Ketchikan Alaska - September 7, 2001

Ketchikan, otherwise known as the Fist City, has a population of almost 14,000 and is on the southwest side of Revillagigedo Island, only 90 miles north of Prince Rubert. It is the first stop the ferry makes in Alaska so tourists pile off the boat for their first look at the north country, and rarely does Ketchikan disappoint them. The tow grew around salmon canneries and sawmills. The first cannery was built in 1883, and at one time Ketchikan was proclaimed the "Salmon Capital of the World", a title that reappeared in 1996 with a new welcome arch across Mission Street. A sawmill was built in the center of Ketchikan in 1903, and in 1954 the huge Ketchikan Pulp Mill was constructed at Ward Cove. However, in the 1970's over-fishing nearly collapsed the salmon fisheries while strikes began to mar the logging industry.
If you stay in Ketchikan longer than an hour, chances are good that it will rain at least once, if not several times. The average annual rainfall is 162 inches, but has been known to be more than 200 inches. Despite all the rain, the only people with umbrellas are tourists. First City residents never seem to use the, nor do they let the rain interfere with their daily activities, even outdoor ones, whether it be fishing, hiking, or having a softball game. If they stopped everything every time it rained, Ketchikan would cease to exist.