Juneau/Skagway/Ketchikan

[emoore]

We will be in Juneau 8/3 for 8 hours, Skagway 8/4 for 14 hours, and Ketchikan 8/6 for 8 hours. We are a family of 7 (5 teens), so the cruiseline excursions are very expensive for us. Looking for recommendations. In Juneau, we have booked with Harv&Marv's, based on numerous glowing reviews. Also considering the Mt. Roberts tramway or just walking around town, as time allows. In Skagway, we are considering the Yukon Saddle and Paddle. Not cheap, but figure you get 3 excursions for the price: drive up the White Pass, Horseback riding, and Canoeing. Then sightseeing on foot when we return. In Ketchikan, is the Great Alaskan Lumberjack show worth $34 each? Or should we just sightsee on our own? Other things we'd love to do, but haven't found an affordable way to do them is: Bear viewing; A plane trip over the glaciers; Kayaking; Bald Eagle viewing (from what I've read, there's no need to pay for an excursion to do this, as it sounds like we'll see plenty on the trip). Any recommendations on the excursions we're planning, or others? Especially any inexpensive ways to view the bears (besides in a zoo)? Anything else you'd especially recommend on a budget? Thanks!

[Toyz711]

in juneau, have H&M drop you off or pick you up at mendenhall glacier. it's close auke bay, where their boat is. $6 1-way on the shuttle, that you catch at the tram office.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/districts/mendenhall/

http://www.traveljuneau.com/

skagway...sounds like you have tha planned

http://www.skagway.com/

in ketchikan we walked around the lumberjack show's theater. it's much smaller then i thought...might be fun but sounds a little cheesy when you listen to it. you can get tickets at the store that fronts it. don't have to pre-book.

http://www.visit-ketchikan.com/

next time i go i WILL go out and see the totems. if you are there during salmon run, you will see them going up the river in town. also, if the fish are running you can rent fishing poles and fish off the walkway. just the cost of a fishing license and pole rental.

[LisaH]

We did not see one eagle while on our land or cruise portion of the trip. I think in Glacier Bay a few lucky folks saw one perched on an iceberg but we did not.

[Toyz711]

saw a couple flying around ketchikan..but the weather was so bad, not too many birds were flying. when the salmon are running you will see eagles, they feed on the dead salmon on the shore.

bears are harder, they are just walking around where the tourist are, normally. family did see a small black bear as the shuttle was driving up to mendenhall. best bear viewing is through the planned excursions that take you to the best..safe..place to view from.

[ute_fan]

One quick comment about the eagles. We saw quite a few while we were on our whale watching tour with H&M. If you're interested in seeing those, let Harv or Marv know so they can watch for those too.

 

We saw several around Ketchikan, in spite of rainy weather. Remember to look for the golf balls in the trees :D .

[emoore]

Thanks for the tips so far! I found the company that actually does the horseback & canoeing, and decided to rent a car and book directly with them. That way we'll have the car all day for other sightseeing. Any recommendations on other things to see in the Skagway area? (we will be driving up to Carcross) Anyone seen the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show?

[TwelveKitties]

When we were there last year we saw so many eagles that it got to the point that we were saying "Oh, it's just another eagle." However, the place we saw the most was along the river in Juneau. We hired a taxi for $55/hour (actually a minivan) and asked the driver to take us to see what he thought we should see. He took us to a river, right by the highway, where we saw at least 75 eagles, maybe more just standing on the banks of the river. That was great (and no one said 'Oh, it's just another eagle' because it was totally beautiful), and worth the entire price of the cab. We also went on a "bear hunt" in the cab out in the residential district (because it was trash day). We found several streets where the trash cans had been turned over and obviously "gone through," but unfortunately, the bears were long gone.

 

In Ketchikan there is a short tram up to their civic center, and a very good restaurant . It only costs $2 (I think) and there are a lot of windows for viewing and it gives you a great view of the port and the city. It's located near "Dolly's House." The map for the walking tour there is also good and free - and you see a lot of the totems along the way.

 

TwelveKitties

[qiangf2]

it seems you got everything covered in your excursion plan

[esny21]

Just returned off the Diamond Princess with an adventurous 13 year old.

Skagway: I would highly recommend the Klondike rock climbing and rapelling. The guides were remarkable and made the climb doable for everyone. They talked you through the climbs. We were able to do 2 different climbs and then a hike to the top and then rapell down. To a person, everyone had a great time!

 

Juneau we did a helicpter to the Mendenhall Glacier and then dog sledding. If you're gonna spend big bucks on anything this is the one. The experience is not to be believed. Awesome awesome awesome.

 

Ketchikan: Float plane over Misty Fiords. An absolutely incredible experience. Did this one with Island Wings. Michele, the pilot scouted bears and made a landing so that we could see a Mama bear and her cubs.

 

If you're doing a land tour and are at the McKinley Princess, then take the ARGO tour. Great for under 18ers who want to do ATV but aren't allowed to. The Argo is similar to the ATV but equipped with tractor grids and a

driver. Each vehicle seats 4. Great fun! like a ridce in Disneyland.

[esny21]

One more thing. The lumberjack show is very touristy. Although it was fun. Your teenagers might think it very corny, but if they just go with it it could be fun. Not sure it's worth 34x7 tho.

[Ivanova]

In Ketchikan we did the lumberjack show ... it's campy and corny, but a lot of fun ... if you know what you're getting going in you won't be disappointed ... but there were some in the audience that were very disappointed, thinking they were going to see a serious, full blown lumberjack show.

 

We were on a northbound cruise 6/29 to 7/6/2007 ... saw TONS of eagles during our cruise, particiularly in Juneau and Ketchikan ... we were very fortunate in wildlife sightings as well as having fantastic weather.

[sacway]

We are just returned (today) from this itinerary.

 

If you want to do more on the cheap, Juneau is a very interesting walkaround city. The state museum is excellent at $5, and we also visited the state capital which has a free tour. Then at the local visitors' center in the Convention Center along the waterfront, I was able to get free maps to hike in the area. The hike I took was up Perseverance Trail (Mt. Juneau) and very few hikers so a sense of the Alaska wilderness. Teens might also like the Mt. Roberts hike that takes several hours -- they can get a discount, I have read, on taking the tram back down (it's something like $25 round trip, or only $5 if you hike up and ride back). On the Perseverance Trail, there's a mine museum that's $5 admission if any of your kids are into that.

 

In Skagway we rented a car from Avis (the only car rental place there I think). When we hit Carcross we decided after 5 minutes to drive to White Horse, another 40-some miles. That put us on the Al-Can highway and also got us out of the coastal drizzle. It was t-shirts, shorts and sandals weather in White Horse, the capital of the Yukon. We had a nice coffee house lunch in Zola's Cafe Dore; the main street has many nice shops and a good break from the cruise dock jewelry store madness. On the way back, at the edge of town, we saw a bear, that was just luck.

 

In Ketchikan where there wasn't much time we took a boat ride to look for bears (booked through the cruise line) and that was great, too. We saw a couple of them, from our captain stopping in several little coves to look. Others went fishing (on an excursion) and caught quite a few fish.

 

We lucked out seeing bears in 2 of 3 stops and I would not have been happy to run into one in Juneau on the trail! We also saw many eagles, and also whales almost every day from the boat, just by spending time on deck.

 

Of all these places, we only bought souvenirs at one, William Spear Designs in Juneau. This store is upstairs on Franklin St. (You'll see the pins in the window of the bar downstairs) This store only sells one type of thing -- zipper pulls/pins/lures. Hundreds of designs are on display and I think many teens would have fun picking out one for their jacket and maybe for a friend back home. You tell the clerk which ones, they come in little matchbook-like packaging.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Those are great tours you are planning.

[Mrs007]

Have fun on your Saddle and Paddle. We did the saddle part with them and it was great! The lunch they served was VERY good!! - all homemade! They are very friendly and I had a nice chat with them while waiting for our van to come and pick us up.

 

If you have a rental car, why don't you stop at the cemetery on your way back into Skagway? I bet the teens would get a hoot out of the dates on the tombstones. We plan on going to the cemetery on our next visit (ran out of time this trip)

FROM MURRY'S GUIDE - http://WWW.EXPLORENORTH.COM

Mile 1.6 / Km 2.6: The gravel road to the right takes you 0.6 mile (1 km) to the Pioneer Cemetery, final resting place of people such as Soapy Smith and Frank Reid, famous for the gunfight that saved Skagway. A trailo starting at the cemetery leads to Reid Falls, a popular spot for photographers.

[SteakMama]

Thank you for your post. I too am travelling to Alaska in Sept on a budget and saw the saddle canoe package. Did you find a package cheaper then what is offered on the cruise? If so, can you send me details? I'm also wondering about salmon fishing in Juneau or Skagway? Any good suggestions for private (inexpensive) tours and deals? Are you allowed to bring the fish you catch onto Holland America boats afterwards? Thanks for your help!:o

[Toyz711]

the best fishing would be juneau or ketchikan. (ketchikan calls themselves the "salmon capital of alaska". depending on how late in sept, you may want to check the fishing charts for that area. when we went last sept (17-14) we were too late for the salmon, the run was over.

[SteakMama]

Thank you Toyz.....good advice. I'll check!

[Alaska05]

Thanks for the tips so far! I found the company that actually does the horseback & canoeing, and decided to rent a car and book directly with them. That way we'll have the car all day for other sightseeing. Any recommendations on other things to see in the Skagway area? (we will be driving up to Carcross) Anyone seen the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show?

 

Just got back today from our cruise last week.

 

We rented a car in Skagway and drove to Emerald Lake.

 

We saw a black bear right by the side of the road munching on the vegetation. Stopped and took some awesome footage of him. Not more than 20 feet away.

 

So keep your eyes peeled on your drive -- you may get lucky too.

[GORDONCHICK]

Are you allowed to bring the fish you catch onto Holland America boats afterwards? Thanks for your help!:o

 

No, but you can pay to have it processed and shipped home for you (not cheap from what I've heard).

[CraftyDD]

Sounds like you have done your homework. We did something at every port - some on our own and some thru cruiseline.

My personal opinion is skip the lumberjack show. You can really tour Ketchikan on your own. Get a map at the tourist center and tour Creek Street. We did our shopping in Ketchikan and had everything shipped home (very reasonable). DH went on fishing excursion and played cards -did not even get a bite.

Juneau - you can do everything on your own. We did whale watching with Captain Larry and had a ball. Saw lots of whales and eagles. They dropped us off at Mendenhall and we walked the trailes on our own and were able to stay as long as we liked. Captain Larry gave us the number of a taxi service to call and they came and picked us up and dropped us off in town where we took the Mt. Roberts Tram. It was great but if is foggy don't go. And we finished off our day at the Red Dog Saloon.

Skagway - we did the Kayak and White Pass Train ride and then walked around town.

Hope this helps.