Our next stop was Ketchikan, which is on an island at the base of the Alaskan pan handle.
We arrived early afternoon, Bel and I went to the top of the ship beforehand so that we could watch us sail in. It’s a very narrow approach with a strait that can only be passed at high tide. The town has a population of 8200, and operates as a major port terminal and access point. There is also a major airport.
While sailing through the strait we had a steady flow of seaplanes landing on one side of us and major jet liners on the other. They were at the same height as us. Quite surreal.
There were already 4 cruise ships docked at the terminal, so clearly another big tourist spot. One had to pull out to make room for us.
Once off the ship we headed to the main old city area called Creek Street. Lots of very interesting shops in the original old buildings – including Dolly’s House which was the original brothel.
There were also some very interesting items on sale.
Ketchikan is known as the salmon capital of the states so we followed the creek to look at the local salmon ladder but none were running unfortunately.
We then headed back to the Main Street for a bit of shopping. Again lots of souvenir and jewelry shops.
We finally succumbed to the popcorn – Blue Rasberyberry and chocolate. It was delicious.
Next we headed off on our excursion. A 30 min drive out of town to jump on a boat and go crabbing – catching Alaskan Dungenous crab. It was a full load so very crowded. We went out to the crab pots that had been previously set and pulled one in and got to check out the crabs. Not terribly exciting, but interesting. Lots of crabs, but all were undersized.
While we were there I finally got a photo of a Bald Eagle. We had seen a lot but never got photos. Very graceful birds that had almost been wiped out due to a bounty set because they were eating the salmon. Thankfully they are now protected – $100,000 fine and 5 years jail!
After the crab hunting was done we went back to the restaurant where we were given lessons on how to crack the legs and then allowed to eat as much fresh crab as we could – so we did!
The crabs were delicious, really sweet and easy to crack and get the meat. I’m hoping we can get them in Aus.
We arrived back at the ship at around 8, got changed and headed for a very very light dinner. It was our second last night so we headed to the casino afterwards and partied until early in the morning. Some earlier than others – Bel and Shelly.
Ketchikan was our last stop in Alaska, so the next morning we slept in as it was an all day cruising day. Not a lot done during the day as there were a couple of tired girls.
During the afternoon we sat on our balcony and enjoyed the view as we passed through the Canadian inside passage between the mainland and Vancouver island. It’s a narrow, 70 odd km stretch that’s a short cut back to Vancouver. It also a great area to see wildlife. We saw 3 whales along the way, one was breaching but I could only capture the splash on camera.
In the evening we headed to dinner at the International restaurant to have a last dinner with Shelly and Ed. It had been so nice to catch up with them again. Once again we ate too much, but also had lots of fun. Thanks so much for joining us guys!
