This morning we awoke to yet another lovely day cruising through Frederick Sound. With a late brunch available, we had more time to catch up on sleep or get out on the bow and enjoy the clear blue skies. Although we’ve had phenomenal cloudless days during almost every part of our journey thus far, it is rare for Southeast Alaska. One of the naturalists onboard, Carlos, gave a presentation on bears. A more in depth look at these fuzzy land mammals accompanied with some outstanding personal photography provided a bit of entertainment before the mimosas and bloody Maries that came out with brunch.
Brunch means more time to spend in Petersburg! We arrived at the dock at Mitkof Island and were immediately surrounded by the dock’s many fishing vessels. Over a quick stroll through town, the Norwegian heritage of Petersburg is quickly apparent. Known also as “little Norway,” Petersburg has many traces of Scandinavian settlers – Norwegian flags and signs as well as a large Viking ship directly on the waterfront.
A handful of activities were available for guests to choose from throughout the day. Right at the top of the dock was a bike rental station. There are plenty of options of where to take the bikes around town, including a bike loop trail that goes around the town. For others, a more adventurous approach was their choice of how to spend the day in the sunshine. A hike up Petersburg Mountain with a packed lunch made for possibly some of the best views around. Some chose to go flight seeing. A true Alaskan bush plane got them up high enough to get sight of the LeConte Glacier and the mountains nearby. Finally, most chose to participate in the hike through the muskeg. This is a colloquial term for bogs or peatland, which provides a unique look into some of the different environments found in Tongass National Forest.
Guest speaker Becky Knight, a Petersburg local, joined us aboard the ship for a short talk on life in this small fishing village. Soon after, everyone was ready for our special dinner. It would not be a complete day exploring Petersburg without a proper crab feast. A more relaxed approach to dinner, guests sat down with buckets of local Dungeness crab and tried to eat until their bellies were stuffed.
