Day 26 – We made our way further up Chatham Straight, with a mid-day stop at Baranoff Warm Springs. Another gorgeous spot with a five-star dock, a spectacular waterfall that spills into the harbor from an Alpine Lake, a small, off-the-grid seasonal community and an outpost for the Alaska Whale Foundation.
Picturesque and the "Land of the Free and Home of the Brave"...
We hiked up to the Alpine Lake. Wiel and Samara were leading the way up the forest board walk and as they rounded a corner were greeted by a guy in a bear suit, or maybe not...
...in hind sight, we should have had the bear spray on us, vs. on the boat. A stock pic of exactly what they saw coming out of the bushes. Tough to get the phone out for a pic when you realize what you're looking at...
Neither imagined they were 30 ft. from a Sitka Brown Bear, a unique genetic descendant of Brown and Polar Bears. We carried on for one last dip in an Alaskan Mountain Lake and a soak in a 110 degree hot spring pool.
A Natural Beauty perched between 70 degrees of temperature differential, and one chilly dip...
A boiling hot, "Warm Springs" and a Falls Selfie...
We pressed on and settled in at Tenakee Springs for the night - another off the grid community of about 120 people, established in the late1800's. Tenakee Springs is known for it's "Community Hot Springs" in the center of town.
Men's & Women's hours; and a unique dress code...
A classic Widow's Walk on a gorgeous waterfront in a fishing community...
Sidebar – Turns out the cabby we would meet in Juneau, in 2 days time, grew up in Tenakee Springs. His Grandpa owned the whole town in the early 1900's and leased out the homesteads for $1 a year to family members; $2 for non-family. His Great Uncle lit the dynamite to create the public bath.
Day 27 - Our final travel day took us to Hoonah, a largely Tlingit community, on Icy straight, at the northern tip of Chichagof Island. A friendly community of fisherman and carvers...
A warm welcome to the inner harbour...
We met Master Carver Gordon Greenwald and his colleagues working on a totem...
A city of Totems and Giant Halibut...
Our last dinner together came courtesy of the Captain of Salty Dog, a fellow we met in Petersburg, who graced us with a huge portion of fresh Halibut. Sue and Samara researched the recipe and the boys teamed up to grill a Gordon Ramsey-worthy presentation - in praise of capers!
Day 28 - FMD and Commodore Samara left early in the only taxi in Hoonah, to the "airport", for the 20 minute flight to Juneau and a quick visit to the State Museum, before flying out to Calgary. If you ever get to Juneau, the museum is very cool - the history of Alaska is fascinating. As Samara said, "everyone has been here", due to its resource richness and strategic significance. The U.S. ended the jostling with "The Purchase", from Russia, in 1867, for $7.2M. What a deal!
Mendenhall Glacier on the outskirts of Juneau. Russian roots in Alaska are everywhere, in the place names, in Samara's name, and in the cultural heritage...imitating Vitus Bering's pose.
Captain Wiel and Admiral Sue resumed their adventure on Perfect Pitch, heading south to Kake, in search of Buttercup and more amazing expereinces along the Inside Passage. "Perfect Pitch, Perfect Pitch, this is FMD and Commodore Samara. We can't thank you enough, for absolutely everything - it was the Trip of a LIfetime! Safe travels back to SSI - Over and Out."
Chapter 4 began with a Spectacular Sunset courtesy of Sue, back on the Canon 90D.
A couple of Month One Footnotes:
Elon was a game-changer - staying connected and watching hockey, in the middle of nowhere...
...and our Glacier Ice lasted all the way to Hoonah. We ended the way we began over a "Wee Scottie".
An Alaskan Motto: "Find something beautiful everyday – it’s not hard up here.” - Quote from Michael, in Point Baker, the animated fisherman who kindly moved his skiff, so Buttercup could moor on their small dock.