TUESDAY, JUNE 25

TUESDAY, JUNE 25: 

    Didn’t wake up til waaaay late.  Then made some breakfast.  Guess we used up our quota of bright, sun-shiny days for a while.  Overcast and gray today, all day. 

     Headed into town to get oriented.  Town is about 6.5 miles southeast.  Sitka is definitely bigger than any of the other towns we’ve visited so far.  Even has a McDonalds . . . right on the water!  Sure to win the Best Locale for a McD’s!  Population is around 9,000. 

     Walked around town some.  A couple of the historical sites were closed, but we were told that they’d be open tomorrow and Thursday for “cruise boat days.”  So we just explored what we could on our own, which was just fine, since we were still feeling a little groggy.   From what we’ve seen so far, it’s a very charming town.  With some nice shops; we were  lured into a few, which we very infrequently do.  Even bought a couple of pieces of clothing, and a Christmas ornament.

     Happened onto the Lutheran church.  Not only is it the oldest Lutheran church in Alaska, it’s the oldest Protestant church on the entire west coast in North America.  It was chartered by the Czar himself in 1840, when Russia was enlisting Finnish workers to work in the Russian American colony here (mainly in the sea otter fur trade).  The town already had a Russian Orthodox church, but since the Fins were mainly Lutheran, the Czar granted special permission for this one Lutheran church only to be built in a particular site in Sitka.  And even though it’s gone thru 2 fires and re-buildings, the church building hasn’t changed its site!  The original Finnish pastor made the long boat ride from Finland, down around South America (no Panama Canal yet), and up the entire west coast of the Americas. I believe it took him 9 months.  The church contains original artifacts from that first church which came over with the pastor – the communion rail, for one.

 

     In 1844, a pipe organ built in Estonia was shipped over.  That has been through 1 fire (for some reason, was at another location when the first fire in 1966 destroyed much of the downtown area) and partially re-built where needed.  The very nice & affable docent let Bill sit down and play it.

 A fun side note is that the “docent” and his wife are volunteers for this – the church has been using summer volunteers as guides for a number of years now – and this couple is from San Diego and have spent a lot of time in Santee Lakes, where we stayed last summer.  They love to walk there, they said, and have camped there as well.  They said that they always requested a particular campsite because they thought it was the nicest one there – it could have been the one we stayed in! 

    The site had a lot of history prior to that.  It was first a Tlingit fortress for a long time.  Then the Russians came in the late 18^th century.  The Tlingits were wary of their presence and were afraid of being made slaves in the sea otter trapping business, so they attacked the Russians first settlement in 1802 and killed nearly everyone.  The Russians returned with a vengeance two years later, with 4 battle ships, and defeated and drove off the Natives in a fierce battle. They then established the headquarters for their Russian American Company there on that hill, including a house for the “CEO” of the company (the first one was Alexander Baranoff, after whom the island is named).  A few decades and Company managers/governors later, the inevitable happened and the chief honcho’s residence got bigger and grander . . .  hence the name Castle Hill.  On a clear day, it should offer beautiful views.  But today wasn’t one.

     When the Tlingits returned to the area a couple of decades later, the two cultures had an uneasy peace, enforced by embankments and  Block  Houses which  the Russians built to separate the two communities. 

 

 

 Came home & had leftover brats & sides.  Started to drizzle rain.  Went to bed early.

 

MONDAY, JUNE 24

MONDAY, JUNE 24:   

     Got packed up and left the RV Park at about 10:00.  A little wistful leaving this place.  Even though it didn’t have the fantastic view that our place at Wrangell did, it was a very, very nice.  Quiet and peaceful, and somehow felt like home.  The resident manager, Skip,  is a little rough around the edges, (hard for him to complete a sentence without at least 1 or 2 four-letter words), but a very nice, amiable guy.  A former truck driver in California.  We’ll miss his casual friendliness & banter.  

     Another gorgeous day, so drove to the ferry terminal and left the truck & RV and unhooked our bikes and went riding.  Did the same loop around town we did the other day.  The water was sparkling in the sun, and the Narrows did look like a swollen river, as we’d been told they’d look at ultra high tide.  Stopped to talk for a while with a guy who was re-building a log picnic shelter at Sandy Beach.  He explained to Bill the old fashioned tried-and-true techniques he was using to trim the logs so that they would fit together perfectly.  He honed his skills on many years of cutting new trails – he’s headed trail crews in Yosemite and Sequoia, as well as all up & down the California coast.  He said that the toughest part was the logistics of getting in helicopters with food and supplies for 15 people for 1 week.  Things you never think about as you’re hiking a challenging trail up a mountain – you just take it for granted that there’s this nicely carved out trail.

     Picked up another package of fresh smoked salmon – thought we could snack on it on the ferry.  Then hung out in the truck til time to board.     

     Bid Adieu to Petersburg . . . it’s always fun to see the town in which we’ve spent time and gotten familiar with in a different perspective, similar to a bird’s eye view, as the ferry gradually pulls us away . . . we can see where we camped in relation to the town, the roads we rode on, bike trails we traveled, etc.  

 

 

 

                                              Our favorite perimeter bike path                           

        As we got underway, what a perfect day to be on the sun deck of the ferry, seeing beautiful carpeted forests and white-peaked mountains on all sides!    

            

 

 

     About 2 or 3 hours out, the captain announced that he was seeing some whales from the bridge.  Not unexpected, as Frederick Sound is a huge feeding ground for humpbacks and other whales.  We caught a glimpse of one.

 The rest of the time we spent just reading, chatting, and simply relaxing in the warmth and spectacular scenery.

      After about 4 hours, we stopped briefly at the town of Kake.  This is a small Tlingit village;; most very small towns in Alaska are predominantly made up of Native people, often with a subsistence lifestyle still.

 

 Bill took Pappy off the boat for R&R, while I watched perched above

 

 

                                                      Ferry play date for canines

                                                      Almost home (well, back in the truck, that is)

. Beautiful soft light as we left Kake.   Discernible difference in shades of lighting on east and west shores as we headed north.

 

      Was about 7:00, so went downstairs to the cafeteria to get something to eat.  Then to the top deck again.  Twilight and sunset achingly gorgeous.  Truly an intimation of eternity.  Our human frame can’t explain such sublime peaceful beauty.  All we can do is accept it as a transcendental gift from the Author of all Beauty.

 

 

 

 

       Was definitely cooler now, so bundled up in jackets and pulled our plastic recliners back out of the open air under the Solarium heated roof.  We brought our sleeping bags, intending to roll them out on the recliners and warmly snooze there.  But Bill didn’t think he could get comfortable on those hard plastic recliners, and decided to go downstairs to the reclining chair lounge room.  I stayed a while longer, but then followed as it got darker.  I’m kind of sorry now that I did – I think that if I had undone my sleeping bag, it would have absorbed a lot of the discomfort of the plastic.  As it was, I caught a couple of catnaps downstairs; Bill slept more soundly.  At about 2:00 or so, the captain woke us by announcing that we were about 30 min out of Sitka.     

Got off easily (there were very few people on this boat – apparently not many folks want to get into Sitka past midnight!)  Our RV Park is right down the road from the ferry, not even ½ mile, so was easy to find.   However, not so easy to back the RV into its tight spot.  Took more than 1 try.  Bad news:  Was 3:00 a.m.  Good news:  Was 3:00 a.m.  Which, in Southeast Alaska in June, means that the sun was coming up and we had light!  When we finally got backed in and hooked up, it was 3:45.  We knew that the adrenalin would soon wear off, so got into bed and told each other that we’d get up when we got up.  

 

 

 

SUNDAY, JUNE 23

SUNDAY, JUNE 23:

     What a gorgeous day this turned out to be!  The usual overcast & cloudy when we got up, but felt considerably warmer than it did yesterday morning.   But by the time we got to church for 11:00 service, clouds were beginning to break up.  

     Went to another small Presbyterian church.  Only about 2 dozen people.  But a full-time minister (or at least part-time paid).  He’s the one we met on the water Tuesday, who was out kayaking amongst the ice celebrating his 60^th birthday.  He referred to this in his sermon, as well as the imaginative shapes of the icebergs.   We felt that we were in the know!  Everyone was very welcoming and friendly and took the initiative to come over and introduce themselves. They invited us to stay afterwards for their little snack & fellowship time.  As we were leaving, a fellow came over and invited us to his & his wife’s home for dinner that evening (along with a few others folks).  We were very touched by this extravagant gesture of friendliness & inclusion, and after some hesitation said yes.

     When we left church, blue sky was nearly everywhere, with only high fluffy white clouds!  To enjoy it and capture the memory, we went down to the harbor and Bill took some pictures.  In my opinion, some were postcard worthy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then came home & had a little snack.  Bill stayed inside and messed around on the computer; I set up a Jonathan chair outside and read, dozed, read, dozed in the wonderfully warm dry sun.

 

     Then we got ready to drive to our dinner invite.  It was up near Sandy Beach, overlooking Frederick Sound.  What a gorgeous view!!  Someone pointed out Devil’s Thumb on the mountain vista across the water, and said that on the other side was Canada.  So, to paraphrase Sarah Palin, “I can see Canada from my home!”

    They see whales pass by, dolphins, seals, and more – right out their back window!!  Dinner was delicious, and the company grand.  Besides the host & hostess (Brian and Marjorie), Bob the pastor was there, as well as another couple whom we’d talked with a little at the fellowship time.  Brian is a little eccentric – was a professor of Fisheries, and very loquacious, but here, everyone accepts everyone else just as they are.   Conversation was about a lot of things, including everyone’s (except ours) many encounters with bears and how everyone there got to Alaska (always, it included their love of the outdoors, hiking, camping, etc.).  We’re so glad we accepted their invitation – it was a lovely, lovely evening all the way around.  All dear people, whom we trust we will be re-united with some day in Heaven.

     As were getting ready to leave, after 10:00, took one more look outside.  The most exquisite dusky pink over all.

                                                        Devil's Thumb sticking up         

Man, if someone told me I could have that view every day if I’d come to live in a town of 3,000, I’d ask, “When do we move?”  Of course, not every day is as perfect as today.  We were told that the last 2 summers here were awful – just rain, cool, grey, dull.  How fortunate that we took this trip when we did!

     On the way home, saw a huge moon in the clear sky.  How perfect!!

 

      When Bill was out walking Pappy, he heard the rhythmic hum of a diesel engine out on the water, and saw glimpsed through the trees what looked like a huge yellow light.  It dawned on him that it was the ferry coming up the Narrows.  He came in, grabbed his camera, and drove the truck up to where he could get a clear look at the ferry.  

 

This is the same one that we arrived on a week ago, except this one was scheduled to leave Wrangell 4  hours later than ours did, due to the tides.  We heard that, because of the equinox, today and tomorrow the difference in the tides will be at the extreme – a delta of some 25 feet.  They said that at high tide tomorrow (around 3:00 p.m.), the Narrows will look like a surging river.   We should be able to see it, as our ferry for Sitka leaves at 2:00.   This will be by far our longest ride yet – 11 hours.  If it stays dry and warm, we’re going to try to grab a lounger on the Solarium deck to have it for sleeping a few hours before we dock at Sitka (scheduled at 1:00 a.m.)  

 

 

 

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 22

SATURDAY, JUNE 22:

     Woke up to a canopy of clouds & drizzle, so took our time fixing and eating breakfast.  About noon, we headed for the Three Lakes area.  Took a mostly gravel road for about 14 miles, til we came to the trailheads for each of the 3 lakes in this area.  Only hiked one.  And as we started up the boardwalk path, the first patches of blue we’ve seen in a while broke through!  A nice walk thru the woods/rainforest. 

        We were told that a rowboat was kept at each of the lakes.  Sure enough, there it was.

We pushed off and rowed for a while, and then noticed that the bottom was getting pretty full of water.  We weren’t splashing any in sooooo, came to the eerie conclusion that the little boat had a leak and was taking on water!  So headed on back to shore.

                                                     "You say we're about to have a Southeast Titanic?" 

                                                      "Oh well, let's just enjoy the scenery while we can!"

We need to find the Forest Service in town and let them know!  But it was a nice little diversion for a lazy day.

     Continued on the gravel road til it looped around to Mitkok Hwy a few miles south of our campground (where we explored around earlier in the week).  The drive through the thick woods was nice and scenic.  Mists hung over the mountain peaks like at Misty Fjords.

     Came back & relaxed, snoozed, read.   Then drove into town to make a couple of phone calls (get poor cell reception here) and get gas.      Came back and heated up the little bit of salmon we had left over from last night, and some good bread. And wine.  Satisfying.  Took Pappy for a long walk.  A nice evening temperature wise, even though overcast & misty.    

FRIDAY, JUNE 21

FRIDAY, JUNE 21:

     Woke to total overcast sky.  But when we arrived in town, was clearing and beautiful blue skies appeared.  Tried to find out shrimp fisherman again, but no luck.

     We rode our recumbents on the perimeter of town.  For this bike trip, we began by the elementary school in town and rode over to the street nearest the water (named Nordic Street – got to get the Norwegian plug in!).  Went up a good sized hill.  We did fine – no problem for the bikes.  Then we coasted by the Narrows.

 

Soon come to Hungry Point, where the Wrangell Narrows and Frederick Sound converge (we went out this way on our excursion to LeConte Bay).  Since it was a clear morning, we had beautiful views.  Saw a few fishing boats go by, as well as one ferry (the Taku, the one we’ll be taking next to Sitka).  Didn’t look very big!

 

 

 

 

     After a couple of miles, came to Sandy Point Beach, which had picnic shelters and benches across from the water.  Was warming up now, and again, the water was so pretty we just lingered there a while.

     Then a short ride around the tiny airport (Alaska Air flies small jets out of here – we’ve seen two of them fly over our heads!) and back into town.  We rode to the main drag in town and to Coastal Cold Storage, a local fish packing place to pick up some salmon for dinner, and impulsively decided to buy lunch there (they have a tiny take-out restaurant adjacent to the packing facility).  I think it was the couple of tables outside and the lure of lunch al fresco that did it.  I got the shrimp basket; Bill got a combo basket.  While eating, we saw the whole range of Petersburg locals walk by – fishermen (easily identifiable by their rain boots and other wet weather attire), kids on bikes,  teenagers in clusters, a few fish processing plant summer workers, retired guys just hanging out, other locals doing shopping & errands,  a few tourists like us. Definitely the urban center!   Julie and Jack (who started on our LeConte tour with us) strolled by and said hi. 
 

     As we finished up and got in the truck, it was starting to cloud up again, and by the time we got home, was raining.  We’re getting good at just grabbing slices of beautiful weather when we can!  And when it rains while we’re inside the RV, it just feels nice and cozy and elemental.  It has a real North Woods feel to it.   

 

 

     Fixed the salmon we bought for dinner inside, since was too wet outside to grill it.  Just seared it on top of the stove several times to allow the inside to get done – it was about 1” thick.  Delicious!   
 
         Oh yes, today is the Summer Solstice, so the locals down in this area were having a party to celebrate.  Down the road.  We were tempted to go just to see, but the rain kept us in.