A week of adventures in small town Southeast Alaska
Petersburg and Wrangell are small communities in central Southeast Alaska. They have populations between 2,000-4000 year round residents and are off the normal tourist track in Southeast. Neither gets frequent large cruise ships and keep their small town local vibe even in the peak of tourist season in the summer. A week long trip to these two communities would give you a truly authentic Alaskan experience without the crowds you will see in other larger communities that get visited daily by large cruise ships.
The best time to visit is in the summer months or late spring. I recommend late June or July, when the weather is better. August can be nice and is great for bear viewing and fishing, but can be the onset of the fall storms. May also typically has drier weather and nice long days as you get closer to the summer solstice in June.
Although they are smaller towns, both are relatively easy to get to. Both communities are served by a north and south bound Alaska Airlines flight daily. Fly north from Seattle on flight 65 and get off in whichever place you want to start. Or fly south from Anchorage and/or Juneau on flight 64 and do the same. Both towns are also on the Alaska Marine Highway ferry route, so it is possible to reach them by riding the ferry all the way from Bellingham, Washington.
Day 1: Arrive in Wrangell & Explore Downtown
Arrive in Wrangell via the Alaska Airlines “morning jet” from Seattle, which stops in Ketchikan prior to stopping in Wrangell. Check in to the Stikine Inn a nice waterfront hotel located right downtown.
Walk around town to get your bearings, stop in the local shops and grab lunch at Sweet Tides Bakery or one of the other cafes. For its small size Wrangell has a lot of great restaurants. Walk past the historical buildings in downtown, like the old churches and post office. Make your way to Chief Shakes Island to admire the clan house and see his grave. An app designed by the tourism board for the community called “Wander Wrangell” can be downloaded using QR codes posted around town and gives you information and locations of many main attractions downtown. In the afternoon do a quick hike up the Mount Dewey trail a half mile trail that gives views of the ocean and surrouding islands or get on the nature walk loop behind town for some time in the forest and muskegs. Both are pretty easy hikes accessed right in town, so no car necessary to reach the trails.
Day 2: Head out the road in Wrangell
Rent a car or an e-bike and head out along the waterfront towards shoemaker bay. You can stop here and have a little picnic. This is also the trailhead for the Rainbow Falls hike. Hike the fairly steep half mile up to the falls or for a longer adventure keep going to the Shoemaker Bay overlook, which is a little over 6 miles round trip and plenty of elevation gain up wooden staircases through the woods.
If a big hike isn’t your cup of tea, continue driving out the highway, there are lots of great views from the highway. Once the highway ends you can continue driving out Nemo Road or the McCormick Creek road to see some more remote areas of Wrangell Island. There are several campgrounds and trails that can be accessed by the old logging roads.
Day 3: Stikine River Trip
Book a guided jet boat excursion up the Stikine River, a large transboundary river located just outside Wrangell. There are half and full day tour options that take you to Shakes Glacier, past major waterfalls, and the longer ones can drop you off at the hot springs to spend some time soaking before returning to Wrangell. There are also great opportunities to see wildlife up the river such as moose and brown bears. Since the river is on mainland Alaska, it has larger wildlife than what is seenon many of the islands. If you have more than a week for traveling consider booking one of the Forest Service cabins up the river or along the river flats. Many of the same companies that do tours will also taxi you to and from the cabins.
Day 4: Annan Bear Viewing
Annan Creek is a popular bear viewing area. Lot of bears congregate here to feed on salmon as they return to the creek in the summer months. A whole viewing area has been developed with boardwalk trails and a blind for getting up close to the bears without them noticing you. Annan is reached by boat tour from Wrangell. They do offer only a limited number of permits for visitors each day, so it is a good idea to pre book a tour to secure yourself a spot.
Day 5: Head to Petersburg & explore town
Boat or fly over to Petersburg. The only scheduled flight is Alaska Airlines each day, but many of the small charter flights will fly you to Petersburg from Wrangell and some of the small boat tour companies will drop you off in Petersburg as well. It is also possible to take the state ferry, but it only runs once or twice a week, so your ability to do so will really depend on what day you are there and the current ferry schedule. Information on the ferry schedule can be found on their website https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/index.shtml.
In Petersburg walk around downtown doing a little souvier shopping, stroll the floats in the harbors, stop by the fisherman’s memorial and sons of Norway Hall, and visit the local museum. If you are up for a bit of nature and adventure you can do one of the easy hikes right around town.
Day 6: Drive out Mitkof Highway
Rent a car and drive out Mitkof Highway for some exploring of Mitkof Island. Be sure to check out Blind Slough one of the most unique places on the island. You can walk the boardwalk at Blind River Rapids or just have a nice picnic at the shelters at Blind Slough Recreation area. If you are looking for another great short hike just along the highway Ohmer Creek Trail is another wonderful stop. If you make it to the end of the road at low tide, you will be able to see the mud flats of the Stikine River and Dry Straits. If you are feeling adventurous, get off the main highway and drive the gravel three lakes loop road. There is lots of beautiful scenery, pull offs to get out and explore, and you can hike the three lakes trail.
Day 7: Leconte Bay/Glacier tour
For your last day sign up for a Leconte Bay tour and head to the furthest south tidewater glacier in the United States. You will cruise past icebergs and wildlife until you reach the face of the glacier at the head of the bay. There are amazing waterfalls and big snow capped mountains visible in the bay as well. It is a great last look at the Alaska wild before you head home the next day.
For help planning a booking a trip like this contact me at thelastfrontierandbeyond@gmail.com or use the contact me page on this website.
