Monday 2 July 2012

Summer break Day 4: Icy Straight Point

Back on the boat and it was nice to feel warm. Overnight more shows to watch and kids club to play in. So far this has been a rather relaxing holiday - so much to do on a boat. Love that the kids were entertained and Greg, Frank, Helen and myself could kick back at a bar, coffee lounge, casino or duty free shop and relax.
Our next port of call was Icy Straight point. As we arrived there were 2 humpback whales that were bubble feeding close to shore and to the boat. Greg and I had made friends with a naturalist on board the boat and he was able to explain the technique of them feeding to us. So amazing to watch such huge creatures engulf their meals with their mouths wide open. We felt very special to be sharing their space.

There was not a lot to do at Icy Straight point but a few short walking trips. We explored the shoreline and a beautiful forest and then we walked to the small town of Hoonah. It made us realise that in Alaska many of the towns that we stop at are serviced mainly to look after the cruise ships. It was hard to see a town that was on the outskirts of the cruiseship made Icy Straight Point with it's touristy bits to a small community stuggling and needing the dollars. I hope that some of the funds go back into this community. We made a point of buying some lunch there to try to boost the economy a little.

Greg had organised a fishing trip to fish for King Salmon. Only drama was that we were not able to bring any home with us. However, we did get our fill on the boat anyway. He was lucky enough to catch one and also saw an amazing natural wonder of a bald eagle swoop and catch a fish too. To disembark this morning we had to board the safety vessels which lowered down from the ship into the water and to the small dock.




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