Ketchikan

Click here for a Video of Our Day in Ketchikan

The passage into Ketchikan is really beautiful. The mountains off our port side balcony were just beginning to light up with the morning sun as we sailed in. 

And using the binoculars...or the zoom on my camera...we could get an up close look at Alaskan life.

This was going to be a SIX-ship day in Ketchikan! With a population of just over 8,000 it would be a day where the cruise ship passengers outnumbered locals by about 150%. Definitely a day where we knew it would be smart to have a plan...and that plan should be..."get outta town." 

Several of the other ships had already docked by the time the Sun got to Ketchikan and the float planes were whizzing past our ship like crazy. Kent & Laurel had room service deliver their breakfast and hustled off the ship as soon as we docked at 8:00. Their destination was the first Lumberjack Show of the morning.

Our morning was not quite so rushed. We had breakfast in the buffet and then got off the ship and started walking through town. We didn't need to be back at the ship until noon which gave us all morning to explore. Ketchikan is known for being one of the rainiest cities in Alaska with an average of over 150 inches of rain per year. But...our last visit was under sunshine and blue skies and this day looked to be no different. We were two for two!

The Norwegian Pearl was docked right next to the Sun and the Aleutian Ballad was there picking up passengers for the Bering Sea Crab Fisherman's tour. This vessel was featured on the TV show, Deadliest Catch, and now has been retrofitted to give tourists a glimpse into what life on a crab boat was like.

According to Ripley's Believe It or Not, this is the only tunnel that you can drive through, around and over. 

We made a stop in the visitor's center just long enough to grab a walking tour map and stop #1 was just outside...a sculpture called "The Rock" which depicts Ketchikan's first peoples and pioneers. In the background is the Holland America Oosterdam.

Across the street was the welcome arch. The first arch was erected in the early 1920's to welcome visitors on steamships arriving in the city.

Mostly we just looked in the windows of the shops we passed. There were definitely some items you wouldn't find in Caribbean port!

Bob did find one store that we needed to go into. It featured lots of NW Coast Indian carvings...and plenty of inspiration for him.

The Chief Ryan totem pole was located in Whale Park...along with some beautiful flowers.

We were too early, but in July, Ketchikan Creek would be filled with thousands of salmon.

From the boardwalk along Creek Street, a funicular will take you up the hill to the Cape Fox Lodge for $3 round trip...and that is exactly what we did!

The lodge has many pieces of Alaska native art on display inside...

...and also a collection of totem poles outside. 

There is a coffee shop and restaurant in the lobby, but we were just there to look at the artwork...and the fabulous view.

Bob chose to walk down the hill on the Married Man's Trail. In the early 1900's, this was a red-light area where "both men and salmon came upstream to spawn" and this trail was a quick exit route for spouses trying to avoid getting caught during police raids on the brothels. My knees weren't up to all of the steps so I took the easy way and went back down in the funicular.

With the crowds building and our time running short, we didn't spend much time on Creek Street. We needed to get back to the ship to get ready for our afternoon plans.

We went back to the ship, ate a quick lunch in the buffet and then got back off again to start our real adventure of the day. Kayaking!

Our ship was docked the furthest from town, but at least we were docked. A Celebrity ship was at anchor and tendering the passengers to shore. We talked to someone from the Celebrity ship later in the day and they joked that Celebrity was being punished because it was a Celebrity ship that ran into the dock last year, putting it out of commission for quite some time!

I booked our tour with Ketchikan Kayak Company back in October. I had contacted Devon, the owner, hoping to do our kayaking in the morning but was disappointed to find that tour was already full. I considered switching to a different company, but Devon sent me the tide table for our day in port and pointed out that by taking the noon tour we would be kayaking at low tide...the best time to see things along the shore. In the end the advice was spot on!

We met up with Kent & Laurel on the dock right by our ship and that is where Devon picked us up for the ride out to the kayaking location. The ride was about 15 minutes or so and gave us a chance to see some of the sights beyond the city. 

At the marina, we put on rain gear. I had bought a new pair of REI rain pants for the trip so I wore those and my North Face rain jacket. Bob had his own gear, but chose to wear what they provided instead. The weather was perfect, but as novice kayakers we needed the waterproof clothing to stay dry while paddling. Each of us was given a dry bag to store stuff like cameras that we wanted to have with us.

Devon gave us a safety briefing and then it was time to shimmy into the kayaks.

Although I worried about whether I could do the paddling, getting into and out of the kayaks was actually the most difficult part. We had double kayaks and Bob sat in the back where there was a foot controlled rudder for better maneuvering.

There were eight of us altogether on the tour but with two guides (Devon & Ryan) we got plenty of attention. Most of the time we were paddling along the shore looking at the marine life. 

Devon and Ryan collected some of the different species and let us have a chance to hold them. Not sure how these creatures survive out of the water, but with the tides rising and falling everyday they spend a good part of their lives clinging to the rocks.

Using my underwater camera, I took this photo of some sea cucumbers and urchins in the water...

Several times during the morning we saw seals playing nearby. Devon also had us paddle to a spot where a group of eagles were feeding on something. It was fun to see the large group with both mature and juveniles together.

On our first visit to Ketchikan in 2014 we did a flightseeing tour over Misty Fjords which was an amazing way to see the area. Had we not done that previously, I might have felt like we missed something by kayaking but with so many cruise ships in port, spending a day away from the crowds was perfect.

The sun was shining on our balcony as we sailed away from Ketchikan making it feel oh so warm. We grabbed a snack from the buffet and just enjoyed the time until the sun slipped behind the mountains and the temperature dropped suddenly!

The evening entertainment on the ship was Charles Peachock...a juggler. He had been on America's Got Talent and was featured in People magazine. The show was amazing! By going to the early show, we were able to enjoy a beautiful sunset as well!

Coming up next...a two part day!