Getting ''Juneau'' the Towns Along Alaska's inside Passage

There was certainly more than enough beauty to enjoy from the ferry while traveling through Alaska's Inside Passage. But I also have this travel ''bucket list'' item to check off ... a photo in front of every state capitol building. As we were planning our Alaska trip, I soon realized that stopping off in Juneau would involve some special planning. Juneau is the only US state capital on mainland North America in which there are no roads connecting the city to the rest of  the state. 

By sea or by air are the only way to reach this seaside capital.

Alaskan Marine Highway System ferries serve Juneau as well as many of the other small villages that line Alaska's southeast panhandle region. And fortunately for me, Doug graciously added a three day side trip to Juneau to our Inside Passage itinerary.

Alaska's capitol building photo accomplished!

(Honolulu, Hawaii poises a similar dilemma ... I better start working on that one next!)

We soon realized that hopping off along the way brought us up close to icy-blue glaciers, fresh seafood, and scenic hiking that this part of Alaska is known for. It was indeed a fun way for us to get ''Juneau'' a few more of the picturesque towns along Alaska's Inside Passage. (Sorry for the bad play on words!)

Bellingham, Washington

Located 90 minutes north of Seattle, Bellingham is the southern connection point for the Alaska Marine Highway system. We got off the Interstate and enjoyed the scenery along Chuckanut Drive that hugs the coast leading into Bellingham. A two night stay at Larrabee State Park gave us time to decompress after our six week, 5000 mile trip from the tip of Florida to the tip of Washington and to finalize some Alaskan travel plans.

Just outside the park, trails brought us through the rainforest and over to the coast to enjoy a sunset view.

Bellingham has a cute downtown area that had what we needed to prepare for our trip north ... laundry, groceries, and a new pair of light hiking shoes for Doug ... yes, he wore the other pair out. And how did I accomplish this shopping ''miracle''?? By bribing him with one of the local IPAs, of course!

Ketchikan, Alaska

After 37 hours of sailing through Canadian waters, we were quite happy to hear that we would be making a four hour stop at Ketchikan, Alaska. Even though it was an 0700 arrival, we were excited to disembark and explore our first Inside Passage town. It was a two mile walk from the ferry dock to the main part of town, but once there we found town filled with  ...

... decorative gardens and totem poles,  

... eagle sculptures,

... as well as the real deal.

 

We walked through the fishing village

... and alongside the streams where the salmon run every summer,

... and past the markets who are ready to sell the fresh catch. 

I was strongly encouraged by this black bear to check out the souvenir stores,

... in hopes that I can find an ''Alaska'' hat to replace Doug's rapidly deteriorating ''King's Canyon'' cap. Not as easy of a feat as I had hoped ...

Juneau, Alaska

Early the next morning we got off the ferry in Juneau. I would like to say that we had to get up at ''O'dark thirty'' but the sun had already been up for two hours when we got off at 5:30 am. We drove to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center and managed to get a few more hours of shut-eye before we set out to see our first real-live ...

 Glacier!

Mendenhall Glacier is a must-see for any visitor to Juneau. Because it is located 13 miles from the cruise ship docks in downtown Juneau, hundreds of buses bring tourists out here every day. And it is something important to see because, sadly, it is getting smaller with each passing year. The current visitor center is  located where the edge of the glacier was in 1935. Now, the edge is more than two miles away.

The one mile long East Glacier Trail led us to closer views of Mendenhall Lake and Nugget Falls, as well as glimpses of the

... fragments of the blue icebergs that had recently calved off the glacier.

This area was so magnificent that we decided to stay nearby for the next three days at the Mendenhall Campground which is operated by the National Park Service. There we were close to a couple of great hikes that started out at the West Glacier trailhead.

During one of our treks, we struck up a conversation with a local hiker whose comment piqued our interest. He said that while the glacier continues to shrink, it is still possible to hike to a point where we could touch it. Touch a glacier??? Count us in!!!

Thank God for the long days, because we would need all the daylight that we could get. As we hiked, we came upon markers that indicated where the edge of the glacier reached that year. As we passed the 1985 marker, I was beginning to wish we had come here on our honeymoon, since we still had a ways to go before the edge of the glacier would be within reach. 

As we got closer, there were a few steep rock fields to climb and chilly streams to cross, 

... but alas! As determined as we were, it remained out of reach. But our hike will be one of those that lives on in our memories.

After venturing downtown to check out the Capitol, we strolled around the busy tourist area. The bright red building with the long line of people spiked our interest. After googling it, we discovered that Tracy's King Crab Shack served up the ''best legs in town''.

And we would agree!

Haines, Alaska

We caught the ferry a few days later and traveled four hours to what was going to be our final destination. Haines is the first town on the northern end of the Alaska Marine Highway that connects to actual roads leading into Canada and points beyond. We got off here and spent three days enjoying a more tranquil, natural area then the busy tourist areas of Juneau and Ketchikan.

We enjoyed amazing scenery,

beautiful hiking viewpoints,

and a quiet lakeside boondocking spot. 

Eagles soared above us patiently waiting for the salmon to start running again up the Chilkoot River. The DNR had just finished placing the weir, a salmon counting gate on the river and expected them to state running in about two weeks, so we and the eagles will have to be patient a little bit longer.

A movie set from Disney's White Fang movie that was left after filming in Haines seemed to fit right in with the laid-back nature of the community.

The local brewery served up a tasty Spruce Tip Ale which became one of Doug's new favorites. With a natural dose of vitamin C, spruce drinks became popular in this area among First Nation people and European explorers as a method of preventing scurvy.

The closest thing to a ''tourist trap'' in Haines is the Hammer Museum which began as a way to display the owner's vast collection of hand tools, but by and large ...

Haines' natural beauty captures the hearts of all who set foot on its shores.

During our journey through Alaska's Inside Passage, we had read and heard a lot of interesting things about the final town on our ferry's route, Skagway. It is just an hour downstream from Haines by ferry, but 350 miles by road. 

Intrigued by stories of its role in the Klondike Gold Rush, we booked one more leg on the ferry to finish our Inside Passage voyage in the same place that the gold seekers of 1898 ended their Inside Passage voyage ...

Skagway, Alaska

Skagway became a boom town practically overnight when gold was discovered in the Yukon in 1897. It is estimated that a hundred thousand people arrived in Skagway in 1898 to begin the short but dangerous journey over the mountain passes to the Yukon River that led to the gold fields near Dawson City, Yukon Territory. Once there, they had hopes of striking it rich.

Although the gold rush ''frenzy'' lasted less than two years, Skagway has preserved the buildings and the atmosphere of those wild days.

The local theater has been entertaining audiences for 99 years with the story of the trickery and eventual demise of the notorious con artist ''Soapy'' Smith in the musical ''The Days of '98''. We found out that the small theater company was giving a free performance the evening that we arrived, so we enjoyed the contagious energy that the ''can-can'' dancers spread.

The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park has preserved many of the buildings and passed on the stories of how ''gold fever'' gripped this area. 

The 33 mile trek over the Chilkoot or 44 mile trek over the White Pass was made even more difficult in the harsh winter conditions of the north.

Taverns became community gathering areas, but also places were crime and violence were common occurrences.

A small percentage of ''stampeders'' were able to strike it rich and live lavish lifestyles, but for the majority, the Klondike Gold Rush would not change their lives for the better. 

Construction of the White Pass & Yukon Route railway, an engineering feat, was started in 1898 in order to make it easier to get over the mountains, glaciers, gorges, and waterfalls that lie in between Skagway and the Yukon River. Unfortunately, it was completed a year after the gold rush ended. But its importance in transporting goods from Skagway's port into the Yukon was credited in keeping this town alive long after the stampeders left. Today a two hour ride on the train up the mountain pass is a popular way for tourists to see some of the beauty that lies to the north.

And while the abrupt end of the gold rush brought an end to the presence of gold-crazed prospectors in Skagway, the city continues to draw souvenir-crazed tourists on ferries and cruise ships. 

As we found out during our journey up Alaska's Inside Passage, the scenery, towns, and people continue to draw adventurers who hope to find their treasure in the beauty of Alaska's coastal villages.

A Journey Through Alaska's Inside Passage

 

I was unprepared for the beauty that lie before me. Ribbons of misty fog hugged the snow-capped mountains. 

Waterfalls danced down the mountainsides.

Fishermen headed home past the lighthouses whose beams seemed merely decorative in this land of the midnight sun.

Excitement abounded as a whale surfaced long enough to gave a brief show and then waved us on with a flap of his tail.

(Cameras are never fast enough to capture that action, so I just enjoyed the show.)

We had begun our journey through Alaska's Inside Passage. 

While excited to see Alaska for the first time, we didn't really relish the thought of driving all the way up there and back, so we splurged a little, and Doug reserved a spot for us on an Alaska Marine Highway ferry. These state-owned ferries run from Washington state through the Inside Passage in southeast Alaska. The system provides transportation to the remote and road-less areas of this important fishing, government, and tourism area.

Our journey would lead us past wildlife-filled fjords, icy-blue glaciers, and lush-green rainforests. Our ferry, the MV Matanuska, began its journey in Bellingham, Washington. Over the next three days, the sea vessel would make stops in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Juneau, Haines, and Skagway, Alaska.

While a little less ''luxurious'' than an Alaskan cruise ship, we benefitted by being able to transport our van at the same time. We were able to customize our itinerary which allowed us to get off for a few days to explore Juneau and Haines before reaching our final destination in Skagway, Alaska.

While the ferry is in motion, there was limited access to our van, so no sleeping in there for the next three nights. While we could have joined some truly adventurous souls who pitched and duck-taped tents to the upper deck flooring,

...I am grateful that Doug sprung for a stateroom that included bunk beds, bathroom and shower. While cruise cabins are never super spacious, these small sleeping quarters seem huge compared to what we are used to!

Passengers are welcome to bring their own food, but there was also a cafeteria-type restaurant that served up some very good and reasonably priced meals. We picked up some smoked salmon during one of our stops ashore and enjoyed it on top of cream cheese and crackers one evening ... I hope there is more of that in my future!

The ferry also had a number of lounge areas where we could relax while watching the  stunning scenery that surrounded us on all sides.

We prepared ourselves to experience a little more ''non-screen'' time then we are generally used to ... because, unless we were close to one of the port cities, there was no internet on the ferry. Perfect opportunity to disconnect from the electronics and dive into one of those books that just may have stowed away with me in the van. 

Of course, when the ''energizer bunny'' needed to recharge her batteries, the deck provided the perfect walking path with beautiful scenery around every corner. 

Eight laps = a mile, and it's a bit breezy and chilly out here, so let's get going!

So while taking the ferry was a little more expensive than driving, it allowed us to experience a part of Alaska that is accessible only by boat or plane. 

Watching a sunset long after our normal bedtime is going to take a little getting used to,

... but our journey through Alaska's Inside Passage increased our excitement for all the Alaskan beauty that awaits us during the next couple months. 

And we are excited to share this beauty with you!