Cherry Blossom Candy Leaf

On June 18th, I met my friend Sasha in Ketchikan, Alaska. Ketchikan is west of British Columbia, located on one of the southern most islands of Alaska. When I thought of Alaska in the past, I didn't really consider this region because it is so small in comparison to the rest of the state. But now, having been there, I will never forget Southeast Alaska.

We stayed at a little Bed and Breakfast on Thomas Street the first three nights of our adventure in Alaska. We had a small room, kitchen and bathroom in the house of a very nice couple. We rented a car as well, and although that is not necessary, it does make everything more convenient.

Our first day, we toured the town on foot.





The next day, Sasha arranged for a kayaking trip with Southeast Kayaks.





Our guide, Kali, showed us many things. For example, the purple and orange starfish you see in the photo are called pisaster ochratious. The purple ones are females and the orange one is a male.

The rest of the day, we explored by car. Along with waterfalls, we visited a favorite bar of Kali's, A Hole in the Wall. The bar is somewhat hidden on a small harbor (see photo). Inside the bar, among drunken banter, there is talk of fish, specifically salmon and halibut. I overheard a lot of fish conversations. We left our mark on the place.

Because Ben was unable to join me on this trip and I missed him so much, I sent him a "postcard" from the sea: 10 lbs. of crab legs. I wish I could have seen his face when he got them, but because he took the time to photograph them, I can guess that he was happy.



Kali told us about an old dump site, "Junk Beach," where some people go to find vintage treasures. Locating the beach was harder than we thought considering we were on a small island. But it gave Sasha plenty of opportunities to get people to say, "Doyon" (referring to the point at which we had gone too far, Doyon's Landing), which is a pretty funny word with numerous pronunciations. We finally found it and Sasha decided to make a mosaic of bottles and pottery shards. She even included a tooth that she found-Nasty! Can you find it in the photograph?



We also tried to find old bottles that weren't broken. I even found one from 1931, which I was very excited to take home until I broke it.



Sasha also took a rare opportunity to pose with bull kelp. Kali said that she recently had it in a sweet bread.




The next day, we also went on a beautiful hike that began at a campground with waterfalls and meandered through the rainforest.

Along our walk, we met a local artist who makes lamps, vases, and other decorative items from tree branches. Using a top secret process, the wood is polished using several steps. She invited us to her house so we could see the work she described for ourselves. Here we are with a branch that will become a jewelry hook. She will finish it at the end of the summer and send it to me.

Our last half day in Ketchikan was spent exploring near our B & B. We visited historic Creek Street, which is built on the creek that spills into the ocean.

We even had a short stop at Dolly's. She was a prostitute working from the time she was a teenager until she was well into her 70s. She was a clever business woman and even owned several other homes that she rented out to other prostitutes. According to our nasally tour guide, she didn't want them living with her.



Here is a picture of Dolly herself.



This is the inside of her house.




Dolly was multi-talented. She even made these flowers that accented her shower curtain using silk condoms. This lead Sasha and me to contemplate the effectiveness of silk condoms, but Dolly never had children.

Described as "the scariest thing you ever saw" by our "prostitute" tour guide, Sasha and I had to see it.
Because Alaska once belonged to Russia, there is still a Russian influence throughout the places we visited in Southeast Alaska. Mostly it is evident in the gift shops. Below is a picture of two pretty Russian girls that worked in one of the shops.



And nesting dolls up the wazoo.



As a close to part I, here is some Ketchikan humor as seen on the side of a garbage truck.