We spent the morning at sea, making a calm southbound approach through the Revillagigedo Channel toward Ketchikan. After the birthday festivities last night, a quiet morning spent watching the misty islands slide past from the upper deck was just what was needed.
We tied up in Ketchikan right on schedule at 1:30 in the afternoon. Sitting just fifty miles from the British Columbia border, it remains one of my most favourite port stops along the entire coast, even though we have never actually booked a formal excursion here. The place simply feels like it could be a home. Sometimes one travels to a location that extends an aura of a personal fit, and Ketchikan does that for me. We spent the afternoon strolling along Creek Street, walking the elevated wooden boardwalks built on pilings directly over the rushing water, taking in the steep hillside backdrop and the timber-town charm.
We headed back to the Solstice well before our 8:00 evening departure. As the ship pulled away from the berth and turned south into the Inside Passage, it marked the end of our final Alaskan port call for the trip, leaving only the long sea day back to Vancouver ahead of us.