Experiencing Southeast Alaska

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Outside Magazine April 2004

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Destinations: Alaskan Archipelago
Dipping Into the Panhandle
The five best ways to explore southeast


	One-way ticket to paradise: The only way is to fly into the southeast (Robin Hood/Alaska Tourism Marketing Council)

Getting There > Alaska Airlines (800-252-7522, www.alaskaair.com) flies into the major Southeast towns ($575 round-trip from New York to Juneau). The Alaska Marine Highway (800-642-0066, www.ferryalaska.com) runs twice-weekly ferries along the Inside Passage from Bellingham, Washington, accessing 14 cities. The 61-hour trip to Juneau costs $262 per person.

1. Up and Down the Outer Coast
Hyperactive outfitter Chris Howard packs boatloads into this seven-day trip: From the Greentop Forest Service Cabin on the southwestern tip of Yakobi Island to a camp near White Sulphur Springs on Chichagof Island, you'll sea-kayak salmon-choked sloughs, fish for king salmon and halibut, hike through virgin forest, and canoe alpine lakes. ($3,500 for two people from Pelican, all-inclusive; 877-254-8433, www.howardcharters.com)

2. Cruising the Inside Passage
Maximize adventure and comfort in equal proportions on an eight-day Lindblad Expeditions cruise between Juneau and Sitka aboard the MV Sea Lion or MV Sea Bird. These 152-foot, 70-passenger sister ships are staffed with five pro naturalists, so the trips focus on guided hikes, kayak outings, and wildlife encounters (including a day of gawking at Steller sea lions in Glacier Bay National Park and a morning cruise up Tracy Arm to the base of Sawyer Glacier), instead of shuffleboard and champagne. (From $3,840 per person from Juneau, June to August; 800-397-3348, www.expeditions.com)

3. Exploring Glaciers and Fjords
Captain Jim Kyle's 62-foot wooden motorboat, Home Shore, is the ideal roving base camp for up to six passengers. The circumnavigation of Baranof Island gets you far from civilization, cruising 30-mile-long fjords that cut deep into the island's mountainous and glaciated interior and kayaking along the island's eastern "Waterfall Coast." ($2,400-$3,000 per person from Sitka, ten scheduled trips each summer; 360-592-2375, www.homeshore.com)

4. A Cabin in the Woods
Of the more than 100 Forest Service cabins in Southeast, two fly-in-by-charter-plane sites stand out: Goulding Lake Cabin, in the heart of the West Chichagof-Yakobi Wilderness, and Swan Lake Cabin, below the glaciated Cosmos Range, on the mainland 18 air miles northwest of Petersburg, near Thomas Bay. Cabins cost $35 per night, with bunk space for seven but no water or electricity. (Bring your own food, sleeping bags, and cooking gear.) Reserve through the National Recreation Reservation Service (877-444-6777, www.reserveusa.com). Contact Alaska Sea Planes (888-350-8277, www.akseaplanes.com) for information on charter flights.

5. Kayaking Misty Fjords
The northern waters of this stunning 2.3-million-acre national monument are visited by only a few dozen intrepid sea kayakers each year. Be prepared to feel small as you paddle beneath 3,000-foot granite walls or encounter pods of orcas in Behm Canal, your main thoroughfare for paddling Misty. If you have solid kayaking skills, Ketchikan-based outfitter Southeast Sea Kayaks (800-287-1607, www.kayakketchikan.com) will set you up on a ten-day self-guided tour, with most nights spent in Forest Service cabins ($600 for a double kayak, plus $200 for a boat shuttle into the fjord). Novices can be led on a five-day trip through Walker Cove and Rudyerd Bay. ($1,390 per person, all-inclusive from Ketchikan)

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