Day 20 - Aboard the good ship Taku

I have now been on this ferry for 18 hours and still have another 13 to go - not so bad actually! All told I have been on a ferry of one sort or another for 34 1/2 hours over the past few days and will have 47 1/2 in before all is done. Wow! "Arrrrrr.. Me thinks I'll have me sea legs Captain!" This ferry is actually part of the the National Highway System which includes the interstates - seems weird! Anyways, I am making friends with a bunch of other folks with very smilier plans as mine. We are all studying our maps and giving each other tips on where to go and where not to bother and to even avoid. Just tonight after dinner Mary, Jody, Carl, Rick, Brian, Tara and I spent 2 or 3 hours together studying maps. I now have a sheet full of great ideas of where to go once I get on land again. Finally I must say its been great sharing a few days with Rick (the guy from Fairbanks). It was nice to have someone to have a beer with, exchange exaggerated stories with and to just experience this craziness with. Tomorrow i will be on my own again but its been a fun 4 or 5 days! Thanks Rick! I hope to run into you again soon. It's almost midnight and as i type the ship is going through a tight channel dodging buoys and lining up markers. Cool stuff! Its amazing to watch them pilot through. Bottom line - I am safe, sound and making new acquaintances as I slowly ferry my way up through Alaska. I will soon be riding again towards Whitehorse in the Yukon. That will be my turning point as from there I start heading south toward Montana, one of the 4 states I have left to see. Until then, I will be the guy with the Harley Davidson on the USS Taku plying the waters of the Alaska Marine Highway System. Oh and the apple? It has crossed two international borders illegally! Unfortunately it will not make it to a third border. :(