Stikine River Tour

Trip Start May 31, 2008
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Trip End Aug 28, 2008


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Where I stayed
Alaskan Waters Campground
(Wrangell hotels)

Flag of United States  , Alaska,
Friday, June 20, 2008

Today we went on a cruise/tour of the Stikine River.  The Stikine River is the fastest flowing river in North America.  It begins in British Columbia, Canada and flows past Wrangell, Alaska on its way to the ocean.  We took the trip with Alaskan Waters on a jet boat which maneuvered easily along the silty waters.  Every seat in the boat was taken.  The weather forcast was for rain, but the rain held off, and we even had nice periods of blue sky.  As we journeyed along the river we saw eagles, a moose, a bear, and merganser ducks of all sizes.  Most of the mountains were still snow covered and Shakes Lake, which contained much glacier ice, was still somewhat frozen.  It was on the ice dotted lake that we stopped to eat lunch.  There were also waterfalls cascading down the mountainside.  
The floating cabin is Wrangell's answer to the federal government who will not allow cabins on federal land, so the hunters in Wrangell who want a cabin float it on the river.  Therefore it is not on federal land At Shakes Lake
At Shakes Lake
 .
As we were heading back to Wrangell, we saw more beautiful scenery. 
After grabbing a snack in the trailer, we headed to "downtown" Wrangell to look in some of the shops and photograph the murals painted on several walls.
 We also tried to find another eagle's nest we had been told about but could not find it.  We did come across what appears to be a very old eagle.  As it was sitting on the branch, it looked like a strong breeze would blow it right over. 
Tomorrow we will get ourselves ready to climb aboard the ferry once again.
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