The porcupine's ate your food!

Alaska. The last frontier. Who doesn't, on some level, wish to explore the state that has 640 square miles of land for every mile of paved road?


Fortunately, I was able to fulfill this desire recently. In fact, I came to know Alaska on a very personal level very quickly.


As my plane headed out of Seattle in the evening, I anxiously awaited the moment the tires would touch the tarmac. That was when I knew my adventure would begin. To kill the time until that moment, I began talking to my seat mate. He was headed to the same area I was, and we began talking about our plans for the summer. It came up that we were both going to be heading out of Juneau in the morning, and that I had no place to stay. Through some slight miscommunication, I had embarked on my journey without having anywhere to stay as I waited for my ferry in the morning. I figured it would be ok; people sleep in airports all the time right?


Wrong. Our plane landed in Juneau and we got off to a party waiting for us. No, they weren't our greeters. No, they weren't our friends. It was a party of workers. Apparently the Juneau airport closes at night, (who knew this actually happened?) so finding a corner somewhere where I could crash was out of the question.


Well, plan A was out. On to plan B. Finding a hotel. Not realizing that Alaska is number 3 on the list of states with the highest cost of living, I walked across the street to the closest hotel, asking for a room. They told me sure (Great! Why wasn't this plan A?) and that it would be around $200. WHAT. For one night? And at 11o'clock at night? Don't they discount these babies if they aren't all filled up? 


Not knowing what else to do, I gave in to the bureaucratic hotel system and handed over my card. Which they promptly handed back, saying it had been "declined." (Side note: That word is the worst word in the world. Not only does it bring about an overwhelming feeling of embarrassment, it brings about a great deal of panic and stress.)


The lady at the desk looked at me with pity in her eyes, asking "Is there anyone you can call...?"


Hm. Let me think about this. It's 11o'clock in Alaska. Anyone I know is at least two hours ahead of me. Meaning it's one in the morning for them. And I'm sure they'd be more than willing to help out, but, I'm stubborn and independent. So... "No. There isn't. Do you know where the ferry station is?"


The lady at the desk handed me a map, telling me that it was just up the road about five miles, and that it would be on my left. She drew on the map, starring about where she thought it would be. Thanking her, I left the comfort of the hotel and walked out into the drizzling rain of Juneau. (Is it ever not raining in Juneau?)


Armed with my map, backpack, carry-on, and checked baggage, (all weighing over 100 pounds) I embarked on the real part of my journey. I began walking up the highway, which, let's be honest, was really just a skinny road through the middle of the forest. Being in fairly good shape, walking the five miles in the rain while pulling my luggage wasn't entirely unbearable. It was also made more bearable by knowing that my other option was to sleep in the forest, where an attack of a bear was surely imminent.


Finally, I made it to the ferry station. I sighed a sigh of relief, and... Had no idea what to do. It was now around two in the morning, 42 degrees, and still drizzling. So I did what anyone would do. I looked around for a place to sleep for the night. And lo and behold, what should I find but a covered bus bench? Naturally, I curled up on that bench and settled in for the night.


Unfortunately, my rest was short-lived. First of all, I'd been quite warm as I'd walked, but the longer I sat, the colder I got. I opened up my suitcase and began putting on layer after layer, trying to stay warm. While the cold almost put me over the edge, the final straw were the porcupines.


I'd had some food for my travels, and some porcupines decided that they would now stake claim to it. After shooing them away and putting my food in a more secure place, I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep there any longer. By this point I still had a good four hours to go before the ferry would be leaving, and had absolutely nothing to do. It was too cold to just sit on the bench. Nowhere was open. There wasn't anything I could do, other than go exploring.


I walked down to the docks and looked at all the boats there. It was about this time that I realized that I was standing next to a building. A building with a bathroom. A bathroom that was more than likely heated. I rushed to the door, only to see a sign saying that the bathrooms would be locked at 9 pm every night. Ignoring the sign, I pulled on the door, and by some miracle, it had been prevented from latching! I was in! Finally, somewhere to rest.


But wait. A bathroom? Did I really want to sleep in a bathroom? Ok, who am I kidding. I didn't even think twice about this. I was just so grateful to be out of the rain and cold that I didn't even care where I was. I pulled my luggage into one of the shower stalls, curled up on top of it, and settled in for what was left of my night.


A little before 7 the next morning, one of the boat occupiers came in for her morning shower. After she got out, I called over to her, "Hey, is this where the ferry comes?"


"No... It's actually a couple more miles up the road."


What. You've gotta be kidding me! My ferry was scheduled to leave at 8, and it was now a little after 7. I grabbed all my luggage and wheeled it out, beginning to practically sprint up the road. Not knowing just how far I had to go, or how long it would take me, I was stressing. I just kept praying that someone would have pity on me and pick me up.


Finally, after panicking for 10ish minutes, someone pulled over and offered me a ride. I jumped at the chance. I climbed into their truck, and they informed me that the ferry had a new rule that everyone had to be loaded a half-hour before they took off. If these kind people wouldn't have picked me up, I surely would have been stuck spending yet another night in that blasted bathroom.