Morning Wanderings

June 25th- We woke up early this morning planning to head back out to Blind River Rapids to have our coffee and a bit of quiet time….and, maybe, catch a glimpse of some wildlife. The morning was misty rain and cool, not bad, but our rain jackets and rain pants sure felt good.

We sat and sipped our coffee in the early morning mist….

And marveled at the beauty……

This otter kept us company while he had a bite of fish for breakfast. And we saw a number of eagles fly over. It just seems amazing to us that we are sitting here among such wildness on the banks of a river in Alaska……

We spent the morning wandering a few areas on the northeast side of the island. We stopped at Sandy Beach.

We had gone hoping to spot the remnants of 2,000 year old wooden fish traps that had been used by the Tlingit natives on this beach. There are supposed to be a number of 2 inch wooden stubs sticking out of the sand that are visible only at low tide. They have been preserved underwater, and only deteriorate if they become dislodged and are allowed to dry out.

The Tlingits would construct wooden barriers in a heart shape that would funnel the fish into the ‘trap’ at high tide, where they could not then get out. At low tide, the Tlingits would then be able to spear the caught fish. This particular shape of fish trap is unique to this area.

We were there about one hour before low tide and were able to walk the beach that had just been uncovered by the falling tide. The tide pools turned up a lot of ‘treasures’…..

But, we never did spot the remains of the fish traps……Oh well……

It had been an AMAZING morning…….Life is about what one DOES see…..and making the most of the opportunities that come your way……..

Back through town with a stop for lunch at Inga’s Galley, a little spot frequented by the locals (it is mostly locals in this town, as Petersburg is a ‘workingman’s town, not a tourist town). We had some very awesome fish tacos that came highly recommended.

Then, back to hitch up the camper and line up for the ferry. Departure time to Sitka – 4:45pm.