Saturday – Cruise Ship “Dockrepping” 101 and Native Alaskans

Greetings readers! Many thanks for the email requests to provide updated news on Alaska. Between getting acclimated to my two new jobs at ATA and trying to find reliable Internet access, it's made posting regularly a challenge. I'll try to catch up on postings this week and hopefully I'll be able to return to my "ahem" prolific self soon! Cheers and thanks for reading! Best, Carla

Note: This belated posting is from around May 17.

Today is Saturday which means it’s a light tourist day with only 1-2 ships in town. Our other dock reps have Saturdays off so that means I’m operating solo today, with the help of the bus driver of course who transports the guests to the starting location of their tour after I collect them, and then also returns them to the ship later.

Cruise ships at Broadway and Ore dock in Skagway shown in background. The dock reps and passengers shown in the foreground are from another cruise ship at railroad dock. These docks are where we dock reps spend much of our day communicating with shore excursion managers from the ships and picking up passengers for their shore excursions in Skagway.

If you wonder what a dock rep is anyway, here’s what we do: Passengers on cruise ships sign up onboard for their shore excursions (tours at the stops the ship makes along the way). The ships contact local tour operators at each port (I work for a local tour operator in Skagway) and arranges those excursions for their passengers. When the ship arrives, dock reps show up at the designated “pickup time” for each tour just outside the security area where the ships have a little booth where their shore excursions managers work while in port. After checking in with the shore excursion manager for each ship about the number of passengers taking our tour, we stand there with our signs for each excursion to collect our passengers for that trip.

Gretchen, our newest dock rep (there are 3 of us now) collects passengers for our Salmon Bake and show at Liarsville.

The jeep tours are more complicated to collect for because the tour goes into Canada, so we ensure all passengers have passports and have signed risk waivers before sending them to the coaches. But other than that, it’s mainly a matter of collecting tickets and ensuring they have the ticket for the correct tour (you’d be surprised how many train passengers would wind up at the horseback riding tour unless someone checked their tickets), and then escorting them to the buses.

We check in again with the shorex (shore excursion manager) before leaving the dock to be sure we don’t leave any late arrivals behind, and then we send the passengers on their way on our coaches. Later in the day we “settle” with the cruise ships by turning in the tickets we collected in exchange for payment. Most settling is done either right at the docks after that ship's passengers depart for the last tour of the day, or sometimes in an office in town. For NCL ships we actually settle right on board the ships if we're on "the list" to go onboard (only 2 people per tour operator can be on the list).

These little "booths" are where the shore excursion managers sit throughout the day as their passengers depart on day trips. Dock reps check in with shorex's there throughout the day to double-check the expected number of passengers for the next tour since sometimes ships sell tickets very close to departure time.

We are constantly “checking the numbers” of expected passengers with the shorex’s (shore excursion manager) throughout the day or until they have “closed” that tour on board, because if the numbers increase significantly we need to radio our bases so the jeep guides can have more jeeps washed and gassed up to go, the salmon bakes have enough food prepared, and the bus drivers have enough buses to get everyone there and back. Nothing makes passengers (and cruise lines) more unhappy then having 50 passengers show up for a jeep tour and having only enough jeeps for 40. Yikes. Obviously, we make every effort to avoid that scenario.

Seven days a week finds we dock reps at the "rail road" dock, one of four docks in Skagway where ships arrive. This area is where we collect passengers disembarking the ship to shuttle them to their buses for their shore excursions. The little caboose at the edge of the dock is actually a little coffee shop and gift shop. The shore excursions managers sit in the little booths shown on the left and we check in with them to verify our numbers, then wait with our signs to collect passengers and escort them to their coaches.

I think “dock repping” is an interesting job if you like working with people, because we meet both passengers and other tour operators. Each day while I hold my signs for Yukon Jeep Tours or Liarsville Salmon Bakes, I stand and chat with staff from the White Pass Railway, Husky Mushing Camp, Chilkoot Trail Hike and Float, Tempsco Glacier Helicopter tours, Skagway Trolley Cars, Klondike Gold Dredge, Sockey Cycle Tours, Yukon Horseback Tours, and of course the famous (or infamous?) Red Onion Saloon Historic Brothel Tours. It’s a hoot.

One of the perks of the job is that tour operators offer “comp” tours for other tour operators. So I can typically go on most of the tours for free, and the more expensive tours (like the helicopter tours) for half-price. So far I’ve been able to take our own jeep tour but nothing else so far. With our hectic work schedules finding the time to take the tours is going to be a challenge, but hopefully I’ll be able to do that on some of my days off.

Leona, our Liarsville bartender and Native Alaskan, at Spirit Lake near Carcross (Caribou Crossing).

I work at Liarsville with two native Alaskans: Leona and Maykea, and Vaughn who is not native but has lived here for a number of years. Vaughn is one of the performers – he plays the washboard with thimbles (and in real life he plays base and is a professional mime). Leona is the bartender at Liarsville, and even though she doesn’t perform she has a lovely voice and could be one if she was so inclined. Maykea works in the cookhouse and helps prepare and serve food for the salmon bakes. It is very interesting to hear Vaughn and Leono talk about tribal events. Vaughn is from Haines (30 minutes away via the fast ferry on the Lynn Channel), and he recently attended and performed in the opening of a new tribal center in Haines when he went home for the weekend. He was describing the Raven Dance which is preformed in full ceremonial costume.

Leona and Maykea are the only native Alaskans working with us that I am aware of; and they seem to know the “real Alaska” that most of us don’t have a clue about. Vaughn commented once that living in Alaska year-round teaches responsibility, and I can see that, because here if you don’t work then you probably don’t eat; and for about 6 months out of the year many people don’t work because there just aren’t any paying jobs during that time since so many things close once the cruise ships stop in September and don’t return again until May. It seems many people put enough back for the winters by July, just to be sure they are covered until the jobs begin again. That is so different from the life most of us live. Perhaps that’s part of what it means to say the “real Alaska”.

Vaughn (left) is another native Alaskan who hails from Haines which is near Skagway.

Wednesday - busiest day in Skagway

Note: This delayed posting is from May 14, when I had been in Skagway for about 2 weeks.

Wednesdays are typically our busiest days with more ships in port and more passengers taking shore excursions on each ship. Today was no exception and our jeep tours and gift shop were both busy. The actors performed eight shows and there were six salmon bakes. Our biggest single group was 168 people in camp at once, but I understand those numbers get MUCH bigger as the season progresses.

At right: Carla on the "fast ferry" to Haines - which is the nearest town to Skagway via land or water. The fast ferry takes about 30 minutes dock to dock and navigates the beautiful Lynn Canal fjords, where it's common to see bald eagles, mountain goats and whales along the way.

Liarsville manager Dirk rough-housing with camp dog Denali during a break between tour buses. Performers Allison and Betsy are in the background.
The day started out cloudy and cool, but a storm front moved through southern Alaska and there was a steady rain most of the morning. I felt for our guests coming into the store to warm themselves and dry off, as most of them were dripping wet; but most were also really good sports and seemed to roll with it. By about 2:30pm we heard it was snowing in town from Lynn’s husband, Robert (Lynn is the gift shop manager and her husband works on the train). Within a few minutes of Robert’s call it was snowing in Liarsville too. Big heavy flakes of very wet snow. By the time I left the gift shop to walk home there was a slushy covering on the ground. I sang to myself as I walked along the trail to our cabins because we’re still seeing bears in camp occasionally as they come out of hibernation, and this seemed like prime bear weather to me.

The road between Skagway and Whitehorse (Canada) travels into British Columbia and then the Yukon provinces of Canada. As you can see it's a beautiful drive and most of the way follows a huge lake.

Thursday and Friday are my days off, so in essence this is my Friday night for my upcoming weekend. Since Thursday-Sunday tend to be slower days, most people have days off then, and Monday-Wednesday is sort of “all hands on deck” kind of days.

I feel like a real resident of Skagway now, because when I rode into town today with Lynn to make the bank deposit for the gift shop, I rented a post office box for myself. Now that I have a PO box for the next 6 months, I wonder if that makes me an official Alaska resident? Tim shipped me a couple of boxes with some things from home, and I can’t wait until those arrive so I can have some little touches of home in my room in housing. What I’m looking forward to most is photos of he and the pups. I miss our refrigerator at home which is filled with photographs of family and friends who send us family photos or photos of their kids.


Cruise ship passengers panning for gold in Liarsville.

Saturday – busy days and bears in camp at Liarsville

Please note this belated posting is from an entry around May 10.

I’ve been in Skagway a short time and already the days are running together. Weekends are just the same as week days, since we have ships in port every day. That means the show at Liarsville (including the gift shop where I work in costume) and “dock rep” work meeting the cruise ships happens seven days a week. The only distinguishing factor between a Saturday or Sunday and a Wednesday is the number of ships in port and therefore the number of people in town.

Liarsville Goldrush Camp - our camp dog Denali (malamute) lays under the hot apple cider table near the fire ring in between shows. Denali is about 10 and moves slow but loves the guests -- and they love her. Notice the "do not feed me" sign on the table -- it's to keep well-intentioned guests from killing her with kindness by feeding her snacks and treats. We're under strict instructions from her vet to keep her away from people food to help keep her weight down. He made it clear that her life depends on it.

Our biggest days are by far Monday thru Thursday (peak day is Wednesday with four ships in at once, so the streets and shops and shows are crowded on those days). On the busy days we have more people in camp so that means more bakes and shows and fewer breaks in the action, and on the dock repping side that means more jeep tours and other tours to meet at the ships. It’s chaotic sometimes but interesting.

One of Yukon Jeep Tour jeeps on the road (well actually this is in a parking lot, but you know what I mean). :>)

Personally I like the challenge of never knowing what’s going to happen next, and I like that I move around a lot each day. I spent so many years sitting in the same office for days on end, that this is a very nice change of pace. Of course there are those days when it’s more challenging than others. On those cold and windy days standing on the docks with my little signs and trying to complete paperwork with numbed hands can be interesting. But personally I prefer that to the rainy days. We have jackets and I wear hats under the hoods, but my paperwork gets wet, the guests get kind of cranky and anxious to get on the bus (and typically THAT is the day the bus gets stuck waiting for the White Pass Narrow Gauge train crossing the tracks before they can make it to the dock).

We wear two-way radios to communicate with the base and the bus drivers as we send guests there way, or to notify them if the numbers go up unexpectedly and they need to prepare additional jeeps for the Yukon Jeep tours, or prepare additional food for the salmon bake in Liarsville, or if they need additional buses to have enough seats to get everyone where they need to go. (I dock rep for both the Yukon Jeep Tours and the Salmon Bakes). Those busy days or bad weather days keep the adrenaline pumping!

Guests panning for gold at Liarsville during a downpour.

In recent days we’ve had several bear sightings in camp at Liarsville, including seeing them on the trail we take through the woods between housing and the camp area. We make lots of noise so they know we’re coming and stay on alert because we never know where they’ll be. So far they have all been black bears, but once we saw a female and her cub, so obviously we have to be especially careful to give them a wide berth. We also have bear horns and use those to try and “encourage” them to move back up into the hills and away from the public areas. One of our musicians was riding one of our loaner bikes between town and camp one night and the police saw him and escorted him the rest of the way because of the recent bear activity. Just best not to take chances.

Two of our performers chat between shows in front of the mock "saloon."

Handling the sightings in camp is always a challenge because you never know what guests will do. It’s amazing how people seem to forget that this is not a zoo, and these are WILD animals. Hellooooo! We have a code word among the staff for when one of us sees a bear, and then we try to herd the passengers back onto their buses before telling them anything – better they take pictures from the safety of the coach than running down the road after it. (And no I’m afraid I’m not kidding).

In Liarsville I wore a costume for the first time yesterday. The dance hall girl costume is not really my style (at least not until it warms up a bit more, then we’ll see), so for now I chose something a bit more conservation. Think Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman (that sounds better than Little House don't you think?). I wear a grey high-waisted, ankle length skirt with black and white lace bloomer pants peeking out above my black lace-up boots. The top is a white high-neck blouse with red ribbon around the high collar and "poofy" sleeves. And the outfit was completed by a purple cape with tie string at the neck – needed that for warmth, and I used a garter belt to tie up my hair. When I’m in costume I’m part of the cast, so everything I do must be in character, and we never eat in front of the guests since it sort of ruins the “play acting” character (sort of like hearing the Disney characters talk in the park – that’s why they don’t). It was fun and I look forward to doing that again.

Downtown Skagway from the docks on a cloudy and stormy looking day.

Tuesday – second day in Skagway and in “camp” at Liarsville

Tuesday -- settling in at Liarsville camp and Skagway
Please note this belated posting is from an entry around May 6.

This is my second day in “camp” at Liarsville – the recreated gold rush camp where I’m working and living on-site in employee housing. I’m taking stock of my housing accommodations, and to put it simply I’m not impressed. We are talking VERY basic accommodations here which would be okay, except they are not in what I would call clean and maintained shape. For example, “The French” common house (where I’m staying) has three bedrooms and one bathroom for residents of the house, and a kitchen and laundry area and den shared by everyone in camp. The house has only one electric heater which is located in the den – so in order for any heat to make its way to your bedroom that means you must leave your bedroom door open, so privacy is pretty nonexistent. And that one heater is the extent of our heat, so since the nights drop into the 40's throughout the summer, since I didn't have room to bring a big comforter I'll probably be sleeping in my sleeping bag on top of my bed for the duration.

The firepit in the housing area. That's "The French" house in the background, and my room is the one on the left side that sticks out like a porch. It's a small room without a closet, but on the plus side I have my own entrance and little deck. The other two houses are out of view on this photo but are to the right as you follow the path around from the firering. The guys in camp build a fire pretty much every night in the firepit and we often sit outside after work.

The French is an old log cabin with log walls inside and out and which was probably quite charming in its day, but which has not been maintained and is in desperate need of some TLC. The floors are worn with Formica covering which is peeling and severely scuffed and stained. Most of the beds are simply mattresses and box springs sitting on plain wooden frames and in some cases just sitting on the floor without any frame whatsoever. Some of the windows are broken, the mosquito screens are torn (have you SEEN the size of the mosquitoes in Alaska?!), and curtains are either MIA completely or spare pieces of cloth simply tacked to the window frame and almost never covering the entire window. The walls and ceilings have cobwebs everywhere and show no evidence of a thorough cleaning anytime recently. Apparently we inherited whatever condition the crew that stayed here last year left behind, and apparently they weren’t exactly into taking care of their residence – or maybe it just wasn’t prepared after the long winter – I’m not sure. Perhaps the three bears lived her during their hibernation months this winter. Other than that it’s great though. (Not! But as they say, it is what it is, and this is Alaska!).

The other side of my room which has the door to the deck and direct access outside. My room is off the kitchen and laundry area.

We’re assigned to certain cabins as there is room available, but in essence all the cabins are shared among various people, so the result is we share everything – which can make things interesting to determine how to split up household duties like cleaning and cooking. The cabin where I’m living is the one complete with the full kitchen, washer/dryer and TV (but no cable so it’s VHS movies only on the old VCR player). Since this is the common house that also means it gets the most traffic. Our floors are pretty filthy; tonight we swept and mopped, but we live in the forest out here and it’s hard to keep the floors clean with mud right outside our door and people tracking in and out all the time. I’m not exactly what I’d call a neat person (good thing since Tim and I live with three dogs at home), but I think living in something that’s basically clean and orderly is a good thing, so the living conditions here are probably going to be a challenge for me. Time will tell.

The den in the common house. We have an old television (but no cable, so just VCR tapes to watch). There isn't much in the way of furniture and what is there is pretty old.

So while I'm not that thrilled with the company I'm working for and how they manage employee housing conditions (they don't even seem to have an HR department at all which to me says a lot, and nothing especially good about working for them) -- the good news is that I really like the people I work with. I'm not sure what the total count of employees comes to but it's probably 30-35, with about 1/2 of us living here in Liarsville, and the other half living in town -- most of them live in the RV park which the company also operates. We have people from all over the country (Utah, Illinois, Kentucky, New York, Washington, etc.) and several from other countries as well (Muldovia and Bogota, Columbia). There are couples here working together the way Tim and I hope to do in future -- if this "test" of this type of work turns out to be something we think we'll enjoy. And of course there are people here alone too. We have performers, musicians, cookhouse staff and gift shop staff here in Liarsville, and in town we have jeep tour drivers and bus driver and RV park staff; and we have staff from early 20's to probably folks in their 60's, so it's a very varied group in many ways which is cool.

As for me, I actually have two jobs -- I work part of the time down at the docks with the cruise line shore excursion managers and passengers - we "dock reps" are sort of the liaison between the cruise ship and the tour operators, ensuring passengers get to and from their shore excursions okay; and then I also work part-time in the gift shop in Liarsville where I am also in costume most of the time wearing period clothing. (I'll try to post a photo when we have some time to take pictures of each other -- typically we're so busy working there just isn't time).

Friday – Getting to know Skagway

I’ve been in camp now for almost a week, and although I haven’t gotten into a regular routine yet, I am starting to get used to the ebb and flow here. Thursday was a tough day because we had a housing meeting and I spoke up about my dismay at our living conditions. Afterward I felt sort of bad for the Liarsville manager because he looked pretty beat up, but I heard from a lot of people later who said they were glad of what I said and that I spoke for all of them. Yeah that’s me – Norma Ray of the North. I also had a long talk later in the day with ATA’s overall Skagway director who is also the person who hired me and “left out” some of the things about the condition of housing. That conversation was tough at times, but we both persevered and got through it; in the end we went for coffee and he showed me around town, so it felt much better afterward.

I snapped this picture of one of my roommates, Leona, with a friend's dog. Leona is an Alaskan native and also of the native people (I forget which local tribe). Her family is actually from Skagway and she was born here (well actually she was born in Haines, 30 minutes via fast ferry up the channel, because that's where the nearest hospital is lcoated).

When I go into town I’m continually reminded of what a small town Skagway is -- population 714 according to the sign at the river and the edge of town coming from Liarsville. I’ve run into that lady I met on the ferry who was from Skagway two or three times in the last few days, and as I walked through town today with someone who lives here year-round, they spoke with pretty much everyone we met, so it’s definitely one of those towns where everyone knows everyone. It reminds me of Bequia (in the southern Caribbean near Grenada) in that respect.

This afternoon the manager of our dockreps (dock representatives, like me) drove several of us without cars into town so we could run errands. It was a beautiful day today, about 50 degrees, and the sun shone brilliantly on the snow-capped mountains that surround Skagway. There were no ships in town today and it was a great day to have off work – and the last slow day we’ll probably see for a while since ships will be in almost every day from now until the end of September. So from here on everyday will be a workday unless you happen to have that day off when the schedules allow. There are no weekends or holidays when you’re working the tourist season in Alaska, because once we’re in full operation the ships arrive every single day of the week for almost four months.
This is the river located just across the gravel road from our housing area. This river flows from here into town (about 2 miles away toward the mountains). The ridge that you see between the two peaks is a glacier.

One of our first stops was the “Clothes Rush” for some sale clothing (many things are on sale since they are leftover from last season). The dockrep uniform we wear is black pants and red jackets – we provide our own black pants and the company provides the Marmot jackets. Some of the others were looking for inexpensive black pants, but fortunately I have several pairs that I got incredibly cheap (about 50 cents per pair) at the employee store while I was working seasonally at LL Bean last fall.

After the Clothes Rush we visited the one and only grocery store in town, Fairway Market. The market here is about one-half the size of most typical “regular” grocery stores in the lower 48, so the selection of things they have is limited first by economics since everything costs more to ship it all the way up here, and secondly because they have limited room to carry multiple brands and sizes. So what you see is what you get, and what you see is often limited. Items that have expiration dates like milk are often nearing the end date by the time they arrive at the market, so using things before they go bad can be a challenge sometimes. The barge arrives in Skagway late in the evening on Mondays I think, but they don’t typically unload it until Tuesdays, and then sometimes it takes the store a while to get things unpacked and on the shelves. Generally late Tuesday or Wednesday is usually the best day to shop to get the most selection, and by Saturday things will start to run out and once they’re gone, that’s it until the barge arrives again.

Taken from our front porch in the French looking toward the gold rush camp which is located about 200 yards through the trees. This is another view of the firepit and the treehouse one of the guys is building this season. I've never actually seen anyone in it (except for him when he's building it), but he's good with the carpentry so it must be a fun.

For the most part it’s just a convenience thing, but in some cases it can affect people’s health if they depend on certain medicines, food items or other things that must be shipped in and simply arrive when they arrive. For example, the lady here who cuts my hair was explaining that when her children were small, she bought her baby formula two cases at a time and asked her family to ship it to her from the lower 48; and then when she was down to one case she asked them to send her two more. Before doing that she had experiences when the market would run out of the formula and she’d have to switch to something else which would then upset her baby’s stomach – and imagine if they ran out of formula all together.



Allison, one of our performers on her way from her housing in "the quad" (four rooms in one building) into camp on a snowy day in late May.

There are many things about living here that are very different from anywhere I’ve ever lived before. Many services are simply not found here at all, and if they are there is usually just one option. There is only one bank, one post office that does not deliver (you pick up your mail there), one market, one hardware store, one hair salon (and only one person working there), one medical clinic and I don’t think any dentist, one ice cream parlor, one library, one pizza place (and it’s not a chain), two gas stations, one Radio Shack (and that’s the only place to get electronics in Skagway), probably less than a dozen restaurants, and that’s pretty much it for services. The Radio Shack also doubles as a video rental place, and the library also rents videos and DVD’s too (I paid $5 to get a Skagway library card and can rent videos from there for two days per movie for free). There is one place to recycle, and the Skagway dump is actually an incinerator as most of the garbage is burned – but it’s only open certain days of the week for a few hours a day. They announce when it’s open on the radio and if you can’t go during that time, your garbage just piles up until next time.


My room is small but all mine. I have pictures of Tim and the pups lining and postcards from friends lining the walls. Thanks for the mail guys! It's MUCH appreciated!

There is no mall, no pharmacy, no bookstore (although many of the tourist shops sell books, but mostly of the Alaska tourism variety), no drive-through anything, no movie theater, and no Home Depots or Lowes (although there is a small lumber store). Interestingly enough though, there are probably a few dozen jewelry stores which exist primarily because of the cruise ships (but I think only one of them stays open year round). There are no fast food restaurants and no food chains at all – so no Wendy’s or Subway or KFC, and the closest McDonald’s is a 2-hour drive away and much more expensive than in the lower 48.



The approach to the valley where Skagway is located on the return ferry from Haines. The Alaska ferry is to the left and the cruies docks are left and right (but this photo was taken on a day early in the season when there were no cruise ships in port so we had the town to ourself). From May 19 until end of September there will be at least one ship (and sometimes 4) in port every day of the week. Skagway hosts NCL, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity (they've merged), Princess, Carnival and Holland American Lines. (If interested the ship schedule can be seen at: http://www.skagway.com/cruiseshipcalendar.html.

On the upside however, since there aren’t that many places to spend your money (unless you’re into jewelry of course), that does make it easier to stretch those paychecks a bit farther since there isn’t that much locally to tempt you to spend a lot of it – unless of course one smokes or drinks a lot. I don’t know how much cigarettes are in the lower 48 since I don’t smoke, but I saw a sign in the market the other day and I think they are almost $7/pack here. Wow, that makes for a pretty expensive habit. I’m not really much of an alcohol drinker either, but there is also only one liquor store, and I gather it’s pretty well stocked but most things are expensive.

Another view of Skagway and the valley and mountains beyond (taken from the air and courtesy of www.skagway.com).

I don’t mean to imply there is nothing to do here, it’s just that what people do is different here. For instance there are a lot of outdoor things to do – lots of lakes and mountains to hike to, lots of places to go animal watching (nearby Dyea, the largest town in this area during the Gold Rush until the train diverted people through Skagway instead, is a popular place for sighting bears, sea otters and seals, eagles and other wildlife. During the summer season there are hike/float trips, glacier helicopter tours, horseback riding, glassblowing tours, and of course the most popular tourist attraction in Skagway – the White Pass Narrow Gauge Railroad to Carcross (short for Caribou Crossing and up the White Pass near Canada).

"Downtown Skagway" is about 8 blocks long and 2 wide and consists of boardwalk streets on Broadway, which is the "main drag". Skagway is very walkable. This photo shows our bank (Wells Fargo) and post office on the right and the shops beyond - this is looking back toward the waterfront which is only about 6 blocks away.

Since many people don’t have cable, the radio is still a pretty important thing here. They make announcements here that most radio stations would never do – for instance they have a personals timeframe when they announce who is driving to Whitehorse and looking for someone to share gas money for a ride, or someone looking for a ride to Whitehorse in exchange for helping pay for gas (Whitehorse is the nearest town via road, 2 hour drive from here in Yukon, Canada). As I write that I am reminded of a show that was one of mine and Tim’s favorites a few years back – Northern Exposure. The show was set in Alaska and one of the main characters worked at the radio station and the entire town listened to his announcements to find out what was going on around town and who was doing what – it was the lifeline of the community and the same is true here. I wonder if the writers of that show once lived in Alaska?

This is the small boat harbor which is tucked neatly inside near the rail road docks and just at the edge of town. There is also a small RV park with a winding stream just to the right (out of view). The rail road docks I mentioned are for the White Pass Narrow Gauge Railway which ran from Skagway to the Canadian Yukon during the 1898 gold rush, but today just goes as far as Carcross in BC (short for Caribou Crossing). The railway is by far the single most popular tourist attraction in Skagway.

Living in Liarsville, just on the outskirts of Skagway, is even more remote since we have no cable, DSL Internet access that’s fairly reliable but sort of slow, and very limited cell phone coverage here (I have to stand in the road to get my phone to work). We have about 15 people that live in employee housing in the camp and as I think I mentioned before, one “official” camp dog (she’s advertised that way and shown in all the postcards and such). Denali lives with us at night when she returns home from “work”. She is a huge dog and I’m guessing over a hundred pounds of furry Malamute. There are a few other dogs in camp which belong to employees and also live in housing with us. However, only Denali is allowed into the public areas when we have camp visitors; all the other dogs are restricted to our cabin area during camp operation hours.

I was able to find some quiet time in the Liarsville office this afternoon and spoke with Tim for a long time on Skype (think goodness for Skype). We finally had a chance to go over the list of things I need from home, because getting them here is not really an option since the types of stores in town are so limited, and the next town offering anything more than what we have is either Haines (30-minutes fast ferry ride south which costs about $60 round trip), Whitehorse in the Canadian Yukon (a 2-hour drive north, one way), or Alaska’s capital of Juneau farther south (8 hours by regular ferry or an hour or so by plane, both more than $100 each way).

This is the snowplow used to clear the train tracks for the White Pass Scenice Railway.

Obviously Skagway is pretty remote and isolated, and if it doesn’t arrive on the barge than you just don’t get it here – it’s that simple. That may sound strange given our country’s current culture of rampant consumerism, but it’s true none-the-less. I’m quickly discovering that unless one has lived somewhere truly remote for a period of time, perhaps it’s just one of those things you have to experience to truly believe there are still places like this, but believe me when I tell you, they DO exist.

Alaska ferry stops (Ketchikan) and arrival in Skagway

Sunday – Alaska ferry first stop in Ketchikan
Please note this belated posting is from an entry in early May.

Sitting on my sleeping bag in my bunk in the solarium

We arrived at our first stop, Ketchikan, at 7am this morning under rain-heavy overcast skies and chilly temperatures in the mid-30’s. Our arrival was greeted by a bald eagle majestically perched on top of one of the pilings along the ferry dock, a welcome sight to start our day. The trip ashore would be brief as our time here was quite short, only three hours before we were due back on board at 10am for our departure to Wrangell.

Cruise ships at dock in Ketchikan
As I left the ship via the car deck, I heard lots of happy barking and saw the wagging tails of many dogs in the automobiles that crowded the steel deck. Many of the pickup trucks, RVs and small cars I passed filled with gear also housed both small and large dogs, excitedly waiting for a chance to run around on land after more than a day at sea spending most of that time inside the vehicle. Dogs are so cool in how they just adapt to whatever life throws at them with a wagging tail, one of the many things I learn from them.

I had decided to get some exercise and hike the two miles into town. The ferry dock is located in a more industrial area on the outside of town, leaving room for the cruise ships that dock right in the center of things. As I walked up the ramp and followed the sidewalks into town, the cloudy skies soon gave way to a light drizzle; so I was glad that I had dressed for the weather.

The purser's desk on the Alaska ferry. Where's Gopher?

I’ve been to Ketchikan once before, on an NCL Alaska cruise Tim and took to celebrate our anniversary a few years back. At that time our combined salary made it possible to have enough in our “travel and entertainment” budget to afford a cruise once every few years if we saved enough in between, so after saving for more than a year we spent almost two weeks in Alaska that September (when prices and crowds were both a bit lower). We had added the NCL’s “land package” tour where we flew into Fairbanks and then took the train down from there, spending one night in Denali National Park which was awesome. While we were in Denali the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) “went” that night, and I’ll never forget the feeling of watching the night sky “dance” in a colorful waltz of pinks, greens, blues and purples – all moving together like a ballet troupe performing a grand finale. It made the hair on the back of my neck stand at attention from the sheer magic of it, and I look forward to seeing that again while I’m here.

Creek Street on downtown Ketchikan

Las Vegas, Disneyland and similar places that “recreate things exist because there will always be those of us who aren’t able, or perhaps in some cases just not motivated enough to see the genuine article for ourselves, and that’s cool if that’s what we want. But to me nothing tops seeing firsthand what Mother Nature does naturally and very, very well.

Ketchikan channel at sunset

And since I mentioned Disneyland I’d like to digress a moment (imagine that) on that topic because it’s an important one to me. People who know me are probably aware of my partiality to Disney World as a destination (because in my opinion Disneyland is not the same thing at all and is therefore not included in what I’m talking about here). I’ve read a lot about Walt Disney and what he was trying to do when he dreamed up Disney World many years ago. And while I can’t remember if he was originally trying to begin in Florida or California (which really isn’t the point anyway), I think I do “get” what Mr. Disney was trying to do originally in his dream vacationland for families. If you’ve been to Disney World in Florida, perhaps you’re aware there is music playing everywhere you go and the rides and attractions focus on fun, but also often on education as well (certain ones, not all). And I like to think that’s what he was trying to do: create a “fun and educational place” for families to share. I read somewhere he declared bankruptcy more than once in his efforts to build his dream destination, so perhaps that demonstrates that he was more interested in the dream than the money he could make from it. If others who came later turned it into more of a “commercial-driven” venture rather than the family fun one it seems to me he was targeting, well that’s hardly his fault and therefore I chose not to hold that against him and the park itself. I still believe there are many terrific educational and just plain fun things to do at Disney World (in Florida, I never really got the same feeling from the one in California for some reason). So I still like to go to there, but I just try to pick carefully among all the other “ventures” that have grown up around Disney World (and inside it) which have perhaps taken advantage of its success to share in some of the profits themselves. I try to pick carefully about which ones I want to support, because of course these places exist only as long as we support them by spending our money there. And that’s true for the everything out there, from the big conglomerate companies to the family-owned restaurant down the street. I may only be one person, but if enough of us out there choose where we spend our money, then our “support” (or lack of it) can greatly affect what businesses survive and which ones disappear in the long run.

Along the passage near Ketchikan
Above: One of the historic native totems

Now that I’ve wandered again from my original topic and location, I’d like to come back from central Florida to the complete other end of the US and continue experiences in Alaska, and specifically Ketchikan. As I was saying earlier, Tim and I were here for a few hours on that NCL cruise years ago, and I remember primarily two things about that trip: first, the town had these really cool boardwalks over the water and many businesses were built on log pilings over waterways; and second, that it rained (no, poured actually) the entire time we were there, and even with our rain jackets and hats we got completely drenched in the excursions we made that afternoon. But I remember having a great time that day so the rain didn’t dampen our spirits; and after all, why stop just because of a little rain eh? As they say, we won’t melt!

Murals in Wrangell

Now if you’re familiar with the geography of Alaska then you know that Ketchikan is in the rainforest, so of course raining a lot sort of goes with the territory. To me Ketchikan is one of those places where you might tell people, if you don’t like rain, then don’t go there. In the same way if you don’t like snow, then you may not like Montana except in July (although we lived there and I remember 5 inches of snow one July). I tend to read up on places before I go there so I know what to expect and which things I might want to see once I get there – sort of the “do your homework” kind of thing. That works for me because then I can adjust my expectations to the reality that goes along with whatever I’m about to do. So for instance, towns built in rain forests are likely to get rain while I’m there, so if I don’t like dealing with rain then I should probably skip that place. Places in Florida or the southern US are likely to be hot while I’m there, so if being hot bothers me than I might want to visit cooler places instead. Theme park rides that were designed to get people wet will probably get us wet if we get on them, so if I don’t enjoy getting wet then I should probably not get on rides that are (hello!) designed to get me wet. Food grown and eaten in another country is likely to be different than from what I eat “at home”, so if I’m not very experimental or open to other foods and “different” ways of living, then I might want to limit where I go to places that are “just like home.” In short, If I’m not prepared to “just deal” with the things that go along with whatever it is I’m doing, then I’ll probably be a lot happier if I don’t do them in the first place (and so will everyone else around me if I do it anyway and then don’t handle it very well when the “expected” actually occurs). Personally I try to think like a dog – because they seem to accept and enjoy most everything life brings them with an enthusiasm for life that I admire very much. Woof.

Navigating "the narrows" near Wrangell. We came through at low tide and it was pretty impressive with how close we were to the edges. I don't think the regular cruise ships can navigate this particular passage.

When Tim and I visited Ketchikan before, we knew we weren’t completely prepared because we didn’t have “rain pants”, so while our upper body stayed reasonably dry, our legs and feet were pretty soaked through. But we knew that going in, and we just planned to dry everything out when we got back to the boat. We had fun making the most of getting wet and turning it into just another adventure and something to laugh about, and that made all the difference that day, and every day since then when we do something outside or in another country or whatever. The more equipped I am by first having the right “attitude” about what I’m doing, and the more willing I am to go with the flow of whatever happens in an upbeat and “we’ll figure it out” kind of way – then the more fun I am likely to have (and for others to be around).

Welcome to shipping, Alaska style - via barge. Even though it's a small photo if you look closely you can see a couple of school buses, tourist vans and even a large motor coach stacked on the barge among all the containers of supplies. In Skagway it's not uncommon to see containers sitting in people's yards and driveways and parking lots, since not only are they used for shipping supplies but also for storing them when they arrive.

My time in Ketchikan today was mainly about getting some exercise since it was the first time off the boat in almost two days. And since I’m talking so much about the ferry option I should probably include this as well: If you don’t like to walk and/or find your own way around, then the traditional and more expensive “cruise” is perhaps a better fit – because they drop you at the cruise ship terminal which is typically a few steps from the heart of town. The ferry mentioned here (which remember, is several hundred dollars less than the cruise ships), does NOT dock at the cruise ship terminal. We docked at the ferry docks which were farther away and more in the “industrial” section of town. But even so, there was a tour agency waiting right there for anyone who wanted to pay for a tour (and the ferry didn’t know the price but also didn’t “add on” a hefty “shore excursion” price the way cruise ships do either). And there were a line of cabs sitting right at the ferry dock waiting for any passengers that preferred to ride into town. My personal choice was to walk the roughly two miles each way because I was looking for some exercise, and also because I’ve found I often stumble across little locally owned “gems” of stores or restaurants that I won’t find in the more expensive real estate closer to the primary “tourist” areas. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t – but to me the “search” for those unexpected discoveries is half the fun.

The photo is blurry due to the low light and moving objects, but the two black points shown on the right side (just left of the trees) are two whales swimming near our ferry.

My “exploring” on foot today obtained mixed results. About a mile toward town I noticed a Safeway (grocery store for those not living in the West), so I made a note of that since I wanted to purchase some basic food items for the boat to reduce the cost of eating in the cafeteria on board all the time. Then shortly after that, I passed a tiny non-descript place that appeared to be combination restaurant and small market for Asian food. I regret that I’m mostly ignorant about the specific differences which distinguish between Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and other types of food. I just know that I enjoy pretty much all Asian food, so I wandered in to see what I could find. It appeared to be family run because there was an older couple and younger woman in back in the kitchen area. The younger woman (I think it was their daughter or perhaps daughter-in-law) did most of the talking and spoke very good English, while when she spoke with the older couple they spoke mostly in their native language. I studied Japanese for a while so I can typically pick that out, so I think they were speaking Korean or perhaps Chinese, but again, I’m not really educated enough about those languages to guess. What I do know is they were all very friendly and helpful. After ordering I noticed both women (who were working with the food) had quickly donned hairnets, and that they wasted no time in starting the preparation right away. The breakfast was a hearty helping of two fried eggs over steamed rice, accompanied with sweet pork. It was delicious and a nice change of pace from the typical “American” breakfast.

Left: Taking a turn at the puzzle in the observation lounge. The ferry provided games and puzzles on board and during the 3-day trip there was always 1 or 2 puzzles in progress in the observation lounge where passengers took turns fitting the piece. Above: Comfy couches and big windows made the observation lounge a favorite warm and cozy spot to watch the passing view, read or snooze.

After breakfast I continued my walk into town and soon I arrived in the “downtown” area of Ketchikan. The main part of town consists of several walkable blocks tucked along the hillsides and the nearby Ketchikan River and featuring totems and other native artwork. Probably the most memorable section of town is Creek Street, the portion built onto wood pilings with boardwalks over the river where one often finds kayakers paddling by in their colorful boats. As with most Alaska towns along the Inside Passage which now depend on tourism, there are a host of shops offering the many varieties of salmon found in Alaska (I think there are six), reindeer sausage, wooden handled ulus (a chopping device), the ever present tshirt and inexpensive souvenir shops, jewelry stores and local art sellers.

Local native artwork in Ketchikan

Ketchikan’s nickname “Salmon Capital of the World” originates from the town’s heyday as a salmon canning center. The town includes a Totem Heritage Center where decaying totems were collected from abandoned villages and restored in an effort to preserve the artwork of local native tribes. The beautiful native totems can be seen along downtown streets and in local parks. Ketchikan resides in the Tongass National Forest, a rain forest bringing 160 inches of rain every year – part of the reason the fishing is claimed to be unmatched and why the town surroundings are so green.

After a brief tour of the town I was running a bit later than expected and had to make a quick jog back to the ferry. I cut things a bit too close and literally ran down the ramp, following the purser and dock crew just before they raised it. I hurried aboard, apologizing profusely because I know how important it is to be on time (although I’m glad to see they don’t wait just because I was late). I showed my boarding pass, walked toward an elevator to get off the car deck since access there is restricted while under way, and collapsed in the first chair I could find on the bridge deck. Okay, as usual, I had tried to cram too much into a short time and had gotten myself into a “rush” because of it. I used to do that a lot, especially when I let other people’s problems become mine – but today was all me. The experience taught me I still am not allowing enough time, so hopefully I’ll learn from that and do better at our next stop in Wrangell later today.

The hillsides and mountains above downtown Ketchikan and Creek Street.

As the ferry prepared to depart in a light drizzle, we were treated to a pod of humpback whales swimming nearby, their bodies slicing into the water as they flipped their tails and sprayed plumes of water high into the air like a moving fountain. We enjoyed their aerobatics until the ferry pulled away to make our way north again toward Wrangell and the passage through the “narrows”. Soon the cold breezy air drove most everyone on the bridge deck inside where we could enjoy the views from the cozy comfort of the large wrap-around windows in the Observation Lounge. As I entered the lounge I noticed a man and his teenage son working one of the puzzles provided, several people working on their laptops, a few curled up sleeping on the comfy couches in the middle of the room, and others just settling into the chairs at the bow to enjoy the view on our way toward Wrangell.

Hand-carved totems can be found in Ketchikan and other Alaskan cities where the art is still practiced by a few native people.

Monday – arriving in Skagway

After almost three days, the ferry arrived in Skagway around 2:30 this afternoon, following brief stops in Juneau and Haines. In both towns the ferry dock was a few miles from town and it was a cold and windy day, so in anticipation of visiting some of t hese towns later with Tim when he visits in July, I decided to stay onboard during the last two stops.

The Matanuska at dock after our arrival in Skagway, three days after departing Bellingham, Washington.

I had notified ATA that I’d be arriving on the ferry on Monday but I had no idea where I was to go from there, so I called the office after arriving and they sent Dusty and Mark (drivers for the Yukon Jeep tours) to pick me up in one of the company jeeps. They drove me to Liarsville to stow my gear in the cabins where I’d be living before returning to town. I actually started work that afternoon when I worked with Ashley, the manager for one of my two jobs at ATA as a Dock Representative for the cruise lines. I accompanied her as she settled with one of the cruise lines for the tours their passengers had taken as shore excursions that day. From what I can tell this mainly involves verifying the ticket count and both the shore excursion managers and our staff signing the paperwork for payment to our company.

My small room (but at least I have my own without a roommate) in "The French" common house.
By the time we returned to the cabins around 6pm that night I was so tired I could scarcely stay awake – the combination of the long day and the jet lag was starting to kick in (I was still on Maine time which was four hours ahead). There are three cabins that make up the Liarsville employee housing. The main house or “common house” called “The French” has three bedrooms and one bathroom for the residents of that house and a living room, kitchen and laundry area shared by everyone. Another house next door called the ED Lee -- also nicknamed “The Doghouse” by the employees since that is where the camp dog, Denali lives -- with a small kitchen and bunk beds for three in one room, a bathroom and another small room with another small bathroom. And “The Quad” which is the newest of the buildings and consists of 4 small studio-type units with bunk beds, a small kitchenette in each unit and a sort of “Jack and Jill” bathroom setup where two units share one bathroom. The buildings are old and not very well maintained so the living conditions are rough at best.

The kitchen and laundry area in "The French"