Fly away with me

 Overnight cruise from Sitka had us arriving in Ketchican for another highlight of the trip. Almost a perfect day was Matt's judgement call. We wished we'd had two days in Ketchican because we were so busy and yet there was still so much to see.

We had an early start indeed as we had a 9am flight to the Misty Fjords. After a short coach transfer from the ship we were at the dock for Misty Fjords Air .

"cleanest beavers I ever did see" said Matt.  I think he was talking about the engines.

We were at opposite ends of the plane as he got the right hand seat at the front and I got the back seat with two windows. We both enjoyed the flight in very different ways and pilot Luke gave a little bit of comentary as he flew us through the mountains, landed on a glacial lake, and returned us safely. Some wonderful views.

 

 The backbone of a nearly eroded volcano

 

as we returned to the base I managed a flying shot of the Silver Nova.

Do all pilots stand the same way?

After our joy ride, we had enough time in Ketchican to pay a flying visit to the local brewery. Matt made friends with the brewer by NOT ordering any IPAs on his tasting flight

Next up was a nature walk through a nearby sanctuary - which was until quite recently headquarters of a logging opperation. Rewilded, it is now full of flora and fauna and the guide, Basil, was enthusastic and interesting as he shared his extensive knowledge.

Skunk cabbage well, stunk.

Bear claws leave marks on the tree which are scabbed over by pitch. It soon goes black so the bear wasn't there too long ago. Black bears are very good at climbing.

Basil shared stories behind the totems that had been shared with him. The spider was about how a local Tlingit leader's daughter discovered both weaving and fishnets. Totem poles serve many purposes (all non religious) from telling a story to remembering an event, or as a memorial to an important member of the community.

Repurposed part of the sawmill, now part of the totem carver's workshop.

un-needed maachinery left in-situ

We were really sorry not to have an additional day here to explore the city especially the heritage area (heritage red light district) of Creek Street, an area built on stilts above the creek but it was time to sail away again for our final day at sea (and tonight, our final hot rocks dinner at The Grill on deck 10 to enjoy the sunset).

Dessert cocktails at the Panorama Bar.