Our Alaskan "Cruise"

A one time change in the ferry schedule gave us the opportunity to take a day “cruise” to Juneau.

The Alaska Marine Highway winter schedule brings a ferry to Hoonah twice a week. It docks here on Friday and doesn’t return to Hoonah until Tuesday. This schedule never provided us an opportunity to ride the ferry without committing to an expensive three or four night stay in Juneau. Yet for Spring Break, there was an addition in service that gave us a one-time chance to float to and from Juneau in one day.

I was ecstatic. I felt like Steve was taking me on a mini-cruise. It was a perfect get-away to cure my island fever.

For $116.00 including a discount, we were booked on the “Taku;” a large, “quick” moving ship that offered a fully stocked mess hall, theater, play area, video games, private cabins, writing room, gift shop and a comfortable observation room located at the front of the ship. We chose our seats from the rows of cushioned chairs all facing the expansive windows. The view was amazing.

The slow passing mountain ranges, changing clouds, and small islands thick with trees were so beautiful, but to look at them through thick windows seemed sacrilegious.
My cushy blue chair quickly turned into a hot seat. When my eyes caught the sun creating magical shadows on a snowy peak or the way the clouds wrapped around the base of an island or when I spotted a lone house on the edge of the rocks, I would turn to Steve, give him a kiss on the cheek, smile and say, “I’ll be right back.” Up and down, back and forth, in and out I went. I should say, “…we went.” Andrew, overcome with seven-year-old boy fidgets, finger-snaps and bottom wiggles, welcomed my frequent comings and goings. At one point he just had to run “it” out on the helicopter tarmac; pretending to be superman fighting the enemy wind.

My camera and I were itching to possess and memorize the beauty around us. I couldn’t push the shudder button fast enough. Unfortunately, my photo card only had 21 pictures left, a nightmare when on your first Alaskan “cruise.” (I had ordered a new photo card from Costco weeks ago but the joys of livin’ rural keeps me at the mercy of the postal service.) As I took in every angle from the bow, the stern and the upper deck, I had to choose my shots carefully. I found myself constantly reviewing my photos, editing and then getting ready for my next moment. And there were so many moments!



Steve, a bit under the weathder and being slightly worn to the novelty of an Alaskan ferry ride stayed inside most of the time. He brought a good book and spent his three hours receiving many kisses on the cheek, drinking Theraflu and reading about democracy. He did oblige me, early on in the journey, by going outside for our family “postcard” shot. Ta da!
We left at 12:45 pm and arrived at the Auke Bay Ferry Terminal in Juneau at 3:15 pm.
We took a 15 mile cab ride into Historic Old Town Juneau, an expense of $35 (no busses available!). The fickle spring weather gave us sun at the terminal and snow in city. We dashed from the cab to a local eatery called the Hanger. It gave a wonderful view of the water and the colorful sea planes docked in the harbor. After a delicious dinner, I was dying to visit the bookstore. Steve led the way. As we entered the tiny shelf-crammed store, we split like bees collecting sweet pollen from our favorite flowers; Steve to fiction, Andrew to children’s and I to biography and history. We enjoyed browsing and fingering the new spines and faces; letting our minds wander to the thrills and sorrows that lie lettered between the hard covers.

We quickly dashed into a tech shop to buy a photo card for my camera. Fully loaded, we were off once again. On the main drag, we went into a shop brimming with Alaskan treasures. From floor to ceiling, masks covered the walls, decorated wooden oars propped up against animal hides and walrus tusks sat on tusk-tip next to framed beetles with Latin names. There were cabinets filled with ivory and antler carvings of whales and eagles, buckets overflowing with pastel-colored stones, shelves lined with beaded moccasins and painted miniature totem poles, placed haphazardly around the store were hand painted ceremonial drums. The prices were exorbitant; a twelve inch totem pole was $400 and the drum that Steve is circumspectly holding in this picture carries a price tag of $749. Andrew did manage, though, to buy two magnetic balls for a buck.

We visited a small student art gallery and then moved on to Baronoff Hotel for tea and dessert. Steve and I relaxed in the lounge chairs and watched Andrew devour a piece of strawberry cheese cake. Can you believe they were out of “Baked Alaska?”

It was 7 pm and we had two hours before Taku headed back to Hoonah. Our touristing prospects were few. Ninety percent of the stores in Juneau are only open during summer season. The ten percent that stays open all year close at 5:30pm. We decided to head to the Juneau Library. It was lovely. This was the view from our sitting area, and Andrew had a large children’s section all to himself.



We knew the trip back home would be uneventful and planned to use the time to get some sleep. Andrew and I were in and out of rest, camping out on the floor in between one row of chairs in the earlier mentioned observation room. Steve returned to reading, this time by flashlight, and tried sleeping sitting up for the last hour of our “cruise.” We docked in Hoonah at 12:30 am. To our benefit, Major Loni, Andrew’s Boy Scout leader, was on board and graciously offered us a ride home. As I walked from the ship to her car, the crisp night air roused my sleepy senses; just enough to pause for a moment and thank the maker of the bright shining stars above for our day on board the Taku.