Ferry to Juneau

Woke up early to get showered and enjoy town a bit. I left the church / hostel, and made my way north to another totem park. A couple notes on totems: there’s ones scattered throughout town, as well. Ketchikan is kind of a totem-pole destination. There’s the main park to the south, and Totem Bight State Historic Park to the north – both just a couple miles away from downtown.

I learned some cool things about totem poles. Many of them will say that they were made in the 1930’s as a restoration – which was initially disappointing. It’s like seeing King Tut’s sarcophagus, then being told that it was actually a restoration done more recently. The heyday of totem poles was actually around 1800, so seeing modern interpretations seemed off.

But that was until I read one interesting note: when a totem pole falls, it isn’t repaired or restored. Instead, it is left to rot and return to the earth. It is up to the current generation to make their own totem poles – telling their own stories, and carrying on the traditions of the past. When you consider that the humid rainforests in this area, the average lifespan of a totem pole is rarely more than 75 years. This explains a lot! And it gave me a much better appreciation for totem poles.

The symbolism is intense, too. A man wears a bear hat, with an orca fin. The snarling bear shows the strength of the clan, and the willingness to fit; the bear has an orca fin because the bears had defeated orcas, showing how mighty they were. Perhaps they didn’t get along with the Orca clan. It’s interesting to hear how the totem poles reference folklore, history, and prestige of the people making them.
Then something amazing happened. Totem poles are frequently topped by ravens or eagles. I got to see a different kind of eagle than expected:

Amazing, right?

After hanging out at the park a bit, I figured it was time to get to the ferry. I went back to downtown to pick up a souvenir bear, because why not. Then I went to a deli to grab a sandwich – excellent ham and cheese stuffed croissants. The ferry was long, as I wouldn’t get to Juneau until 9AM the next morning, so I wanted some extra snacks.

Ketchikan was a cool city and I was glad to visit. Very livable, and even easy to navigate. That said, the city is very different from the summer months and the winter months. Summer Ketchikan is neat, but I have a feeling life has a different pace in winter.

Boarded the ferry, and this one is bigger. Eight decks, a solarium, snack bar, reclining room (tons of reclining chairs to sleep in), evening lounge, free showers, observation decks, and two decks of cabins. It’s a mini-cruise ship. I met a 1st grade teacher from Ketchikan who gave me the low-down on the city.

Going to write some more for my blogs, revisiting older days I missed. Also, going to catch some sleep.

I’m parked on the top deck, where there’s a solarium with lounge chairs. On the deck beyond that, people can set up tents. Two people have, which is pretty cool. Also, pretty cold; the solarium is mostly sheltered from the wind.

We stopped in Wrangell, which is about as isolated as an island with a port can get. I walked around for ten minutes; it had a pioneer town feel. People were doing the best they can, but it looked like paint was a luxury. Still, plenty of well-kept gardens were around, which was surprising for how far north we are. Respect for the people living there, for sure.

It’s rainy on the boat as we go through some narrows; islands are hidden by fog and rain on either side. It’s beautiful if a bit monotone.

As night set, we followed green and red lights through the narrow passage. They showed Star Wars: A Force Awakens in their recliner lounge, but eventually I settled back in the solarium. They had kicked the heat lamps up with the lounge chairs beneath, so I eventually just slept in my t-shirt. Despite being mostly outside, it was a relaxing place to sleep – white noise from the ship’s engine, ship rocking a bit back and forth.