September 17, 2024.
1.8 mi. | 175′ ele. gain | 1:30 hr.
Upon arriving in Sitka after a long ferry ride from Juneau, I just needed to be outside and stretch my legs. We immediately drove to the Old Sitka State Historic Park to basecamp for a walk. Since most tourists here arrive by ferry, there aren’t always great places to park the van. So, I’ve learned to use Google Satellite imagery to help me find parking, places to turn around and spots to spend the night!
It was a glorious, sunny day. We began walking up the road toward the Forest and Muskeg Trail. We crossed the Starrigavan Creek bridge and looked at the salmon running underneath. Next, we reached the Estuary Life trailhead and continued on a footpath that led across some boardwalks to excellent salmon viewing areas. They were everywhere, wriggling and dying. It was such a weird experience, despite knowing that this is a thing that salmon do.
We ran into a local author also enjoying the day so we took some time to chat and learn his story. This would be a very leisurely stroll. Eventually, we reached the Forest and Muskeg Trail. This was the main feature of the day. As I’d learned, a muskeg is a peat-forming bog. Muskeg habitat contains a mixture of living, dead and decaying matter all co-existing in a watery soup. Permafrost below prevents this water from draining, so it remains at the surface. These particular conditions mean that only certain plants can grow here. Sphagnum moss, a key component of the muskeg, can hold 15-30 times its weight in water. This forms a spongy mass that is difficult or impossible to walk on, so much of the trail in this area follows a boardwalk.
I loved reading all the interpretive signs and trying to find the plants mentioned on the boards. I searched and searched for tiny sundew plants in the muck. While looking closely at the plant life, I discovered a new-to-me plant called the swamp gentian. I found little mushrooms and stunted pine trees in a wild array of shapes. In the forest section of the trail, I craned my neck back to look up at enormous trees covered in moss, lichen and climbing bunchberry plants.
Alaska is so full of life. This short walk made me feel revitalized after spending the entire day in a half-lucid state of disarray on the ferry. I was ready to make the most out of our visit to Sitka.
Postscript: We’d soon come to learn that Sitka is inundated with more ferry traffic than this cute little town can handle and I really disliked our time there. I’m not exaggerating: check out “Cruise Boom” on PBS. To top it all off, I got COVID at the end of our visit and spent two days on another ferry ride absolutely wrecked. On the plus side, we were able to book a cabin on the ferry last minute so I had a bed and private bathroom to support my isolation and convalescence.