our first port in Alaska ~ Ketchikan

We've been to a few cruises but this was our first time to try a cruise and land tour. We left Vancouver for Ketchikan, Alaska the following day. We heard that it often rains in Ketchikan but our luck seemed to continue to work as we had another bright and sunny day while we were there. This neat little town welcomed us with views of towering cliffs and an array of pastel-colored homes that look like tiny dollhouses nestled in the lush landscape.

the view must be amazing from the cute blue house way up the hill but carrying bags of groceries up the flight of steps may be a bit challenging :-)

I was fascinated by the carvings and designs of the colorful totem pole and couldn't stop taking photos of them :-)

cute wooden bench with a salmon-shaped back along the boardwalk to Creek Street

there's an option to take this small funicular ~ an easier and faster way to go up the hill

the most visited attraction in Ketchikan ~ Creek Street which used to be a red light district long ago is now filled with interesting curio shops selling local handicrafts, wood carvings, colorful t-shirts and many more ~ we still saw a few salmon swimming in the creek but the season to see them jumping is over now