June 9 Ketchikan...more of the story

It was another rough day with high seas and strong winds. The swells from yesterday were closer together and nearly cresting at the top so it was a real "hammer" day. Our little Nordic Tug can really handle it...even if we did get a bit more water in our chain locker than it could handle. We will know what to look for and avoid next time if we ever get into a similar situation. Considering the fact that we have travelled nearly 800 miles to get here and done it in a fairly compressed amount of time...it has gone excellent.

We were relieved and overjoyed when we finally saw Ketchikan, complete with 4 large cruise ships, Alaska Ferries, float planes coming & going, plus boats moving everywhere.

We are currently tied up to the city pier with commercial fishing vessels all around. Both the enormous cruise ships (I counted 13 floors on one)that were docked along side pulled out about dinner time and all the little tourist gift shops closed down for the night...or until the next cruise ship (their bread and butter) pulls in.

Once we cleared US customs, I hopped (figuratively speaking) onto a bus to go out to the main post office to retrieve a package of drugs (prescription of course!) that Cindy had forwarded "General Delivery" to us here.

We were surprised that the docks we are staying at do not provide restrooms and showers (like the marinas at home) AND TRUST ME...AFTER 4 DAYS WITHOUT A SHOWER WE REALLY WERE COUNTING HAVING ONE. I scouted around and a nice lady at the espresso cafe told me there were shower and laundry facilities at the tavern down the street. I walked there and the lady behind the bar confirmed that in deed they had such facilities.

Mistake #1 was I did not ask to see them...I really needed this shower and every other business in Ketchikan is a tavern or a liquor store so why rock the boat(so to speak).

Mistake #2 was when we came back to use them, I let my dear husband use it first (if I needed a shower...he REALLY needed a shower). This tavern was located in an historic building...surprised they even had indoor plumbing when they built this...anyway to cut to the quick...by the time I had my turn there was little hot water left, the floor was covered with water(I hope it was from the faulty shower curtain and not the yucky toilet)...I did get my $2 shower but felt like I should take a course of penicillin to keep from catching any nasty bugs there.

Overall I think the highlight of our shower venture was the drunk who greeted us at the door of the establishment. It was like we were his long lost friends. When Gary left after his shower our new friend wanted to know what Gary had in his blue bag...he was disappointed when Gary replied that it was "dirty clothes". When I came out he wanted to know what we had "going on back there" and he and two buddies started to follow me down the sidewalk. I think perhaps in the light of day they came to their senses.

Speaking of "light of day" the further North we get the later it is light...really spooky and I am having trouble getting to bed at a decent time at night.

omorrow promises to be a day of rest before we journey out to the fish camp site on Dall Island. Beyond that we expect to start traveling by ourselves and at a more leisurely pace as we head North to Craig and points of adventure beyond.

Thanks for the reports back from those of you who are keeping track of us on this weblog.

Have a wonderful summer and keep checking here for more updates.

Linda & Gary

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