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intermittent rain , absorbing scenery so compelling that she never complained . North of Haines , a mama grizzly stood up beside the road daring anyone to get near her cub , a veritable totem of the wild framed in our rearview mirrors . Haines , a picturesque village nestled in the foothills of the Chilkat Range of mountains overlooking the northern portion of the Lynn Canal , was our embarkation point on the good ship Columbia . We tied our bikes down on the vehicle deck , then settled in for a three-day , 1,500-mile voyage on this portion of the Alaska Inland Marine Highway to Bellingham , Washington . Four hundred feet long , seven decks high , with bar , movie theater , multiple dining facilities , observation areas fore and aft and staterooms , this mini cruise ship showed us spectacles like humpback whales , orcas , quaint villages , lighthouses and weird travelers , many of whom camped outside on