PICTURES TO ACCOMPANY PREVIOUS  POST

This is the Solarium on the Ferry with all the backpackers in their thermal sleeping bags, sleeping under the overhead heaters.  Daryl is at the far end just about to go through the door .

Daryl and Julie in the lovely lounge.  Another ferry passing us by.
There were many islands in the Inside Passage and the water was so calm.

There were two murals, the other one was a bear.  There was also a great selection of framed photographs and paintings on the walls of the corridors.

This is our rickety ex-school bus that we caught into Sitka.  Downtown is 8 miles from the ferry terminal.  Only sbout 12 of us took the round trip into town.  The driver gave us a commentary.  It cost us only $12.

We went to do this forest walk and see some totem poles at the cultural centre in Sitka.

The Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Sitka which was closed at 5pm, so Julie and I absconded to the Russian Christmas shop  which the lady opened for us escpecially.  The cruise ships begin on Sunday, so most  gift shops are just preparing and stocking up, to open on Sunday.  We were delighted to buy ourselves two gorgeous tiny Babuskas.

The gorgeous dining room on the boat.  We ate a very civilised dinner of Alaska Salmon, except for Jeff who couldn't resist corned beef and cabbage.

The Narrows is the tightest part of the trip.  It is a very narrow channel on the way to Sitka.  I heard an Indian American guy say  you could just about reach out and touch the trees.  We saw whales in the distance during the first part of our journey, and saw eagles and puffins and gulls.  We scanned the shore for black bears but no luck.  The waitress told us that sometimes you see moose swimming across the channel, but we weren't fortunate that day either.