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The ship arrived in Skagway about 5 am, or so the schedule said. I wasn't awake then, but woke up shortly after that. The view from our room is very uninspiring - a rock face covered with graffiti... The photo to the right shows the train being loaded up for the tour to White Pass. Taken from our balcony.
After breakfast, I took off for town and promptly turned back to the ship on arriving in town. I had forgotten my extra memory cards for the camera... So I made my back through the levels of security to the stateroom and got my memory cards and my hat. The photo to the left shows the security area for the ship.
So I started off again, taking time to sit on a bench near the small boat marina to call Carl on the cell phone. The picture to the right is the view I had while talking with him. I had interrupted his lunch... We had a nice chat, then I spent the next seven hours exploring Skagway.
The original name of the town was Skaguay, Tlingit for big wind. And the wind continued to pick up all day... The town is five blocks wide and twenty blocks long... Most of the activity is on Broadway, the main street through town. It's mostly jewelry stores and tourism shops...
I took pictures of whatever caught my fancy and did a little shopping, picking up a couple of t-shirts among other things.
The photo on the left above is of a special piece of railroad equipment that was used to clear the tracks of snow. It would create a tunnel for the train to pass through. The photo in the center above shows a portion of Broadway, the main street through town. The photo on the right above is a railroad baggage cart with pots of flowers providing a foreground for one of the many souvenir shops in town.
The photo on the left above is a window display. The center photo above is an antique store in Skagway with totem poles in front of it. The right photo above is a recreation of an 1890s bar, using mannikins for the people. This is maintained by the National Park Service.
The photo on the left above is the local Harley-Davison shop. The center photo above shows some of the offerings at the local bicycle shop - bicycles and helmets. And the right photo above is the local bicycle shop.
The left photo above shows that cruise ship passengers are always welcome in Skagway. The center photo above shows one of the many ways to get around Skagway. Besides the streetcar tour, I saw horse drawn taxis and bicycle taxis. The right photo above shows one of the dance hall girls attracting customers to the Red Onion Saloon.
And I took in the 12:30 showing of the Days of ‘98 (longest running show on Broadway - Skagway's Broadway, anyway), which told, in song and dance, the story of Jefferson "Soapy" Smith, who ruled the town with an iron fist until the town rebelled and killed him. Of course, they made him sympathetic and clowned a bit with the tourists, getting a man to help with the "upstairs" girls part and two older women to help beef up the can-can line... Oh, well, it was entertaining.
Then I had lunch in the Bonanza Saloon. Fish and chips and Alaskan Amber on tap. Good combination.
The left photo above shows some bicycles waiting to load onto the ferry in Skagway. What a load to carry! The center photo above shows some of Skagway's humor. No, the toilet isn't connected to any live plumbing, it's just for show... The right photo above shows our ship (the Coral Princess) from the ferry dock. Just behind it (fantail to fantail) is the Sun Princess, one of three other cruise ships in Skagway that day.
The left photo above shows some chives growing in a watering can. The center photo above is a set of wind chimes made using empty beer bottles. And the right photo above is a close-up of the bow of the Coral Princess.
Got back on board about 4 and cleaned up for supper. Mom and I were actually the first to arrive at the table! M and K soon arrived, but J and C never made an appearance. It was just the four of us. Continental food tonight (duck a l'orange, etc).
After dinner, we went back to the room for a while - this is the view we had from our balcony as we were leaving Skagway, then Mom went to the show and casino. I sat in the Crooner's Lounge with a book and had a Rossini. Different formula here - raspberry juice instead of strawberry juice, so it was a bit heavier. I preferred the Venetian version. Then I crashed for the night. Never did hear Mom come in!