Ketchikan, AK Road Trips

Over 800,000 visitors come through Ketchikan each year by cruise ship. Most spend only a few hours in town, limiting their tourism and recreation choices. Visitors who arrive by air, via the Alaska Marine Highway System, or by private vessel and who have more time to spend can choose from a wider array of activities. The Ketchikan Visitors Bureau, near the cruise ship berth 2, publishes a comprehensive area guide that provides maps, contact information for tour operators and local attractions, sample itineraries and community information. A walking tour map is published by Pioneer Printing and the Ketchikan Daily News and is available in many locations throughout the downtown area. Probably the most scenic downtown stretch is historic Creek Street, which is only a short distance (three to four blocks) away from the cruise ship docks. Once a raucous red-light district, and during prohibition a row of speakeasies, these days Creek Street is home to a quieter class of establishment but still retains its delightful historic charm. Visitors walking downtown should be sure to include it in their walking tour to see the picturesque wooden buildings that stand on stilts above Ketchikan Creek. Summer visitors can look down from the bridges that cross the creek and expect to spot salmon gathering in the brackish waters near the creek mouth, preparing to make their final ascent upstream, where they will spawn and die. Depending on time, tide, and other conditions you might also see a hungry harbor seal or two cruising the creek mouth for easy prey.

1 Tongass Historical Museum, 629 Dock St, ☏ +1 907 225-5600. May - Sep: daily 8AM-5PM; Oct - Apr: W-F 1–5PM, Sa 10AM-4PM, Su 1–4PM, M Tu closed. Visit the historical exhibits. $2 (May - Sep only), free for residents. 2 Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, 50 Main St, ☏ +1 907 228-6220, fax: +1 907 228-6234, [email protected]. See the rainforest interpretive exhibits. Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show, Location varies, ☏ +1 907-225-9050, fax: +1 907 247-9049, [email protected]. Watch an exhibition of lumberjack skills. Adults: $34 + tax, children 3 - 12: $17.50 + tax, children 2 & under: free. Totem-pole collections. Ketchikan is situated at the meeting place of three Alaska Native cultures, Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian. Evidence of the rich artistic and dance traditions of the native cultures is apparent throughout the town, most visibly in the totem poles scattered through the historic district and found in larger groupings in totem parks near town: 3 Saxman Totem Park (approximately 2.5 mi (4.0 km) south of downtown). 4 Totem Bight State Historical Park, 9883 N Tongass Hwy (approximately 10 mi (16 km) north of downtown Ketchikan). $5/person. 5 Totem Heritage Center, 601 Deermount St, ☏ +1 907 225-5900, fax: +1 907 225-5901. May - Sep: daily 8AM-5PM; Oct - Apr: M-F 1–5PM, Sa Su closed. $5 (May - Sep). 6 Tribal Fish Hatchery (located within Ketchikan, approximately 0.75 mi (1.21 km) from the cruise ship docks). 7 Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary.

Set on the hillsides above the waterfront on a heavily forested, mostly wilderness island, the town of Ketchikan is worth visiting on its own merits. However, visitors with time for an extended stay should make an effort to explore the steep rainy forests, deep-water channels, secluded bays, and hundreds of small islands in the surrounding area. Travelers with access to a boat of some sort, whether single-person kayak or gargantuan luxury yacht, should devote some time to exploring the scenic passages and inlets of the nearby waterways where fish are bountiful, it's not uncommon to see whales and porpoises, and bears and eagles can frequently be seen on the shore. 1 Southeast Exposure Outdoor Adventure Center. 2 Alaska Canopy Adventures, 116 Wood Rd (Herring Cove), ☏ +1 907 225-5503. Fly through the trees on the original Alaska Zipline Course. Locally owned, operated and staffed. Call for courtesy van.

Fish is the local specialty. The fishing industry in Southeast Alaska is not what it once was but vast amounts of salmon are still landed every year and processed and shipped to all over the world. Wild Alaskan salmon is world famous, and rightly so. Ask a local fisherman, however, and many will express a preference for the lighter-flavored halibut. Either is a fine choice, as are several other species caught in local waters, including rockfish, ling cod, and Dungeness Crab. Crab many visitors, excited to be in Alaska, are eager to dine on the famous Alaskan king crab. What most don't realize is that king crab aren't commonly found anywhere close to Ketchikan and there is no commercial king crab fishery here, and the chief ports of the king crab fishery are Kodiak and Dutch Harbor far to the north and west of Ketchikan. In other words, if you order king crab, you're going to be served crab that has been frozen and flown in, so it won't be any fresher than if you'd ordered it at a restaurant back home. If you crave a crustacean sensation order local dungeness crab instead. Dungies aren't as large or as exotic as king crab and it takes a bit more work to eat them but their meat is pleasantly mild and sweet-tasting and you'll get a fresher meal at a cheaper price. Filipino cuisine Ketchikan has a substantial Filipino minority population and there are a number of local restaurants that serve Filipino cuisine, either on its own or in conjunction with a more traditional American menu as well.

Summertime visitors to Ketchikan should remember that summer is high tourist season and the town has a modest number of hotel rooms. There are other options available besides traditional hotel rooms, however. Quite a number of local bed and breakfasts host visitors. And many stay at remote lodges, some accessible by road from Ketchikan, others requiring travel via boat or float plane to reach them. 1 The Ketchikan Hostel, 400 Main St, ☏ +1 907-225-3319. the hostel that uniquely finds itself within the confines of a Methodist church. Can accommodate men/women in separate quarters, but no pets. $25 dorms, $50 private room. 2 The Ketch Inn & Marina (formerly the Edgewater Inn), 4871 N Tongass Hwy (travel north on Tongass Highway from Ketchikan about 3 mi (4.8 km); hotel entrance is marked by a sign and is on the left side of the road), ☏ +1 907-531-8254. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. Variety of room types available. On-site restaurant and marina. Offers shuttle service to/from the airport and downtown. Book on website or by telephone. Campers can find pleasant accommodation for tent camping or RVs at campgrounds at Ward Lake, Last Chance, and Settler's Cove. However, facilities are primitive and electric and sewer hookups are not available. Tent campers can also generally camp at undeveloped sites in the Tongass National Forest. Check with the Ketchikan Area Ranger District for details and, where necessary, permits. For the more adventurous, the US Forest Service maintains a network of backcountry cabins and camp shelters throughout the region.

Like most towns in the SE Alaska, Ketchikan can be reached by sea or by air. Ketchikan is served by the ferries of the Alaska Marine Highway System. The Alaska Marine Highway System ferries, as well as the ferries of the Inter-Island Ferry Authority (which serves Ketchikan, Metlakatla, and several communities on Prince of Wales Island), arrive at a ferry terminal approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) north of downtown. The ferry terminal is served by local bus service (however, ferry arrivals and departures may occur at any hour, while bus service hours are limited) and has pay phones available to call for taxi or shuttle service. Walk-on ferry passengers who don't have a vehicle available in Ketchikan can find food and lodging directly across the street from the AMHS ferry terminal. Most visitors, however, see Ketchikan as a port of call, arriving and leaving on the same day via the cruise ships that ply Alaska's famous Inside Passage from early May through late September. The large cruise ships call at one of the four cruise ship berths; berths 1-3 are located in downtown Ketchikan, while berth 4 is further north at Newtown. If there are more than four ships visiting Ketchikan at the same time, the additional ships will anchor in the Ketchikan Creek and passengers will take a short tender trip to the downtown pier. A free Salmon Run Shuttle operates a 20-minute downtown loop 7AM-7PM serving all cruise ship berths. When a ship is docked in berth 4, an additional free Bear Shuttle operates a 10-minute waterfront loop serving all cruise ship berths.

Ketchikan's historic downtown is small and easily accessible by foot from the most common tourist access point, the massive downtown dock where summer cruise ships moor. To anticipate how busy the downtown area might be, visitors can check the cruise ship schedules to see how many cruise ships are in port. However, the rest of the town stretches along the waterfront for miles to the north and south of downtown and is not crowded. Sourdough Cab, ☏ +1 907 225 5544. Serves the entire length of Tongass Highway, including all of Ketchikan. You may be able to hail a cab at the airport or downtown, but riders usually call to request. (updated Aug 2021) Yellow Taxi, ☏ +1 907 225 5555. (updated Aug 2021) Taxi services can provide visitors with access to outlying areas and to tourist destinations outside of town. The town's bus service operates three bus lines (Green, Silver and Gold) for locals and visitors. They provide visitors access to Totem Bight State Park (Silver Line North) approximately 10 mi (16 km) north of town to Fawn Mtn School (Silver Line South), approximately 4.5 mi (7.2 km) south of town. Green and Silver line buses run 60 minutes apart. Gold line buses run 15 minutes apart. Fares for the green and silver lines: $2 adult; $1 age 12-17; 11 and under are free with an adult or $50 solo. Day passes are $5 for an adult; $2.50 for 17 and under. Monthly passes are also available. The gold line, which runs May through September and serves the downtown area, is free. Schedule information and route planning is available on Google Maps.