Chapter 18
Walking Through History

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We quickly walked far enough west on Lincoln Street that we hit a dead end at Sitka Harbor. This is not a large downtown, but it sure had pretty views.

Looking across the harbor, we could see Sitka’s main geographical landmark in the distance: the dormant volcano Mount Edgecomb. Not a bad sight to have looming over your town’s horizon, if I do say so myself.

We were right next to Totem Square, and I think this may have been the first genuine totem pole we’d gotten to see in Alaska so far.

Next, we walked over to the base of Castle Hill—where Baranof Castle used to stand.

Almost hidden between two buildings, these stairs head up to a very important site in Sitka’s history (and Alaska’s history).

In addition to offering truly breathtaking views of Sitka and the harbor, this was the very spot where the Alaska Purchase was signed—making this enormous piece of land a part of American territory.

Long before the purchase, however, this was also where the Russians first set up their camp when they were staking a claim on Sitka. Since Castle Hill has excellent 360-degree views of the entirety of Sitka, the Russians were able to sit up here and keep an eye on the Tlingit warriors.

Tracy was reading one of the plaques, so she didn’t want to pose for this picture.

I eventually convinced her.

Like so many famous places across the U.S., the history is so sad. The way the Russians took control of Sitka from the Tlingits was pretty barbaric (much like the way the Europeans took over the rest of the country from various other tribes of Native Americans).

While we were up on the hill, the sun started peeking through the clouds once again.

The reason why this spot is known as Castle Hill today is that the Russians (and later the Americans) built several castle-like structures on this plot of land through the years. The most notable of these buildings was Baranof Castle—which stood from 1837-1898 before being destroyed by a fire. All the buildings that have occupied this spot suffered similar fates, via flames or other natural hazards, and this plaque shows their history.

Since we hadn’t gotten any real coffee this morning, our next goal after descending from the top of the hill was to find somewhere to grab a latte and a snack. The Homeport Eatery was right on Lincoln Street, and it was beckoning us with its coffee bar.

We took a seat and tried to figure out our plan for the rest of the morning. Since we had a few attractions in mind, we knew our next step was going to be walking across town. Luckily, in a small town like Sitka, the prospect of doing that isn’t exactly too daunting.

We started on our way, quickly passing Centennial Hall and continuing to walk. Along the way, we passed by this architectural remnant from when the Russians lived here.

It’s funny how that historical landmark is just in between two regular houses.

We passed another totem pole.

I thought this tree was really pretty.

Technically a rainforest, Sitka was just so green. It was a really pretty walk.

We were jealous that there are just regular homes located along this road. I’d love to live here for a short spell—just until I got tired of not having any amenities close by.

We decided this would be our house when we lived here.

The next portion of our walk took us down along the coast. We remarked how it reminded us of La Push Beach in Twilight (because that’s where our brains took us…).