Crossing Paths Again With Fellow Boaters

July 14-15 – Hoonah and Icy Strait Point

Katmai, soon to be renamed Desserts First

We woke on the morning of the 14^th delighted to find Katmai, our friends Mary & Casey whom we met in Taku Harbor, docked behind our boat (they trailered their boat all the way from Florida to Prince Rupert ... and began their exploration from there ... on a lovely 23-foot boat. Brave!).

Meanwhile, Roland noticed another familiar face next to us on the docks snapping photos of Engelenbak. It was David, with Jane, the British couple we met in Ideal Cove on Polar Bound.

Roland and David struck up a conversation about what kind of equipment we were running, while Jane and I conversed about the challenges of food provisioning for long runs away from ports. When Mary and Casey joined in on the conversation, we invited everyone on board for a tour of the boat.

Turns out David is somewhat of a celebrity in the marine world. If you link to David Scott Cowper in Wikipedia you’ll find his impressive list of accomplishments, including the first person to sail solo around the world in both directions. And the first to sail around the world via the Northwest Passage single-handed. Quite an interesting man, with I'm sure many interesting stories to tell.

Later that evening Mary and Casey joined us on Engelenbak for dinner. We had a relaxing dinner, compared notes on favorite places we’ve seen while in Alaska, and learned a bit about each other. Turns out we have more in common than just being boaters in Alaska... we were all newlyweds!

Beautiful walk to Icy Strait Point

The next morning, Roland and I walked a mile and a half up the road to Icy Strait Point, a Native cultural center that was developed specifically for the cruise ship industry. The walk was beautiful, but we were taken aback by Icy Strait Point, which clearly was “manufactured” for cruise ship tourists.

 

Cruise ship anchored outside Icy Strait Point

Boasting the longest zip line in the world, Icy Strait Point was filled with passengers from a cruise ship docked in the bay the day we visited. No doubt there must be a shared revenue arrangement with cruise companies given the number of restaurants and gift shops scattered through the complex. At the center of the main structure we found an interesting cannery museum with exhibits showing salmon fish processing from start to finish. 

Deciding we’d had enough of Hoonah, we left the docks that afternoon and motored 9 miles up the channel and dropped anchor in Neka Bay ... beautiful anchorage ... but filled with man-eating flies!!! Literally, we had bug bites right through our jeans while anchoring!