When the NCL Spirit docked in Ketchikan, Alaska, I took an escorted tour of the Tongass National Forest.
Ketchikan, Alaska.
When I left the ship for my escorted walk through the Tongass National Forest today, I was met in the arrival area in a large hanger used for shopping. I sat and waited for around six or seven people to arrive, and our guide then led us to a battered old minibus. It was not what any of us were expecting. When I was sold this excursion, it was described as a gentle walk through the Tongass National Forest. It was anything but, and although I enjoyed seeing the Forest, I was glad when the excursion was over was over.
Our guide was a lady who was ex-armed forces and probably at least 20 years younger than anyone else on the tour. She probably weighed around 70 lbs. She also had a friend with her, but I am not sure why. She drove us to a small gravel car park a short distance from the ship, and we parked up and were given a chocolate ration bar and a bottle of water each. It certainly wasn't the packed lunch I had been told we would be given.
We set off at quite a quick pace, down into the forest along a gravel path. She walked very quickly and didn't wait for anyone. I managed to keep up until the first place we stopped, and from that point on, I fell back very quickly. Whenever she stopped to talk about something she wanted us to see, she would start talking as soon as she got to it. She didn't wait for me or anybody but the lucky few who could keep up with her. By the time I got to the place where she had stopped, I had missed all but the end of her talk, and as soon as she finished, she would head off again.
The terrain got more difficult for me to walk. The hills and slopes were a lot steeper than anything I had been told to expect. The gentle stroll I had been expecting became a forced march through the woods. At no stage did the guide slow or wait for me or a couple of other people. Towards the end of the march through the woods, two of my fellow passengers dropped back to keep an eye on me, a kind lady from New Zealand and a man from Canada.
Unfortunately, I didn't hear the details the guide was telling people about the Forest, and I spent most of my time gasping for breath. I took a few photos and asked some of the people on the excursion to send me their photos, but as of now, I haven't received any photos. When we got back to the ship, we were actually earlier than we had to be. I can't help but think that the guide and her friend who accompanied the excursion had somewhere better to be.
I would like to see the Tongass National Forest again one day, but not on a rushed, forced march like this. The terrain was too much for me to do in two hours, and I would prefer to spend all day exploring the beautiful scenery.
Tongass National Forest.
The Tongass National Forest is an extensive temperate rainforest in Alaska. It covers over 16.7 million acres and surrounds the Inside Passage. It is home to many wildlife species, including bears, salmon, eagles, wolves, and whales. It is also the ancestral land of the Tlingit, Haida, and Tshimsian people.