I'd decided to sign up for this tour only a few days before we left Pennsylvania. The cultural tour included with Travel With Alan (which Greg is taking) is identical to one I took with Mark 19 years ago and, once I saw the forecast for today, I decided to go to the Misty Fjords National Monument instead. The Monument, designated in 1978, sits on over 2 million acres in the Tongass National Forest. It is accessible only by boat or seaplane.
Our trip covered 60 nautical miles into the fjords, with a 2 hour ride each way. The guides pointed out places of interest and bits of local history as we sped along. The ship had great panoramic views with two decks. They provided coffee, hot chocolate and tea, supplemented with snacks of donut holes, samplings of local delicacies (pickled kelp, Sitka spruce jelly) and hot chowder or chili. The ride was never boring.
Ketchikan is the 4th wettest place on earth. With an average of 160 inches of rain annually, locals point out that there is no such thing as inclement weather, only inappropriate attire.
As a science requirement, all Ketchikan kids in 5th and 8th grade are dropped off for a weekend practicing their survival skills on Bold Island. Wilderness skills are essential in this community, where weather can change quickly, dramatically, and dangerously. Twenty foot seas are not uncommon. The students learn to survive by foraging, finding fresh water, etc.
Bold Island.
New Eddystone Rock, the most photographed natural site in Ketchikan, was named in 1793 by Captain George Vancouver. He was exploring the archipelago around present day Ketchikan while searching for the Northwest Passage. He described New Eddystone as a "remarkable rock resembling a ship under sail," and in fact on sighting it, was at first despondent because he thought he'd lost his boasting rights as first European to navigate the area. It's composed of basalt that rose from a volcanic vent beneath the sea floor within the last 5 million years.
With a little imagination, one can see how Vancouver may have mistaken it for a sailing ship, especially on a typical misty day.
Just after New Eddystone, we turned right into Rudyerd Bay to explore the Misty Fjords.
The tops of the 4000 foot Punch Bowl cliffs are visible only on atypical days like today. The cliffs continue another 1000 feet below the water surface, making it easy to navigate close to the rock face.
These cliffs have been free climbed, which, looking from below, seems insanely suicidal. Because Misty Fjords is a protected area, no spikes or climbing aids can be hammered into the sheer rock face.
The water was a mirror, melting into Daliesque distortions from the wake of our boat.
The fjord walls have virtually no topsoil, yet somehow the evergreens cling on long enough to cover many of surfaces. Once a tree falls, however, (whether or not it made a sound!) the adjacent areas are scraped clean in a domino effect, leaving bare granite exposed.
Debris scar from tree fall
The Fjords are known for long, exuberant waterfalls. But 90% of them are rain fed, and run dry within a few hours of the rain ending. In addition, last year was the driest here in 75 years and the area is still in a drought. So a negative consequence of our beautiful day was a paucity of waterfalls. We did see a couple, both of which had nearby harbor seals.
Basking seals
The glacial geologic features of the fjords were eye-catching at every turn.
A cirque, or bowl-shaped depression at the head of a glacial valley
The lines at the bases of the cliffs mark the high tide differentials, which vary between 6 and 26 feet.
A float plane soaring over the Misty Fjords
Our sister ship, as we headed back
I met Greg in Ketchikan where we walked along notorious Creek Street, the red light district until the 1950s. We had a local beer and listened to some live music before returning to the Noordam to sail for Juneau.
Creek Street
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