Tuesday morning and still waiting for the “overnighted” package is a good reminder we’re in a remote part of the country where Amazon Prime trucks are not speeding around every corner. We’re making the best of things as we become Wrangellites. The Wolf Shack has great burgers, Alaska ferry arrivals mean the two markets are restocked with fresh produce, and we’ve grabbed opportunities to explore: bike riding, hiking, and a tour up the Stikine River were highlights.

The Stikine River, whose headwaters are in Canada, is the fastest flowing navigable river in North America. Its delta, which empties into the waters near Wrangell, creates dunes of glacial silt that shift daily. Navigating this is a continually unfolding puzzle. Many parts of this delta area are so shallow that our jet boat at times showed depths of just 3 feet!

With numerous tributaries flowing into the Stikine, its banks are rich with wildlife and the water rich with salmon. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game monitor Chinook (king), Sockeye (red) and Coho (silver) so limits can be placed on fishing them if/when needed, and we saw this research being conducted as we made our way up the river to Shakes Glacier.