Ketchikan AK
August 8th, 2022
Today we made port at Ketchikan Alaska. This town known as "Alaska's First City" and the "Salmon Capital of the World," is a scenic port community in the state's southeastern panhandle, surrounded by the Tongass National Forest. It is famous for its rich Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian Native Alaskan culture, historic Creek Street, and as the gateway to the Misty Fjords National Monument.
View of Ketchikan from our balcony.
We did not do any organized tours of the town. We just wandered on our own and explored the area. This led us to a boardwalk, built on pilings over Ketchikan Creek, was once the city's red-light district. Today, it features art galleries, gift shops, and museums, including the famous Dolly's House museum. You could see many salmon swimming around in the creek below us. further up river, near some falls, a salmon ladder was installed to help the salmon make it up river.
Ketchikan is home to the world's largest collection of standing totem poles. You can see these historic and modern carvings at several locations, including the Totem Heritage Center, Totem Bight State Historical Park, and the Saxman Native Village.
Saxman Native Village Totems
On our way back to the dock, we came across a bronze sculpture call The Rock. It is a tribute to the city's heritage and pioneers. The sculpture features seven life-sized figures, with six representing archetypes of early Ketchikan life and one representing an actual historical person. A fisherman, a minor, a logger, a bush pilot, a frontierswoman, and a Native drummer are all represented. Standing at the top of the sculpture is Chief Johnson, a Tlingit leader who greeted travelers arriving by ship.
The figures illustrate the factors that drew people to early Ketchikan, such as the gold rushes, the forests, and the abundance of salmon. Chief Johnson's placement symbolizes that his people were the first inhabitants of the area.
The Rock Sculpture on the pier.
We did a little souvenir shopping as well, then found The Arctic Bar on the pier as well. It is the oldest bar in Ketchikan and is known as the Home of the Happy Bears. This is because is depicts two bears humping each other as its main decorative theme. They had a nice area to sit outside, so we decided to stay and take in the sun and a beer before returning to the ship.
Back on the ship we ate dinner as a family with our group. Some of us went to the entertainment on the ship others found a bar to drink at. We have the drink package, so we need to try to hit our 15 drinks a day limit!
