Ketchikan, AK

Upon returning from the Misty Fjords boat tour I finally walked the few blocks to the New York Hotel. This is my favorite type of hotel. Old, historic, clean and rennovated but cosistent with it's age. The people operating the hotel are very nice and I thoroughly enjoyed my vist. Now, having seen the other possibilities in town, I would probably still stay at the New York Hotel on future trips. I found interesting hikes in and near town including Deer Mt (still snowcapped and the site of a former ski area). With a car I was able to access waterfalls, historic ruins, more totem parks (the totem parks are also accessible from the bus system) mountain lakes, trails, and temptingly close access to great ski touring and snowshoeing. My attempts at using the visitor info center were far less successful. They scored a dismal 6 misses for six attempts at getting info about hikes and side trips. It is still early in the season so hopefully they'll get better and in fairness to them my interest are outside of the common tourist stops. That brings me to the Cruise Ships. Ironically cruise ships disembark their passengers at the downtown dock though they seldom carry more than a handbag or umbrella. All the ferry passengers, most of whom have luggage or supplies have to do the 2 or 3 mile hike or use taxi service. This preference for the cruise ship industry is economically understandable but for the lone independent traveler their passengers often seem more like two-legged locusts descending on tiny precious crops. It took me three (or was it four) tries to see Saxman Totem village without shoulder to shoulder tourists ushered around in a multitude of separately guided groups with a cacophony of speakers. With a little diligence you can avoid much of this. In fairness to them, the excellent museums and displays are available because of the presence of these large numbers of cruise ship tourists. I've also had some incredibly complex and exhausting trip planning that would not have been necessary if I had opted to join one of these cruises instead. But if I had; I wouldn't have been able to tell you about my next visit: Prince Of "Whales" Island.
Bud