Alaska Day 3

It has been nearly three weeks since Stan and I took our little jaunt up to Southeastern Alaska. Life interceeded and I have not been able to post the final pictures of our trip.  I am making time to do so right now.

We left Juneau on Sunday morning, June 30th for the quick flight to Ketchican, the final leg of our little adventure. For some reason, I could not get the setting on my camera to work for me and my in air pictures are not as sharp as I like them to be. If you look into the background of this picture, you can see another glacier. They really are beautiful and the Majesty of God's creation just shouts out at you from high above it.

Mountains jutting up through the clouds.

A cruise ship making it's way into port in Ketchican. It was still a way out, but it was expected to land while we were in town.

Coming into Ketchican, you landed on the opposite side of the channel from the town. The landing strip looked a little scary from above.

A little better picture of it as we approached.  You land on the far left side and then make a sharp right at the end on the runway, go down a hill and taxi to the end once again and then down to the terminal.  Kind of interesting. Three levels. 

In this picture, the ferry is across the channel from the airport. It comes over and ferries you across to the Ketchican side of the channel for a small fee.

We saw several Eagle in the area. They are so amazing to watch. The grace of their flight in comparison to their size is amazing to me.

Ketchican Creek that flows through town.  Much of the old town is built around this creek.

Harbor picture.

Both of these homes were very successful businesses in the early days of Ketchican. The "lady" proprietresses of both lived in them after their businesses were declared illegal.  I believe they both passed away sometime in the 50's. This street in now a big attraction to the tourists, full of kitchey little shops. You can see under the buildings the pilings, it is because this street is built along side and sometimes over Ketchican creek.

Ketchican has the largest collection of standing totem poles. Notice also the tram going up the hill to the businesses up above.  We did not ride it up, but found it to be rather interesting.  You can see the red car just above the roof of hte building in the foreground.

There were four cruise ships along the docks downtown.  There are two more slips further out of the downtown area and they were expecting both to be occupied by evening.

Ketchican boasts being the Salmon Capital of the world.  She was also, once upon a time, a logging town. Sadly so many regulations have severely curtailed both industries. She relies more and more upon the tourist trade now.

I just liked the tunnel going under the hill, the house atop the tunnel and the stairs going up.

I am thinking if one were to do these stairs even once a day, up and down, you would never have to worry about having thunder thighs.  Stan thinks they would make an amazing bobsled run in the winter.

Almost home.  Can you see the Space Needle?

Coming in for a landing, Both of our sports arenas below us.

Mount Rainier.  We will be on the ground within minutes.

We are trying to decide on where to go next.  Have been looking at the Grand Canyon, but need to wait for it to cool down a bit down there before we wander off that direction.  Maybe this weekend just a little car trip.  I am wanting to head out onto the Olympic Peninsula, we have not been there since the kids were little.
I guess I will just have to wait until tomorrow morning and see which way the wind is blowing when we get up.
Do you have fun plans for the weekend?