Thorne Bay and Kasaan - August 10

Thorne Bay and Kasaan Photo Gallery

Day 9 of the Cruise
We are making two stops today. The first is Thorne Bay, a former logging community. It is a tidy little community where the Captain and crew will re-provision the Alaskan Dream. At its peak in the 1980s and 90s, it had a population of over 1500 and was the largest logging camp in the world. Today its population of 405, more or less, are seasonal residents and the major employers are the National Forest Service and public education.

The main stop for the day is the Haida village of Kasaan. The village has 49 residents, a small school, and an Indian clinic run by a nurse. The nearest medical facility is Ketchikan about 30 miles to the southeast, and mail is delivered from Ketchikan by a contract carrier once a week. Kasaan is home to the Haida people who are culturally related to the Tlingit natives. The principal focus of the population of Kasaan is the preservation of Haida culture and is manifested in the Totem Park and Son-I-Hat Whale House renovation.







Michael took a hike through Totem Park and visited the Whale House. Totems are dispersed throughout the heavily wooded park and the Whale House is nestled in the woods overlooking the bay.

Another of the community's activities is carving traditional canoes from the trunks of the indigenous Western Red Cedar trees. While Michael was soaking up the local history Jan visited the wood shop and spoke to the father / son team of craftsmen who were working on a new canoe.

Like most of southeast Alaska Thorne Bay is only reachable by boat or air and while we relaxed on the upper observation deck, two air taxis came and went.

Stormy Hamar and his son create the canoes using only traditional hand tools. They also teach local children how to use the tools as part of the children's cultural education.

Stormy's wife, Bonnie, came by the workshop and introduced herself. When she learned that Jan was on her own she offered to take Jan for a tour around town including a most welcome cool beverage at Bonnie's home. Bonnie, mayor of Kasaan, showed Jan some of Stormy's traditional paintings and other work.

We met up late in the afternoon and Bonnie gave us a ride back to the dock. We repaired to the forward lounge to compare notes.

Our next destination is Misty Fjords National Monument.