Kool'n Heels in Ketchikan

Chief Johnson commissioned this totem to honor his mother and his Tlingit tribe.  This specific totem is a reconstruction of the original which had deteriorated since its initial carving in the early 1900's.   This is in downtown Ketchikan near Ketchikan Creek.

Today was essentially dwell time.  We are waiting until tomorrow when the shipping store opens to retrieve some important packages Karen had ordered.   So, we spent a day wandering Ketchikan.

Jack and Sarah, our friends who joined us yesterday evening live in this sailboat in the Casey Moran harbor.   We walked by it today.   She is a beautiful Baba 30, Robert Perry design with loads of beautiful (and high maintenance) teak on the outside.

We decided to walk downtown, about 1.25 miles each way.   Given our incredibly inactive lifestyle at the moment - we needed the hike.

This is Creek Street.   We are on the bridge over the Ketchikan River.   Right now, it is chock-full of salmon waiting for high tide so they can get a "lift" on the rising tide to get further upstream to the spawning areas.  Good luck guys!   We need a lot more baby salmon.

Dinner was at Fat Stan's, a local bar and pizzeria.  I think they make the best pizza in town.   I was not disappointed tonight. 

I'd ordered the "Big Stan" pizza.  The waitress asked "Big?" and I said yes, thinking she was asking about the pizza name, not the size. Well, we now have a lot of leftover pizza for a future lunch...
A shot of the near downtown which bridges the tourist shops downtown and the blue-collar industrial areas to the north.   Up here, the streets are narrower, sidewalks questionable, buildings are in need of more maintenance, etc.  But this is the area that better represents the typical.   It is not bad, but it isn't as cartoon-pretty as are the tourist areas.
It is difficult to make out, but there is a barge with a crane on it at the harbor entrance.  They are setting anchors for the new breakwater.   That is wonderful...but the barge completely blocks the main entrance to the harbor.  Tomorrow, if they are still here when we depart, we may have to sneak through the small south entrance.

Due to tides and currents, we will depart at 1330 (1:30pm) to catch the favorable current heading south as we make our way to Foggy Bay on the US/Canada border.

Good Night, Y'All.

Comments

  1. Cheryl VAugust 11, 2026 at 6:57 PM

    I was on Creek Street just a few weeks ago, the only salmon in the creek were dead so I hope it’s better. Ketchikan was a great little town and I would have liked to explore more. We’re going over to Kingston for a few days on our boat, still working on getting my sailing mojo back. Safe trip back home. P.S. No plans for September travel so let’s get together when you’re back this way.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. PeterAugust 12, 2026 at 12:43 PM

      We are looking forward to seeing you and Paul. Sometime mid-September would be my guess.

      Delete

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