Our primary reason for visiting Haines was to catch the Marine Highway Ferry to Juneau. What we found was a nice quiet coastal town not overrun with tourists - we managed the usual hikes and visited two museums, a historic site, and the Bald Eagle Foundation facility. The big surprise, however, was the wildlife, a lot of salmon in the rivers - which attract bald eagles (over 4,000 make this valley home) - and more than a few grizzly bear, both feasting on those spawning salmon.
Our first stop.
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| Injured and not able to return to the wild. |
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| Feeding Time |
Then the Sheldon Museum
Fort William H. Seward was establish in 1901 prompted by the ongoing border dispute between the USA and Canada and had almost 300 soldiers stationed there in the 1920s. Note: The border dispute was mediated by the British, the result being the odd strip of land (Alaska's Southeast and the Inside Passage) that looks like it should belong to Canada.
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| Officers Row |
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| The Parade Ground |
On our hikes.
Then a little excitement - watching the bears. While taking these shots we could actually see a total of eight bears - these are the ones that were 25 feet (or so) away. Everybody scattered when mama bear got a little excited!
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| Mama and two cubs |
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| Screen shot from a video I will try to post later |
I just can't pass by an old rusted vehicle.
