Day 7 - Skagway

Woke up this AM docked in Skagway.  Don't remember the port from my '70s trip, but do remember downtown.  It has changed quite a bit.  EVERYTHING now caters to the cruise ships .... no big surprise I guess.  I remember many more bars.  It was a drinking kind of town.

Jane's trip didn't start until 10:30, mine started at 8:00, so I got dressed as quietly as possible and was out the door.  My shore excurison today was a 5 mile bike ride through another temperate rain forest.  It was very different from yesterday's forest, no moss like what we saw yesterday.

After a 25 minute drive up a very steep, gravel road, which definitely was not for the faint of heart we arrived at our destination.  The road was very narrow with a sharp drop off on one side.  I really wanted Zabeth, our tour guide and driver, to stop talking so much and keep her eyes on the road!!!

Our ride started in the Chilkoot Trail area of the National Park Service.  There were 10 in our group so it was again a nice size group to be with. Zabeth was our guide and again as yesterday in Juneau, she was very knowlegeable.  Her only failing was that she did not have any bug dope with her...which was a hazard since these mosquitoes were large enough to carry you away!!

The trail itself was lovely.  Mostly plenty wide for 2 bikes to ride side by side on what appeared to be a park service road. Our first stop was at the Slide Cementary, so named as all its occupants had been killed in an avalanche on the Chilkoot Trail.  From there we rode to Dyea, the first town in the area, prior to Skagway, but now a site that has been reclaimed by the forest.

We made another couple of stops and headed back to the van.  5 miles went by way too quickly for me.