Ketchikan: Totem Bight + Creek Street w/ minor mobility issues?

[EuphrasiahMoon]

We'll be in Ketchikan on July 3. We've already booked the Totem Bight tour thru the ship. Pricier than going independent but there are reasons....

 

I have mobility issues (bad knee + back spasms). I can walk and climb stairs but not very fast and not for very long. I will have a foldable cane with me just in case. Being picked up and dropped off at or very close to the ship is essential. After our tour, we have about 1.5-2 hours to kill before we have to be back on the ship. (I really wish we were going to be in Ketchikan for longer. It seems like such a fascinating place.)

 

Is Creek Street walkable from the ship for someone that moves at a snails pace and takes frequent breaks? Is there a taxi or shuttle or rickshaw that I can take to the end of Creek Street so I don't spend all of my limited "mobility" time getting to and from there?

 

I'd really like to get there somehow. It looks charming and I love me some kitsch, too so it seems like I'd love it. Not to mention shopping is my second favorite sport after hockey. :-)

[rjeffler]

I think you would do better grabbing a cab to get to you Creek Street as it is 5-10 blocks depending on where your ship is docked. We were there with 3 other ships and were as far as you could get from Creek Street. Once you get there, it is very doable with a cane and walking slow.

[EuphrasiahMoon]

I think you would do better grabbing a cab to get to you Creek Street as it is 5-10 blocks depending on where your ship is docked. We were there with 3 other ships and were as far as you could get from Creek Street. Once you get there, it is very doable with a cane and walking slow.

 

Thank you! That was just what I was hoping to hear. Are there taxis readily available on both ends of that (near dock and near Creek Street) or would I need to call for one?

[fleckle]

There is a free shuttle bus that goes in a continuous loop all around the town and makes stops close to all the cruise ship berths. It comes around about every 20 minutes, and you can get on or off at any of the stops as you wish.

 

I would suggest riding it all the way around the complete circuit first for a free tour of Ketchikan to get an orientation, and then the second time around get off at Creek Street.

 

It also makes stops at the Totem Heritage Center and the museum and the Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, if you are interested in any of them.

[EuphrasiahMoon]

There is a free shuttle bus that goes in a continuous loop all around the town and makes stops close to all the cruise ship berths. It comes around about every 20 minutes, and you can get on or off at any of the stops as you wish.

 

I would suggest riding it all the way around the complete circuit first for a free tour of Ketchikan to get an orientation, and then the second time around get off at Creek Street.

 

It also makes stops at the Totem Heritage Center and the museum and the Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, if you are interested in any of them.

 

Awesome! Thank you! This sounds perfect and the price is right. Hopefully there will also be taxis available for the trip back because I KNOW I'll lose track of time when I'm shopping. ;-)

[marysb]

Awesome! Thank you! This sounds perfect and the price is right. Hopefully there will also be taxis available for the trip back because I KNOW I'll lose track of time when I'm shopping. ;-)

 

Oh, no worries about finding close shopping in Ketchikan. There is good souvenir shopping right across the street from the ship (any ship :D)

[Budget Queen]

We'll be in Ketchikan on July 3. We've already booked the Totem Bight tour thru the ship. Pricier than going independent but there are reasons....

 

I have mobility issues (bad knee + back spasms). I can walk and climb stairs but not very fast and not for very long. I will have a foldable cane with me just in case. Being picked up and dropped off at or very close to the ship is essential. After our tour, we have about 1.5-2 hours to kill before we have to be back on the ship. (I really wish we were going to be in Ketchikan for longer. It seems like such a fascinating place.)

 

Is Creek Street walkable from the ship for someone that moves at a snails pace and takes frequent breaks? Is there a taxi or shuttle or rickshaw that I can take to the end of Creek Street so I don't spend all of my limited "mobility" time getting to and from there?

 

I'd really like to get there somehow. It looks charming and I love me some kitsch, too so it seems like I'd love it. Not to mention shopping is my second favorite sport after hockey. :-)

 

 

As already mentioned, there will be taxis easily gotten, and also the loop downtown bus. My comment is going to factual on the tour you have booked. I would say, it is not appropriate for you. There is loop walk of Totem Bight, that if you can only move at a "snails" pace and can't walk far, is going to be too much for you. This will be a group tour, with the group moving along at a regular pace. Were you planning on just staying at the entrance? Although some difficulty with the "pusher" at this area- is a wheelchair an option for you?

[EuphrasiahMoon]

As already mentioned, there will be taxis easily gotten, and also the loop downtown bus. My comment is going to factual on the tour you have booked. I would say, it is not appropriate for you. There is loop walk of Totem Bight, that if you can only move at a "snails" pace and can't walk far, is going to be too much for you. This will be a group tour, with the group moving along at a regular pace. Were you planning on just staying at the entrance? Although some difficulty with the "pusher" at this area- is a wheelchair an option for you?

 

This is one of the tours I'm most looking forward to. I'm fascinated by Totem poles and I've only seen a few in person. I'm going to soldier on with some pain ointment and a megadose of Ibuprofen. I can walk. I've seen videos of the tour. I can walk. Stop. Walk. Stop. I can walk a couple of blocks at a time. Actually, standing is harder for me than walking. I'm bringing a cane, mostly to lean on when I'm standing. If there were wheelchairs available at the site, I'd consider renting one and push it myself so that I'd have a guaranteed seat wherever I am but I don't need a wheelchair full time. I'm also rather large and my husband is not and I could absolutely NOT ask him to push me.

 

The reason I'm concerned about Creek Street is that I know from past experience that I will have used most of my energy on the Totem Bight walk/excursion. I'll rally for it but I know I won't have a whole lot of steam left when it's over. The ride back on the bus might be enough to recharge, though. There is a store on Creek Street that I really want to check out. If worst comes to worst, I can order from them online but I'd really like to give it the old college try and get there in person.

 

I'm really appreciating everyone's input. Thanks all!

[EuphrasiahMoon]

Oh, no worries about finding close shopping in Ketchikan. There is good souvenir shopping right across the street from the ship (any ship :D)

 

:D No doubt! Always someone to separate you from your money, right?

 

I've heard that most of the local artisans are on Creek Street with the "tackier" stuff near the ship. Are there any really cool shops right off the ship?

 

There is a store on Creek Street that I really want to check out called Fish Creek. http://fishcreekalaska.com/ For all I know you can find these kinds of things everywhere and Ketchikan is our last port in Alaska so this might even be a mute point.

[Saving Up To Be Eccentric]

After seconding the people suggesting the free bus over trying to walk it yourself, I'll also suggest that you do your research on this store and figure out where it is on creek street. There are three entrances, I think, and there's no reason to walk the whole length and back trying to find it, when you could just get off the bus at the stop closest to the bridge near the store you most want to visit.

 

And I don't think that finding cool stuff is ever a moot point! Ketchikan's prices were reasonable, too, from what I remember.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Saving Up To Be Eccentric

[EuphrasiahMoon]

After seconding the people suggesting the free bus over trying to walk it yourself, I'll also suggest that you do your research on this store and figure out where it is on creek street. There are three entrances, I think, and there's no reason to walk the whole length and back trying to find it, when you could just get off the bus at the stop closest to the bridge near the store you most want to visit.

 

And I don't think that finding cool stuff is ever a moot point! Ketchikan's prices were reasonable, too, from what I remember.

 

Excellent suggestion! I just looked it up on Google Maps. It's about halfway between the middle and southernmost entrance, slightly closer the middle one. Now to find the bus route.

 

And I agree with you on finding cool stuff never being a moot point! I just have no idea how the goods in Ketchikan will compare to other ports. I guess I'll have to investigate! ;)

[Krazy Kruizers]

I have 2 bad knees and severe spinal stenosis. For the ship and land tours, I rent a walker/rollator which helps me get around much better than a cane.

I rent it through Care Vacations. It folds up for buses.

[EuphrasiahMoon]

I have 2 bad knees and severe spinal stenosis. For the ship and land tours, I rent a walker/rollator which helps me get around much better than a cane.

 

I rent it through Care Vacations. It folds up for buses.

 

Thank you for the tip. I just checked out their website. What a wonderful service! Definitely worth considering....

[Okie1946]

I have 2 bad knees and severe spinal stenosis. For the ship and land tours, I rent a walker/rollator which helps me get around much better than a cane.

I rent it through Care Vacations. It folds up for buses.

 

Can the scooters from Care Vacations be folded up and put into the cargo sections of an airplane?

 

Thank you.

[Putterdude]

DW has MS and now must use a wheelchair when cruising. I had no problem at all with taking transit out to Totem Bight and pushing her around the park. Similarly, we have had no issue walking/pushing around Ketchikan, Creek Street and Saxman Village.

[Budget Queen]

DW has MS and now must use a wheelchair when cruising. I had no problem at all with taking transit out to Totem Bight and pushing her around the park. Similarly, we have had no issue walking/pushing around Ketchikan, Creek Street and Saxman Village.

 

My "problems" in Ketchikan with a wheel chair have been at dock 4 severe uphill at low tide and going back up the hill at Saxman. :) Otherwise, I too, have used my pushing skills to keep up my function of my plated left side. :)