Ketchikan, Alaska
The weather map on the bridge said it all. The high, which has given us four days of gorgeous weather is splitting up, one half heading south to California, the other half slipping across the mountains into the Yukon. From far out on the Pacific, a low is moving into southeastern Alaska. As we came on deck this morning, we also saw it in reality: to the northeast, the last gaps in the clouds were retreating, while the western sky was a dark, leaden gray. Before breakfast was over, a gentle rain was engulfing the Sea Lion as it left British Columbia, and sailed across the international border into Alaskan waters. And so our first rainy morning became a rainy day. Although a few of us made some forays onto the deck, most were perfectly happy to spend the morning in the lounge.
Upon arrival at Ketchikan, the immigration and customs people came on board, and checked us all back into the United States, and the afternoon program promptly got under way. Ketchikan is a relatively small town, and with two large cruise ships tied up on dockside, it was crawling with tourists. Fortunately, we had a very exciting and rewarding pre-arranged tour program waiting for us, and by the time we had completed the tour, the cruise ships had left, making an hour's shopping a surprisingly pleasant experience. The tour consisted of a bus trip to the Tlingit village of Saxman and a visit to the Totem Heritage Center in Ketchikan itself. The village, we learned from the cheerful bus driver, was named after a missionary who convinced the Tlingit to settle on the current village site because of its proximity to Ketchikan, but was lost at sea while serving his community. The village is a center of native art and craft production. The village Totem Park has some very nice poles, and a beautifully painted community house. Our guide/driver talked about the history of totem poles, their meaning, age, manufacture, etc, etc, and regaled the stories associated with some of the poles. The essence of being there was not the ethnological content of the guide's introduction; it was to look at these amazing cultural expressions, and absorb the spirits of the works. Our visit to the Saxman carving shed, where three master carvers were working on their current projects was most illuminating. It was especially interesting to see the logs in various stages of refinement, and all the tools from chain saws to fine scalpels, and learn at which stage each is used.
Visiting the Totem Heritage Center was an especially rewarding experience. Jim Marmon, a member of the museum's staff gave us an exceptionally fine tour of the Center. He first introduced us to the five poles standing in the central pit of the main building, pointing out the essential differences between mortuary, memorial, heraldic, story, ridicule and potlatch poles, and explained the meaning of the different figures and their places on the poles. After a short period of free time for us to look at some of the other displays, Jim took us into the basement of the Center, and showed us with great enthusiasm a number of poles that are stored there, and then took us through the conservation unit where we had a detailed look at a work in progress. This was a large bear figure which was taken off the top of an old pole, and needed a great deal of work, first to stabilize it, and then to make it into a viewable museum piece. This involved the removal of vegetation that had grown on and into the piece, and the re-attachment of broken legs and other pieces to the main body with hand made dowels.
Walking back to the Sea Lion, I felt I was a little closer to understanding the art of the Tlingit and Haida people. To be able to see the art, know something about its creation and manufacture, and to have some knowledge of its social history, has made me a richer person. I am sure most of us share that feeling with me.
The weather map on the bridge said it all. The high, which has given us four days of gorgeous weather is splitting up, one half heading south to California, the other half slipping across the mountains into the Yukon. From far out on the Pacific, a low is moving into southeastern Alaska. As we came on deck this morning, we also saw it in reality: to the northeast, the last gaps in the clouds were retreating, while the western sky was a dark, leaden gray. Before breakfast was over, a gentle rain was engulfing the Sea Lion as it left British Columbia, and sailed across the international border into Alaskan waters. And so our first rainy morning became a rainy day. Although a few of us made some forays onto the deck, most were perfectly happy to spend the morning in the lounge.
Upon arrival at Ketchikan, the immigration and customs people came on board, and checked us all back into the United States, and the afternoon program promptly got under way. Ketchikan is a relatively small town, and with two large cruise ships tied up on dockside, it was crawling with tourists. Fortunately, we had a very exciting and rewarding pre-arranged tour program waiting for us, and by the time we had completed the tour, the cruise ships had left, making an hour's shopping a surprisingly pleasant experience. The tour consisted of a bus trip to the Tlingit village of Saxman and a visit to the Totem Heritage Center in Ketchikan itself. The village, we learned from the cheerful bus driver, was named after a missionary who convinced the Tlingit to settle on the current village site because of its proximity to Ketchikan, but was lost at sea while serving his community. The village is a center of native art and craft production. The village Totem Park has some very nice poles, and a beautifully painted community house. Our guide/driver talked about the history of totem poles, their meaning, age, manufacture, etc, etc, and regaled the stories associated with some of the poles. The essence of being there was not the ethnological content of the guide's introduction; it was to look at these amazing cultural expressions, and absorb the spirits of the works. Our visit to the Saxman carving shed, where three master carvers were working on their current projects was most illuminating. It was especially interesting to see the logs in various stages of refinement, and all the tools from chain saws to fine scalpels, and learn at which stage each is used.
Visiting the Totem Heritage Center was an especially rewarding experience. Jim Marmon, a member of the museum's staff gave us an exceptionally fine tour of the Center. He first introduced us to the five poles standing in the central pit of the main building, pointing out the essential differences between mortuary, memorial, heraldic, story, ridicule and potlatch poles, and explained the meaning of the different figures and their places on the poles. After a short period of free time for us to look at some of the other displays, Jim took us into the basement of the Center, and showed us with great enthusiasm a number of poles that are stored there, and then took us through the conservation unit where we had a detailed look at a work in progress. This was a large bear figure which was taken off the top of an old pole, and needed a great deal of work, first to stabilize it, and then to make it into a viewable museum piece. This involved the removal of vegetation that had grown on and into the piece, and the re-attachment of broken legs and other pieces to the main body with hand made dowels.
Walking back to the Sea Lion, I felt I was a little closer to understanding the art of the Tlingit and Haida people. To be able to see the art, know something about its creation and manufacture, and to have some knowledge of its social history, has made me a richer person. I am sure most of us share that feeling with me.
