Totem Poles and Tamarind - Our Day in Sitka

 Wednesday, May 4 - Sitka

The Eurodam left the inside passage and went out into open water overnight. Judging from the motion of the ship, the seas must have been rough. I was aware of the movement enough that I didn't sleep well.

Bob walked for 2 miles on the promenade deck while I took my time getting dressed. And once again he was nice enough to run up to the lido and fill my travel mug with coffee before he left. 

When he returned, we went for breakfast at the buffet. As we were eating, the announcement came that the ship had been cleared and passengers were able to go ashore. By that time, the sun was slightly peeking through the clouds...but just barely. 

The ship was docked about 15 minutes outside of downtown Sitka. Free shuttle busses were provided for passengers wanting to visit the town that weren't on a tour. One bus had just finished loading when we walked out of the terminal and we were the first to get on the next bus. We got the front seat, but then had to wait until the bus was filled (which didn't take too long.) The driver gave us a narrated tour as he drove into Sitka and then we were dropped off downtown at Harrigan Centennial Hall. 

Bob's one request for the cruise was that he could spend time at the Sitka National Historical Park since he enjoyed it so much on our last visit. I had checked online about also possibly doing a wildlife boat tour with Paul from Gallant Adventures, something we had done on our last visit to Sitka, but he was fully booked. After our port time in Sitka got shortened by an hour, I was glad we hadn't planned any other activity for our day.

The National Historical Park was about a 15 minute walk along the shoreline and past the marina. 

We stopped along the way to watch and listen to a raven sitting on a sign post. I don't think he liked us being so close and he was very vocal about it. Throughout the day we heard many ravens. They are unique in that they have so many different calls.

By getting an early start, we beat all of the tour groups to the park. In 1804, the National Historical Park site was the location of an armed conflict between the native Tlingit people and Russian fur hunters. We temporarily bypassed the visitor center and headed to the totem pole trail through the forest. Many of the poles exhibited today along the along the park's two miles of pathways are replicas of the deteriorating originals obtained in the early 1900's and now held in protective storage. 

We walked past the Russian Bishop's House

The walking trail led us through the lush green forest along the shoreline. The temperature was cool but comfortable with a jacket. The mountains appeared to have a fresh topping of snow.

After completing the trail, we stopped to watch native wood carver, Tommy Joseph, working on a totem pole. It was a commissioned piece that he was making for a wedding anniversary gift from a husband to his wife. Bob spent a long time visiting with him.

Tlingit woodcarver, Tommy Joseph.

There had been few others on the trail, but as we returned to the visitor center more and more groups were arriving. We walked through the building, looking at the exhibits. Since Bob wanted to spend more time than me, I went out and sat on a bench soaking up the beautiful view. Many people were walking along the wide expanse of beach exposed by the low tide.

On display in the visitor center was a bentwood box carved by Tommy Joseph. This box was made from a single wood plank that was grooved, steamed and formed into a box.

People exploring the beach at low tide.

A ranger pointing out details on the totem pole in front of the visitor center.

By the time Bob came out of the visitor center, the clouds were building and starting to cover the peaks of the mountains. In a short time, the clouds became even lower and thicker and we could see rain approaching. We had brought small sandwiches made from meat and buns on the breakfast buffet and ate them at a picnic table overlooking the water.

The air was getting chilly when we left to walk back to town and about half way there the rains and wind reached us. We were dressed for the weather with rain jackets and pants, but it still was not very pleasant. Had the weather been nicer, we would have spent more time exploring the town but when we saw a shuttle loading we decided to head back to the ship. The line was long and I didn't expect we would get on, but we did...in the very back seats this time.

Back on the Eurodam, we went to the buffet and had a bowl of soup to warm up. I grabbed a cup of coffee to take back to the room and Bob got some tea. We enjoyed our drinks on the balcony while watching the action on the dock and the passengers returning to the ship. With a good cell signal, we FaceTimed our son (who tried to make us feel guilty because we didn't include them in our travels.)

At 4 pm the sun was again shining so Bob and I went up to the sea view pool area to watch sail away. Within 5 minutes, the sun was gone and it was sprinkling again! The clouds followed us across the water as we pulled away from the dock.

Pulling away from the dock in Sitka.

Sitka is surrounded by many small islands.

Being chased by the rain.

Tonight we had reservations at Tamarind, the Asian specialty restaurant on the Eurodam. We had an early reservation and were seated at a corner table. Based on reviews, we had high expectations for this meal and were not disappointed. Through the window we could see that the seas were rough but the skies had cleared a bit. At one point a little squall came through and Bob spotted a rainbow from the window!

amuse-bouche 
Three sauces (mild, medium and spicy) served on shrimp crackers.

Satay sampler (both ordered)
Malaysian lamb, Chinese beef, Thai chicken, Indonesia pork, Vietnamese shrimp,

Thai Basil Szechuan Shrimp (Mary)

Crispy Duck, Ginger-Chili Glaze (Bob)

Side Dishes (shared): Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce, Asian Eggplant/Spicy Coconut, Dungeness Crab Fried Rice

Lemon-Basil Sorbet (Mary)

Mango Posset (Bob)

With our early dining time, we finished in plenty of time to get to the theater for the BBC Earth Experience "Seven Worlds One Planet in Concert." This was the 2nd Planet Earth presentation within 4 days which seemed unusual. I wonder if they were having issues with the regular entertainment?

After our dinner, we went for a walk on the promenade deck. The sun was setting in the west, but another storm was rolling in from the east which made for some beautiful cloud formations and another rainbow! The temps were around 40 degrees. That together with the wind and moving ship made it feel quite chilly.

Sunset in one direction...

Storm clouds in the opposite direction.

Sun + Rain = RAINBOW!

For the first time on this cruise we are going to bed with an alarm set for tomorrow morning. The Eurodam is scheduled to dock in Ketchikan at 7 am and we will have to walk a little distance to meet our independent tour. 

Sitka

Click here for the Video of the Sitka National Historical Park

Click here for the Video of our Marine Wildlife Cruise

I was frustrated trying to get accurate information concerning the logistics of our arrival in Sitka. We were due to dock at 7 am so originally we planned to order room service to avoid the bottleneck at the buffet on a port day. I called guest services the night before and was told there would be a shuttle bus transporting passengers the 6 miles from the dock to town, but it would only run every 50 minutes. Figuring we would end up waiting for the bus, we scrapped the room service plan and just went to the Garden Cafe.

I woke up before 6 am, but didn't want to wake Bob so did some journaling on my iPad in the dark. I was disappointed to see that the weather was once again drizzly and foggy and Mt. Edgecombe, the dormant volcano just outside of Sitka, wasn't even visible. <frown> 

Even without trying we were ready to get off the ship by the time we docked at 7 am and surprise, surprise...there were multiple shuttles available. We were on the first one and had to wait a few minutes until it filled up. The driver gave a nice commentary as he drove into town. He jokingly said that the road was only about 12 miles long so it didn't really matter that gas was so expensive since they didn't have anywhere to go anyway! He also mentioned that a dozen eggs cost $8 but there was no use getting a chicken because the eagles would steal it!

The welcoming committee...

We were dropped off at the Sitka Visitor's Center and happened to run into Paul Davis (Gallant Tours) who was going to be our tour guide for the afternoon. Our plan for the morning was to walk to the Sitka National Historical park first and he suggested we take the trail closest to the water to see most of the totem poles on display. 

The Holland America Oosterdam was anchored offshore and the tenders were dropping off passengers at the visitor center. It was so quiet in the forest that we could hear all of the announcements being made on the ship!

From the center of town, the walk to the park was a little less than a mile. We passed by the high school and the marina...

Bob was nice and carried my pack AND his.

The visitor center at the park had not yet opened yet so we started down the nature trail...and...the drizzle continued. Other than a couple of people out walking their dogs, we were the only ones on the trail since we had gotten there so early. 

 Kent used his cell phone to access an audio tour that we used as we viewed the totem poles on the trail.

Listening to the audio tour...

So peaceful as we walked through the forest. 

The raven plays a big role in the Tlingit culture and this was evident in their totem carvings. Hearing the real ravens calling out through the woods while we were there just added to the experience!

By the time we finished the trail, the crowds were starting to build at the visitor's center. We watched a short movie in the theater and then wandered around looking at the carvings. 

Bob especially enjoyed visiting with the woodcarver who was demonstrating his craft. He told many stories of his native culture including how an idea for his carvings came to him in a dream. He made a drawing to show us what he had seen in the vision...

Leaving the park, we walked back into town stopping at a few shops and taking some photos of the St. Michael's Russian Orthodox Cathedral in the center of town. The original church had been built in the mid 1800's when Alaska was under the control of Russia, but burned to the ground in 1966. Many of the precious icons and religious objects were salvaged and are in the rebuilt structure which looks much the same as the original church.

Normally the church is open to visitor's, but a private function was taking place when we were there.

A raven sat on the roof of the church calling out to us as we walked by.

We needed to be at the Harrigan Centennial Hall Visitor's Center to meet our tour at noon but it was just a block away from the cathedral. We had packed a lunch and sat on the benches outside the center while we ate. 

A native canoe on display outside the visitor's center.

Our view of the marina while we ate. The weather was not improving. 😕   

Our afternoon plans were to take a wildlife cruise with Paul Davis from Gallant Adventures starting at noon. Right on time, Paul returned from his morning tour and we boarded his boat...the four of us and a German couple from our ship.

We had barely started out when Paul slowed the boat so we could get a photo of an eagle (the first of many we would see.)

According to Paul, this was a California sea lion...not the type that is usually seen around Sitka. I wonder if he is related to the sea lions we saw at Pier 39 in San Francisco? 😉

The family that owned the little island where the sea lion was sitting had placed crosses on top as a memorial to love ones who have passed away. An eagle was sitting on one of the crosses trying to dry his wings.

Throughout the afternoon we saw many different kinds of wildlife including a "raft" of sea otters in a kelp bed. (A "raft" is the name for a group of otters...just like a "pod of whales.") The otters wrap themselves in the kelp to keep from floating away. I think sea otters are just about the cutest animal that God created!

I think this guy was laughing at us!

And if sea otters are the cutest, the puffins have to be the second cutest animals.

The rain was still falling lightly and with the rough water, I was having a very hard time trying to get photos that were in focus. The boat was bouncing up and down and the outdoor space was so tiny that we (the German guy, Laurel and I) were constantly bumping into each other. So frustrating.

After checking out the otters and puffins, Paul took us around St. Lazaria island which was incredibly scenic. 

At one point he pulled the boat INSIDE of a small cave! 

There were all sorts of birds on the island including some of the rare black oyster catchers like we had seen nesting by Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach.

We needed to be back on board by 3:30 and I was a little concerned that we would not make back to Sitka it in time to catch the shuttle. Instead, Paul offered to drop us off at the ship instead of taking us back to the marina in town.

To get to the ship required going across a lot of open water that was extremely rough. Each time the boat would hit a swell, the boat would rise up and then slam back down onto the water. The guys stood outside, but I'm not sure how they were able to stand up. 

Paul also wanted to check to see if he could find a whale that he had come across during the morning tour...and sure enough...he did! Time was short so we watched him surface a couple of times and then the whale waved good-bye and we were on our way.

The area around Sitka is dotted with lots of tiny islands, and Paul flew through these on the way back to the dock.

We stepped out of Paul's boat literally right next to the gangplank!

A weird perspective looking up from the dock.

And this time looking back down at the dock once we returned to our cabin.

We watched the sail away from the balcony and then dressed for our specialty dinner at Le Bistro.

In looking back at the Freestyle Daily, I'm pretty sure we skipped the entertainment in the main theater...a second show by Harry O'Donoghue, the Irish folksinger/storyteller. I see there was a sing-a-long with the cruise director that sounds like it would have been fun, but I think we were all wiped out from the long day. Cruising is hard work!!

As we slept, the Sun headed south. We wouldn't reach our next port of Prince Rupert, BC until 1:00 pm in the afternoon so we had a quiet morning to look forward to.