  She would need to be on crutches the first week and in an air cast/boot the entire trip.  While some of our longer hikes would need to be curtailed, Morgan is the kind of kid to rise to a challenge.  We just wanted to make sure she healed completely and wasn’t uncomfortable.

With nine days between us and our picking Morgan up at the airport, we decided to spend a few days in Haines.  We have visited Haines on several occasions, but our focus has always been photographing the bears fishing salmon from the weir.  This trip, however, we are much too early for the salmon run.  In fact the day’s count of salmon was one, and only a count of 94 for the entire month.  Normally salmon don’t begin running in earnest until mid-July.

All the locals told us we would see no bears during this visit.  A mother bear, thankfully, took exception to their dismal reports.  We were delighted to see the sow and her triplets, grazing across the riverbank that evening. 

The Chilkoot river and lake were at record high levels because of the recent rain and heavy snow melt.  As we strolled lakeside that evening, we watched a mother Mersanger teach her chicks to navigate the breakwaters between the lake and fast-running river.  In calm waters, the chicks would tag along closely behind her.  When the current became too fast, they would quickly climb on her back.  Although she was much too far away to get a good photograph, hopefully these shots will give you an idea of how sweet it was to watch them:

Mother Mersanger and chicks

Mother Mersanger with chicks on her back

The next morning, we took showers and did laundry at our favorite Moose Horn Laundromat so that we would be clean for church on Sunday.  Later, we drove out to some of our favorite places and strolled around Fort Seward.

After church, we took a hike.  The wind was blowing strongly as we wound our way through the dense trees.  It felt like we were in the Lord of the Rings’ Fanghorn Forest with limbs creaking and trunks groaning as they rubbed against one another.  At one point, a dead tree snapped very close to us, startling us both.  Finally we reached a break in the forest to catch a glimpse of Rainbow Glacier.  It was getting late and the clouds were darkening, so we turned back to return to camp.

Rainbow Glacier near Haines, Alaska

Our new credit cards were due to arrive no later than Monday.  After spending a slow-paced morning in camp, we visited The American Bald Eagle Preservation Foundation, learning more about these magnificent birds.  We checked again at the post office just before closing time, but the credit cards had still not arrived.  Ready to move on, we called Chase and asked that they be re-sent to Anchorage.

Resident eagles at The American Bald Eagle Preservation Foundation, Haines, Alaska

Tuesday morning, we spied a young brown bear along the roadside just outside of Haines.  Later we saw a pair of swans with three young chicks.  Past Haines Junction, a moose grazed along the hillside.  We were in familiar territory again… on a road we had traveled at least a half-dozen times.  It was great to know we could drive as far as we wanted to now that we were on terra firma.  We camped at Congdon Campground.  Our plans were to stop in Tok tomorrow to re-provision before returning to one of our favorite places… the Nebesna Road in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.

Juneau, Alaska

Juneau, Alaska

When we landed in Juneau, Liz and Walter were the first off the ferry, while we were buried in the back of the hull.  They had pulled over to wait for us near the Auke Bay Harbor marina.  As we pulled in behind them, a young man strolled up and asked if we were tourists.  He said there was a humpback whale in the harbor, and he would be happy to show us where it was.  Needless to say, we parked our rigs and followed him down.

Eagle perched on mast in Auke Bay, Juneau

Several eagles flew overhead, one adult perching on a mast.  Then the humpback blew… it was, quite literally, amazing.  We watched this enormous mammal reconnoiter within the bounds of the small marina, feeding on herring.  In error, I had grabbed my long lens… I only needed the short.  When the whale waved his pec (pectoral fin) at me, I could barely fit it within the camera lens.  Amazing!  We watched him for over an hour, completely enthralled with the experience. 

Humpback whale feeds in Auke Bay, Juneau, Alaska

Humpback whale's pectoral fin, Auke Bay, Juneau

As we returned to our rigs, we spied a young eaglet hopping along the pier.  Juneau was looking very promising, indeed!

Eaglet, Auke Bay Harbor marina

On the advice of a Juneau resident, we drove to the Sandpiper Café for breakfast then strolled to the visitor’s center.  Three cruise ships were in dock, and the streets here were abuzz with tour buses and adventure tours.  In fact, many times I plugged my ears because of the noise, and the very ground beneath our feet rumbled when the buses passed us.  Yet the city also had character.  Young girls were taking a painting class along the boardwalk.  A seaplane landed in the harbor.  Artwork adorned walls.  Juneau was obviously more than just a tourist town.

Art class, Juneau

Float plane lands, Juneau

Art wall depicting Tlingit legend of Raven and First Man, Juneau

Liz, Walter, and David wanted to take the Mount Roberts’ tram up to the mountain's top.  Because of my claustrophobia, I reluctantly agreed to join them.  Thankfully, the tram only had about 15 people in it, rather than the maximum 60.  I was so glad that I took the tour.  The view from the top, overlooking the city and harbor, was absolutely lovely.

View from Mount Roberts' Tram

We first visited the resident eagle at the raptor center atop Mount Roberts.  This eagle is blind in one eye and has an injured wing, making it impossible for her to be released back into the wild.  From there, we hiked up to Father Brown’s cross, named after a Jesuit priest who had helped build the Mount Roberts’ trail.  Then we watched a film on the Tlingit peoples in the theatre, followed by a short concert by the talented Alaska String Band. 

Resident eagle at Mount Roberts' Raptor Center

Father Brown's Cross on Mount Roberts, Juneau

It was time to settle in for the evening.  Liz had been trying to call to make reservations at the Mendenhall Lake Campground, only to find the line busy each time she tried.  David and I found a seafood shop that sold fresh Alaskan fish, so we took on the task of buying supper.  We drove to Jerry’s Meat and Seafood.  What a treat to find a REAL seafood shop!  They also made their own dips and had samples… we ended up buying two different kinds of dip plus a beautiful filet of rock fish.

Liz finally was able to connect with the call-in reservation site for the campground while we were at the seafood shop.  (We had been informed that it was the only way to book a site at Mendenhall Lake Campground and that it cost $15 for each site, plus an additional $10 for the service fee.)  It took over twenty minutes for Liz just to place the reservation, then David got on the line so we could book ours.  The lady assigned our sites to us.  When we arrived, we found our site to be short and not level.  David called to change it to the next site up.  Another twenty minutes and a $10 change fee later, we were finally ready to set up camp. No wonder this lovely campground was nearly empty!  Additionally, it had been frustrating and unclear to Liz, who spoke English… can you imagine how difficult a procedure it must be for someone who speaks another language?  A ranger later told us that this is the first year for the call-in reservation system and that it has not worked well.  No kidding! 

With two more cruise ships due to arrive in port the following day, we woke up early so that the four of us could arrive at Mendenhall glacier before the tour buses.  The glacier was beautiful, and the lake had dozens of small icebergs floating in it.  We hiked over five miles, up Glacier Loop Trail to Auk Falls, then the glacier view trail, and finally to the powerful Nugget Falls. 

Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau

Bear-shaped iceberg, Mendenhall Glacier

Auke Falls, Mendenhall Glacier

Nugget Falls, Mendenhall Glacier

Nugget Falls, Mendenhall Glacier

Liz and Walter at Mendenhall Glacier

It was our final evening with Liz and Walter.  We toasted our new friendship and poured over maps, trying to see if our paths would cross later in their trip.  Perhaps Valdez over Fourth of July?  Liz wanted to spend the holiday in small-town America.  It looked like the perfect spot for our next rendezvous.  We hugged goodnight and goodbye.  We knew we would miss them greatly.

We heard Liz and Walter leave the campground about six the next morning to catch their ferry to Sitka.  As gray clouds returned, David and I spent the day visiting the island Shrine of St. Theresa and its lovely, wooded grounds.  The stone Chapel was built in the late 1930's from stones gathered along the shoreline around Shrine Island.  The Chapel is connected to the mainland via a small causeway limited to foot traffic only.  

Chapel at the Shrine of St. Therese

Resident squirrel at Shrine of St. Therese

View of Pearl Harbor from trail with the St. Therese Shrine Island to the right

Several times we drove to the harbor, hoping to catch site of the humpback whale again but couldn't find him.  Finally we stopped once again by Jerry’s Seafood for more rockfish.  To our surprise, we saw dozens of eagles perched in the trees surrounding the shop.  On closer inspection, we discovered that we were parked only about a hundred yards from the Juneau landfill.  David scolded these regal-looking birds, telling them that they were our national symbol and shouldn’t look like scavengers.  Unfortunately, they were not in the least bit deterred.

Scavenger eagles in Juneau

The rain softly drummed on the camper roof as we readied for tomorrow’s early morning sail.  We needed to be at the dock by six, so we were in bed early.  This time we would be sailing on the Fair Weather… we hoped that she would, indeed, bring us fair skies.

Looking for Sunshine in Petersburg

Petersburg on Mitcoff Island, Alaska

When we booked our ferry schedule several months in advance, we were looking specifically for islands with little or no cruise ship traffic.  Early in our retirement, we had driven into Skagway and were aghast to find this little town with a population of about 800 swollen to over 30,000 people from five or six cruise ships.  After being remote for so long, there was just too much hustle and bustle for us.  While we recognize that cruise ships have much to offer, with my claustrophobia I long to stay clear of crowds.

We had read that the ports of Wrangell and Petersburg had little to no cruise ship traffic.  If cruise boats stopped at these ports, they were only the smallest of ships.  The large cruise ships simply could not reconnoiter the Wrangell Narrows, a sliver of a channel with islands on either side.  Our ferry, the Matanuska, was the second largest ferry that could pass freely through this area.

As we sailed the Narrows, we were astonished at how close the navigational buoys were to the sides of the ferry.  Truly these were a navigational nightmare... hopefully these photos will help you understand how narrow these Narrows are!

A view from the rear of the Matanuska as it reconnoiters the Wrangell Narrows

The ferry had to steer between the right and left buoys in the Wrangell Narrows

More buoys to steer through on the Wrangell Narrows

We arrived in Petersburg under heavy clouds.  Occasionally, a patch of blue would peak through.  The tiny specks of blue passed within moments, however, and were quickly engulfed again in gray.  After days of rain on Wrangell, we were beginning to say just what the locals said... when folks called this a temperate rain forest... well, they mean just that... RAIN!

Liz and Walter met us at the Petersburg visitor’s center.  The young lady at the desk was remarkable… able to answer questions from four people with four different perspectives, and all firing in rapid succession.  We each needed re-provisioning, so went our separate ways with plans to meet at Green campground toward the southern end of the island.

We quickly became entranced by Mitcoff Island and the lovely town of Petersburg (known as "Little Norway").  We were delighted with Green campground.  It sat right on the bay, overlooking mountains.  Our site was literally 15 feet from the point of highest tide.  The clouds parted a bit and the mist stopped.  Walter and David stoked a fire while Liz and I prepared supper. 

View from Green Campground, Mitcoff Island

Green's Campground on Mitcoff Island

Rain began in earnest that night and followed us throughout next day.  We visited the museum and watched a very interesting movie about Mitcoff Island, including the founding of Petersburg, its Scandinavian roots, and how it has grown into the working town it is today. 

Later, David and I discovered Tonka Seafood on the outskirts of town.  A young lady sold us a filet of fresh-frozen silver salmon for $8.25 a pound… a bargain as far as we were concerned.  It was great to be able to share the bounty of Alaska’s seas with Liz and Walter.

Sunset hidden by clouds on Mitcoff Island

Fearing that we would never get to see the island if we waited for the rain to stop, the next day we donned slicker suits and took a hike.  That afternoon, we stopped by the library to check emails, only to find that one of our credit cards had been compromised.  Thankfully, the fraud department had recognized that the charges were not ours.  They would send a new card to our final port of call.

Hiking in the rain on Mitcoff Island

Our last day in Petersburg, the sun broke through the clouds, and we had a glorious day.  The lupines along the roadside were absolutely stunning in the brilliant sunshine.

Lupines on Mitcoff Island

Lupines along the roadside on Mitcoff Island

The four of us took several hikes together, around Man Made Lake, then over to Crane Lake and Hill Lake.  When we reached the last two lakes, we discovered rowboats and landings available for hikers to use to paddle around the beautiful shorelines. 

Man Made Lake, Mitcoff Island 

Hill Lake, Mitcoff Island

As we traveled the gravel road back to town, we startled a black bear… Liz and Walter’s first.  Further up, an enormous porcupine scurried across the road.  As they slowed down next to us, Liz rolled down her window and asked, “What the heck was that?”

That evening, we were in line for the ferry by 9:00, ready for the eight-hour sail to Juneau.  Learning from our last overnight cruise, we had booked a cabin.  The cabin on the Matanuska was much smaller than the cabins on the Canadian ferry.  The shower, however, was more than welcomed, and I was ever so glad to have a window near the bunks to make the cabin feel larger.

The purser knocked on our door around 6:30 the following morning, announcing our arrival in Juneau. We were leery about the cruise ship traffic but ready to see what Alaska’s capital city had to offer.  We looked out the window to discover SUNSHINE! 

Our time with Liz and Walter would come to an end in Juneau.  After two days and nights, Liz and Walter would leave for Sitka.  David and I would leave the following morning for Haines.  We felt blessed that our time together would end under glorious, clear skies.

Walter and Liz on Mitcoff Island

Rain on Wrangell Island

Wrangell, Alaska

Heavy skies greeted us in Wrangell after our six-hour sail from Ketchikan.  By the time we arrived, it began to mist.  Still, we were delighted to be here.  Wrangell seemed like our kind of place… a small, working harbor town.

We had again met our new Australian friends, Liz and Walter, at the ferry landing before boarding.  During the sail, we decided we should camp near one another.  When we landed, they went one direction, and we the other.  Surprisingly, we ended up traveling to the exact same campsite. 

The following morning, we headed to town, looking to fill water tanks.  Folks at the Visitor’s Center were kind enough to allow us to hook up our respective hoses to their spigouts.  While there, we also discovered that Wrangell had ancient petroglyphs on the beach on the northern end of town.  The four of us determined to meet there at low tide.

Petroglyph Beach State Historic Park is located near the ferry terminal.  At low tide, over forty petroglyphs are supposed to be visible.  We climbed all over the rocks, scouring each rock face for ancient art.  We only found a half dozen, and most of those were barely visible.  Nonetheless, it felt like a treasure hunt.

Ancient petroglyphs on Wrangell Island

Petroglyphs on Wrangell Island, dated to be over 12,500 years old

While walking along the beach, we met another Australian couple, Trish and Will.  It was a reminder what a small world this is… they actually lived in the same town as Liz and Walter.  Trish and Will had purchased an old sailboat and were cruising the coast from Vancouver Island up to Juneau.

For our evening meal, I offered to fix fajitas… something Liz and Walter had never tried before.  Now… if I could only find tortillas on the north coast of Alaska!  Thankfully, the Coastal Market was quite well stocked for such a small store… we even found fresh hot salsa and guacamole.

We returned to Nemo State Park and found the premiere Highline campsite empty.  This site had stunning views of the bay.  We quickly found our friends and asked if they would like to move to the new site.  While Walter and David built a fire, Liz and I sliced vegetables for the fajitas.  Thankfully, the rain held off during our meal.  Soon after eating, however, the rain began again.  We dove into Liz and Walter’s camper for an evening of rousing conversation.  What fun! 

Liz (third from left), Walter (far left), and us at Highline Camp in Nemo State Park, Wrangell, Alaska

Rain followed us the next day.  David and I found showers at the local laundromat and tried to find fresh fish for an evening meal.  It is amazing to me how few towns in Alaska sell fresh fish!  Later that afternoon, we were able to take a short hike on the Volunteer Park Trail, an interpretive hike through a muskeg forest.  Muskeg is the name for a bog or a swamp covered in sphagnum moss and peat.

Our last day on Wrangell, the rain continued.  We visited the very informative Nolan Center museum in the morning, the city park and its totem poles, and spent the afternoon in the library, avoiding pelting rain and trying to catch up on blog posts.  Trish came into the library and invited the four of us over to their boat, Shadowdancer, for “grog.”  We had to ask Liz and Walter what it meant… Auzzie for a drink.  

Totem poles, downtown park, Wrangell, Alaska

Totem poles, downtown park, Wrangell, Alaska

The rain slowed to a drizzle while we visited Trish and Will.  We had such a great time, getting to know each other and seeing how Trish and Will camp out on their boat.  During our stay, the harbor master stopped by to introduce himself.  We told him how grateful we were that Wrangell didn't host any of the large cruise ships.  He told us that in order to do so the town would have to "sell out."  At each port the cruise ships enter, they buy up buildings to sell their souvenirs and run their adventure tours, leaving few of the profits for the community.  The rain began again, so we bid Trish and Will goodbye and safe travels and returned to our campsite.

The next morning, we boarded the Matanuska ferry again for a three-hour day sail, leaving at 10:15 under misty rain.  We searched the skies for signs of blue but found none.  Surely the weather would break in Petersburg!