Hoonah, Juneau, Haines and Skagway

Location:  Juneau, Alaska

Orca in Lynn Canal

April 25 - 26, Thursday - Friday, Hoonah:  It was overcast and rainy while we were in Hoonah so we decided to tackle a big maintenance chore, cleaning our forward fuel tanks.  Dave transferred the last of the fuel from both tanks into the day tanks and we got busy.  The first step was to move everything out of the mid-ship hold so that we would have good access to the tank hatches there.  Thursday morning we cleaned the port tank – took off the hatch cover in the engine room and the three covers in the mid-ship hold.  Dave trimmed the gaskets on each of the covers.  When we had replaced them last time, we left in the center section.  With no material between these center sections and the fuel, they had swollen and deformed.  The gasket material on the flange faces was still in good condition, so we cut out the center sections and left the gasket material between the hatch covers and the flange faces.  

Starboard forward fuel tank hatches in the mid-ship hold, open and ready for tank cleaning. 

Starboard forward fuel tank hatch in the engine room.

Once that was complete, we cleaned the sides and bottom of the tank using clean diesel fuel, then vacuumed out the sediment from the bottom of the tank.  The last step was re-installing the hatch covers and torquing the bolts that hold them in place.  

Sunset Hoonah Harbor

 Friday morning we cleaned the starboard forward fuel tank.  After we finished re-installing the hatch covers, we cleaned the mid-ship hold bilge and re-stowed everything.  We did some laundry, took a short walk around town, filled water and prepared for tomorrow’s departure.

Difficult to see but there is a large bald eagle nest in this tree near the Hoonah Harbor Master's office

April 27, Saturday, Hoonah to Auke Bay (41 nm, 5.9 hours):  We left the Hoonah transient dock at 8:00 for our cruise to Auke Bay, just north of Juneau.  It was a sunny, calm day and we had an uneventful voyage.  The docks at Auke Bay are first-come, first-served with no assigned slips.  When you enter the harbor, you find an empty spot and tie up.  It isn’t crowded this time of year and we didn’t have any trouble finding a space alongside the dock.  We tied up about 14:00 and settled in for the afternoon.  We took a walk around the harbor area, then had supper at the Devil’s Hideaway.

Humpback whale as we were leaving Hoonah Harbor

Light house buildings on Point Retreat at the north end of the Mansfield Peninsula

April 28, Sunday, Auke Bay:  Another beautiful, sunny day.  We caught the bus to Home Depot, then went to Costco to stock up for the season.  We took a cab back to the harbor and got everything loaded onto the boat and stored.  For supper, we picked up some burgers and onion rings at Hot Bites.

Looking east from the stern, Statter Harbor, Auke Bay.

April 29, Monday, Auke Bay:  We spent the morning doing boat chores.  After lunch, we took the bus to Fred Meyer to get some fresh produce and top up items that we didn’t buy at Costco.  We had supper on the boat, did some voyage planning and prepared for departure in the morning.

April 30, Tuesday, Auke Bay to Haines (62 nm, 8.9 hours):  Another beautiful, sunny day.  We checked into the morning HAM net and then left the Auke Bay docks at 8:00.  We cruised north up Lynn Canal, the largest Fjord in the U.S.  The winds were light and the seas were calm and it was a nice day to be out on the water.  We saw four orca swimming south, two mothers and two calves. 

Eldred Rock Lighthouse, Lynn Canal

Four orca, two mothers and two calves, in the Lynn Canal

Mountains along the west side of the Lynn Canal

We tied up at the dock in the Haines Small Boat Harbor about 16:00.  For happy hour, we went to the Haines Brewing Company and we ate supper at the Fireweed Restaurant.

View from the Haines Brewing Company tasting room, Haines, Alaska.

May 1, Wednesday, Round Trip - Haines, Alaska to Haines Junction, Yukon Territory  (350 miles by car):  We decided to rent a car today to drive to the nature areas around Haines and to explore the Haines Highway.  We started with Lutak Inlet, north and east of town.  We had been told that the “hooligan” (aka eulachon or smelt) were in the bay and that there was a feeding frenzy with the birds and sea lions getting their fill.  It was close to low tide and we didn’t see any sea lions, but we saw lots of birds, mostly surf scoters and gulls.  As we were watching a raft of surf scoters near shore, all of a sudden, just like synchronized swimmers, hundreds of them dove under the water and resurfaced simultaneously.

Surf Scoters in Lutak Bay

Next, we headed north and west out of town on the Haines Highway.  We passed the Alaskan Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve on the Chilkat River, which is famous for the thousands of bald eagles that arrive each fall to feed on the salmon after they spawn.  There were no bald eagles this time of year, just miles of gravel / sand river delta.  We continued north across the U. S. / Canadian border into British Columbia and then up above the tree line into the alpine section of the highway and into Yukon Territory.  

B at the Yukon Territory Sign

The snow covered mountains were amazing, some of them were all white with no rocks or trees visible.  We stopped along the way for a better view of the snowmobile, ski and animal tracks in the snow along the roadside.  

Ground squirrel near a snowmobile area.

We arrived in Haines Junction, had lunch at a local restaurant, topped off our gas tank and headed back south.  We stopped for a hike at the Million Dollar Falls Campground - "The name comes from a U.S. army maintenance camp constructed during the building of the Haines Road and Haines-to-Fairbanks pipeline in the 1940s. The camp has a barracks, officers' quarters and a 21-toilet bathing room. It was rumoured to cost a “million dollars” to build, but was never used."  We saw lots of moose and bear tracks along the road to the campground, but didn’t see any animals.

Moose track on the road into Million Dollar Falls Campground

Million Dollar Falls.

Two swans, either trumpeter or tundra, feeding in a small pond along the Haines Highway.

We drove back into Haines, then went south of town to the Chilkat State Park, a beautiful area overlooking the waters of the Chilkat Inlet.

May 2, Thursday, Haines:  Chores this morning.  Dave put on his diving gear to inspect the boat bottom and our aluminum hull anodes.  The water temperature was 45F / 7C.  All looked well and he didn’t stay in long.

Dave diving in the Haines harbor.

For our afternoon adventure, we strolled the historic Fort Seward area, an old military installation, then strolled along the rock covered beach.  

Looking across the Fort Seward parade grounds at the officer's housing.

The town is in the process of creating a sculpture garden amongst the ruins of one of the old barracks in Fort Seward.
This is an example of the art that is in place.  

The Tlingit welcome sign at Fort Seward.

Rocks on the beach below Fort Seward.

For happy hour, we went to the Port Chilkoot Distillery, a small, local business that distills gin, vodka, whiskey and absinthe.  Their business start-up story is interesting as they had to overcome prohibition era laws that were still on the books before they could open their tasting room.  We had supper at a local restaurant, then went back to the boat for reading and unlaxing.

May 3, Friday, Haines:  More maintenance chores this morning.  We went to the Sheldon Museum in the afternoon.

May 4, Saturday, Haines to Skagway (14 miles, 1.9 hours):  We left the Haines Small Boat Harbor ~9:00 for the short run to Skagway.  The wind was blowing 25 – 30 knots from the south and the tide was flooding towards the north, so we got a push.  We watched a large group of surf scoters feeding along the shoreline.  

Surf Scoters feeding along the shore of Taiya Inlet.

There was one large cruise ship at the dock in Skagway.  We made our way into the small boat harbor and tied up alongside “C” dock.  The wind was blowing something fierce, but at least it was pushing us onto the dock and not away from it.  We tied up and settled in then walked uptown for lunch.  Back to the boat for afternoon chores and internet.  For happy hour and supper, we went to the Skagway Brewing Company.

The Arctic Brotherhood Hall in Skagway.  It is decorated with over 8800 pieces of driftwood.

May 5, Sunday, Skagway:  We spent the morning doing chores and maintenance tasks.  After lunch we visited the National Park Service (NPS) Klondike Gold Rush Museum and Visitor Center and walked the Pullen Creek Trail. 

May 6, Monday, Skagway, Alaska to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory (110 miles by car):  The wind was still howling this morning so we put out some extra lines and fenders then rented a car and drove up to Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon Territory.  Up and over the White Pass summit, through Canadian Customs into B.C. and then into the Yukon.  We stopped at all the scenic overlooks and historical stops along the way.

A spruce grouse alongside the road near White Pass Summit.

B at the scenic overlook, Fraser Lake, BC.

We had lunch in Carcross, stopped at the “World’s Smallest Desert”, stopped to watch the mountain goats along the hillsides and cruised into White Horse mid-afternoon.  We stayed at a small B&B near downtown.  For supper, we ate at Antoinette’s a Caribbean Restaurant – very tasty.

The Carcross Desert.

Cabins at the Robinson Roadhouse Historic Site.

Train tracks no longer in use, Robinson Roadhouse Historic Site.

Caribou crossing the Klondike Highway.

May 7, Tuesday, Whitehorse:  We started our day at the Whitehorse Visitor Center to get a recommendation for a day hike.  They suggested the trail that leads to the summit above Fish Lake.  We picked up some sandwiches at the local deli / meat shop and headed out of town to the trail head.  Fish Lake was still iced over, just starting to melt along the shoreline, and we could see someone skating off in the distance.  We hiked up the trail into the woods above the lake.  The trail was wet and muddy for the first half of the hike and icy and snow-covered as we neared the top of the tree line.  Once we got above the tree line, the views of the lakes and the surrounding mountains were amazing.

Dave hiking up the Fish Lake trail.

Fish Lake.

B scoping out the views of the surrounding mountains, Fish Lake.

Sign at the Fish Lake trailhead.

We walked back down to the car and spent some time watching the ducks feed on a small pond nearby – redheads, northern pintails, Barrow’s goldeneyes, northern shovelers and some others we couldn’t identify.  Our next stop was the suspension bridge over the Yukon River at Miles Canyon. 

View of Miles Canyon from the suspension bridge.

Looking down at the suspension bridge that crosses Miles Canyon.

Back to the B&B for a break, then we walked into town for happy hour at The Woodcutter and supper at the Dirty Northern.

May 8, Wednesday, Whitehorse to Skagway (110 miles via car):  We left Whitehorse about 8:00 for the drive back to Skagway.  We stopped in Carcross for a cup of coffee, then drove back over the White Pass summit through the fog and rain.  The fog lifted as we came down into Skagway.  We stopped at a scenic overlook on the way back into town and then returned the rental car.

View of the Skagway airport, downtown and the cruise ship docks.

Back at the boat all was well.  The wind was still howling, 30+ knots from the south.  I spent the afternoon touring the Skagway Museum and some of the NPS historic buildings.  We had happy hour at the Red Onion Saloon and supper at a restaurant near the harbor.

May 9, Thursday, Skagway to William Henry Bay (46 nm, 6.2 hours):  The wind finally quit blowing about 3:30 this morning.  We left the dock at 6:30 and headed south down Taiya Inlet and the Lynn Canal.  It was foggy most of the way and we ran the radar.  Very little traffic and an uneventful cruise to William Henry Bay.  We dropped off the crab trap and anchored off the eastern shore.  It was a sunny, calm afternoon.  We cleaned the starboard day tank then enjoyed the nice weather and the time away from the dock.

Looking out the William Henry Bay entrance at the mountains on the east side of the Lynn Canal.

May 10, Friday, William Henry Bay to Auke Bay (30 nm, 4.4 hours):  We picked up the crab trap on our way out of the bay this morning: one tanner crab, one Dungeness crab and one halibut.  We let them all go.  It was foggy on the way south so we ran the radar for about 2/3 of the voyage.  A few small fishing boats out and about but other than that it was quiet.  We pulled into Auke Bay Harbor around lunch time and docked at “D” dock.  Lunch and laundry, then cleaning of the port day tank and other maintenance tasks.

B pulling in the crab trap, William Henry Bay.

May 11, Saturday, Auke Bay:  We rented a car today.  Our first destination was the marine fuel dock on the south side of Juneau.  Yesterday we called around to check diesel prices and found that fuel on the south side of town was $0.15 less per gallon as compared to Auke Bay.  We wanted to confirm the pricing and to look at the fuel dock so that we would know what to expect when we pulled alongside.  Next was Home Depot, then Costco, then Fred Meyer and finally back to the boat to unload.  After we got everything stowed, we went up to Mendenhall Glacier.  They had some spotting scopes set-up in the visitor center and we got to see a mountain goat with a kid near a stream on the side of the mountain.  We walked a portion of the Trail of Time and the East Glacier Trail.

The Mendenhall Glacier.

A porcupine climbing a tree on the East Glacier Trail.

May 12, Sunday, Auke Bay to Juneau – Harris Harbor (31 nm, 4.3 hours):  We left the dock at 7:30 this morning and headed to the south end of Juneau.  Although it is only 9 miles by car to the south side of Juneau, it is 31 miles by boat.  The channel between Douglas Island and Juneau is too shallow to transit so you have to go around to the west coast of Douglas Island.  We tied up in Harris Harbor around lunch time.  Dave got busy transferring fuel from the aft tanks to the forward tanks while I walked up to the used book store, Rainy Retreat Books,  to see if I could find “Land of the Ocean Mists”, a book about "The Wild Ocean Coast West of Glacier Bay" – they had it.  We will be traveling this coast later this summer and, although it was written in 1986, it was recommended as one of the best history books about the Gulf of Alaska coast line between Cape Spencer and Dry Bay.  When I got back to the boat, we cleaned the starboard aft fuel tank.  For happy hour we went to the Red Dog Saloon and we had supper at V’s Cellar Door.

The Windfall Fisherman, a bronze sculpture of an Alaskan brown bear, Juneau.

Totem pole near downtown Juneau.

May 13, Monday, Juneau – Harris Harbor:  This morning we cleaned the port aft fuel tank – the last one.  All looks good and we are ready to take fuel tomorrow morning.   Our next stop will be Taku Bay.

Until next time...