The Inside Passage
The Inside Passage is a waterway along the coastal zone of
Southeast Alaska. From Prince Rupert I took a ferry up
north the inside passage to Haines, Alaska. Taking it
easy after having cycled almost 3,000 km. There were a
lot of things to see: beautiful fishing towns, a rugged
coastline with fjords, lush temperate rain forests,
tidewater glaciers and abundant wildlife (whales, sea
otters, bald eagles). The Alaska
Marine Highway ferries that run up the inside
passage were relatively cheap. It was also very
convenient to make a few stops at scenic places, discover
them by bicycle and hop on the next ferry the next
morning.
To my surprise and joy the local public libraries in
almost every tiny little village had a computer connected
to the internet. The internet connection, called SLED
(Statewide Library Electronic Doorway) was often very
sloooow, but anyhow, it worked!
The first town I'd visited was Ketchikan. With an
annual average rainfall of 162 inch (more than 4 meters...!!)
it's probably one of the wettest places in North America.
It was not a surprise it was raining and I didn't like to
camp this time. So I stayed at the youth hostel, located
in a basement of a church. A great meeting place with
other travelers, mostly backpackers and one other cycle
tourist...That guy was Ashley! He was lucky to get a ride
all the way to Prince Rupert, and was staying in
Ketchikan two days already. A lot of people who stayed at
this hostel, crossed our paths several times in other
places throughout the state!
Inside Passage
The following days we took the State Ferry to visit
the next fishing ports, Petersburg and Sitka. The first
was founded by Norwegian immigrants, the latter had
strong Russian influences (until the 19th century, Alaska
was part of the Russian empire).
McGinnis trail
Luckily the weather had changed into sunny and warm
weather with clear blue skies. In Alaska's capital Juneau
we stayed at the beautiful located campground near
Mendenhall glacier. From the campground we hiked up to Mt.
McGinnis, a spectacular trail with gorgeous views of the
Mendenhall glacier, the fjords of Lynn canal and in the
distance the snow-capped mountains of Glacier Bay.
Mendenhall Glacier and McGinnis trail
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