Good morning, Ketchikan! Who knew you could pack so much fun into 4 hours! We were off the boat and headed for adventure by 7:50 am. LadyCoach got the kiddos all dressed while Coach raided the breakfast buffet for “protein and fruit” on orders from LadyCoach. Bacon and Apples! We ate while filing through the disembarkation line. It was a rainy morning! We hopped on our van down to the commercial wharf where Cody was waiting to take us on our morning adventure. She loaded all of us up in 4 electric off-road vehicles and LadyCoach, Coach, Uncle R, and Grandpa took the driving positions. We headed off into the rainforest for our first stop at the Saxman Totem Park.

We hopped off the 4×4’s and Cody gave us a brief tour of the totems and their history! Very interesting stuff.  We also got to try some wild deer heart (tastes remarkably like spinach) and a bit of fir (I’m sure something native to the region but I can’t remember the specific name) that gave us our daily vitamin C allowance. Gman happened to spot a few banana slugs so we also spent some time handling and kissing them for good luck!

Then we headed up into the Saxman Lands and an overlook of waterways leading into Ketchikan. When we loaded up in the vehicles again it was time to go MUDDING! The overlook was about an acre of stone and mud!

We all did our best to get some air, fishtail, and make waves in the mud pools. It was a blast bouncing around. All had a great time except PJ and Grandma – who would have preferred a calmer ride – Grandpa did not oblige. After the mudding we headed up the mountain even further to learn about the ecology and history of the island. At some point we saw some Blacktail Sitka Deer. Then we headed deeper into the rainforest to a camp set-up for us! The fire was roaring and the coffee, hot chocolate, and cider were hot.

We were wet and cold – so it felt great to sit around the fire and discuss Bigfoot and various other important topics. Aunt M was really taken with the scenery and the beautiful creek running by the camp. The landscape is so green and beautiful. We ate pancakes hot off the grill and roasted marshmallows with intricate self-flipping rods.  The morning was thoroughly enjoyed by all! When it was time to head back we drove through more of the forest and got some great family photos on some of the bridges crossing the creek. Cousin J did not want any part of the photos, but LadyCoach was not having it! He was getting in the picture whether he liked it or not.

We all resigned ourselves to our time being over and we headed back to the wharf. To our surprise, Cody stopped and got out and directed us toward a bald eagle! It swooped down and it was quite the Alaskan moment!

Beautiful Beach, Bald Eagles, Misty Rain, and 4×4’s. What a great time!

Instead of heading back to the boat for our 12:30 departure, we decided to explore a bit of downtown Ketchikan. We walked the length of Creek Street, which is spectacular!  It’s a boardwalk bordering the lovely creek running down into the bay. It was also a famous red-light district 100 years ago. Some rather colorful signs!

We heard from our guide Cody that the best halibut fish and chips in town could be found at Alava’s Fish-N-Chowder so we started to walk that way. We were running a bit late for the ship, but Coach and Aunt M were going to try the world’s best fish and chips. The dumpy little shack barely off the roadside did not let us down. Best fish I’ve ever had in my whole life. Worth every penny and every ounce of anxiety waiting for them to call our orders ready. We all shared the delicious pieces of fish and onion rings as we hustled to the ship. Successful morning in the books!

Once we got on the boat we rushed to get into some dry clothes and we all hustled to the theatre on board to watch The Greatest Showman. It did not disappoint. Em and Gman sang along as PJ danced in the aisles across the theatre. Grandma and Grandpa loved it for the first time as well! Nothing like a movie about the value of family on a family adventure.

We all hung out and relaxed the rest of the afternoon until dinner. It was our second formal night so we got all dressed up and headed to the dining room. It was just TeamHovis and the grandparents tonight. The cousins had a hankering for pizza. We ate too much as usual and then we all headed up to the lounge to play some trivia – we won of course! Em was the captain and lead us to victory! Shortly thereafter Aunt M took the three youngest kids back to her room for movie night, while Em and the rest of the adults enjoyed another comedy show by Greg Warren. Coach went back down to the room and got the TeamHovis kids all bedded down. All the adults met back up in the lounge for a few drinks and Princess’s version of the newlywed game. There was blushing and embarrassment for all three couples on stage. We laughed and gasped. Then bed.