Skagway, our port of call for today, is home to 1200 hearty folks that live here year-round. The summer season's population increases to several thousand for the tourist industry. The Chilkoot Tlingit tribe called this area home for over 10,000 years. Then a former steamboat captain, William Moore, was one of the first white residents who foresaw the future that included a Gold Rush in 1898. Twenty thousand gold seekers came in droves to make their fortunes, or not. A ton of goods in the way of food and supplies was mandated by the Canadian government for each prospector to prevent starvation on the 600-mile journey over the treacherous Chilkoot Pass. Sadly, many did not survive the harsh conditions, landslides or avalanches and that included their horses, mules and other livestock. Although the gold rush was short-lived, the history will go on forever.
Another addition to be built was the White Pass and Yukon Railroad, aptly named the scenic railway of the world, and in modern times, one of Alaska's most popular visitor attractions. We took this tour to Carcross on a bus with a train ride back to Skagway years ago and enjoyed it. We saw beautiful alpine lakes, tunnels, trestles, and waterfalls along the way. A BBQ lunch was included at Carcross eaten at outdoor picnic tables. It was there we also saw some sled-pulling dogs, not all huskies. Now there are tours on the train for shorter durations and ranging from $175 to $339 for 8 hours per person.
The weather was most co-operative today, starting with temps in the low 40's with clear skies. As the day advanced, there were scattered clouds and the highs of the day were in the 50-to-60-degree range. The humidity was a comfortable 67% and there was no rain in the forecast. We considered ourselves lucky, as there can be some fierce winds blowing down this corridor. The most the winds blew was 9.2 mph. Once again.....lucky.
We love walking this town with the creeks, historical buildings, RV parks, and even the shops and restaurants. You can feel the vibes of being a pioneer back in the old days while passing by the numerous well-restored buildings with the old-time facades. Since we had some work to complete this morning, we did not leave the ship until after 11am. All aboard was not until 8:30pm, so we had plenty of time to explore before lunchtime.
There were two other ships docked today besides the Zaandam. One was the large Coral Princess and the other vessel was a smaller Regent ship. We followed a group of guests booked on a shorter train ride. They lined up right at the end of the Broadway Dock where a train awaited them. And since there were so many train options, there were few people in town. Sure was not like Juneau where the people were wall-to-wall. Maybe that's why we like it better here. But every city has their own special sights such as whale and otter watching in Juneau and Ketchikan.
We walked around Centennial Park and right to the creek, where we hoped to see some salmon swimming upstream. There were none today, so it is too early for the spawning of two types of salmon and Dolly Varden trout. Maybe we will see some next week when we come back. We recall being told by a local that sometimes the fish will go up the larger Skagway River to spawn and not so much this smaller Pullen Creek. We did not venture too far today because we left later. Sometimes we make it to the Gold Rush Cemetery, Lower Reid Falls, and the bridge that crosses the Skagway River. Maybe next week we will tackle that hike.
Some of the side streets in town were blocked off, and we assumed perhaps they were going to have a parade for Labor Day. Then we spotted fresh asphalt and we realized that one of the main streets was recently paved. New and wider sidewalks were added since we were here last year. Nice to see progress here.
Passing some of the famous sites, we found our way to the best pizza place in town. And we were pleased to find it was not crowded at all. We were seated at a high-top table for two where we ordered two Alaskan Amber draft beers and a Hawaiian pizza. It was excellent as always and looked even bigger this time. We savored each and every bite. Close-by is the Doughboy shop where among other items, they make fresh Doughboy treats that resemble a very large flat donut covered with cinnamon sugar. They are irresistible but we had indulged with the pizza and had no more room for another bite. Maybe next time.
Doing some window-shopping, we did stop at the Arctic Brotherhood building that doubles as an info center with restrooms. It is also the best place to pick up magazines and brochures on every port we will be going to as well as here in Skagway. Can't have enough info. Taking our sweet time, we were back to the ship before 3pm where we utilized the time before dinner working on photos and writing. We also took advantage of relaxing on the veranda with the beautiful views of the harbor and surrounding mountains. Once the sun went down, it was bone-chilling.
The upper dining room was plenty busy tonight, as it has been since day one. Both of us ordered the Caesar salad, then one of us had the halibut and the other the chicken meatballs with rigatoni. The entrees were delicious, especially the fish. We are impressed with the quality of the food so far and the excellent way they cook it. Our waiters are very attentive and even hunted down two small bowls of Greek yogurt for dessert, even though it was not on the menu.
The ship left around 8:40pm, since everyone was onboard already. By the time we got back to the room, the Zaandam had turned around and started heading out into the Taiya Inlet. The Coral Princess and Regent ship left before us. Now we are heading towards Glacier Bay National Park . Looking forward to the adventure.
Bill & Mary Ann
165 Pictures (available after 9/7)
