Our Ferry Ride

On Friday, August 26, we loaded the ferry in Bellingham, WA.  We checked in early & got our tickets around 9:30am, we parked the truck in line around noon & had to be in the truck ready to load the ferry at 3pm.  We finally got on the ferry at about 4:45pm & the ferry didn't leave until 6pm.  Just after boarding the ferry I found out my camera had broke.  It was a LONG day to say the least.  We had a cabin with bunk beds, a full bathroom, & an ocean view.  The ferry had a theater room/recliner room where they showed a couple different movies everyday & some people who didn't have cabins slept in there.  There was a cafeteria/snack bar & also a dining room at the back of the boat with windows all around.  There were several areas outside where people could pitch tents to camp in & there were several observation rooms inside the ferry as well.  There was also a bar/lounge.  They did car deck calls about 4 times a day & they lasted 15 minutes.  That was the only time passengers were allowed down on the car deck while the ship was underway.  Car deck calls were the time when people could access their vehicles, get luggage, or take care of their pets.  The first part of the trip, from Bellingham,WA to Ketchikan, AK, was the longest.  We didn't get to our first stop in Ketchikan until Sunday morning.  Once we arrived there, we took Gunner for a walk, went to breakfast at a restaurant across the street from the ferry terminal, & then took a cab to walmart, where we bought a new camera & a few other things.  Our next stop wasn't until the evening & that was in Wrangal, AK.  We were able to get off the ferry & walk Gunner around for a bit but we didn't see much.  It was starting to get dark & the ferry was only stopped for about an hour.  The ferry also stopped in Petersberg, AK around 11pm, where Kolt got off with Gunner to walk him.  Since it was dark & everything was closed, we didn't see much of that town either.  Monday morning the ferry stopped in Juneau, AK where we HAD to get off.  We explored the town a little & did some shopping.  We had to have the truck back in line at the ferry terminal by 3:15am on Tuesday.  We didn't board until 5:15am & this time we didn't have a cabin reserved.  We crashed in a couple recliners in the theater/recliner room, where a lot of other people also slept.  Most came prepared though with sleeping bags & pillows so they could make beds on the floor.  Our last morning on the ship as we were eating breakfast in the dining room, we saw a couple whales behind the boat.  You could see them spout & then flip their fins & tails.  A lot of people saw a lot more whales to include orcas, & some pods of dolphins.  Kolt was lucky enough to have seen several whales & a pod of dolphins the last morning on the ship while I was sleeping.  Throughout the trip we saw several bald eagles & they are beautiful.  Finally, we arrived in Sitka around 2:15pm on Tuesday.........