Monday 23 July 2007

Tuesday 24July 2007

It's funny how we always seem to be up early and ready to go when we have time to have a sleep in. Having become accustomed to the continual daylight but of late we have noticed that we are now starting to have a few hours of darkness, and that means that was are about to alter our sleep patterns again.

Not having to be at the train station until around 9.30am we were there well and truly before, and as it turned out, just as well. The recent snow melt in the mountains had caused the river to rise to above the safe operating level on the bridge, and the train was now unable to carry passengers over the river. This change for safety reasons meant that we had to leave the trikes in Carcross and take a tour bus to Fraser where we could then catch the train and resume our original journey, the trikes would then come on the original train and we could pick them up in Skagway later in the day.

Leaving Carcross and our trikes sitting on the platform, the bus trip took about an hour and provided us with an idea of what we would have had to ride had we not taken this trip. The road was pretty good and apart from a few climbs would have been a good ride especially with the scenery of snow covered mountains and large lakes to take our minds off of the climb and plenty of photo stops. But, we had decided to take the scenic train ride and that was that.

Boarding the diesel locomotive and its 13 carriages at Fraser, we found ourselves a nice seat on the right hand side (the scenic view side) in the large windowed carriage allocated to our bus, and settled in for the ride. Not long out of the station we were told we could ride the carriage joining platforms, so while Joanne settled in for the ride inside in the warm, I donned a jacket and got a great spot outside just behind our carriage where the cold wind was minimal, eventually having to battle with the other passengers for the spot and to take "that"best shot, for the rest of the 27 mile trip to Skagway.

Riding the rails the train passed through all manner of terrain, past the rock covered moonscape with it's stunted growth trees and small lakes underneath a mist covered mountain top, over trestle bridges, through dark tunnels with water dripping from the walls and roof, past rugged rock and dense tree covered mountain sides, deep valleys with fast flowing water running through and all the time with the tops of the snow covered mountains as a backdrop. Stopping twice to pick up hikers from the many hiking trails, including the most famous, the Chilkoot Trail, on which the many thousands of hopeful gold seekers risked their lives to find their way to Dawson City and the gold that was allegedly there for the picking, the train wound its way down the mountains until it reached Skagway.

Coming down the final mountain side into Skagway allowed us our first glimpse of the town and the enormous ocean liners that ply their trade around these parts sitting at their berths under the shadow of tall snow covered mountains.

Arriving in town and back in Alaska USA once more, we had to wait a few hours for the trikes to arrive so we booked into the one and only hostel in town, had some lunch, took a walk around town and down to the port to view the cruise ships.

Back at the train station at the appointed time we were driven up to the train workshops where we waited for a couple of trains to arrive (they operate 14 per day) and then our trikes arrived on the box car of the empty train from Carcross. Trikes unloaded we rode back to the hostel and settled in for the night in the only double bed room there.

Skagway looks a little like Dawson City with its frontier style shop fronts and wooden plank sidewalks, but that is where the similarity ends. Skagway is a goldmine because of the tourist trade that comes from the railway, the cruise ships and the company that owns them.

Every time we went anywhere near the street we saw only a few vehicles but literally thousands of people walking all clamouring to get that special Alaskan souvenir (that is more than likely Made in China and definitely over priced), and the place reeks of a very fake tourism, money grabbing experience. Locals apparently often use their town as an example of what "not"to do as far as tourism is concerned and we have heard that during the the place virtually closes down during the reduced or closed cruise ship season, and that all those genuine Alaskan items find their way to some warmer part of the world where the ships are going and become genuine items from that part of the world. The shopping centre is quite small and can be walked in around less than an hour, but it boasts over 25 jewellery stores, of which the turnover last year was allegedly around USD$82 million. The real Skagway residents live out the back of town and unless they work in the tourist area, rarely go into that part of town. The best part of the town is definitely the scenery that surrounds it.

Wednesday 25 July 2007

Day off in Skagway Alaska (USA) mixing it with the other tourists and generally having a look around.

Thursday 26 July 2007

One of the interesting things about staying in a hostel is the type of people that you get to share a room with. Having had the one and only double bed room for our first night and because it was booked for our second, we moved into the co-ed dorm. With 9 of us in a smallish room, it was cosy to say the least, and so at 4 am when the room began reverberating thanks to a fellow travelers snoring, all 9 of us were awake with the exception of the guy operating a chainsaw in his throat and nasal passages. Of course, we tried to go back to sleep but once we were awake, we were awake. Our human alarm clock woke and rose around 5 am totally oblivious of the sharpened thoughts that were being aimed his way by his tired and annoyed roommates or how close he came to wearing a large book from various parts of the room.

Packing up and enjoying breakfast we checked the emails before heading down to the docks to make sure our booking was in order, and to await the ferry. We had booked ourselves and our trikes onto the ferry over the phone when we were in Whitehorse and had been told that we had to pay a third bike fare of for the trailer, but during our wait a manager from the ferry line informed us that it was not their policy to charge for bicycle trailers and immediately gave us a refund on that fare - which we gladly accepted. Two whales were swimming around in the harbour near the cruise ships and keeping everyone entertained, so the waiting time passed reasonably quickly, despite the fact that the ferry (Matanuska) was running late and then had to re-fuel.

Riding onboard and into the bowels of the ship we parked the trikes at one end while the cars, trailers, RVs, semi trailers and all manner of other vehicles drove on and were parked. Because the vehicle deck is off limits except in port we took some gear for the trip with us and headed for the purser's counter. Allocated cabin 24C on the port side we found our floating home, dumped our stuff and went to orientate ourselves with the ships layout, and as it was lunchtime, the cafeteria in particular.

Enjoying lunch as we got underway we watched Skagway and the four cruise ships berthed there disappear in our ships wake and our adventure down the inside passage began.

The Matanuska was built in 1963, is 408 feet long, 74 feet wide, weighs 9,125 tonnes, draws 17 feet of water and has a crew of 50. The Matanuska has a vehicle stowage area on the main deck, above which is the passenger cabin deck, above which there is a dining room, galley, cocktail lounge and an inside forward observation deck. Aft on the top deck there is a solarium where many people sleep or even put their tents up (for free) on the plastic reclining chairs rather than pay for a cabin. Forward of that is a recliner lounge area with aircraft style seating and where you can watch movies, sleep, read or whatever. There are even public showers for those who do not pay for a cabin.

Sailing under overcast skies we began the trip down the Inside Passage, the view ever changing and increasing in its beauty as we did so. The calm waters of the passage running between snow capped mountain ranges on either side, and an hour after sailing we were docking at Haines nestled at the base of the mountains.

Sailing from Haines, having embarked and disembarked vehicles and passengers, the air was very cool and standing on the deck to soak up every ounce of the view required us to be well and truly rugged up. Camera's everywhere, some large enough to need two people to carry them, were clicking away all the time, capturing the magic of the moment and the magnificent scenery that is the Inside Passage.

As we made our way towards Juneau - the Capital of Alaska, the view just kept getting better and better, glaciers, some coming right down to the water, becoming visible on the mountains, waterfalls from the snow melt winding their way down the mountain, through the tree line and eventually busting out onto the very water we were sailing on were in abundance.

Interestingly, Juneau is the Capital of Alaska and yet the it is so far away from the largest part of the State and can only be accessed by air or water because there are absolutely no roads to Juneau.

With more and more magical scenery and glaciers coming into view, the pair of us wore a groove in the passageway deck as we crossed from side to side trying to take it all in, and must have looked quite comical as we rushed backward and forwards.

As with any tour full of wondrous sights we didn't know where we wanted to be to view it all, so after a while we decided to stop trying to see it all and just see what we could from where we were. Having passed the Davidson, Eagle and Herbert glaciers we approached the ferry terminal at Juneau, the Capitol some 12 miles away and at the bottom of the huge blue and pink coloured river of ice that is the Mendenhall Glacier as it sweeps down the mountainside .

Eagle Glacier

Mendenhall Glacier

With all the excitement of the sights and seeing that we were so far from the actual City, we ate in the dining room, enjoying not only the view out the window but a meal of steak, potato, onion rings, cauliflower, broccoli and a dinner roll followed by a slice of cheesecake. Retiring to our stateroom to relax and sleep off our meal, it was hard not to sit at the window and watch the beauty of the passage as it passed by. Tomorrow was going to be a very interesting day and judging by today it is a good thing we have extra batteries for the camera.

Friday 27 July 2007

Falling asleep to the rhythmic vibration of the ship both of us slept well and awoke to a grey overcast day and wet decks courtesy of overnight rain, and the ship berthed near Sitka. Enjoying a leisurely rising and breakfast before being out on deck to witness our departure we left the Sitka ferry terminal and backed back out into the channel and away from the many small islands that fill the channel towards Sitka itself, the surrounding hills thickly covered with trees and covered in mist and low cloud.

A walk around the ship found two tents had been erected on the aft deck near the solarium, held down with plastic chairs, duct tape and whatever else they could find, some people still asleep in their sleeping bags on the chairs in the solarium and others just sitting there looking like they had not had as restful a night as we did re-enforcing our decision to have paid for a cabin.

Visiting Haines, Juneau and now Sitka has been nice and the only disappointment has been that at each place we have berthed was some distance out of town meaning that we were not able to see or get any time in the town, and in each case we didn't get to see town when we departed. This small issue however has not detracted from the pleasure and enjoyable time we have experienced onboard so far. The whole experience has been very casual, relaxing and pleasant, and it is sometimes hard to remember that we are really on just a ferry, not a luxuriously fitted out cruise ship. We and many of our fellow passengers have commented that this is an excellent way to see the inside passage and would thoroughly recommend it.

Navigating our way back the way we had come overnight allowed us to witness the scenery we had missed while we were sleeping, the narrow channel winding its way past tree covered hills and mountains, the cold air on deck finding its way through any defect in our layers of clothing and the only noise being the ship as it moved through the water.

Being so close to land and in narrow channels enabled us to enjoy some wildlife along the way, bald eagles resting in trees, humpback whales and Orcas' in the distance and jumping fish were among the wildlife spotted along the way during the morning.

Mid morning saw the Captain hold the weekly emergency drills including a man overboard exercise. Many of the passengers, including us, watched the crew go through their paces which was a fair effort considering they only do the drill once per week. Suffice to say it has been very nice to be a passenger and not a crew member on this cruise.

Our cabin is a nice place to sit in the quiet, but it only affords a view on one side, so after lunch we sat in the dining room facing forward so as to maximise the views on both sides, and using a nearby power point for the laptop managed to work on our budget and to compile the video we have been taking into some sort of movie.

A US Coast Guard helicopter buzzed us to fly the flag and make us all feel safe, and shortly thereafter no less than four SWAT team equipped US Coast Guards came in for lunch. Up until now they had not been seen, but were obviously onboard in a sort of water marshall role.

Docking to embark and disembark some passengers in a little place called Kake, we were watching eagles fly around and soar on the thermals from the surrounding hills. Using binoculars to look around while we were on our way into berth, Joanne spotted a bear under a bridge in a creek as it emptied out into the ocean. Being the only person to see it I took the mickey out of her telling her that it was probably a tree stump and that she was wishing it was a bear. Well, on departure she looked again and said that it was still there, so I took a series of photographs using full zoom and sure enough, there it was.

Leaving Kake as the sun began to disappear many people wandered down to the stern of the ship for a look at the sunset, a compete sunset at that, something we haven't seen for a while.

So with the clouds building behind us it was time to enjoy another meal before spending some time in the forward observation deck to watch as we passed the LeConte Glacier sitting on the top and down the side of the mountain, and then as the rain and mist covered the glacier and its mountain we turned towards and berthed in the fishing town of Petersberg. Many marina's, fishing boats and even a parking platform for seaplanes coming into view as we pulled in. Many homes along the shore starting to light up as darkness began to fall, the view taking in a totally different aspect.

Le Conte Glacier

Having disembarked and embarked a number of vehicles and passengers, we sailed from Petersberg with front row seats in the forward observation deck. Slowly and with navigation lights burning on buoys we passed through the narrows and the tight passage. Many passengers wondering voicing their wonder at where we were going and why we didn't have the ships headlights on to see where we were going. Occasionally the lookout would shine a very powerful spotlight ahead of the ship to illuminate objects in the water and which turned out to be mostly seagulls. As the wheelhouse crew twisted and turned us through the navigation channel we were relaxing in comfortable chairs in the warmth of the observation deck until around 11.00pm when the excitement of the passage dulled and sleep became the new priority.

Saturday 28July 2007

With no bumps in the night we awoke to a overcast and wet morning as we approached Ketchikan, a large town sat on the side of a mist covered hill and separated from it's airport by the shipping channel and with access via an expensive ferry.

If it hadn't have been raining we would have taken the short walk into town but decided to view those few hardy souls who just had to touch land. Nearby an eagle sat on a light pole putting up with the rain and probably dreaming of warm days and lots of fish to eat.

Just before we departed the cruise ship Coral Princess passed us on its way to its berth. The harbour area was a buzz, the Coral Princess, us, a tug towing a barge and any number of float planes taking off and landing, all looking for passage and use of the waterway under a wet, grey sky.

Sailing up the channel in the rain there were no less than six float planes taking off and landing around the place and a look around the harbour showed as many float planes as ships and boats, hardly surprising in an area where due to their remoteness and isolation, many homes use a plane or boat to get around like most other people use a car.

Sailing from Ketchikan towards our final port - Prince Rupert, the weather closed in so rather than sit in the observation deck looking at rain we made a coffee and went back to our cabin, only to have the weather fine up again. Later in the day the Purser located Joanne and I sitting in the recliner lounge as we were watching a movie to pass some time. Unbeknown to me, Joanne had arranged for a visit to the bridge which is in a secure area and behind a locked door. We spent about 30 minutes up there talking with the 3rd Mate who was conning the ship, the cadet officer and the helmsman before we went for lunch and prepared for our arrival in Prince Rupert British Columbia.

Finally berthed we rode out of the rear door on the ferry and straight into Canadian Customs. We managed to get rid of our US I94 Immigration Forms and enter Canada with no issues. Riding the short distance up the hill and through town to the Pioneer Hostel where we are going to stay while we prepare for the Yellowhead Highway trip to Calgary.

Sunday 29 July 2007

Today was a day of rest, as a Sunday requires. We went for a walk around the shops, most of which were closed, especially the hardware store where we had hoped to buy some more fuel for the stove, and because the day was mostly raining we spent the day inside.

We did however manage to visit the sunken garden and the statue of Mr Hayes, whose vision and dream of a beautiful port with a railway out of it became a reality in Prince Rupert. Unfortunately he would never see the completion of place he started and the realisation of his dream as he was among those lost of the Titanic when it sank in the Atlantic.

Monday 30 July 2007

A car alarm out in the street at 5 am is not a good or even pleasant way to wake from a nice sleep, but that was the sound of our alarm clock this morning. It seems that the alarm woke all the travelers in the hostel and so not long after the alarm was silenced, there were plenty of people up showering, cooking, eating and talking which all made trying to grab a few more z's a little hard. We were not in a hurry this morning because we needed to get to the shops as soon as they opened to get some fuel for our stove to replace that which we gave up to travel on the ferry down the inside passage.

With clouds everywhere and the forecast not too bright we left our hostel all rugged up ready for rain. Riding up to the shops we posted some things back to Calgary and found the hardware store and some stove fuel. Riding out of town was an uphill experience and in the absence of rain we were cooking in our rain gear. Narrow roads and Monday morning traffic are never much fun and the amount of traffic was fairly heavy. Various viewpoints along the way afforded us views of the lakes and we even had a float plane fly across the top of us as it made its way towards the harbour.,

We were climbing but the gradient was fairly easy on our freshly rested legs. Bush right up to the road and many, many waterfalls cascading down the hillside and out of the bush into the drainage system or even through drains under the road and off towards the river. We managed to find somewhere overlooking a lake for our lunchtime stop which we managed to complete before the clouds rolled in over the hillside bringing the rain with them.

Rugged up again and riding in the rain on a narrowish road was interesting, especially when vehicles and trucks went past, the huge wall of spray covering us and reducing our vision to almost nothing for a few seconds. Climbing to the top of a hill I spied the sign that said "Rainbow Summit", but there definitely was no rainbows there, just rain, and lots of it. Descending from the summit the heavy rain stung any exposed flesh and hurt the eyes, hands became cold and steering a little cautious, especially as we were also trying to dodge the speed dampening ripple strips that sit between the fog line and where our back wheel is and which cause the whole trike to vibrate and sound like a machine gun going off if you get stuck in them.

Descending again we came to the Skeena River where the road and the Canadian National Railway share the narrow edge between the river and the sheer cliffs down which many more waterfalls cascade. Wild rasberrys on the side of the road made for nice eating and were in plentiful supply, our hands turning red with the sweet juice we picked and ate them and many trees covered in a net like moss known as old mans beard and views of the river providing us with a pleasant but wet vista. The hills and mountains across the river were covered in mist and cloud, occasionally poking their head out of the cloud to reveal a snow covered top.

Arriving at the Basalt Rest area and its No Camping or Overnight Stops sign, we enjoyed a rest and a bite to eat before continuing on, stopping to pick and eat more rasberrys as we went. Arriving at the Telegraph Point rest area and toilets we noticed the absence of a No Camping sign, so before it rained we picked a spot and got the tent up. No sooner than the last tent peg went in, the rain began to fall again, and quite heavy this time.

Today's Stats

From: Prince Rupert

To: Telegraph Point Rest Area

Ride Time:
4 hrs 25 min's

Distance:
59.70  km's

Av Speed:
12.60 km/h

Max Speed:
67.0  km/h

Max Altitude:
187  m

Av Climb: 2 %

Max Climb: 10 %

Weather:13-20 deg C. Overcast then rain.

Camp Location:

N: 54:11'27.2"

W: 129:39'12.3"

Tuesday 31 July 2007

Telegraph Point was a great place to camp, especially as the rain continued to fall for the rest of the night. A few vehicles came into the rest area so the occupants could use the toilets and a couple of trains passed and we spent an enjoyable and trouble free night warm and dry in the tent.

Leaving our campsite in dry conditions this morning and with the sky ahead of us looking rather good we were making good progress on the mostly flat road as it passed between the railway and the Skeena River. The railway was again running along the bottom of the sheer cliffs with Avalanche Warning signs there to remind us that it was not only the train driver that needed to look up. And it was a good job that we did look up as we would have missed the mist and cloud mountains with their snow caps on, and the many waterfalls that like yesterday seemed to be every few yards, some with their head starting up in the cloud and then they came crashing down hundreds of metres through the rock or forest to become creeks with names such as Slickslide and Polywog, spray able to be seen all the way down as they did so and the noise heard from some distance away.

The riding being generally easy gave us time to really take in the view, of the surrounding hills and mountains and of course the Skeena River that we were following. Coming to a narrow point in the road caused by the closeness of the over hanging rockface we were riding within arms reach of the railway tracks, grateful yet disappointed that no train was coming along at the same time.

Stopping for lunch we again put the tent and any other wet gear out to dry, and while fighting off the thickest invasion of mozzies we have endured in a long time, we enjoyed lunch and a hot chocolate. Wild raspberries sighted just before the rest area meant that we were on the lookout for more afterwards and it wasn't long before we were able to stop and get some. Fighting our way into the raspberry patch and at the same time making sure we knew where we were putting our feet (much of the side of the road has a deep ditch or drop down to the river) resulted in handfuls of the sweet succulent red berry's that were so delicious.

Generally flat for most of the day, the road threw in a number of hills just to make sure we remembered how to climb one. CLimbing up one hill a car going in the opposite direction slowed and informed us that a black bear had been sighted at the top of the hill and to be careful. Slowly but surely we climbed to the top, many raspberry bushes sighted along the way, but certainly no bear. Before long we were riding into Terrace where we took a tent spot in a motel and RV park, complete with a very sporadic Wi-fi service.

Today's Stats

From: Telegraph Point Rest Area

To: Terrace

Ride Time:
5 hrs 52 min's

Distance:
84.23  km's

Av Speed:
14.30  km/h

Max Speed:
52.5  km/h

Max Altitude:
120  m

Av Climb: 2 %

Max Climb: 7 %

Weather:13-20 deg C. Overcast.

Camp Location:

N: 54:31'08.1

W: 128:38'34.5"

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