After leaving Juneau, we headed south via Stephen’s Passage to reach Taku Harbor. Waiting out a storm, surrounded by local crab pots, we had two days of relaxation. It was so nice to be anchored in a lovely harbor while the wind in Stephen’s Passage reached 40 knots! Giorgio finally had the opportunity to set his new crab pot which ended up tangled up in the rudder. We learned that we had to set the pots away from the boat!
Giorgio’s New Toys
In Juneau, Giorgio bought a crab pot, a shrimp pot, and a garbage can: all collapsable for easy storage!
Tracy’s Arm and Sawyer Glacier
We continued south in Stephen’s Passage to reach Tracy’s Arm, a spectacular fjord about 45 miles south of Juneau. Sawyer Glacier, the bluest of glaciers, is located about 6 miles up the fjord at the end of Tracy’s Arm. We zig-zagged up the fjord surrounded by waterfalls, icebergs, growlers and Tiffany blue ice sculptures.
Stephens Passage, the Place for Whales and Orcas!
Pybus Bay, Admiralty Island
Petersburg, Mitkof Island
Petersburg is a nice small town known for its Norwegian heritage and for having one of Alaska’s most prosperous fishing fleets. In the early 1900s, local businessmen thought that with the proximity of lots of glacial ice nearby, the town would be an ideal spot for a cannery and today Petersburg is the home of a modern seafood processing corporation known as Icicle Seafoods. Fishing is still the mainstay of the economy. Notice the parallel tidal grids for working on the boat: you arrive over them on high tide and work on them at ebb tide.
Wrangell Narrows
Wrangell Narrows lies between Mitkof Island on the east and Woesodski and Kupreanof Islands on the west. It is a 21 mile navigational challenge! Although the channel was well marked, we had to pay absolute attention to our course and stay away from shallow areas and rocks. The current was also particularly strong in many places. We did not have much traffic to contend with and the weather was fortunately good.
Anan Bear and Wildlife Observatory
We had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Anan Bear Observatory in the Tongass National Forest. Anan Creek is home to one of the largest runs of pink salmon in SE Alaska which supports the large population of black and brown bears. We did not see any brown bears, apparently they stay further upriver. However, we watched around a dozen black bears catching salmon in the river. What a rare opportunity to see the bears up close in their natural environment feasting on their favorite food! They would reach into the water, make a few swipes with their giant paws and catch one salmon after another. They would have a few bites and leave the carcass on the rocks for the eagles and ravens to clean up and enjoy.
We anchored near the Forest Service dock and took our dinghy to the mouth of the Anan River.
The observatory was located about 1/2 mile up the river where there was a covered and gated observation platform.
The bears saw us but did not seem to be at all curious since they were catching fish and eating
Santa Anna Bay
After visiting Anan Bay, we anchored in Santa Anna Bay where we saw a boat called ‘Forest Surveyor’ which was built in 1944 as a Coast Guard service boat. A passionate yachtsman transformed it into his personal yacht.
Ketchikan
In Ketchikan, our last stop in Alaska, we picked up a few navigational books for the Inside Passage through British Columbia, Canada and refueled. We walked along the waterfront, reprovisioned at the local Safeway, and went to the local library to get some internet.
Our next stop is Prince Rupert, Canada so that we can continue down the inside passage through British Columbia to Washington State.
The Adventures of SV JAN 