Sitka Soaks
We had to get to Sitka. It's just a place that represents SE Alaska. Sitka sits among lots of little islands and inlets just off the Gulf of Alaska. This is the furthest west we will venture on our summer circle. From Tenakee we rounded into Chatham Strait and turned west into the Peril Strait -- another one of those names that makes you think you have bitten off more than you can chew. The Peril Strait is a narrow stretch of water between Baranof and Chichagof Islands. It was a nice-ish day, and we made the 6-hour journey to Appleton Harbor, greeted once again by a grizzly in the grass flats at the head of the inlet. Lots of boaters use Appleton to rest, sleep, or wait for the tide and current to change in Sergius Narrows. About the size of a big river, the 20-mile stretch down to Sitka has to be timed carefully. We've been through a few tidal rapids, and Kelly always gets the timing just right. She did this time as well. The problem was we overslept. We couldn't get to t...
