Saturday, August 16, 2014

Alaska Ferry System to Sitka

August 12th, 2014 A long day on the ferry. We started by getting in line at 6 pm last night and after checking in, quickly got our lane assignment. Then waited until nearly midnight to drive aboard the vessel Columbia. It took until 12:45 AM to fit all the vehicles aboard (we were scheduled to depart at Midnight.)
It took some searching on board to find a place to sleep. (or try to) At Bob's suggestion we tried the reclining chairs in the Theater, but these were not quite comfortable for sleeping purposes. Bob snagged a long sofa unoccupied at 2 AM and I awaited my turn after he had a nap. Once we reached Juneau, the solarium deck practically cleared out and we were able to get two reclining hard plastic chaise loungers. I opted to keep my gear there with Bob but tried my "turn" on the cushioned sofa. Note to self, take more pillows/cushions aboard when we take the ferry from Sitka to Prince Rupert. Bob did stroll the decks and enjoyed the scenery in Juneau. Two other Alaska Highway ferry vessels were at the same dock as well, the Malaspina and the Fairweather. Bob eventually got a few hours sleep, much better than I did. At around 8 AM I was walking along the deck and spotted a humpback whale diving, (no camera present, no time to grab it) and it didn't resurface anywhere with in view. The skies which were rain filled awaiting the boat in Haines, cleared and remained clear during the night and coming day. It was a beautiful trip looking out at the heavily forested slopes descending right into the ocean. It was amazing traveling along this inside passage there are so many variously sized islands and channels through them I would be easily lost! Rounding the bend towards Sitka we were able to spot a passageway clear out to the open sea, but in the islands shelters we were on nearly flat clear waters. Occasionally a gentle rolling but otherwise completely flat seas.
At 3:30pm we arrived as scheduled into dock in Sitka. We got to Fran's (Bob's brother) with only one phone call to narrow down his trailer. We had a nice visit for the evening. Fran made up a tasty American Goulash for supper! Just the thing for these weary travelers!
Posted by at

2 comments:

  1. TravelmanNHAugust 17, 2014 at 3:37 AM

    Those night time ferry runs are murder! Our truck camper now has 50,000 road miles plus over 1000 sea miles on ferries. I can sympathize with the two of you! I notice the Greek Orthodox Church in the photo above. We have a similar church in our neighborhood and the pastor here in Berlin was assigned to Sitka until he had a heart attack.
    We've never been to Sitka, but it sounds like an interesting place to visit!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownAugust 17, 2014 at 7:28 AM

      There is a lot of history here. Sitka was the Russian America Capital and had a monopoly on fur trade in the entire region at one time. Many of them ruthlessly exploited the Natives into hunting seals and such for them. Their church had tried to soften the impact and (it's very early here, can't remember the name,) the first bishop for years became similar to the Pope in the Catholic Church. (again can't recall the title, must drink more coffee, LOL)

      Delete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)