Sincerely, Denise

KETCHIKAN AT THE DOCK

Thursday, July 16th

Last night we ended up having a late snack and drink at the Bush Pilot Lounge, a cute little restaurant a couple blocks away. We ended up having a late lunch so weren’t super hungry but wanted to get off the boat. Our bartender was SO FUNNY and so fun to talk to, her name was Sam and she had been living in Ketchikan for 10 years. She was a public defender for 6 years before deciding that she wasn’t cut out for that so now bartends and plays outside as much as possible. As we were sitting at the bar looking out at an Eagle perched nearby, we were debating whether it was a male or female. Sam tuned into that and said “Nope that’s a male and his name is Jack, as in Jack Ass.” She proceeded to tell us that Jack and his mate were performing a mating ritual, which entails dramatic aerobatics that include locking talons and spiraling towards earth, releasing before they hit the ground. Well apparently “Jack” didn’t release his mate “Crash”, as she was thereafter known, she crashed into the ground and broke a wing and was subsequently shipped off to the Raptor Center in Sitka for rehab. She was rehabbed and released in Sitka, and they are not sure if she will find her way back to Juneau. So, Jack sits on the piling right outside the restaurant day after day, perhaps waiting for Crash to find her way back. Sam felt he was a bad Eagle for not releasing Crash in time, thus his moniker.

This morning we took the boat out to the fuel dock to refuel, Greg joined us which made it super efficient. The fuel dock offered two hoses so we could fill both sides at a time and not have to wait for the crossover to level out the sides. I was in charge of watching the fuel gauges below. We were fueled up and back in our moorage by 10:30AM. Today I threw caution to the wind and booked a hair appointment at a local salon. She did a great job and it was cheaper than I pay at home, so it was a winner! Afterwards I stocked up on shelf stable groceries for the next 6 weeks of travel, which entails hosting a couple groups of our kids and lots of time on anchor, which means I will be cooking a lot! The five of us went to an early dinner at New York Café which was excellent! The weather continues to be warm so we were in short sleeved shirts and basking in warm sunshine well into the evening.