This was our last port day, and it so happened that this was our favourite port in Alaska, Icy Strait Point. We got up at 07:00. We passed on breakfast that morning as we wanted to get going as soon as we could and we were due to be allowed off at 07:30. We got ready and headed downstairs. I did not even attempt to find the photographers that day. As soon as the ship was cleared, we headed out.
We stopped by Keet Plaza. This is a nice viewing point on the way to the cannery complex. It is named after the huge bronze orca statue that is at the centre of this area. I had admired the statue on very visit, but never realised what a treasure this is. It turned out that this statue was created by the artist Wyland and was a gift from Norwegian Cruise Line to the people of Hoonah. It does not even bear thinking about what this is worth. Near Keet Plaza, we had our first bald eagle sighting of the day. Then we headed towards the coastal path. They have now added a little tourist information kiosk near the entrance to the coastal path. We ended up talking to the guy at the kiosk for a bit. He was born and raised in Hoonah and was one of the local Tlingit people. He was interesting to talk to. He shared with us how much difference the port and the income from this have made to the local people. He talked about the limited opportunities for young people when he was a young man and all the opportunities that the young people of Hoonah have now. This was so great to hear.
After three glorious days in a row, this day was grey and dreary. At least it was dry. We had decided to walk along the coastal path until we reached a little memorial area for two fallen police officers. The stretch of the coastal path from the port to the memorial area is really pretty. After this point, it gets quite industrial. The memorial area is at around the halfway point. It therefore made sense to turn around there. When we walked along the coastal path in 2024, what should have taken us about 35 minutes took us nearly 3 hours due to all the wildlife about. We saw so many whales that day. This time round, there was no whale in sight. We did however see a lot of bald eagles and there were some puffins near the memorial area. We enjoyed the walk, but this time round, it took us less than an hour.
We had some other plans, but by the time we got back to the port area, we were cold. We headed back to the ship to pick up some layers. I stopped by one of the shops at the cannery and bought two pieces of jewellery. One of them is a pendant inspired by the northern lights and the other is a glass pendant with swirly wirework. Near Keet Plaza, there are some houses. Something caught my eye as we were walking past one of the houses. There was a hummingbird. I called out to Graham who was slightly ahead of me. By the time he had come back to where I was standing, the original hummingbird had moved on. However, there were a number of feeders at this house, and we saw a few more hummingbirds. This was such a treat.
When we got back on the ship, we quickly went to the cabin to get some layers. Then we headed out again. There were some seals near the ship, and we watched them for a bit before heading for the first cable car. There are two cable cars at Icy Strait Point. The first one is free and links the two docks. It goes through a forest. There is a charge for the second cable car, which goes up the mountain. On the first cable car, we shared a gondola with some people from Singapore. It was nice talking to them. When we got to the other end, we got our tickets for the other cable car. We had a gondola to ourselves this time. Near the exit is a viewing point that overlooks Glacier Bay. We enjoyed the views for a while and then we headed towards the trail to Hidden Lake. It is advertised as a loop trail, but on our first visit one half of the loop was closed off and in 2024 and this year, the other half of the loop was closed off. It is a fairly easy hike going through a forest before turning into a boardwalk across a peat bog. There are all kinds of warning signs around asking people to stick to the boardwalk and warning of the dangers, but there are still plenty of people who thought that the warning signs do not apply to them. One of the rangers that was patrolling the area got quite fed up with people ignoring the signs and stepping off the boardwalk for selfies.
At the end of the boardwalk is Hidden Lake. When we were there in 2024, we were there about one week earlier, and the lake was still frozen and covered with snow. This time round, all the ice and snow had gone. I am not quite sure which version I preferred. They were both very pretty. There were also a lot of birds around. Once we had thoroughly enjoyed the view, we retraced our steps and headed back to the cable car. The views from the cable car are great and we were able to do two roundtrip journeys without getting off. When we had completed the second roundtrip, we stayed on once more to go down the mountain, but then we had enough.
While we were up the mountain, another ship had arrived. The line for the free cable car looked impressive. Graham did not fancy this at all and decided to take the nature trail through the forest. I was not sure about that idea and waited for the cable car. I waited about 30 minutes before it was my turn. I ended up sharing a gondola with various crew members.
When I was back on the ship, I quickly headed to the cabin to drop off my coat and pick up what I wanted for the afternoon. I wondered if Graham was back, but he had not been to the cabin. I decided to get some lunch at Fish and Ships, which is the poolside eatery on Ovation. We ate there quite often on our cruise to New Zealand, but for some reason we had not made it there this time. I knew that this would be my last opportunity. I ordered some chicken strips and chips, which were delicious. At some stage, Graham joined me. He had indeed arrived on the ship ahead of me and had the same idea. He had already finished his lunch. He had enjoyed the nature walk, but did not think that I would have enjoyed it as it was quite steep in places. We both still had some room, and we decided to share some fried shrimps and chips. The chicken was definitely the more attractive proposition. It was not that the shrimp were bad, they just were nothing to write home about.
After lunch, we quickly headed back to the cabin so that Graham could drop his stuff off. Then we headed up to the solarium where we were in luck and got one of the comfortable round loungers. We finally got to see a whale. Normally Icy Strait Point is an amazing place to see whales, but they had been keeping a low profile that day. Once the first one turned up, we saw a couple more.
Afternoon trivia that afternoon was at Boleros. I was quite excited about this as they have some really nice cocktails. However, the place was absolutely packed. We scored 13 out of 20. The winning score was 17. After afternoon trivia, we headed back to the cabin. We had a nap. I had set the alarm for 18:30. We got up and got changed. Then we headed downstairs to get some photos before heading for dinner.
Dinner that night was at Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen that night. This time there was not even any question that Clarice would look after us. We both had a glass of Moscato. We shared the Italian Stromboli with spicy salami, mozzarella, oregano, arugula, tomatoes, and white truffle oil as a starter. We both had the grilled Filet Mignon with peperonata, Marsala, mushrooms, crispy polenta, and Grana Padano cheese. I was quite surprised that Graham chose this as he has always detested polenta. However, he liked this one. For dessert, we both had the pistachio panna cotta.
After dinner, we headed to the Pesky Parrot. Graham had his usual Monkey Business, and I had an I-Land Negroni, which consisted of Aviation Gin, Lillet Blanc, and pineapple amaro liqueur. I am not normally too keen on negronis as I find them too bitter, but this one was nice. It was really smooth. Once we had finished our drinks, we headed up to the solarium for a bit. We managed to snag one of the comfortable round loungers. A bar server came round, and we both had a drink of the day, which was a Blue Wave. It was still grey and dreary and there was not much to see. Once we had finished our drinks, we decided to head down to our cabin. We got ready for bed. I read for a while, but we both ended up having quite an early night.
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