The Zaandam arrived to the small port of Wrangell and was docked by 9am. It was a chilly 48 degrees with 87% humidity with light rain. Winds were slight at 3.4 mph. This is one of those places where if you don't like the weather, give it an hour, and it will change. We would see a lot of that during the course of the day. Rain showers, clouds, and even sun.
There were nine shore excursions here starting with a botanic nature walk for 1.5 hours and $90. There were at least three hiking in the woods tours ranging from 2 to 3 hours for $100 to $150. A wildlife boat ride was 4.5 hours for $400 and another jet boat to a glacier was 3.5 hours for $450. We figured many people took tours here because the Pinnacle Grill was empty most of the morning.
Anyway, here are a few facts about Wrangell. A first-time visit for us, Wrangell seems to be off the itineraries of the mega-ships, but perfect for the smaller cruise ships such as the Zaandam. The population of the settlement is about 2000 hard-working folks that work in the maritime industry with boat works facilities for commercial and pleasure vessels. Salmon, halibut, shrimp and crab is their main catch. It is processed and frozen right in town. Tourism is their second industry where up to 75,000 visitors come here for relaxing and recreation. In past years, the harvesting of lumber and pulp mills employed many residents.
Wrangell is the only town in all of Alaska that has been ruled by four nations: the Tlingit natives, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Russians arrived for the fur pelts, and the Hudson Bay Company wanted a piece of that. The United Staes won out when Alaska became a state. Two gold rushes changed the face of the town and during that time naturalist John Muir and even Wyatt Earp stayed here for a while. Also notable is the first Presbyterian Church and school was started here in 1887, and a weekly newspaper was printed in 1902 and continues to this day. That makes it the oldest continuous publication in Alaska.
The close- by Stikine River is abundant with wildlife such as brown and black bear that feast on the salmon, caribou, moose, mountain goats, otters and beavers. The delta is home to 120 species of migrating birds like whistling swans, Canada geese, sandhill cranes, ducks and shore birds. Bald eagles and the gulls are native and do not migrate as far as we know. There is a "Grand Canyon" of the 45-mile-long section of the Stikine River where the walls soar over 1000 feet high. The river attracts rafters, kayakers, and canoeists to this area as well. There is even a golf course close to town, where if a raven steals your ball, you may replace it without penalty if you have a witness. How funny is that?
We stayed onboard until 11am, then bundled up and took umbrellas. We needed them off and on most of the day. Once again, the ship had no maps, but recommended getting one at the Museum. We had the foresight to pick up many maps and brochures on the Inside Passage stops while in Skagway. So we had a map to use. The town itself is basic and compact. We can say we saw no high-end jewelry stores or huge souvenir shopping like in Juneau. What we noticed was a total lack of eateries or bars that were opened for business. The best-looking restaurant was the Firehouse Pizzeria, but it was closed. Perhaps the two or three places to eat in town only open at night for the locals.
Staying on the main street, we did come across the Totem Park where a series of totems were lying flat for people to see. A basic building was there where the master carvers do their work restoring ancient poles. Totem carving started about 200 years ago, and were used to reveal social status, mark a special occasion, record a story, or even hold the ashes of deceased relatives. We never knew that.
The heart of town held a pharmacy, a couple of grocery stores, basic medical services, and a few old churches. Located on the waterfront is the Nolan Center which houses the museum, art gallery, civic center, a gift shop and a visitor center full of brochures and maps. Right up our alley. And here's a little hint: bring along some plastic umbrella bags from home to use for wet umbrellas, but also for keeping the printed materials dry. If you had the time, a trip through the museum was $12. Outside the museum were signs describing the medical qualities of the local berries, fruits and even the trees. But the best had to be a gorgeous maple tree in its full glory of deep red autumn leaves.
From there, we had a long walk to see Chief Shakes Tribal House located across a wooden bridge on a knoll in the small boat harbor. Some of the oldest totem poles are here, however the tribal house was locked up tight. Guess they only opened it for the paid tours today. No doubt, it is situated in one of the most peaceful settings in town with views of the inner marina for 360 degrees. There was a lot of bird activity...mostly gulls. Nice benches lined the knoll, but sadly, they were all wet from the rain. Time to move on.
Taking the same street back to town, we saw a recently burned -down structure across from the Trident Fish Company. Checking the town's official travel magazine, it might have been the Hungry Beaver Pizza & Marine Bar. If so, it was among the few restaurants in the downtown area. Except for a small bakery and a coffee shack, there were no restaurants opened. No place to get a beer let alone a pizza. We ducked into some stores that sold mostly essentials, winter clothing, and camping supplies. There was a type of 5 and 10 cent store where some cruise ship folks were blocking the aisle where cold meds were sold. We could not get out of there fast enough. Recently, we have noticed many people coughing and sneezing and we sure do not want any part of that.
Striking out on the lunch idea, we headed back to the ship with a stop at the Stikine Inn where some people were crowding into an area where they sold ready-made food items. The inn's cafe was roped off for the hotel guests. Meal service would begin at 4pm only. Before we went back through security, we made one last stop at an outdoor kiosk where they were selling garnet items. There is a story to that, but not what we expected.
All aboard was 6:30pm , and the ship left with a view of a nice sunset. These sunsets have been few and far in between as it is usually too cloudy or raining. Dinnertime was good with starters of salad, brie, and mains of roast loin pork with applesauce - a perfect combo. Dessert was one tiny chocolate cake with dab of a blueberry cream on the side.
The World Stage singers and dancers entertained everyone with songs from the 70's.
Tomorrow we will return to Ketchikan for the final stop in Alaska - The Last Frontier.
Bill & Mary Ann
