Away from the Crowds in Alaska

Cordova is a small fishing community located in southcentral Alaska on Prince William Sound. You can get there by ferry or plane. It is an area for those who love adventure, birdwatchers, and fishing enthusiasts. Among the highlights are charter boats to fish for salmon and halibut and kayak tours.

You can enjoy hiking to Saddlebag or Sheridan Glaciers or rafting the Cooper River.

Kodiak Island is a large island on the south coast of Alaska, separated from the mainland by the Shelikof Strait.  It draws the curious for bear watching. There is the Alutiiq Museum, where you can find out about the Native people of Alaska. The Kodiak History Museum. A great place for hiking is the Fort Abercrombie State Historical Park.

You’ll enjoy bear viewing and seeing other wildlife at the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge.

McCarthy is located within the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, which is the largest park in the nation. Adventures include glacier trekking, river rafting, backcountry hiking, mountain biking, and camping.

Visitors enjoy touring the Kennecott Mine in the nearby ghost town.

Nome is located on the Seward Peninsula along the Bering Sea coast. Visitors trek there in March for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. It is a great place to find out about the Gold Rush history in Alaska.

There is plenty of wildlife to see, such as musk ox, caribou, moose, fox, and different birds.

Petersburg is a small Inside Passage community located at the end of the Wrangell Narrows. It can be reached by ferry or plane. Attractions include whale watching, kayaking, or fishing. Alaska’s Inside Passage stretches 500 miles along the Pacific Ocean and boasts wildlife-filled fjords, tidewater glaciers, and lush island scenery.  The Inside Passage is home to the Alaska Native people—the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian.

It includes the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in the US and the largest intact temperate rainforest in the world.

About halfway out of the Aleutian Chain in the Bering Sea, Unalaska and the Port of Dutch Harbor have been made famous by the Discovery reality TV show “Deadliest Catch.” There are many outdoor adventures to enjoy here. Birdwatchers come here to see rare species seldom seen outside the Aleutians. These communities share a common heritage and reliance on the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea.

Enjoy the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge that not only protects birds but also a wide variety of other wildlife and fish, including all five species of Pacific salmon, wolves, foxes, wolverines, caribou, moose, brown bears, shorebirds, seabirds, and an incredible array of waterfowl.

Utigiagvik was formerly known as Barrow. It is the farthest north community in the US along the Arctic Ocean.

Here you can view polar bears and see snowy owls. At the Inupiat Heritage Center you can learn about local traditions and history and purchase artisan crafts. In June is the annual whaling festival.

Among the most interesting and oldest towns in southeast Alaska is Wrangell. It is home to the Tlingit people. You can visit the Wrangell Museum and Shakes Island to learn about area history.

Petroglyph Beach State Historic Site has ancient rock carvings.

Petroglyph Beach in Wrangell has the highest concentration of petroglyphs in the southeast region of Alaska . At least 40 petroglyphs have been found in the area. The site itself is about 8000 years old. There is an accessible boardwalk to a deck overlooking Petroglyph Beach, the Stikine River, and Zimovia Straits.

At the Anan Wildlife Observatory you can see bears.

Visitors enjoy taking a jet boat tour up the Stikine River to explore the wilderness.