Cascade Creek, Petersburg
“Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.” --Lao Tzu
Our morning hike ascended up to a “roaring” waterfall of Cascade Creek. Water was the theme of the day… misty, rushing, gushing, drizzling, dripping all around us; and yet the canopy of the rainforest kept us protected. Hiking in the Tongass Temperate Rainforest is so Alaskan and this boardwalk trail did not disappoint. The swollen rain-laden waterfall thundered and crashed down a fault zone from the mountain above, spraying us with its refreshing mist.
Some of the hikers continued up the “stairway to heaven,” a near-vertical 172-big-step fitness test to a bridge over the top of the falls. Here in a small montane bog, Linda was able to find and demonstrate a rough-skinned newt. This is a tiny lizard-like critter that protects itself with a skin full of toxins that would make any predator very sorry for an encounter.
After our hike and on our way to Petersburg, Berit Solstad, our marine specialist, used the ship’s microscope to show the variety of plankton living in Alaska’s waters.
We arrived in Petersburg (a working cannery town), later that afternoon and promptly set out on a variety of activities. Some chose to bicycle around Petersburg, others decided to ride a zodiac across the bay to do a bog walk. This was our first opportunity to take a closer look at this type of ecosystem. Carnivorous sundew plants captured our attention as junior ‘rangers’ Brian, Katy and Anna showed the other hikers a plant specimen.
Later that afternoon Dr. Fred Sharpe from Alaska Whale Foundation came aboard to speak about his research on humpback whales. A fresh crab feast was the perfect end of another great day in Alaska!
