Skagway

SKAGWAY DAY 

I was up early walking the deck and taking some photos as we sailed towards Skagway. After breakfast we traveled lightly and ventured out to the metropolis of Skagway. The weather is not as forecast and it is a wonderful sunny day and warm by Alaska standards. This was confirmed by the clerks at the IGA, as we stopped there to see if they had any local jelly or jam. We did do a small amount of gift shopping and got The Boys some Alaska Dog Soap. 

Back to the ship to refit for the afternoon excursion. We did spot a Bald Eagle sitting in the tidal area but he was scared away by a couple of people walking out and they got too close. 

We have chosen the Alaskan Nature and Wildlife Expedition. There were a total of 6 clients on this excursion, us and a family of four.  We were met at the ship and transported by bus to the fast ferry dock. We did not go straight to the dock but got a short  tour of the town of Skagway. The tour had arranged for our transport to Haines by the Fast Ferry, which is about a 30 - 40 minute ferry ride. When we reached the other dock, we were met by our driver and naturalist guide. We boarded a small bus and and were driven to the the local community center where we had a lunch of a chicken wraps, chips, cookie and water and grapes. This was good. We then started our drive to Chilkoot lake along the Chilkoot River.  Along the way we made several stops to see Eagles, water foul, a fish weir and Mountain Goats. We also learned about life in the area and some of the flora of the area. We did not see any bears, and that was no surprise as the timing was not right. I did get some pictures of an eagle on a nest.  This may have been more productive had it been earlier in the morning or later in the day. When we reached the lake we did a small hike where we talked about the forest and muskeg bogs of the area. The Naturalist and driver were excellent and informative. When we returned to the dock, we boarded the ferry to return to Skagway (where the rough water meets the land).  The return was just a bit rough. We walked back to the ship, cleaned up and had fellow cruisers to our room for drinks. We then enjoyed a great dinner and celebrated a friends 50th birthday.