Hoonah Lay Day

We woke to sunshine—finally—and decided to embrace our inner tourists for a day of cruise ship-style fun at Icy Strait Point.

First up: a surprise boat tour... sort of. On our way up the dock, Karen admired a sleek whale-watching vessel named Tail Chaser. As luck would have it, the captain strolled by, invited us aboard, and gave us a quick tour. Purpose-built and spotless, it looked like a great ride—though we had other plans for the day.

We hopped the $10 shuttle bus for the 1.5-mile ride to Icy Strait Point. The driver gave a friendly overview of local highlights, and it quickly became clear: Hoonah has changed. Norwegian Cruise Line now boasts two berths here, and a free connector gondola links both docks to the main attractions. There’s even a zipline that drops dramatically down the mountain—sadly, fully booked. Next time!

the $10 bus pass makes getting to and from Icy point strait and hoonah a breeze

the free gondola between the two terminals and associated attractions

the free gondola passes through the woods. You can also walk a path.

Six at a time zoom down the zip line

THE END OF THE ZIP LINE REMINDS THE RIDERS HOW TO KEEP ALL THEIR PARTS ATTACHED

THE oRCA mONUMENT nORWEIGAN cRUISE LINES BUILT TO CELIBRATE ALL THE MONEY THEY INVESTED IN iCY sTRAIT pOINT

no shortage of places to shop for souvenirs

it look authentic, but icy strait point is only inspired by the past

i find it amazing how icy point strait and hoonah can absorn 10,000 cruise boat passenegers

Instead, we opted for the SkyPeak Gondola, a 1,500-foot ascent up Hoonah Mountain. At $50 per person, it’s a bit steep (pun intended), but well worth it for the views. We lucked out with perfect timing—no lines, no sharing our gondola car. Even with clouds rolling in, the views were spectacular.

the sky peak gondola provides a beautiful view

it’s a steep view back down to the two cruise ship berths at icy strait point

We grabbed lunch at Duck Point Smokehouse and were pleasantly surprised. Grilled halibut sandwiches, friendly staff, and sweeping views of the channel—definitely worth the stop.

the duckhouse resturant exceeded our expectations

Throughout the day, we met loads of cruise ship passengers on the gondola and around the village. Everyone was curious about our boat and fascinated by the idea of traveling Alaska “on our own.” Not everyone seemed to fully grasp it, but they were all friendly and enthusiastic.

it was not crowded on the day/time we visited, but look at the cue they built for the gondola

Rain returned just as we caught the bus back to the harbor, but we squeezed in one more treat: dinner at The Fisherman’s Daughter. It’s a walk-up spot with both indoor and outdoor seating. We split salmon tacos, “The Burger,” and a massive pile of tater tots. All delicious, and honestly better than expected.

A fun mix of small-town charm, cruise ship polish, and unexpected conversations. Not a bad lay day at all.

Flynn Cove to Hoonah

It’s been 15 years since our last visit to Hoonah, and we were eager to see what had changed. While there is a transient dock in the inner harbor, it lacks both power and easy water access, so Karen booked us a slip using Dockwa. Seamless process—paid online, knew our slip number before we arrived. Love it when things just work.

En route, we made a slight detour along Pleasant Island to scout for whales. Channel 71 was buzzing with whale-watching chatter, and we did spot a few feeding humpbacks—but nothing dramatic. Ironically, we later learned that a group was bubble-feeding right inside Hoonah harbor that same afternoon. The tour boats barely had to leave the dock!

bUSY wHALES NEAR pLEASANT isLAND

SEA LIONS JOCKEYING FOR A PLACE ON THE MARK

LOTS OF LOCAL, PURPOSE BUILT, SIGHT SEEING BOATS ARE VERY BUSY TRANSPORTING CRUISE SHIP PASSENGERS

THREE CRUISE SHIPS AT HOONAH

ICY STRAIT POINT IS A PURPOSE BUILT CRUISE SHIP DESTINATION

JUST A SMALL PORTION OF THE ATTRACTIONS AT ICY STRAIT POINT. LOST COUNT OF THE PEOPLE ON THE “BEACH”.

Once tied up and plugged in, we wandered into town. A few new sights caught our eye—the Icy Strait Brewery, an ATV rental shop—but our first real stop was the Hoonah Trading Company. It’s part grocery store, part surprisingly well-stocked hardware store, with a coffee shop tucked inside for good measure. We could’ve browsed for hours. Karen scored a new Hoonah ball cap to mark the occasion.

THE VIEW FROM ICY STRAIT POINT ON THE LEFT, PAST THE TOWN OF HOONAH, TO THE HARBOR ON THE RIGHT.

HOONAH HARBOR WITH ITS DOGLEG ENTRANCE

NEW WALKWAY TO PITT ISLAND BEING BUILT ATOP THE BREAKWATER

Dinner was a bit of an adventure: a 20-minute walk south to the Icy Strait Lodge. Karen found it online and had a good feeling. We skipped the main road in favor of Lumbago Drive, a quiet gravel lane that hugs the shoreline—much more scenic. The lodge was worth the walk. Her burger with bacon jam was a hit, and my chicken-fried steak with a baked potato didn’t disappoint. Bonus: a real salad bar. A rare find up here and a welcome one.

We wandered back to the boat with full bellies and had a calm, quiet night aboard. Hoonah’s grown, but it still feels like the friendly little town we remember.

Tenakee Springs to Flynn Cove

We know we’ve been going on about the weather—but when it dominates every decision, it earns the airtime. Today, finally, we woke to full sun. Could this be the long-awaited shift in the pattern? Fingers crossed.

Chef Rebecca certainly brightened our morning even more. She and her family hand-delivered six cinnamon rolls (the massive kind) and a rotisserie chicken to the top of the dock. Both were incredible—highly recommend reaching out to her at chef.rwilson@gmail.com if you’re headed to Tenakee. She’s expanding her offerings, which is great news for hungry cruisers.

With sunshine, light winds, and favorable currents, we pushed on past Whitestone Harbor to anchor at Flynn Cove in Icy Strait, just west of Hoonah. The cove is open to the northwest, but with calm conditions, it was a comfortable overnight stop for our 35-ton OceanFlyer.

CALM DAY

Chatham Strait brought our first real "traffic jam" of the trip: cruise ships, fishing boats, and fellow cruisers all enjoying the break in weather. A few humpbacks made appearances along the way, and with the clouds lifting, we finally had those full 360-degree Alaska views—snow-capped peaks in every direction. It’s moments like these that remind you just how vast this state is.

Near Hoonah, two mysterious AIS targets popped up as “T.S. Buoy.” Karen kept scanning for vessels, but what we found instead were clusters of floats—three per target—laid out like the ends of a giant shrimp pot string. Possibly some sort of submerged research gear? A third AIS target showed on Marine Traffic, but we never found it. Later, we saw similar buoy clusters without any AIS signals. Curious stuff—maybe someone in Hoonah will have the scoop.

t.s. bOUY

We passed the cruise docks at Icy Strait Point, where three mega-ships had disembarked 10,000 people—ten times Hoonah’s local population. That kind of visitor volume is hard to imagine, but we’ll see it firsthand tomorrow. Tonight, though, we have Flynn Cove all to ourselves.

Well… almost. As we turned into the cove, a fleet of high-speed whale-watching boats came zipping past from the cruise docks. One captain courteously adjusted course so we could make our turn into the anchorage.

ALL ALONE IN FLYNN COVE

THE SUN BEGINS TO SET UPON FLYNN COVE

By sunset, the wind had calmed and the magic began. A large mama grizzly and her cub emerged from the treeline and spent the evening grazing and romping just off our beam. As if that weren’t enough, a group of humpbacks started feeding nearby, working a dense herring ball that drifted close to the boat. A pair of bald eagles soared in for their share.

HUMPBACK FEEDING IN FLYNN COVE

FLYNN COVE SHOWING OFF A LITTLE WITH A LONG SUNSET

GOODNIGHT

Great weather. Bears. Whales. Eagles. And even a decent sunset.
Flynn Cove served up a true Alaska classic.

Tenakee Springs Lay Day

The forecast promised a dry day. Reality? Not so much. We woke to rain, low clouds, and visibility best described as “meh.” All our dock neighbors had already slipped their lines, leaving us alone in the drizzle. So we took the hint and made it a maintenance morning—caught up on blog posts, tackled a few boat projects, and drank more coffee than strictly necessary.

By early afternoon, the skies began to lighten. With a window of dry-ish weather, we set off for a stroll through town. As we reached the general store, the clouds finally relented and sunlight made a tentative appearance. We loaded up on a few treats just as the store closed at 2 p.m., then wandered through the rest of town.

Despite a few fresh coats of paint and a handful of new homes, Tenakee Springs feels largely unchanged from our 2010 visit. Sadly, the Party Time Bakery is no more—but the charm remains.

Something curious happened when the sun came out: so did the locals. It was like the whole town had been waiting for a break in the clouds to stretch their legs. Friendly faces greeted us along the road, and everyone seemed genuinely happy to be outside. We could relate.

Back aboard OceanFlyer, we finally got the view we’d missed on arrival—wide open skies and the dramatic ridgelines across the inlet. And just as we were settling in, Karen got a note from Chef Rebecca confirming she could fulfill our wish list: cinnamon buns and a rotisserie chicken, to be delivered dockside before tomorrow’s departure.

tENAKEE sPRINGS IS A SHORT WALK FROM THE HARBOR

tENAKEE sPRINGS hARBOR

WALK PAST THE SKIF STROAGE SHORE OUT TO THE POINT

Sunshine, good food on the way, and Tenakee’s small-town warmth—it turned out to be a fine day after all.

Takatz to Tenakee Springs

With following seas, 20-knot winds, and favorable currents, today was a good day to ride the flow north up Chatham Strait toward Tenakee Springs.

The first part of the trip was a bit lively. The seas kept nudging our stern, and the autopilot worked overtime trying to stay on track. Eventually, I switched to heading hold and adjusted our course about 10 degrees to take the seas on the quarter—small tweaks, big difference. Conditions smoothed out the farther north we got.

Why Tenakee? With rain in the forecast, we figured a walkable little town sounded better than a soggy wilderness anchorage. It’s been 15 years since our last visit, and while we expect much of it to be the same, we’re curious to see what’s changed.

We only saw three other boats during the five-hour run. One of them was Serengeti, a yacht formerly owned by Johnny Carson (kids, ask your parents). Otherwise, it was just us and the waves.

The harbor has been completely rebuilt since our last visit, though the layout remains familiar. Fortunately, the transient dock had just enough space for OceanFlyer and a 36-footer. No reservations here—it’s first-come, first-tie—and after a long run, we were happy to find a spot. I did eye a few open slips on the permanent docks that might’ve worked in a pinch, likely with a quick radio call to the harbor mistress.

We tied up on the outside of D dock and hailed the harbor on Channel 16, hoping to get the power pedestal unlocked. No response, so we waited for the afternoon rounds. Sure enough, the harbor mistress eventually appeared and got us plugged in.

Clouds and rain marked our arrival at Tenakee Springs

Karen had done some advance recon and discovered that Tenakee’s legendary Party Time Bakery is no more—but a private chef in town is now offering cinnamon buns. The catch? Her posted days don’t align with our visit. Never one to give up on a good pastry, Karen fired off an email. Fingers crossed for a sweet reply.

If tomorrow’s weather holds, we’ll get out and stretch our legs. After a day of rolling seas and closed-loop cabin time, we’re both more than ready to walk somewhere that doesn’t move.