A small crowd gathered on the deck of the Reluctant Fisherman, one of Cordova’s few restaurants and hotels. People cheered as Cordova’s only annual fireworks show exploded above the harbor. It was the grand finale of the 60th Iceworm Festival, a week-long celebration meant to cure the mid-winter blues.
Festival organizer Kelsey Hayden said the celebration’s been a good mood booster after a particularly challenging winter. The Alaska Marine Highway ended sailings to the small Prince William Sound community in September, following state budget cuts.
Related: From Ketchikan to Unalaska, a day of protests, anxiety and anger over a dysfunctional ferry system
The cuts mean gaps in ferry service for most coastal Alaska communities this winter, and little money to fix the state’s ailing fleet. The last mainline ferry broke down last week, leaving travelers stranded. For many communities, including Cordova, the ferry is their only link to the state’s road system beyond flights.
“A lot of Cordovans just…they have that shoulder sag and that deep sigh of just, man, we can’t, we can’t get out,” Hayden said.
Without ferry service, this year’s festival was much quieter than normal. Hayden said for some events, attendance was down by half. Many visitors from Valdez and Anchorage opted to stay home, and she said, that hurts Cordova’s economy.
“There’s not usually anything going on this time of year, so anytime you have high school sports going on or any draw into town, it’s a boost for our small businesses,” Hayden said.
Alaska Airlines has two flights a day to Cordova, but bad weather and broken equipment closed the airport for two days.
The privately-owned barge service Alaska Marine Lines brings groceries and supplies once a week. They’ve done what they can to help by offering a half-price discount for people who need to ship their cars to Whittier. But the price is still four times higher than the ferry, and passengers can’t ride along. Most people are opting to fly and rent a car instead. That’s expensive too, according to local bush pilot Jared Kennedy.
“I went to Anchorage the other day for a flight physical, and it’s a $1200 trip for me, by the time I pay for the airline tickets and a hotel and a car,” Kennedy said. “It’s pretty difficult to live here sometimes.”
The lack of ferry service is affecting almost everyone, from school sports teams to pregnant women to local businesses. Greg Meyer co-owns a restaurant and inn called the Reluctant Fisherman with his wife. On a Monday morning, the lobby is empty, and the restaurant is closed. Normally, it would be open for breakfast and lunch, but Meyer had to cut back on hours and employees.
He and other business owners used the ferry to cut costs and haul their own freight from Anchorage. Now, they’re looking at barging up supplies from Seattle because it’s cheaper. That takes money out of Alaska, Meyer said.
“I don’t think people realize the economic impact and just the time that you put into fighting these battles,” he said. “And it takes away from running your business and being with your family. It’s not fair.”
Meyer and other Cordovans are frustrated, but they haven’t given up. There’s been no mass exodus. A few people have left but most point to the community’s resilience. The fishing town survived the Exxon Valdez oil spill. They’ve hosted fundraisers for community members who are sick and sports teams who need to travel.
“We’ll get by. We’ll survive, we’ll come up with ways to do that,” Meyer said. “Some people will leave, but most will stay, and things will get better. They might get worse first, but eventually they’ll get better.”
A spokesperson for Governor Dunleavy’s administration says the cuts are a result of a state budget deficit that exceeds a billion dollars. The administration is working with an Alaska Marine Highway working group “to make recommendations on how to make the system more affordable while still providing service to Cordova and other coastal communities.”
The final summer ferry schedule will be out later this month. If a proposed schedule goes into effect, regular ferry service won’t resume until May 20, after the town’s tourism and fishing seasons begin.
Erin McKinstry is Alaska Public Media's 2018 summer intern. She has an M.A. from the University of Missouri's School of Journalism and a B.A. from Knox College. She's reported stories for The Trace, The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, Harvest Public Media, the IRE Radio Podcast, KBIA and The Columbia Missourian.
