Tripping on the Alaska Marine Ferry to the Aleutian Islands

Day One: Leaving Homer

We would encounter. dozens of volcanoes, some active, on our. trip to the Aleutian Islands.

It’s nine o’clock at night in Homer, Alaska on the eve of the summer solstice. The sun still shines brightly above snow-capped peaks and illuminates the blue ice of a glacier as it flows down toward the sea.

Most fishing boats have returned to harbor, discharging people happy with the halibut and salmon they just fished out of Kachemak Bay, part of the North Pacific Ocean. A lone kayaker, his naked torso shimmering in the late day sun, glides by our ferry as the crew prepares to cast off.

My husband, his sister, a friend and I are exploring the three decks of the Rusty Tusty, as the Tustumena ferry is affectionately know. We are on board for one of its twice monthly sails from May to September to Kodiak and on isolated communities along the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands.

On board the Tustamena, we’re ready for anything, though we’ve seen the weather forecast and it looks like smooth sailing ahead.

We are prepared for the rough seas that are often encountered after passing Kodiak in the formidable Shelikof Strait, where pounding…