Heading to Alaska – the Inside Passage

 

Adventures are wondrous things, the anticipation of new and amazing places, the excitement of doing things you never thought you would do and all the new friends just waiting to meet you for the very first time.  With those thoughts in mind we drove up to Bellingham, Washington to board our Alaska Marine Highway Ferry and begin our five week stay in Alaska.

 

 

As is usual with us we arrived way early and had to sit around or explore the nearby attractions – we chose to explore!  Just a few blocks away we heard there was a bit of a festival going on in old downtown Bellingham so we had to go visit.  It is called the Steam Punk Festival and is a combination of very artsy, western, Celtic, Harry Potter, and a dash of Alice in Wonderland - Johnny Dep dress up party, with music and artsy thing sales. It was a bit on the bizarre side – but cool!

 

 We wandered around town and did the harbor and park walk, running into a few sea otters along the way.  Just waiting for the time when we could board the ferry and claim our berth for the trip north which would take about 5 days.  As we were wandering and waiting we ran across the above markers imbedded along the sidewalks – a small but interesting history lesson for the casual walkers of Bellingham.

When the allotted hour arrived we gladly boarded and immediately started to explore our new surroundings.  By the looks of our fellow passengers it was going to be an interesting time.  There were older folks dressed to the hilt, young backpacking families with screaming kids, bearded mountain sized men with dirty clothes and packing all their equipment as well as many other eclectic varieties of people from a number of cultures.  It was indeed going to be an interesting trip. It seems that these ferries have a provision for people to actually pitch tents on the upper sun decks or sleep in the lounge chairs.  The folks who do that are truly some hardy souls!  Cheap – but hardy!

We are no longer that hardy, so we booked a full-sized, outside berth with all the amenities and a nice big window so we could watch the world go by.

Below is a collage of sights we had as we were preparing to leave and as we left the port at Bellingham.

 

The first morning after I woke up and opened our curtains this cruise ship was the first thing I saw.  It just happened to be the cruise ship that we had originally planned on being on when our family was planning the original Alaska vacation.  All of our family members dropped out or opted not to go for some reason or other but Linda and I still decided to take the trip. Though we did opt for a milder transportation mode. (Or actually a more exciting mode.)  I did find it ironic that this ship would be the first to pass us.

On the eve of our departure at sea the sky decided to provide a most spectacular sunset just north of Vancouver, British Columbia.

The first full day of our voyage turned out to be quite cloudy and foggy but I was able to get a couple of shots as we made our way through the inside passage.  It was a rather eerie setting for most of the morning with the overcast sky and the fog hanging in the trees.

 

 

There were many homes and such along the shores.  This was the first Totem pole we ran into.  Our Canadian friends would be proud – the Canadians showed it to us first!  The Totems that is.

 

 

 

 

 

Along the way we passed this cute little place – it even has its own working lighthouse!  (I wouldn’t want any of the big cruise ships running aground in my house either.)

It turns out there are hundreds of these things along the coast in both countries – little guiding lights for the cruise ships and the ferries.

 

Also we encountered many boats of all sizes and for all purposes, some were quite bizarre but I didn’t include them (this time).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our first stop on our ferry trip was Ketchikan, Alaska.  We only had about 5 hours to wander around this town so we hit the decks running so to speak.  We walked through this busy port town with all of their shops and a number of tourists.  Most of the shops were run by individuals from India – especially the jewelry shops – and other shops by Asians.  They all had hawkers out front trying to lure you in – it kind of reminded us of Mexico or Turkey - but on a bit higher level.  Sad!  Once we had enough of that we headed to the old historic districts which were much less crowded and a lot more interesting.

As with most towns along the inside passage, Ketchikan is built with one side on/in the water and the other side on a mountainside – from the waters edge everything is uphill.

Ketchikan is known for its Totem Poles – lots of Totem Poles!  Unlike what quite a number of people believe, Totem Poles are carved to honor deceased ancestors, record history, social events, and oral tradition. They were never worshipped as religious objects.  Some of the old stories associated with a particular Totem are quite fun and go something like this…

….one of the Totems tells of Raven who desired the sun, moon and stars that were owned by a very powerful chief. Raven changed his form one day and appeared to the chief as his grandson and cried and cried until his grandfather (the powerful chief) gave him boxes containing the heavenly bodies.  Then Raven, thanks to his trickery, opened the boxes releasing the stars, moon and sun and gave them to the earth for all the people to enjoy.

Quite a story from a Totem Pole!  I haven’t learned how to read them myself yet so I have to trust what somebody tells me. 

 

In another section of town there was a little area called Creek Street – which was the reason that in the 1920s Ketchikan was known as the “worst pest hole in America”.  It was a place to party, dance - and for the men to find the woman of their dreams – all for a small nominal fee.

 

 

There was the Star House and Dolly’s House along with many others – up to 33 at one point in time.  The Star House is one of the oldest buildings in the area and was the only “registered” brothel in the territory of Alaska. The dance floor had a huge inlaid star and thus the name stuck.  It was the Creek’s liveliest hotspot offering “sporting women”, alcohol during prohibition, and dancing while “Blind Ernie” played the piano.

 

In one of the “houses” there was a Black Madam named Anne Watkins. Anne bought one of the houses in the 1920s and quickly earned a reputation as being her own boss and extremely strong willed.  When prostitution was deemed illegal in Ketchikan in 1954 Anne stayed in her “home” and continued to work when she could get away with it.  It was her business and her home and she made no apologies.

 

These are the fun stories that the history books just kind of gloss over.

Even I could not make this stuff up!

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a pic of one of the many Aqua Aero Domes in the area.  We have never seen so many float planes in one place before.  In the morning, after the cruise ships arrive, these things are taking off one right after another.

 

 

So it was back on the ferry after a short stay and off to Juneau.

 

 

 As we arrived in Juneau to a cold light rain, I decided to stay on board.  Linda went into town with some of her “new” friends she met on the ferry, Margaret, and a couple from England, Andrew and Jennifer.  Off they went to see what Juneau was all about.  While making their way to the nearest bus stop (in the rain) a young man from the local Coast Guard (who had picked up a friend from the ferry) stopped and gave them a ride into town – thank you, knight in blue uniform!  Juneau has a population of approx. 32,0000 people – but swells when cruise ships carrying thousands of tourists arrive.  A taxi driver in Juneau shared his view of the tourist traffic - “The cruise ship people fall into three categories: newly wed, over fed, or nearly dead”.  Margaret called to schedule a taxi ride back to the ferry – at least it seemed the best and fastest way to return when it was time.

 

 

Linda snapped pics of local murals and  visited St. Nicholas Orthodox Church.  This church was completed in 1893 and consecrated in 1894, it is an octagon shaped building with a beautiful, small chapel and still holds  services on Sunday.  It is now the oldest original Russian Orthodox church in southeast Alaska.  Margaret and Linda had hopes of seeing the state capital building – they did, but it was under tarps as it is being refurbished to withstand earthquakes.  It is to be done this coming November after starting the remake four years ago!  So they wandered back to the town square to grab a bite to eat and meet up with Andrew and Jennifer – then the fast taxi ride back.

Juneau, being the capital of Alaska, is compact and practical – not stylish and flashy like most capital cities in the lower 48 states.  In Ketchikan and Juneau, the buildings are functional – whether it is the hospital or the capital – like I said – practical.

It was a quick little taste of Juneau, and all too soon we were off to the next stop – Yakutat!

As we sailed along we occasionally saw the whales as they frolicked in the waves along the various points of the shoreline.

Through most of our trip through the inside passage it was cloudy, windy and rainy. Most of the passage was smooth but when we hit the open water during portions of the trip it was rather rough and the ship rolled and bucked (being much smaller than the cruise ships) as we tackled the six to nine foot swells. It was rather funny watching each other trying to walk anywhere on the ship as we weaved like a couple of drunken sailors down the hallways.  The stairs were even better!  And last but not least, you do not pee standing up when its rough like this – trust me on that one!

The above collage is of the various ghostly sights along the passage – not the optimum picture taking weather – but awesome in its own way.

 

Our last stop before Anchorage was the little hunting/fishing village of Yakutat.  A very brief stop early in the morning while it was raining, foggy and cold.  Other than taking a walk there was nothing open or sights to see.  So we stayed on the ship and had a nice breakfast (and stayed warm!)

 

 

 

So as we approach Whittier/Anchorage to pick up our rental car, find our motel and do laundry we leave you with our best wishes and ask that you stay tuned for the further adventures of:

 Lee & Linda in Alaska. 

Livingston, Missoula, Coeur d’Alene – and a few side trips

 

 

We left Sheridan, Wyoming and made the interstate trek to Livingston, Montana.  It was a rather quiet drive as we left the Big Horn Mountains, driving back to the rolling hills and then back to the mountains again as we entered the Rockies.

Livingston, Montana is one of the gateway towns to Yellowstone and Grand Teton Parks to the south.  (Something like Gardiner, Montana to the south, West Yellowstone to the west and Jackson on the south end of the Grand Tetons – only Jackson is really upscale!)

Livingston isn’t quite as nice as the others but they are quite proud of their position in relation to the parks and charge appropriately for accommodations that put you near these highly attractive national parks.  It is a typical tourist town with the Friday afternoon/evening farmers market/band in the park/beer/wine fest complete with lots of food.  The Yellowstone River runs through the city park with mountains and some snow covered peaks in all directions so the setting is really quite nice.

 

One of the town’s claim to fame is the Livingston Depot Center and Museum.  We enjoyed an afternoon just wandering through all the exhibits of the museum and roaming around the historic downtown section of this little Montana town.

 

 While we were in Livingston we decided to make a short trip down through Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Tetons and into Jackson, Wyoming to visit friends currently working in Yellowstone and those volunteering at the National Elk Refuge.  It was a good trip visiting and catching up on everybody’s happenings.

 

 

 As we were making our way through Yellowstone we ran into this young Elk (still with antlers in velvet) just lounging around waiting for someone to come take his picture.  I took care of that for him.

A bit further south as we were headed into Jackson we stopped at one of the pullouts to take a picture of the Grand Tetons from the far end of Lake Jackson - quite the view!

 

A little closer view.

So after our stay in Livingston we made our way up to Missoula, Montana for a couple days stay.  Again, it is a rather nice little town with all the unique buildings and historic downtown but one thing that did catch my attention was the number of bikes throughout the town.  It is really a bike friendly place.

In one of the city parks of Missoula they have an attraction that they are very proud of – it is called “A Carousel for Missoula”.  Back in the 90s a cabinet maker, by the name of Chuck Kaparich, told the city counsel that “If you will give it a home and promise never to take it apart, I will build a Carousel for Missoula.”  They agreed and after many years of volunteer work, carving the wooden ponies, rebuilding the mechanical portion and raising the money needed – Missoula had its Carousel.  Over 100,000 hours of volunteer work went into this project, the story alone was worth the visit.

 

 

On our way west we stopped in the town of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho for a couple days visit.  We actually stayed in a little town just north of there called Hayden – the original base of the Aryan Nation organization.  That got our attention!  You may want to look these guys up if you haven’t heard of them  - interesting group.

But we weren't there for Hayden - we wanted to see Coeur d’Alene.  So we went for a quick drive and ended up doing a walk along the lake – it is quite beautiful.

 Between the ski resorts right in downtown and all the major media this place has received over the last few years it is a growing place.  The amount of traffic did surprise us as we drove around.  It is a rather picturesque place and if that's not enough to get you to come visit, the fact that the movie Teenage Dirtbag was set here should win you over.

 

 

So as we make our last preparations for our journey north and our visits with Lee’s sister, Amy, and family - we leave you with a rather nice western sunset from the West Richland, Washington area.  Next blog……Alaska!!!!

Home Is Where We Park It!

Lee & Linda

Sheridan Wyoming – Butt’n up to the Big Horns

 

 

We left Spearfish, South Dakota on the 28th of June heading for a week long stay in Sheridan, Wyoming.  As we were driving down the interstate we got a good look at the Crow Peak forest fire that had been plaguing us for the last week or so.  We had to drive through the smoke for a ways but as we got down the road a bit and passed through Sundance, Wyoming the smoke cleared and it was a good day to be on the road.

 

 

We had heard about Sheridan, Wyoming from lots of our friends but had never spent any time there.  It is worth the visit!  Tucked into the east slope of the Big Horn Mountains, it is an interesting little town with lots of flare.  The downtown is littered with groups of bronze statues (with price tags up to $15,000) anchored to the sidewalks.  Nestled among touristy shops and restaurants, and more antique shops than I have ever seen in one place.  There was one shop that I had to classify as the “Big Bang” shop because it had all the comic book/super hero stuff you could imagine.  Sheldon Cooper would have loved it.

After walking and ogling all the various shops and artwork we needed to get lunch, so we stopped into a local place called “Sanford’s Grub and Pub”. For those of you who have never had the opportunity to visit a Sanford’s in the upper mountain states – it is worth while!  There is more to look at on the walls and ceilings than we had ever seen in any pub before.  And even better – the food and local beer were absolutely outstanding!  We will be going back!

 

After a day downtown and eating way too much we knew that exercise was in our future.  So the next morning we headed off to a mountain bike trail system called Soldier Ridge Trail.  Quite the trail system (single track, steep down and up hills) but most of it was in the open and direct sun.  So it got quite hot and just after a few miles we had to turn around and seek shade and the comfort of air conditioning.

 

Over the years of traveling we had never taken the time to stop and visit the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument in Montana.  We were not going to let that happen again.

The stories of Custer's Last Stand has been imbedded in our memories as a massacre of untold proportions through books and movies.  There is a bit more to that story - a story told from both sides.  It is worth a visit and some time to read and comprehend what happened those two days in June of 1876.

It really surprised me that the battle encompassed such a huge area, with groups of fallen soldiers and Indians scattered over many miles.  The one photo at the beginning is only of where Custer and the remaining men had their last stand, the others were scattered over quite the distance as they tried to get to high ground.  Even the horses were honored as they were shot to provide barriers for the soldiers to hide behind and shoot from.

 

 

A Painted Pony with a small rider.  There are quite a few Indian ponies on or near the Monument grounds as the Monument is on the Crow Reservation in Montana.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The morning that we decided to head up into the Big Horn Mountains started with a walk in Tongue River Canyon.  We had heard of this canyon and wanted to check it out for a possible bike ride in the future.  It is quite the canyon and I would put it in the top ten this country has to offer. Why it isn’t a national park or monument I do not know.

 

 

 

 

 

One of the monoliths along the trail through the canyon.   I believe this one is called “eye of the needle”.  (That is what I would name it!)

 

We wandered through the canyon for a short time, but only long enough to figure out that we really wanted to come back and ride it with the bikes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So we wandered up and through the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming later that day to reacquaint ourselves with the twisty roads and viewpoints that we remember from quite a few years ago.  The first time through (in the 70’s) scared us a bit with the steep twisty climbs and 180 degree turns with no guard rails.  It has changed a bit – they have guard rails now.  I even drove up without having (many) height issues – one viewpoint is about 6,000 feet above the valley floor.  We (Linda) drove up to the Medicine Wheel Monument on top of Bald Mountain.  At 10,000 feet plus, the air gets kind of thin and once we hit the parking lot we still had over a mile to walk to get to the Medicine Wheel.  We did it!  Sucking wind, but we did it.

 

 

There are thousands of stone circles scattered over the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains but only about 100 are known as Medicine Wheels.  The one we visited is the best known and is sacred to most Native American Peoples.  It is approximately 80 feet in diameter with 28 lines or spokes radiating from the center to the outer rim.  I found it rather fascinating that more than 80 tribes still utilize this site to practice their traditional ceremonies – some practice for a year or more before hand.

The term “Medicine Wheel” came from the white man but to the Native American Indians it is known as “The Place Where the Eagle Lands” - to them it is a sacred place.

I am glad we saw this, it’s not a spectacular site, it is rocky and barren, windy, with bits of rags and offerings tied to the surrounding barriers, but quiet - quiet enough to hear a bit of the past.

 

 

Here we are in our ultra bright riding gear back in the Tongue River Canyon.  We returned to ride it and after the dirt road turned to a single track trail with rather large rocks, steep climbs and interesting drop offs, Linda informed me that she had read that it was a “Black Diamond” trail. We did end up hiking the bikes on some sections that were on the difficult side, but she hung in there with me until I said “no more!”

 

It was a pleasant downhill back to the truck with some incredible scenery along the way.

 

 

After our bike ride didn’t develop as hoped, ‘we’ decided (it was highly recommended that I attend!) to go to a local Polo Match.  This is something that I had never watched  or really wanted to see.  But one of the young volunteers I worked with at Jackson last year played Polo and even invited Linda and I to attend.  I was able to escape that one (I didn’t tell Linda until after I declined.) - but not this one.  I was pleasantly surprised – it really is quite interesting, but that may be because it was new to me. (Maybe Linda does know best!)

It’s kind of like a cross between soccer, croquet and golf.  It has its own “Polo” language with its Chukkers (periods), Bowl Ins (throwing the ball back in after a penalty) and a few other terms that seem out of place anywhere else.  The riders were a combination of men and women and all were excellent on horseback as you can tell from the pictures.  No one fell off during the match which kind of surprised me because of the speed they were riding at and some of the collisions they had.  We watched until the traditional “Stomping of the Divots” was underway and then slowly made our way back to the RV park.  Always new things to learn!  (Whether I want to or not!)

 

So with another short period of our traveling gone by we leave you with a sight of a sunset and alien looking cloud coming over the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming.

Home is we park it!

Lee & Linda