We arrived at Icy Strait Point early Monday morning. Again I watched the docking procedure as we arrived into port. About 100 feet away from the dock, a pod of five small humpback whales cruised right below our balcony, splashing and blowing out air and water. We saw them many more times during the day.
Icy Point is near the town of Hoonah, one of four places some Alaskan clans migrated to after the glacier pushed them off their land in Glacier Bay around 1750.
Now, Icy Point has the world’s largest zip lines. Sue, Mike, Joanie, and I rode the one-mile descent that dropped us 1,330 feet in a little over one minute!
Before enjoying that zip, we had a 45-minute bus ride to get to the top of the mountain. We learned more about the native Tlingit people as our driver told stories of his own Raven and Eagle clans. In the original language this city is called Xunaa, which means 'protected from the north wind.
We saw lots of wildelife as well: whales, eagles, sea lions… but did not see any brown bears, moose, or wolves.
Dinner on the cruise ship gave us a great view out the back window as we left port, and we have enjoyed friendly conversations with our wine steward sommelier, Vincent. Many of the waiters are from India and the Phillipines and very gracious. After dinner, the four of us listened to a small big band, and even hit the dance floor. Fun night!
