Two-Timing Tongass

Well we've gone from 80 degree temperatures to glaciers and now we have entered the rainforest. No joke, the Tongass National Forest - all 17 million acres of it - encompasses much of South Eastern Alaska. It is the largest national forest in the U.S.

So Alaska can get pretty crappy summer weather. Southeast Alaska that is. They actually don't have a summer as we know one at home. Fairbanks gets the extremes: from 80 in the summer to -40 in the winter. However, in southeast Alaska, it ranges from 20-60 degrees Fahrenheit over the course of the year. Sometimes it gets below zero and sometimes it reaches 70 and 80 degree temperatures.

We entered Skagway, the first stop on our cruise, very early on Tuesday morning. The town is tucked back in a valley and was formed during the gold rush of 1898. Nowadays it only operates during the summer - purely a tourist town. During the winter, the entire town is boarded up and it shuts down. This is not abnormal for many towns in Alaska. For example, the Denali and McKinley Princess, two hotels we stayed at during our trip, shut down entirely come mid-September. They board up the buildings and become ghost towns during the winter months. Seems rather eerie to me.



However, Haines - a small town across the bay from Skagway, does not shut down during the winter months. It was here that we took our hike. This town's population fluctuates between 2100 and 2500 people over the course of a year, the 2500 being the population in the summer. We disembarked the ship around 9 a.m. and boarded a ferry to cross the bay to go to Haines. Then we boarded a small bus that took us to the trail head.


A view of Skagway from Battery Point

The hike lasted most of the day. It was about 4 miles round trip. They took us to a place called Battery Point where there is a beach. Quick note - Alaskan beaches are made of rock. Don't get too excited about beach visiting. It would be rather uncomfortable to lay on. We got some great photos during our hike and learned a lot about our surroundings. 90% of the trees in the woods we were hiking in are either Sitka Spruce or Western Hemlock (not the stuff that killed Socrates.) However we did locate that.


I brought some home in hopes of testing it out! Take that, Canadian custom officials.

The guides were locals - not born and raised - but have lived in Haines for an extended period of time. We lunched on Smoked Salmon Wraps - jury is still out on them - and then headed back to the trail head. The terrain was full of roots. Not a ton of elevation change but you had to constantly watch your feet so as to not trip over rocks or roots.

After ferrying back to Skagway, we stayed in town to do some shopping. Walked the main drag - known as Broadway - and got dinner at the Skagway Brewing Company. They have excellent porter. Mmmmm dark beers :) Then we wandered back to the ship, getting lost once, and almost decided to make a run for the Canadian Border - it's only 15 miles away!



We got back on board the ship to have a relaxing night. Went to the Lotus Spa and enjoyed the hot tubs and sauna. Almost fell asleep on the heated beds. FYI, those things rock and should become household necessities. Got some room service later that night and then fell asleep. It was definitely one of our most relaxing nights since joining the cruise and was much needed.