Sights in Southeast Alaska
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Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve
In 1982 the state reserved 48,000 acres along the Chilkat, Klehini and Tsirku Rivers to protect the largest known gathering of bald eagles in the world. Each year from October to February, more than 4000 eagles congregate here to feed on spawning salmon. They come because an upwelling of warm water prevents the river from freezing, thus encouraging the late salmon run. It's a remarkable sight - hundreds of birds sitting in the bare trees lining the river, often six or more birds to a branch.
The eagles can be seen from the Haines Hwy, where turnouts allow motorists to park and view the birds. The best view is between Mile 18 and Mile 22, where you'll find telescopes, inte…
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Stan Price State Wildlife Sanctuary
Named for an Alaskan woodsman who lived on a float house here for almost 40 years. The sanctuary includes an area that has been closed to hunting since the mid-1930s, and due largely to the former presence of Price and his visitors, the bears here have become used to humans. The bears are most abundant in July and August, when the salmon are running.
Most visitors to Pack Creek are day-trippers who arrive and depart on floatplanes. Upon arrival, all visitors are met by a ranger who explains the rules. You must leave all food in a cache provided near the south sand spit. You may not leave the viewing sand spit to get closer to the bears, although you may use a small observ…
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Chichagof Island's Western Shoreline
Chichagof Island's Western Shoreline is one of Southeast Alaska's best blue-water destinations for experienced kayakers.
Unfortunately, the trip often requires other transportation, because few paddlers have the experience necessary to paddle the open ocean around Khaz Peninsula (which forms a barrier between Kruzof Island's north end and Slocum Arm, the south end of the West Chichagof-Yakobi Wilderness). Either rent a folding kayak and then book a floatplane or hire a water-taxi service to take you there.
The arm is the southern end of a series of straits, coves and protected waterways that shield paddlers from the ocean's swells and extend over 30 miles north to Lisiansk…
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Naha Bay
From Settler's Cove State Park, it's an 8-mile paddle to Naha Bay, the destination of an excellent three- or four-day adventure. At the head of the bay is a floating dock where you can leave your kayak and set off down the Naha River National Recreation Trail. The scenic 5.4-mile trail follows the river up to Jordan and Heckman Lakes, both of which have USFS cabins.
The fishing here is good and black bears are plentiful - in August you might see them catching salmon at a small waterfall 2 miles up the trail from Roosevelt Lagoon.
A narrow outlet connects Naha Bay with Roosevelt Lagoon. You don't have to enter the lagoon to access the trail. Kayakers wishing to paddle into …
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St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church
Built in 1894 against the backdrop of Mt Juneau, the onion-domed church is a photographer's delight. Inside are Russian icons, original vestments and religious relics, while adjacent to the church is a small gift shop filled with books, matreshkas (nestling dolls) and other handcrafted items from Russia.
This church, named for a saint known as the protector of mariners, probably hears more camera clicks than any other building in Juneau. The octagon-shaped structure was built in 1894 and wins the prize for being the oldest Russian Orthodox Church in the southeastern region. There are exhibits of Russian icons within, as well as original vestments and religious relics. Tou…
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Cavern Lake Cave
Cavern Lake Cave features an observation deck allowing visitors to peer into the cave's mouth at the gushing stream inside.
One of the most unusual aspects of POW's geology is the broad cave system found in the north end of the island. The karst formation is an area of eroded limestone concealing underground streams and caverns, and it includes more than 850 grottos and caves. The caves received national attention in the mid-1990s when paleontologists from the University of South Dakota discovered the remains of a man dating back 9500 years in one, and the almost perfect remains of a brown bear that dated 45,000 years in another. Both let scientists speculate how the last…
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Fort Seward
Fort Seward, reached by heading uphill (east) at the Front St-Haines Hwy junction, was Alaska's first permanent army post. Built in 1903 and decommissioned after WWII, the fort is now a national historical site with an increasing number of restaurants, lodges and art galleries utilizing the original buildings. A walking-tour map of the fort is available at the visitors center, or you can just read the historical panels that have been erected there.
Within the parade ground is Totem Village. Although not part of the original fort, it includes two tribal houses and totem poles and is the home of the Chilkat Storytellers Theater Show, an hour-long performance of Alaska Nativ…
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Marine Park
Between the cruise ships and Willoughby Ave, Marine Park is an open space where kids practice their skateboard tricks, state workers enjoy a snack lunch and tired tourists occasionally take a nap in the sun.
Free binoculars let you search Mt Juneau for mountain goats while on the dock is a sculpture of Patsy Ann, the late faithful Bull Terrier who became known as the 'Official Greeter of Juneau' for her tendency to rush down to the docks to meet arriving cruise ships.
A block inland from the waterfront is South Franklin St, a refurbished historical district where many buildings date from the early 1900s and have since been turned into bars, gift shops and restaurants.
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Waterfront Area
Between the cruise ships and Willoughby Ave, Marine Park is an open space where kids practice their skateboard tricks, state workers enjoy a sack lunch and tired tourists occasionally take a nap in the sun. Free binoculars let you search Mt Juneau for mountain goats while on the dock is a sculpture of Patsy Ann, the late faithful Fido who became known as the 'Official Greeter of Juneau' for her tendency to rush down to the docks to meet arriving cruise ships.
A block inland from the waterfront is S Franklin St, a refurbished historical district where many buildings date from the early 1900s and have since been turned into bars, gift shops and restaurants.
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Deer Mountain Tribal Hatchery & Eagle Center
A bridge across Ketchikan Creek links the Totem Heritage Center with the Deer Mountain Tribal Hatchery & Eagle Center. The hatchery raises 350,000 king salmon, coho salmon, steelhead and rainbow trout annually and releases them into the nearby stream. In July or later, you'll see not only the salmon fry but returning adult fish swimming upstream to spawn.
The center also maintains an eagle pavilion, home to a pair of eagles who were injured and can no longer fly. Thus the 25-minute tours are dubbed 'Live Eagles & Salmon', providing an interesting lesson in the salmon's life cycle and an opportunity to get close and personal to our national symbol.
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Katlian Bay
This 45-mile round-trip from Sitka Harbor to scenic Katlian Bay (on Kruzof Island's north end) and back is one of the area's most popular paddles. The route follows narrow straits and well-protected shorelines in marine traffic channels, making it an ideal trip for less experienced blue-water paddlers who will never be far from help.
A scenic sidetrip is to hike the sandy beach from Katlian Bay around Cape Georgiana to Sea Lion Cove on the Pacific Ocean. Catch the tides to paddle the Olga and Neva Straits on the way north and return along Sukot Inlet, spending a night at the USFS Brent's Beach Cabin. Plan on four to six days for the paddle.
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Dyea
In 1898 Skagway's rival city, Dyea, at the foot of the Chilkoot Trail, was the trailhead for the shortest route to Lake Bennett, where stampeders began their float to Dawson City. After the White Pass & Yukon Route was completed in 1900, Dyea quickly died. Today the town is little more than a few old crumbling cabins, the pilings of Dyea Wharf and Slide Cemetery, where 47 men and women were buried after perishing in an avalanche on the Chilkoot Trail in April 1898.
The ghost town is a 9-mile drive along winding Dyea Rd, whose numerous hairpin turns are not for timid RVers. But it's very scenic drive.
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Princess Maksoutoff's Grave
Across Marine St, at the top of Princess St, is Princess Maksoutoff's Grave, marking the spot where the wife of Alaska's last Russian governor is buried. But for a strategically placed chain-link fence, the grave would be in the Russian Cemetery. But a bright and shiny sign proclaims this tiny three-grave site as the Lutheran Cemetery.
Cynics might postulate that the princess probably lost her status as a bona fide Lutheran when she married the Russian Orthodox governor, but now that she's a bona fide tourist attraction, the Lutherans want her back.
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Sheldon Jackson Aquarium
Housed in the Sage Building is the Sheldon Jackson Aquarium, a classroom during the school year but Sitka's top attraction for children during the summer. The aquarium features an 800-gallon 'Wall of Water' filled with sea anemones, rockfish and starfish and three touch tanks where kids can feel the spiny skin of a huge starfish or the coarse shell of an abalone.
It is also home of the country's only on-site, college-run hatchery, an especially impressive sight when thousands of king, coho, pink and chum salmon boil the water during feeding.
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Alaska-Juneau Mine
What's in them thar hills? Many visitors passing through the Southeast are fascinated with gold-rush history. Two of the Juneau area's most successful historic mines were the Alaska-Juneau Mine, on the side of Mt Roberts, and the Treadwell Mine, across Gastineau Channel near Douglas. The Alaska-Juneau Mine closed in 1944 after producing more than around US$80 million in gold, then valued at around US$20 to around US$35 an ounce.
For more information about these mines and what you can see of them today, stop by the Juneau-Douglas City Museum.
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Creek Street
Departing from Stedman St is Creek Street, a boardwalk built over Ketchikan Creek on pilings - a photographer's delight. This was Ketchikan's famed red-light district until prostitution became illegal in 1954. During Creek St's heyday, it supported up to 30 brothels and became known as the only place in Alaska where 'the fishermen and the fish went upstream to spawn'.
The house with bright red trim is Dolly's House, the parlor of the city's most famous madam, Dolly Arthur. Now it's a museum dedicated to this notorious era.
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Treadwell Mine
Two of the Juneau area's most successful historic mines were the Alaska-Juneau Mine, on the side of Mt Roberts, and the Treadwell Mine, across Gastineau Channel near Douglas. The Treadwell Mine closed in 1922 after a 1917 cave-in caused the company's financial collapse. During its heyday at the turn of the 20th century, the Treadwell made Douglas the channel's major city, with a population of 15,000.
For more information about these mines and what you can see of them today, stop by the Juneau-Douglas City Museum.
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LeConte Glacier
The most spectacular paddle in the region is to LeConte Glacier, 25 miles east of Petersburg. It's North America's southernmost tidewater glacier. From town, it takes three to four days to reach the frozen monument, including crossing Frederick Sound north of Coney Island. The crossing should be done at slack tide, as winds and tides can cause choppy conditions.
If the tides are judged right, and the ice is not too thick, it's possible to paddle far enough into LeConte Bay to camp within view of the glacier.
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Wells Fargo Bank
The Wells Fargo Bank dates back to 1916 when a group of East Coast businessmen founded National Bank of Alaska and built the bank a year later. In 1981 the bank underwent an extensive historic renovation and today it is an interesting place to visit even if you're not short on cash yet. Two of the five brass teller gates are originals, there are spittoons in case you're chewing tobacco and on display everywhere are banking artifacts from a classic 'Cannonball' safe to the old safe deposit boxes.
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Thomas Bay
- Petersburg, USA
- Sights › Bay
Almost as impressive as LeConte Glacier is Thomas Bay, 20 miles from Petersburg and north of LeConte Bay on Frederick Sound's east side. The bay features a pair of glaciers, including Baird Glacier, where many paddlers spend a day hiking. The mountain scenery surrounding the bay is spectacular, and the area holds three USFS cabins: Swan Lake Cabin, Spurt Cove Cabin and Cascade Creek Cabin. All require reservations. Paddlers need to allow four to seven days for the round-trip out of Petersburg.
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Gold Rush Cemetery
Visitors who become infatuated with Smith and Reid can walk out to Gold Rush Cemetery, a 2½-mile stroll northeast on State St. Follow State until it curves into 23rd Ave and look for the sign to Soapy's grave across the railroad tracks. A wooden bridge along the tracks leads to the main part of the cemetery, the site of many stampeders' graves and the plots of Reid and Smith. From Reid's gravestone, it's a short hike uphill to lovely Reid Falls, which cascades 300ft down the mountainside.
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Betton Island
Due west of Settler's Cove State Park at the north end (Mile 18.2) of N Tongass Hwy is this island and several smaller islands nearby, making it an excellent day paddle if you're staying at the campground nearby. Although Clover Pass is a highly trafficked area, the backside of Betton Island offers a more wildernesslike setting. Pack a tent and sleeping bag and you can turn this into an overnight excursion by camping on the great beaches of Tatoosh Islands on the west side of Betton Island.
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Alaska State Capitol
Next to the City Museum is the Alaska State Capitol. Built in 1929-31 as the territorial Federal Building, the capitol looks like an overgrown high school. Stuffed inside are legislative chambers, the governor's office, and offices for the hundreds of staff members who arrive in Juneau for the winter legislative session. Free 30-minute tours are held every half-hour and start from the visitor desk in the lobby; a self-guided tour pamphlet is also available.
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Whale Park
If you don't have funds for a wildlife cruise, try Whale Park, 4 miles south of town, which has a boardwalk and spotting scopes overlooking the ocean for whale watching. Fall is the best time to sight cetaceans; as many as 80 whales - mostly humpbacks - have been known to gather in the waters off Sitka from mid-September to the end of the year. If you don't mind cold, rainy weather, the Sitka's is the first week of November.
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Prince of Wales Hatchery
The Prince of Wales Hatchery was established in 1897 and today is the second-oldest one in Alaska. The present facility was built in 1976 and raises coho, king and sockeye salmon as well as steelhead trout. On site is a visitors center, aquarium and gift shop where fresh coho is often for sale. You can explore the operations on a self-guided tour or join a free guided tour from 13:00 to 18:00 Monday to Saturday.
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