Ketchikan

Ketchikan was the first stop in the cruise departing from Vancouver.  Ketchikan is also known as the first city because it is the most Southern on the Alaskan tour.  Most of our arrivals are at 7:00 a.m. which means we are typically the first souls on the street and our cruise was the kick-off for the tour season.  A few early bird shops were available to catch the cruisers and they offered some food and a wide assortment of souvenirs.

This is rainy Ketchikan as we pulled in along with the City welcome sign.  One of may totem poles and the we visited Creek Street which is the original town in Ketchikan that also served as the red-light district for the workers, cannery and gold miners.  The tide changes as much as twenty feet in Alaska and here is the same spot on Creek Street at low and high tides.  The last image is our ship at dock at Ketchikan.

Our one activity in Ketchikan was a boat tour where you pilot your own small zodiac boat and follow the guide.  We were the only foolish ones to go out in the 45' rainy weather.  I had a blast driving the zodiac around the Ketchikan area and we spotted some bald eagles, few dolphins and lots of rain.  Yum caught a cold as a result and so I really owe her.  Luke our guide was really nice and here he is preparing a hydrophone to drop in the water to listen for dolphins and whales, not luck though.