Juneau AK

It's the 23rd of June 2011 and we're headed for Juneau AK, the state capital.   Juneau reminds me of Harrisburg PA to a small degree.  It's not the largest city in the state with around 30,000 population, nor is it particularly accessible.  Like Okrakoke NC in the Outer Banks, you only get there by sea or air.  Juneau is bounded by rugged mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean on the west. 

We do most of our traveling at night so we really don't spend much time waiting to get to our main destinations.  That also means we seldom see the Captain and crew in action.  Their performance back at Glacier Bay was pretty impressive, maneuvering in tight quarters.  

Juneau has a busy port with quite a variety of ships docked already. 

This morning we're up early to see the docking procedure.  As it turns out, it's not all that exciting.  The crew fire small lines at the bow and stern to men waiting on the dock.  These men reel in larger lines until the main docking line is on the dock.

After wrapping the line around one of the large pegs affixed to the structure of the dock, they use a large fork lift to slowly drag the ship up to the dock.  After that, the gangways are constructed using the forklift to place segments between the ship and segments on the dock.

The rest of the procedure is mainly administrative.  Stations are set up inside the ship and at dockside to process passengers on and off the ship.  

The view from the dock is nice, but not exactly spectacular.


We have four activities scheduled today:  the fish hatchery, the Mendenhall Glacier, a very unique temperate rain forest called the Glacial Gardens, and the Mt Roberts Tramway.  We grab a quick breakfast in the ship's Rotterdam dining room and head off to catch the bus to tour Juneau.

As we approach, we notice an increasing number of eagles in the area.  We'll see dozens of them throughout the day, but it takes some getting used to seeing them in lieu of sea gulls or robins all over the area. 

The fish hatchery was a reaction to a problem with salmon being over-fished.  A fella named Macaulay decided to start a hatchery to stimulate and sustain the salmon population in the area.  Turns out, like the gulls around Haines, salmon are also creatures of habit.  Once a generation of salmon was actually hatching at the hatchery, they return annually to repeat the cycle.  The Macaulay Hatchery now handles 150 million salmon a year.  Although designed to show the whole process, we just happened to arrive a month before the main spawning season, so there were no salmon being processed.

Pity, because it would have been impressive seeing thousands of salmon swimming up a 450 ft fish ladder and being processed for their eggs.  They did have a nice aquarium, though.

From there we re-board the bus and head for the Mendenhall Glacier.  This place is magnificent.

College Fjord had a lot of glaciers viewed from a distance.  Glacier Bay had magnificent glaciers close up but not very accessible from anything but the ship.  We had to trek back a ways by canoe to see the glacier and surrounding ecology around Haines.  This glacier, unlike all the others, is easily accessible and pretty active. 
In the above pic you can see paths people walk to get a better look.  There are also trails off to the right which circle behind the waterfall (the white coming from the side of the mountain on the right).  That waterfall is actually glacial runoff.  Gives you a pretty good idea just how much water is coming off the bottom of the glacier.  There is another waterfall coming from the face of the glacier but it is tough to see in this pic.  The glacier itself is, according to one of the travel guides, "part of the Juneau Icefield, a massive accumulation of ice and snow that stretches 85 miles north to south and 45 miles east to west, an area larger than the state of Rhode Island."

As we board the bus and depart Mendenhall Glacier, we get another reminder, as if we needed one, of how close to nature we are.  In the pic at left, that is a bear up a tree behind the National Park facility serving the glacier.

And we're off to the Glaciel Gardens.

I can't actually say I was all that excited about this stop, but after visiting I have to say it was well worth the visit.  The climate in this area has been described as a cooler, wetter Seattle, or as a temperate rain forest if your closest association with Seattle is Starbucks.

It will take a moment to process what you see above.  In 1984 there was a landslide in this area which caused a lot of damage to the foliage and effectively cut one of the main arteries in the area, the Glacier Highway.  Ten years later Steve and Cindy Bowhay purchased around 6 acres on the side of Thunder Mountain and started reorganizing it for their landscaping and nursery business.  The guides tell stories about how Steve had gained experience as a heavy machine operator, gardener, construction worker, et al.  Steve had an idea to stabilize the flow of water down the mountain, preventing further erosion and landslides and using the flow to generate hydroelectic power for their nursery business.  Some years later, while working on the property he damaged some heavy equipment.  You can imagine how he was going to explain this to his wife.  In frustration, he picked up an uprooted tree, stuck it in the soft soil, and promptly got an idea.

Yes, those tall brown things with flowers on top are actually uprooted trees now serving as flower pots (Honey, I broke the equipment, but look at the nice flowers I got you.) 

They later bought more land for a total of 51 acres and have been developing is ever since.  I have no clear idea how many flowers they've planted but they are everywhere down near the nursery at the base of the mountain, and they are beautiful. 

The tour takes small groups of us in golf carts up the side of the mountain on roads Steve has built over time.

This is not what most folks think of when they think of Alaska, but here it is.  Perfectly natural for this climate.  Steve has been busy.  Where the land will not support conventional roads, Steve build logging roads (did I mention he was also a logger at some point).  

You take logs and stick them in the side of the slope (do you see a pattern developing here), then cover these with additional logs to form a base for a road.  Steve is nothing if not eclectic. 




Eventually we make it to the top of the property.  Steve has constructed a walkway leading to an overlook which gives a terrific view of the entire valley below, from the airport to the Gastineau Channel. 

Then, after all this, there is more to see back down at the nursery.  As mentioned previously, Alaskans really do like to nurture beauty.  The Bowhays are just fortunate enough to have made a living out of it.  Good for them.

That's about it for the bus tour.  Well, not exactly.  While we were traveling around Juneau, there was a lady sneezing and hacking on the bus.  At one point she says to some of her traveling companions "it's a good thing Bronchitis is not contagious".  Anyone taking bets on that statement?  If you guessed that over the next week we developed a progressively worse cough, diagnosed on our return as bronchitis, bingo!  As they say, the gift that keeps on giving.

So, for our final event of the day, we head up the Mt Roberts Tramway.  This is your basic dual skiing gondola running from the base of the mountain to the top.

The view is magnificent.  It has the advantage over the view at the Glaciel Gardens of having an unobstructed view while Glaciel Gardens still had a lot of trees blocking some angles.  Each was quite impressive, though.  

At the top there are a variety of activities, a restaurant, a very well stocked gift shop, hiking trails, a live eagle on display, and so on.  It has been a long day though, so we don't spend as much time here and head back to gondola.  The windows of the gondola landing facility are open at the top, so while we wait we get to see an airshow put on by a pair of eagles.  I tried mightily to get either pictures or movies, but they were too fast and the viewing angles were too restricted to get anything worth sharing. 

So we finally get back to the Zaandam.  This evening features another great dinner in the Rotterdam Dining Room.  Did I mention how good the food is in the Rotterdam.  I remain amazed we didn't get charged for extra weight on our return flight after eating so well throughout the trip. 

Haines AK

It's 22 Jun 2011 and this morning we wake up to the sight of the dock in Haines AK off the starboard side.  We're up early this morning because I'm playing 9 holes at Valley of the Eagles (www.hainesgolf.com). 

Haines is a beautiful little town nestled among the mountains as you'll see below.  Nearby but across the bay is Skagway which we do not intend to visit on this trip.  There is nonetheless a lot of activity on the dock getting folks on the Skagway ferry (otherwise it takes many hours to drive around the bay).

While I'm off demonstrating new techniques for displacing earth with rented irons, Ann is going to prowl around town this morning and take pictures with the good camera.  I'll be using my iPhone.

The golf course is not far away.  Abbi (the course owner's granddaughter) shows up with a large van.  She gives us a short windshield tour of the site of Ft Haines before taking us to the course.  You'll see more of Ft Haines below.  Turns out Abbi's also a local athlete.

At the course we're paired up in two-somes and three-somes loosely according to our handicaps.  It's a small town, so there are a lot of tee times available.  In fact, we basically do a shot-gun start from number 4. 

I'm paired up with Nihel, a farmer from New Zealand whom I gathered from bits of conversation either is or was an active rugby player at some point.  I'm not sure where you would have to go to find a more beautiful setting.  As advertised, the views are phenomenal, and just to punctuate the name of the course, an eagle flies over #4 as we walk to our second shots. 

The course is relatively new and at water level with quite a few small creeks running through.  This means there are seasons when it is flooded, and there are seasons when running salmon are part of the water hazards.  All in all Nihel and I are a pretty good pair, shooting bogey golf.

Not sure is you can tell or not, but there are consequences to having a course which floods periodically.  The main one is that all the greens are made of astro-turf.  You might think this would make for very fast puts, but in fact the greens are not all that bad.  You get used to the idea of lagging up, though because approach shots don't exactly bite. They do a nice job of maintaining the fairways, though and it's actually a very nice course.

At the end of 9 holes, we all gather at the pro shop for some homemade snacks of fresh salmon dip on crackers and bottled water.  Great recipe, by the way. 

Stan Jones, the owner and course builder, gives us a chat on the process of constructing the course, and stays around to answer questions. 

Abbi takes most of the group back to the ship, but a few folks go back out for another 9.

Nihel and I hang around and ask more questions about the course.  Stan says construction was actually much easier than the approval process.  It took him 7 years to get all the paperwork in order before he could start construction.  Even then, there were / are restrictions on the kind of grass he could bring into this environment, and he can't use pesticides.

Still, he had some good things going for him.  More land is being created as a result of glacial rebound.  I'd never thought of it before, but glaciers, being immensely heavy, actually depress the land under them.  As time passes and the glaciers recede, the land rises.  The land for the course is actually rising nearly an inch per year.  Stan has surveys and photos of the area from years ago when it was all below water.

I asked if he had any plans to put in a back 9.  Although he didn't look it, he said he was in his 70s.  He didn't think he would since it might take another 7 years to get it approved. 

Nihel and I also toured Stan's course maintenance facility which doubled as storage for commercial fishing gear.  The family, like many in Alaska, are serious about their hunting and fishing as it provides food for most of the year.

Nihel decided to do another 9 holes.  Stan said the van would likely be back within a half hour.  I'm in no rush, so I thank him for the course and the tour, and head back to Haines on foot.  















There is great weather this time of year.  The mile or two back to town is an easy and warm walk.  On the way in I passed the school.  The rhythms of life continue no matter where you are. 

It was reassuring to pass a soccer field full of kids going through their drills.  Abbi had mentioned they have to travel quite a bit to play other teams so I'd guess they have a lot of intra-squad games to sharpen up.   

In the meantime, Ann was making her way around Haines.  Started with Officer Housing sitting on top of a hill overlooking a parade grounds.

The rest of the Fort's original buildings surround a parade grounds.  All the remaining Fort buildings have been bought, renovated and turned to other uses. 


You can see the top of our ship in the background, just above the white building and trees.






Eventually she worked her way to the downtown area.

Haines has a quite busy fishing enterprise, as it seems most Alaskan communities near the sea do.

The downtown is fairly busy even in the early morning.  This may be because many from the ship are stretching their legs, but for whatever the reason, there is activity. 

It is a continuing theme throughout our visit that there are beautiful things almost everywhere you go.  Maybe that's a compensation for the relatively short growing season, but whatever the reason, folks up here seem to make a special effort when it's possible.

And then there are the things that lend character to every town, 

ranging from this giant Hammer in front of the Hammer Museum,

to this absolutely beautiful scene at the foot of a hill, 



















and this dog training his master to park in town.

Grabbed a quick meal on the Lido deck back aboard ship and returned to the room to change into boots for our next tour, the Glacier Wildlife Safari.  


 

That's our ferry heading to our dock.

On the way over our skipper slowed to get good views of seals sunning themselves on rocks along the shore . . .

and swimming just off shore.

After tying up on the beach

we take an old school bus back to the camp.  There are about 15 people who live out here full time.  The downside is they live in pretty minimal facilities.  The upside?  They live extraordinarily close to nature.  We will be taking oversized canoes back to the glacier, and our hosts take few chances. 

We're outfitted with life jackets and tall rubber boots before heading out to our destination . . .  







which you can see up the river through the trees below. 

We finally get underway.  There is some minimal paddling up stream, but at the first sign some in our party are getting tired, our guide starts the outboard motor and we sit back to enjoy the view.  

This includes a quick tour past Agnes Rock.  That's Agnes sitting on her nest.  It seems sea gulls are creatures of habit, and Agnes has been returning to this particular rock for a while now.  It is unfortunate that history will also repeat itself.  Our guide says this rock will eventually be flooded as the summer warms the area and the outflow from the glacier increases.  Agnes will eventually be evicted, but she has been observed to return for at least a season or two.

If I recall correctly, our guide has been living out here for a few years and is in a particularly good position to know the area intimately.

He says this is a particularly good area for sea gulls who are drawn by the large amount of food in the area.  As we pass the rocks there are a lot of nests.  

As you might expect, in any large community there are some who stand out more than others.  For example, this guys wants to be a star.

And then there are those who attend to the more serious business of raising the young.

Of course, having a lot of food in the vicinity means the table is set for more than just gulls.  This eagle and another were spotted heading for the glacier.  The reaction of the gulls was interesting.  They swarmed the flight of two and drove both off for a time.  

Eventually one made his way back into the area, and although challenged by more gulls, made it all the way to some rocks 50 - 100 ft up the left side of the glacier.  

You can see his white head among the trees and brush on the cliff.

After a while, one gull continued circling the area while the eagle remained in the woods, patiently waiting for his next opportunity.  This is the way the situation stood as we departed the area.

The trip back to Haines was relatively uneventful.  We saw some whales on the way back, but were unable to get in position fast enough to get their pictures. 

           

We got back to the ship in time for dinner and the evening show.  There is a main show each evening.  Three of these were musical presentations and the other two were a magic show and a comedy act. 

After the show we headed for the hot tub.  It is a truly small world.  Ann and I ended up chatting for a while with Mike Jefferson and his wife Patty.  Mike is an Air Force Academy '81 grad, F-4 / F-15 and now American Airlines (AA) pilot (right seat at the moment).  He'd like to fly something besides right seat for an airline - even considered crop dusting while waiting for AA to call him, only to find he was not allowed to do any commercial flying while associated with AA.  He's now looking for a way to get into local flying.  He seemed enamored of float planes in AK, and was looking for a way to get AA to send him up this way.

Ann and I finally got back to our room.  We polished off what was left of a bottle of wine and hit the rack after a very busy day.