I got to drive the boat!!

From here on out, we're stopping in villages we also saw on the trip out to Unalaska.  The vessel captain has been really good about pointing out whales and driving the ferry off course (a bit) to see interesting geological features or to slow down and watch marine mammals.  We've had such calm water that we're making good time so I think that frees us up to see some of the interesting scenery along the way.

Volcanic rocks

There's not a lot of people who are doing the round trip with us - many of the people who went from Homer to Unalaska got off to fly back from Unalaska.  It's been quieter on the boat, but more fishermen have gotten on too.  It's been really interesting to talk to people who live in these small villages.  Some were born and raised there, others chose to move there.  I don't think I could live out here...where the boat only comes twice a month in the summer and then you can pretty much only travel by personal boat or airplane the rest of the (long, cold, windy) year.

Elephant rock.

Those of us who were on the boat for the whole trip were invited up to the bridge for a relaxed tour and chance to meet some of the crew.  I was talking with the helmsman (who steers the boat) and he asked if I wanted to try steering - of course I said yes. They drive the boat with big ships, wheel, and there's no autopilot!  I was surprised, but then again, the boat is 50 years old.

 Some other nice scenery pictures from the trip:

Sand Point.

Overall, it was a really, really neat trip, and I'm glad we did it.  We saw so many whales and porpoises, got to wander around tiny villages that most people have never heard of, let alone visit. 

Unalaska explorations

Unalaska, from near the top of the pass outside of the village.  Look at the clouds rolling down the mountain on the left.

Eventful day!  We stop in Akutan in the morning about 5 am for about an hour, then arrive in Dutch Harbor at 9 am and stay for 8 hours, then back to Akutan tonight.  We rented a car for exploring Unalaska/Dutch Harbor.   

The ferry did a 'drive by' of the village of Unalaska before docking!

Wow, I never thought Unalaska would feel like civilization, but after the tiny villages we’ve been through, it feels like we’re in a city!  First, we stopped at Safeway for breakfast snacks before trying to find the loop road over the mountains. I’ve been to Unalaska twice now, but have never driven around there and kept getting lost.  That’s hard to do when there’s so few roads, but I have mad skills when it comes to getting lost.  

First, we drove to see the Russian Orthodox church in Unalaska.  There was a bald eagle perched on top.  Then we drove the loop road out of town and over the pass in the mountains for some scenic views.

Steve enjoying a scenic view after a stop at a waterfall.

Beaver Inlet, from the top of the pass.

We had another beautiful, sunny day for driving around and exploring.  Occasionally some fog/clouds would develop on the mountains and pour into the valleys, but that was actually pretty neat to see.  On the loop road we saw a fox!  Jon, a guy we met from North Dakota, was able to get a good picture before it loped off.  Look closely – it even had a ground squirrel in it’s mouth!

Fox with the catch of the day (photo by Jon)

There are a lot of WWII ruins still left in Unalaska. 

 

Coastal Unalaska

The Tustumena as seem from a hill in Dutch Harbor (photo by Jon)

Stacks and stack of crab pots, waiting for the season to open again.

Always loading and unloading something in Unalaska

In Akutan Saturday night, we got off the boat to walk around since we hadn’t in the morning.

Small church in Akutan.

Vessel heading into the clouds and fog.

Good old Tusty.

Sea stack and clouds

Three villages in one day

sunlight on an island

Today our stops are King Cove, Cold Bay and False Pass.  King Cove and False Pass are mostly fishing villages, Cold Bay is a remnant from WWII – and it has a large airstrip capable of landing any plane…even the very largest planes, which is odd for such an out-of-the-way village.  They were the city where, last year, a flight from Asia to San Francisco landed when it was experiencing engine trouble.   

Every day we had nice weather and beautiful scenery.  The light in the evenings was perfect for moody photos.

A highlight of the Cold Bay stop was a chance to visit the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.  Federal park officers meet with boat with all the vehicles they can round up and take 25 lucky ferry passengers on a trip to the refuge.  They hold a lottery on the boat – 62 people signed up, and 25 names were chosen. Dad and Steve won seats, but dad gave his seat up for me (aww, thank you dad!!).

Large map of the Cold Bay region at the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge visitor's center

It’s a long, bumpy ride on a gravel road to the refuge, where you have a chance of seeing migrant birds, fox, bears, and marine mammals, as well as views of the surrounding volcanoes.  Unfortunately, it was a bit cloudy so we didn’t see the volcanoes, but did see a fox and a dead walrus (a looooong ways off, far from the ‘bad smell’ distance).  The refuge was pretty neat, and I’m glad I got to see it.  While we were on the tour, Dad and Barb walked into town to check out the grocery store-liquor store-hotel-and more, and wandered around town. 

View from Grant Overlook at Izembek

Everything was blooming!

Pretty foliage at Izembek NWR

The only bear we saw, and it wasn't real.

The ferry dock in Cold Bay was a good place to see puffins and pigeon guillamots. 

Our tour guide told us that Cold Bay’s single school has 7 kids in it, for K-12.  There’s one  teacher and one teacher’s aid.  That’s it.  Oye.  That would be tough!

Pigeon guillamot deciding I was too close.

Horned puffin

Bright orange feet on a pigeon guillamot

Our last stop of the day (and the only town other than Unalaksa/Dutch Harbor that we don’t visit twice) was  False Pass.  It is a very small village, and it’s on Unimak Island.  This is the farthest place out to see brown bears, since once you’re beyond this it’s all islands that are much farther apart.  

Approaching False Pass.  These small houses (?) are on the Peninsula side of the pass, not the village side (which sits on an isalnd).

Unimak Island is only about ¼ mile from the Alaska Peninsula at it’s narrowest point, so bears could swim here.  It was crazy windy in the ‘pass’ between the peninsula and Unimak Island, and the wind kicked up waves opposing the tide and the water was very choppy.  The is the first place where you can enter the Bering Sea from the Gulf of Alaska.    We got off in this town and walked quite a bit.  There’s an abandoned cannery here, which was fun to explore. 

 

Just another beautiful day in the Aleutians. 

False Pass, AK

An abandoned (but very clean) ambulance in False Pass.

Fresh, tasty berries, yours for the picking

Also, the salmon berries are ripe and EVERYWHERE.  OMG, they are so big!  We picked and ate them while we walked.

Volcanoes in the dusk.

So far, my favorite town has been Cold Bay.  But I don’t think I could live there permanently!  Talk about isolated…even with a big airport this would be a tough place to live.

Chignik to Sand Point

Chignik, AK

We arrived in the small village of Chignik just before lunch.  Chignik is still on the Alaska Peninsula, so part of the continental US (not an island) but there are no roads to the town.  We learned today that in these small villages, the ferry riders get off and go explore the town, while the town gets on the ferry and eats at the restaurant!  There was a small donut shop in town, run out of someone’s home, and we got some fresh, still warm donuts then walked around the town a bit.  I think Chignik is primarily a fishing village.  

Mmmm...snacks.

I didn't investigate to see if this store was for real, or just a mocking sign...

Another view of Chignik.  Not many roads, but some fun boardwards to explore.

Colorful nets

Weathered building on the Chignik pier.

More colorful nets.

Some mountains of the Alaska Peninsula in the distance

Beautiful scene in the evening, such a calm ocean.

Between Chignik and the next stop (Sand Point) we passed Castle Cape - a pretty rocky point that is also a major landmark for the local sea condition forecasts.  

Pretty scenery along the way.

Castle Cape, in black and white.

This is how we spent a lot of time on the boat - hanging out and playing cards.

We also saw some small whales (minke?) and an orca in the distance.  We didn’t get to Sand Point until pretty late at night, but did get off and walk around a bit.  Most of these ports we’ll also stop at on the way back, so there’s another chance to see them all.  So far the seas have been very calm and the weather nice, and mostly sunny.  Tonight there were some clouds in the distance as we approached Sand Point, which made for some interesting pictures.

Pretty clouds approaching sunset and near Sand Point.