My birthday (69 in case anybody cares) was another gray, misty day. For people who live where we have sunshine 300+ days a year, a week+ without seeing it is depressing a bit. But still, Sitka was an interesting place.
The view from our Verandah in Sitka.
We took a bus to the Fortress of the Bear, an organization dedicated to providing a safe haven for orphaned bears. Alaska has a two strike law. Bears that are around humans are moved and if they return they are sent to bear heaven. This organization tries to take young bears separated from their mothers and give them a home. They have 4 brown bears and 3 black bears. The brown bears are several years old and full grown. The black bears are still young and act a bit like junior high kids act. They are housed in a closed facility that had two large leeching pits which provide a great environment. It has high walls and a built in draining system, perfect for giving the bears a home and for viewing the bears. It is interesting that they do not let the bears in the same enclosure. Apparently brown bears will hunt and eat black bears so that is not a good mix. We took (well at least Chuck) way too many pictures. Here are a few of the good ones.The black bear on the left wandered over, stood up, and posed for me.
Here are some more pictures.
I believe the black bears were competitive gymnasts given what they were doing
Taking a nap. Some male dominance games.
After the bear adventure, we wandered around town. There is an old Russian Orthodox congregation (St Michael’s Cathedral) that is active in Sitka. The church is very nice inside. It is not old because much of Sitka was destroyed by a fire in 1966 and was rebuilt. However, many of the artifacts, art and furniture were saved.
Saint Michaels
We also went in the Sitka Lutheran Church which was founded in 1840 by Finnish employees of the Russian American Company. It is diagonally across the intersection from St. Michael’s. One of the draws of that church is the Kessler organ manufactured in 1844. It is still in use in the worship at the church and much to our surprise they let us play it. It sounded wonderful. It is a small organ—one keyboard and no pedals but still in excellent working condition.
The show tonight was a broadway sing along.