Going on a Bear Hunt
The final stop on our Alaskan cruise was Icy Strait Point, outside Hoonah, Alaska. This was the port I was least looking forward to. On our last cruise, we did a bear and whale tour. The bears were nowhere to be found, but we did come across some bear scat. I paid quite a bit of money to see bear poop! The only wildlife we saw from our viewing deck was a deer.
The whale portion of our excursion was spectacular. We saw a pod of six humpback whales, including a baby that kept breaching. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so we were skeptical about trying a similar excursion again.
We also discovered bears were rare until August and September, with only 10% of visitors seeing bears in early July. So we decided to save a little money and explore Hoonah instead.
False Advertising
There was a small shopping center up the road from where the ship was docked in an old cannery, and of course we were unable to pass up an opportunity for more souvenirs 😀
After exploring the shops, we decided to walk into Hoonah. According to the street signs, the walk was approximately one mile. It seemed like a solid plan to walk off some of the extra calories we had eaten on board.
Unfortunately, though the signs were inaccurate, the walk to the downtown area was slightly longer. We reached the marina on the outskirts of town after a mile walk. We had an additional ¾ of a mile to the downtown area.
Do I Really Want to See a Wild Bear?
We were also intimidated by the large sign that warned about bears as we started our walk. The sign had a large grizzly with its mouth wide open. It was frightening and made us wary. The signs directed us on how to avoid bear attacks, including traveling in groups and making a lot of noise. Plenty of people were on the path, and knowing that bear season was later in the year, we figured we would be safe, though our heads were definitely on a swivel.
Now I dream of seeing grizzly bears in the wild, (more on my attempts during my interior land tour here) but I am a realist who wants others to be around. Our last shore excursion included armed guards who went with our group, which made me feel safer. As much as I wanted to see a bear, I did not want to come across one on the road walking to town.
I Wanted the Shuttle Ride More Than the Refreshment
Once we made the trek into Hoonah, we stopped at a local brewery for a drink before continuing our exploration. An almost 2-mile walk makes a gal thirsty 😉 Thankfully, the local brewery sold tasty refreshments and wristbands for the shuttle back to the cannery. You could ride the shuttle as many times as you like for $10. We were not the only ones buying bands when we got into town.
The shuttle service could make quite a bit of money charging more once you reached town. I would have paid anything for that ride back. Luckily, they were honest folks and did not take advantage of all the tired travelers who had trekked into town.
Bear-Free Shorelines and Fish Tacos
Hoonah, Alaska, is small, and there isn’t much to see, but we enjoyed the lovely bear-free shoreline views. There were totem poles, a juvenile bald eagle, and a boatwright working on a canoe.
In town, we did a little more shopping before grabbing some fish tacos for lunch. It was our last opportunity to eat freshly caught fish before spending a couple of days at sea. They were delicious, and I scarfed them all down before I even thought to take a photo but you can find them here if you would like to visit on your next Alaskan vacation.
Final Call for Souvenirs
With our bellies full, we took a short shuttle ride back to town, picked up some souvenirs from the cannery shops, and headed back to the ship.
I was actually looking forward to the next two days at sea. We went non-stop for days, and I was really looking forward to chilling and not having to get up super early for breakfast. That, and I had a little bit of celebrating to do while at sea, but more on that next week!
