Today we ported in Ketchikan...our last stop before docking in Vancouver, British Columbia. Ketchikan is another of those landlocked Alaskan towns....only way in is by air or by water. This would be the only day that Mr. Man and I embarked on separate excursions (more on his day in just a little bit). My fun for the day was going to be on this boat, with a captain who was unapologetically patriotic, a man of faith, and a hoot! His crew was comprised of college students from the lower 48 who pay their way through college by working in Alaska during the tourist season.
He was also accompanied by his faithful sidekick who was obviously very comfortable sleeping on a rocking boat!
Did I forget to mention that it was a very overcast, even drizzly type of day? And, that at times, the seas got a little rough?! But we headed out anyway in search of eagles' nests, eagles, totems and whatever else we could find! It wasn't long before we spotted this eagle perched in the top of a tree....
I love how the wind is ruffling his feathers! (Remember that overcast, drizzly day? Add in some pretty stiff breezes to boot!)
It wasn't too long before he decided to go either in search of food or maybe just get away from us!
But what a beautiful picture he made as he flew away!
A little further along we came across this guy....
As we came around a point and saw this cross, our captain asked us if we knew the history behind it. Thinking it was something to do with this particular cross in this particular place, we all said. "No." Then he said, "Well, it all began around two thousand years ago with a man named Jesus!" He shared that the family that had installed the cross had made a commitment to found their lives and their business on their faith in Christ, and that they had been blessed beyond measure....even to owning the harbor which we were entering!
Doesn't look like that there would be too much of a chance for a nature photo here, does it? Well, as we rounded the end of this barge.....
we were greeted by the sight of this 16 week old eaglet!
Notice that his talons are already the gold of his mature parents, but that his beak is not. His feathers are starting to change, but he still has more morphing to do; however, he already has that fierce eagle look down pat, wouldn't you say?
He "posed" for us for quite awhile, and then we headed back out into the bay...and saw yet another majestic bird....
The area was dotted with little islands...this one was inhabited by a caretaker for a large estate over on the mainland. Isolated, but neat!
Our next "stop" was at the Totems State Park....
This lighthouse is being restored....
...and is a frequently photographed site here....so we each had our pictures taken in front of it. (Evidence of that stiff breeze I mentioned earlier!)
Harbor seals were a common sight....
.....tho' these guys are pretty well camouflaged!
Patriotic, remember?
And then our intrepid captain brought out his plastic trombone to "call" the whales....
...and, yes, he did play it and not too badly, I might add. And , lo and behold..... we did see whales!
See all the birds? They follow the whales and their presence can be indication of where the whales will surface next. These whales were "bubble-feeding"....creating a curtain of bubbles around a school of fish and then coming up in the middle to scoop up all they can get in one giant gulp!
Because they were so active, I was able to snap several "tail" shots as they dove...
Had a blast watching these amazing creatures....well worth braving the wind, the choppy seas, the chilly temps....God's creation is simply magnificent!
While I was photographing eagles, totems, a lighthouse and whales, Willie was salmon fishing! Surprisingly, there were only 7 brave souls from the 700 passengers on our ship that had signed up for salmon fishing in the salmon capitol of the world! Willie was one of three on a boat named the Ann Marie, and the captain of said boat was the only female captain in the harbor....and she routinely outfishes everyone else. They did pretty well on this day....there were 6 salmon among the three of them....
Willie's first catch was the smallest one....a pink salmon, but he looks pretty happy, doesn't he?! He wanted to at least catch "something"...and he did!
His second catch was a coho...nice size!
and his the last catch of the day was this lovely coho, or silver, that did not want to go quietly or easily!
Look how the captain, Sandra, has mastered the technique of making the catch seem larger...
Same fish....different perspective (holding it out and away from herself)!
Those three salmon now reside in our freezer....well, two of them, anyway (we already enjoyed one...yummo)!
We had a great last port call day, but unfortunately, I contracted the lovely upper respiratory virus that seems to make its presence known on cruise ships...so spent the night and most of the next day in our stateroom (insert major sad face here...Willie did NOT like eating dinner alone). But the adventure is not quite over so check back for the conclusion of our amazing, awesome Alaskan Adventure....
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