JUNEAU AT THE DOCK
Tuesday,
June 16th through 18th
Honestly
our time in Juneau was a blur now that I am writing this on June 19th
sitting in Hoonah. I wish I had a lot to report but I really don’t, although I
do have some observations to share and some funny stories. Sorry this post is so long.
CROWDS:
The crowds here are MASSIVE from the Cruise Ships. There are at all times 5 to
6 cruise ships docked downtown, all the passengers scrambling to get off the
boat for their “real” Alaskan experience. The cruise ships have built up an
industry of souvenir shops, tshirt shops, fur shops, and more jewelry stores than I have ever
seen – absolutely nuts. The cruisers also beeline for the aforementioned Red Dog Saloon for
their Duck Fart Shots, or line up to the tune of 40 people in line at Tracys
King Crab Shack (I personally witnessed this) to eat King Crab – which sells
for $100/lb. That is crazy money for King Crab which isn’t even as good as our
PNW Dungeness Crab in my opinion. Anyway, the streets and shops are packed with
people. Every single day. We do get some relief in the evenings when they go back to their ships.
CRUISE
SHIP NOISE: The ships typically arrive very early morning, and many leave as late as 10PM. We will be lying in
bed and hear them arrive or depart because they emit this gravelly noise underwater that
reverberates through the hull of our boat. As they get closer to docking, they make even
more noise that crescendos and takes over the natural sounds of your boat as
they engage their thrusters (3 in front and 3 in back) to maneuver into their
berth. Each of us has had a moment where we were on the boat and go “ok, what’s
wrong, something’s running, a pump is stuck on, etc” thinking it’s our
respective vessels that are suddenly malfunctioning. Then we realize “oh, it’s
just a cruise ship arriving or departing.” The noise is quite deafening. Times
6 per day.
EAGLES:
There are so many Eagles here too. Especially by the garbage dump enroute to
the airport. They perch on top of the lampposts that line each side of the
highway sometimes two to a post but always around the area of the garbage dump.
Occasionally they visit us down at the harbor, but nowhere near as many as when we
were in Ketchikan.
RAVENS:
I love Ravens. They are everywhere here as well. They are smart and crafty and
opportunists. They have so many different cackles and calls, the least favorite
of which sounds like a screaming woman. We have resident ravens at Blakely as
well and have enjoyed their antics. Once when John was packing up construction
debris into garbage bags and lining them up inside the garage, they were
clearly watching from the trees. He came in for a short coffee break and not 10
minutes later came back outside to find them dragging the bags outside to peck
at them and see what was inside. They are problem solvers and can also hold a
grudge if you do them wrong. I took this from Dr. Google but it’s interesting
and explains their intellect: “Although bird brains lack the folded cortex seen
in mammals, Ravens pack an incredibly high number of neurons into a very small
space. Research shows their forebrains (the area responsible for higher-level
cognitive functions) actually have a greater density of neurons than those of
primates.” And “In the oral traditions
of the Haida, Tlingit, and Tsimshian natives, Raven is credited with creating
the earthly world, bringing light (the sun and stars) to the skies, and placing
the first humans on earth. The Raven is also known for being cunning, greedy,
and impulsive. Often acting out of self-interest, its humorous mischief and
boundary-pushing frequently result in unexpected benefits for humanity." We
learned some of this on our tour at Kasaan. So there’s my short dissertation
and research on Ravens.
YES, I AM NEARLY 65, NOT 40:
So, this is my funny story. Lorraine and I were getting much needed grooming at
the nail salon. I had an older gentleman (er....my age) doing my pedicure. We talked
a bit during the hour about families and life and at one point he looks at me
and says “You must have been beautiful in your 40s” – OUCH. He instantly
realized his error and backpedaled, but it was too late and too funny. He was so
embarrassed. Back handed compliment. Ah yes, we all looked great in our 40s!!
But I am now nearly 65 so that’s just what it is.
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| These two beauties perched on the cruise ship berth structure taking advantage of the view |
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| This is our view out the back before cruise ships berth behind us. Taken at 6:15AM |
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| Mendenhall Glacier from Visitor Center, it's retreated quite a bit since we last saw it |
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| While I don't like hunting or taxidermy, I couldn't help but marvel at how enormous this Coastal Brown Bear was at the Red Dog Saloon |
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| Blurry photo unfortunately, but the tiny white specks in between the center two ships are our boats at the dock, photo taken from the Douglas side of the channel |
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| Lastly, for another perspective, a photo take from one of the cruise ships by fellow MBYC members who happened to be on that ship, Brian Schaffer and Patty Sewell! The boys just happened to run into them in town, such a small world. Last time we were here Joy and Sandy Stewart (MBYC) were on a cruise ship in port at the same time. Note how close the aft of the Princess ship is to our maneuvering room. Lorraine was quite concerned about being able to get out the next day! |
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