Craig to Ketchikan

Monday, July 23, we left Craig for the next leg of our trip around Prince of Wales Island.  Boaters at the dock in Craig had told us that the Hydaburg culture camp was happening this week and that on the weekend three totem poles would be raised in the totem park.  That was to be our destination for Thursday. We had quite a dramatic departure…no more than 2 miles south of the dock we saw a whale jumping (breaching).  We watched him leap out of the water for about 10 minutes.  I wish I could show you the video.  It was absolutely amazing.

We did a little fishing along the way to our Monday night anchorage.  Jerry caught 2 rockfish and I caught 1…enough for dinner.  Our anchorage was in the south arm of Port San Antonio on Baker Island…quiet and protected but nothing spectacular.   It was a great place for an evening of Mexican Train, however.  Tuesday we continued on, stopping to fish here and there.  You may remember that Jim is an avid fisherman and is always on the lookout for a salmon.  The day turned warm and sunny and we found an open channel in which we could float and fish.  Jim’s luck was amazing…he caught a 37-pound halibut!  We were all very excited, but especially Smokey who absolutely loves halibut.  We put most of it in the freezer so that they can take it home with them, but kept enough out for dinner…Yum!

Tuesday night, July 24, we anchored at Port Refugio on Suemez Island.  This tucked in little cove is just the type of place we love.  We were totally protected from wind and waves, had pretty scenery all around us, and we in a one-boat puddle of water.  We saw a black bear and many deer on the shores around us.  We sat and watched twin fawns explore the rocks and get acquainted with a raven.  I took this shot in hopes of getting something…and wound up with a picture that belongs in a Walt Disney cartoon!

Wednesday morning, July 25, we were off again. Fishing along the way didn’t bring any beautiful surprises but we did pass through some gorgeous country.  We were starting to get a sense of the west side of Prince of Wales, wilder, rockier, and more remote.  Instead of being out in wide-open water, we travelled through smaller channels and passes.  These afforded us much lovelier scenery.  The weather again this day was beautiful, with warm sunshine all around us.  Apparently what we have to do to have good weather, is to keep some company with us all of the time.  Chris is trying her hand at catching the biggest salmon here…but no luck!   Sometimes just being outside with a fishing pole in hand is enough.

We tied up in Hydaburg on Thursday, July 26, and were ready to explore this little Indian community.  We knew that the marina in Hydaburg was not going to have first class accommodations for us.  No power, no water, and docks falling into the water!  In fact, in the photo you can see a sunken boat in one of these slips.  Yikes!!  We chose our moorage carefully.

As I mentioned previously, this was their culture camp week where the town has lots of activities and classes for locals and visitors to learn about the Haida Indian culture.  They did a marvelous job.   The most amazing part of this was the full size replication of three totem poles.  These totem poles are the second replicas of originals carved in the late 1700’s or early 1800’s and restored and placed in the Hydaburg totem park in the 1930’s by the CCC. 

The carving shed had three huge totem poles on blocks, getting the finishing touches of carving and painting done.  In the photo above, you can see the new totem pole lying just behind the old totem pole.  The carvers had begun carving a cedar log the first of March and were just finishing up on Thursday when we arrived. 

We soon learned the plan for these three completed poles:  two would be moved to the totem park on Friday and the third on Saturday.  This is done by simple brute strength.  About 60 people, lifting the poles with 4 X 4’s, carry the totems out of the shed, down the street, up the hill, and into the park…about 0.3 mile.  The first pole to be moved on Friday was the women’s pole.  It was carved and painted by women and, of course, would be moved by women.  Chris and I were up to the challenge!

Chris and I were on the last 4 X 4, at the top of the pole, so had a somewhat lighter load.  We figure each person lifted about 30 lbs. to make it all work.  Three men carrying heavy duty saw horses walked beside us and about every 5 minutes, they’d shove the sawhorses under the pole, we’d set it down, and get a little breather.  Obviously the most challenging part was going up the incline…no breaks here!  

Once we reached the totem park, the pole was positioned in front of the prepared pole to which the totem would be bolted.  The trickiest part was rolling the pole over, or face down, on the sawhorses, so it would be oriented correctly to attach to the receiving pole.  That effort required some muscle power…for both the rolling it over side as well as the catching side.  Once that was done, and pulling and guiding ropes were attached, we started pushing the top end of the pole up into the air.  You can see that the men stepped in to help at this point, and that they used a taller frame to hold the pole in position as it was raised.  At this point, Chris and I are on one of the guide lines.  Another five minutes of effort and our pole was up and bolted to the receiving pole.  A lovely sight!

Jerry and Jim did not miss out on the fun.  The second pole to be raised on Friday was the men’s pole.  Of course it was bigger and heavier, but the same technique was used.  Sixty men on ten 4 X 4’s carried the pole over the same route into the totem park.  The men didn’t have as many carriers, though, and more young guys helped.  Jerry said it was heavy!  You can see the young man walking beside Jerry was definitely up to the job, though!

One of the reasons this all worked as well as it did was the organization of it all.  The mayor of Hydaberg, Tony, was the “drum major” and kept it all moving forward safely.  He knew when to stop for a break and when to keep the pole moving. 

Traditionally, the kids ride the poles to the park.  We had a few youngsters riding the women’s pole, but the guys had lots of kids on theirs.  When one adds 10 or 12 40-pound kids on the pole, it starts to get heavy!

The men’s pole went up into the air without a hitch, using the same process.  In the photo at the right, you can see the brute strength required to get the pole in the air.  The guide ropes and lift ropes don't to any good until the pole is at least at a 45 degree angle (you geometry folks can help figure that all out!).  Jim and Jerry were on guiding ropes as it was raised.  Soon, the second pole was in the air, ready to tell its story.  

Friday night we enjoyed a “feast” at the school gym.  Everyone who was in town was invited.  I’ve never seen so much food!  Of course there were several salmon and halibut preparations, lots of rice, and some unique dishes, too.  Something called “sea asparagus” (it looked like really scrawny asparagus with a totally different taste) and the biggest pile of crab legs and shrimp I’ve ever seen!  We all found something to enjoy!

Saturday morning the third pole was moved to the totem park.  The “master carver” had been in charge of this pole and everyone was invited to help carry.  I think Jim helped carry the pole for awhile but the rest of us declined.  One set of bruises on our forearms was enough!  Each time a pole was carried up the street, the procession was led by the Haida drummers/chanters.  These women sang traditional Haida songs as the set the pace with their drums.  The photo shows only a few of them.  There were probably 10 or 12 drummers who led the parade. 

By the end of Saturday afternoon, the totem park had three new poles.  The three poles completed this year leave only one large pole and several smaller figures to be replicated.  I asked one of the leaders what will happen when they run out of poles and they think they will go on to carving native canoes.  We saw some of these last year when we arrived in Hartley Bay, BC, at the end of a canoe journey.

Saturday night, neighboring Haida groups were there for another big feast and celebration, complete with traditional Haida dances.  What a show!  I cannot begin to describe to you the sights and sounds.  The youngest participants had just learned to walk and the oldest ones must have been in their 90’s.  The “grand entrance” in which all dancers participated took over 11 minutes! 

All in all our stay in Hydaburg was a rousing success!  Finding this little corner of Alaska, and becoming involved in a totally unique experience, has almost become the norm for us.  As we got ready to depart on Sunday, we spotted this blue heron wading on the shallow rocks at the end of the marina.

We left Hydaburg on Sunday morning, July 29, aware that we needed to keep making tracks to Ketchikan.  We anchored in Clam Cove, Kassa Inlet that evening, and had a quiet, sleep-promoting night in calm water.  Monday, July 30, we talked about continuing around the SE end of Prince of Wales and continuing our cruise up the east side, but we could see a rainstorm fast approaching from the south across Dixon Entrance.  Instead, we chose to anchor in Nichols Bay, at the very end of Prince of Wales, in a small protected cove.  We were soon joined by some new friends, Mike and Billie on “Peachy Keen”.  They stopped by in their tender with a gift…35 spotted prawns!

Jim made quick work of cleaning the prawns and Jim, Chris, and I soon sampled them.  Poor Jerry, and his shellfish allergy, could only be the photographer of the happy event.  He’s such a good sport about not eating this yummy food, but makes up for it enjoying all of the halibut and salmon we’ve had. 

We invited Mike and Sandy over for dinner and had a lovely evening getting to know these boaters from Bremerton.  I’ve found a couple of great recipes and served them both for our company.  We had salmon chowder, thanks to Lila Trask from Petersburg.  She gave me her wonderful recipe and a jar of salmon she had canned herself.  Delicious!  Along with the chowder we had some French bread, using a recipe I’d gotten from Merry on “Wanderer”. 

We stayed in Nichols Bay both Monday night and Tuesday night since there were gale warnings in the water ahead of us.  Wednesday morning, August 1 (Yikes!  Where did June and July go?) we continued to make our way to the east side of Prince of Wales.  Tuesday night’s anchorage was in Johnson Cove in Moira Sound.  What a beautiful place!  Once again we found a bulletproof “gunk hole” to spend the night and enjoy the scenery.  Jerry and Jim tried trolling as we entered the cove, but cannot be very effective since we don’t have downriggers.  As they’ve fished here and there they’ve caught a lot of little rockfish, but we haven’t kept anything since Jim’s halibut.  

As you might imagine, we’ve seen an amazing amount of wildlife, both on the shore and in the water.  I don’t know if we’re just more “tuned in” this year or there are simply more “critters” for us to see.  Johnson Cove was no exception.  We watched lots of bears, otters, seals and birds.

I think the seal in the photo was teasing Jerry and Jim.  That salmon in his mouth was painful to see!  Of course we knew there were salmon in this cove because we could see them jumping out of the water, but the seal made sure we got the memo.

Thursday morning, August 2, off we went again.  We awoke to overcast skies, sprinkles, and a rising barometer, so we made our run across Clarence Strait.  This body of water is notoriously “snotty”, as the boaters say, and we were delighted to find only a light chop as we made our way toward Gravina Island and our last anchorage before Ketchikan.  This island faces Ketchikan and Revi Island across Tongass Narrows and is the location of the Ketchikan airport.  Our anchorage at the very tip, Dall Bay, put us within a couple of hours of Bar Harbor in Ketchikan.  We could have made it all the way to the moorage, but we all wanted one last night in a pretty little cove. 

Dall Bay certainly filled the bill.  We entered on a relatively high tide and anchored near the head of the inlet, near this old fishing lodge.  Because the new moon was August 1, we were experiencing spring tides and water depth changes of near 20 feet.  Well, we were surprised and perhaps a little nervous as our water depth went from 51 feet when we anchored to 35 feet on Friday morning.  Quite a change!  The little islands that seemed so far away gradually crept closer and closer.  Eventually we saw another wrecked boat appear.  Sure made me wonder how many other “mysteries” are hidden beneath the water’s surface.

Ketchikan was only about two hours away, up Nichols Passage and then Tongass Narrows.  We chose to stay in Bar Harbor Marina, rather than one of the marinas closer to downtown.  This is the working marina, which we enjoy, and it put us closer to the grocery store, the post office, etc.

We had a fabulous two weeks with Jim and Chris and were sorry to see them leave.  We do have Beth’s visit to look forward to, though.  She will join us in Ketchikan on August 12 and cruise with us all the way back to LaConner.  We will be back in LaConner no later than August 26, so we’ll have some long days cruising through Canada.  Regardless, it’s all good!

Wish you could join us!