Tracy Arm and Ketchikan
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Tracy Arm is a Fjord some 45 miles south of Juneau. It is recognised as a wilderness area with many animals in season such as black
and brown bears, deer, wolves, seals, birds and more. The coastal mountains provide an exciting backdrop to the Fjord itself and when we began
to sail up the 30 miles or so of water, the beauty of the area began to emerge. There are 6 miles of glaciers along here and depending on the
season determines just how magnificent it can be! Everyone on the ship was out taking photos of every bend as we went around the corners as waterfalls and
steep cliffs kept coming into sight.
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The main attraction here is the Sawyer Glacier which sits in front of the twin Sawyer mountains. Icebergs
float around constantly and people look for the carving to happen but we weren't lucky enough to see that. However a magnificent day was had by all!!
And again the weather was so very kind to us as it was a pleasure to be out on deck!
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Our next adventure was to visit Ketchikan and after docking near the centre of town, we headed for Creek Street, a replica of times gone by.
Passing some of the very attractive souvenir shops we came across the Totem Bar and seeing as it was a warm day decided to have a cool beer before
moving on. It was so good we had to go back in the afternoon!!! However a walk around some of the neighbouring streets gave us an idea of the housing
and the Totem Poles. The Totem Park was not far away but we didn't have enough time to do that. Ketchikan has the world's largest collection of Totem Poles
and is famous for that reason.
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Back to Creek Street and the entrance is clearly marked so onto the boardwalk we went. The buildings were erected above the creek
and it gives the street a unique feel. This place was made famous in the 1920's by the fishermen, bootleggers and the ladies of the Night!! There are lots
of famous stories around here and most would tickle your fancy. When we arrived the tide was low and so the stones were visible at the bottom of the river,
however by the time we left the tide was high and the water just up under the bridge!! Ketchikan Creek is a great place to watch salmon spawning
in the season. If you walk the Married Man's trail it will lead you to the salmon spawning ladder where they actually climb it to spawn! Loved the
tee shirts and the message 'Bring more tourists..the last ones were delicious!'
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A little bit more looking and shopping on the way back to the ship gave us an idea of the harbour front and we were happy to play
tourists and grab a few more photos! Checked out the jewellery shops and they were awesome too!! The time got away again and so time to
board and say farewell to this interesting town...great day!
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