Juneau, Alaska
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Juneau is built between mountains and water with nowhere left to spread — and that compression makes it feel electric. Head straight for Mendenhall Glacier. The ice is blue in a way that does not photograph easily, a color somewhere between sapphire and smoke that you have to see in person to believe. The Steep Creek trail runs alongside the visitor center, and in early May black bears come down to the water's edge, unhurried, close enough that you hear the crunch of their footsteps on gravel. Bald eagles perch on every available surface around Auke Bay — pilings, rooftops, bare branches — watching the water with the calm authority of something that has always owned this place. The port day runs until 9:15 PM, and sunset here in May is nearly 9:30. That last hour of light on the glacier face is something you will not forget.
Juneau, Alaska's capital and third-largest city, is on the North American mainland but can't be reached by road. Bounded by steep mountains and water, the city’s geographic isolation and compact size make it much more akin to an island community such as Sitka than to other Alaskan urban centers, such as Fairbanks or Anchorage. Juneau is full of contrasts. Its dramatic hillside location and historic downtown buildings provide a frontier feeling, but the city's cosmopolitan nature comes through in fine museums, noteworthy restaurants, and a literate and outdoorsy populace. The finest of the museums, the Alaska State Museum, is scheduled to reopen in May 2016 on its old site as the expanded Alaska State Library, Archives, and Museum (SLAM) following several years of planning and exhibit research. Another new facility, the Walter Soboleff Center, offers visitors a chance to learn about the indigenous cultures of Southeast Alaska–-Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian. Other highlights include the Mt. Roberts Tramway, plenty of densely forested wilderness areas, quiet bays for sea kayaking, and even a famous drive-up glacier, Mendenhall Glacier. For goings-on, pick up the Juneau Empire (www.juneauempire.com), which keeps tabs on state politics, business, sports, and local news.
Port Info
Schedule
Start Time
May 3 1:00PM AKDT
to
End Time
May 3 9:15PM AKDT