It's an amazing fact, but true, that approximately 95% of ALL tourism in Alaska is by cruise boats, largely plying the waters of the Inside Passage (generally between Vancouver and Glacier Bay) and some on up to Anchorage. It is the "usual" cruse boat routine -- travel at night, on land from morning to late afternoon and on board for dinner and the trip to the next "port 'o call." If you're reading this, I'm assuming you like your touring much less planned for you, much more involved than shopping in T-shirt and curio shops (all of which are owned by the cruise lines and hated by the locals) and a lover of clean air, wildlife and the "feel" and silence of a gliding kayak. We cannot recommend highly enough the following kayak trip in Alaska.

Our trip to Sitka began months before the actual date (the first week in August) when I contacted Sitka Sound Ocean Adventures ("SSOA") -- and are we grateful to the Internet for introducing us. This is a family owned outfitter (John and Barbara DeLong and young adult children) located in the dockside area of Sitka. At first I was looking for an outfitter to simply rent boats from for one or two days while we were in Sitka (between our stops in Juneau and Ketchikan). After talking with Barbara, I had arranged for my wife, two sons (ages 10 and 13) and myself to spend 2 nights and 3 days on a floathouse.

SSOA rents two different floathouses - which are sturdy wooden houses on a floating platform (ours was on about a 50' by 15' platform). We rented the one affectionately referred to as "The Caboose." Check out SSOA's website [www.ptialaska.net/~delongb/] to see why. Also check out their other floathouse which we didn't see. The DeLong's will tow their floathouses to any location among the hundreds (thousands?) of islands of Sitka Sound within a 10 mile radius of the City of Sitka. Ours was located in a little private bay adjacent to an island that was all of 10 acres or so, covered with driftwood, moss, tall fir and spruce trees ... all of what you see in the travel brochures in the Pacific Northwest. The wonderful part was that the only persons we saw were the occasional commercial fishing and pleasure boaters way, way off in the distance. This was remote ... yet so close to "civilization" -- if it were needed. The pictures on SSOA's website are so typical.

On Wednesday morning (around 9 AM) under overcast skies, the four of us launched our two Necky Amaruk plastic tandem kayaks from SSOA's launch facility on Japonski Island. The seas of Sitka Sound were flat; even when crossing the "open ocean" part. After paddling about 5 miles of open ocean, we began paddling through dozens of little islands -- some no more than a couple of large boulders at low tide, and others of several acres, and some with an occasional house and boat dock. As we continued paddling, the inhabitants changed from houses to wildlife -- porpoises, seals, bald eagles and many other birds I didn't recognize. I really loved paddling among these little, forested islands and their asociated wild/sea life -- I wanted to explore each one but we'd never reach our destination.

We finally arrived at the floathouse (about 8 miles from Sitka). This was to be our "base of operations" for the next 3 days. There is a wide "drydock" conveniently located for your boats. John DeLong brought the bags we wanted for this foray (the stuff we didn't want to bring we checked at the Sitka Hotel where we stayed the night before and would stay upon our return) in his outboard skiff, together with our food. John also loaned us some fishing equipment (no charge). He showed us how to use the oil stove, lanterns, the marine head, etc. and made sure we were comfortable. The float house turned out to be the greatest idea -- its more comfortable, cozy, convenient and warmer than camping, but you still have the feeling of "roughing it." See the SSOA for the details on the floathouse appointments.

The floathouse came with a short one-man Perception kayak that could be used for short trips...this was real convenient for the shuttle to the island (about 50' away at high tide), fishing in the channel between our island and the next one about 200' away and local exploring trips. That afternoon my sons and I caught a couple of fish for dinner, they took a "very quick" dip in the 48 degree "summer" water and we all watched a picture postcard sunset. Use your imagination as to what the sky and the stars loked like at night without any light pollution whatsoever....unbelievable! I now understand why the "big dipper" is on the Alaska state flag ... it takes up the e-n-t-i-r-e sky from one horizon to the next.

The next morning, after a brief drizzling rain, we took the Amaruks out to explore the Chai Chi Islands, the next cluster of islands about 4 miiles away. The seas were again calm and with the tide low, we were able to beach the boats on a long gradual sandy beach and we explored this beautiful moss covered and forested island. One thing that impresses you in Alaska is the clarity of the water and the visibility of the sea life below --- you can see a lot of the detail of the kelp forests, schools of fish, sea stars, etc.

After exploring one of the larger Chai Chi Islands, we cast off to do a little fishing in the channel surrounded by three other islands. All of a sudden I saw about 100' ahead a black hump, a spout of water and the characteristic dorsal fin of a humpbacked whale..I saw it come up for air about 4 times as it passed across our bow. I started paddling toward it and hadn't seen it for a couple of minutes... then the next thing I knew it was coming down the channel toward us. I stopped paddling as it passed about 30' to port going in the opposite direction. My wife and eldest son were about 100' behind us when it again surfaced even closer to them and resubmerged. This was about the only time my youngest son paddled on this trip... he was furiously trying to paddle away while I was trying to turn and give chase. I eventually turned our boat around but the whale was gone. Last observation: the stories about "whale breath" being gross are absolutely true --- the worst case of "rotting fish" smell I've ever encountered. This sighting was clearly the highlight of the vacation... even moreso than the 24" Coho salmon I caught from the back porch of the floathouse early the next morning.

When we returned that afternoon, the boys explored/hiked the island we were moored to and did some bottom fishing from the floathouse. When they returned I reeled in my line and I saw this large orange flash of color ... it turned out that I had hooked an octopus. The three of us pulled/reeled it in while my wife caught it on film. As we brought it on board, some of the tentacles latched onto the floats of the float house and it began to pull itself away. The three of us couldn't control it between the slipperiness and the size .. what an experience ...the Alaska promise of all kinds of wildlife cannot be overstated. Before evening fell as I enjoyed my after dinner coffee and cigar from the back porch, we had also observed several seals and dolphin swimming down the channel in which we were moored.

We were awaken the next morning by the "squawking" of bald eagles nesting in the adjacent island and watched momma (or poppa?) go fishing and hunting on our island for their young. That's when I caught my Coho salmon (around 5:45 AM) and it was on the barbecue cooking by 6:30 AM for breakfast. I can vouch for its freshness! We packed for the return to Sitka, leaving a pile of duffle bags for John to ferry back to our put in for us. We basically paddled the same route, except when my youngest and I returned we paddle a little longer around Japonski Island and the famous causeway linking several smaller islands. Japonski is a National Historical Site and was the site of a naval air base used for defense during WW II. It was interesting to view the old concrete bunkers, gun emplacements, etc. from a kayak.

We all paddled back to Sitka harbor to return the boats and to thank John and Barbara for a truly memorable three days in the "Inside Passage." For lovers of kayaking, wildlife, sealife, the forest, "big skies", chamber of commerce-type scenery -- the islands of the Inside Passage and especially Sitka are unsurpassed. If this kind of trip sounds interesting to you, we cannot recommend this approach highly enough (just in case I didn't say twice before!). The highest compliment? My teenage sons still ask when we're going back to do it again!

    Sandy Mayuga