Ketchikan is the first taste of Alaska for many visitors, and it delivers. The town clings to the base of Deer Mountain with Creek Street — a row of wooden buildings built on pilings over the water — running along a salmon stream that turns wild in season. The surrounding Tongass National Forest is the largest temperate rainforest in the world, and it starts right at the edge of town. Ward Lake and Herring Cove, a short drive from the pier, are two of the most reliably productive wildlife spots in Southeast Alaska. Black bears come to the water's edge in the morning quiet. Great blue herons stand perfectly still in the shallows. Old-growth Sitka spruce tower over the trails, draped in moss, filtering the light into something soft and cathedral-green. For the landscape photographers, Misty Fjords — accessible by floatplane — is 2,000-foot granite walls dropping into black water so still it doubles everything. You are in port until 1:15 PM. Start early.

Ketchikan is famous for its colorful totem poles, rainy skies, steep–as–San Francisco streets, and lush island setting. Some 13,500 people call the town home, and, in the summer, cruise ships crowd the shoreline, floatplanes depart noisily for Misty Fiords National Monument, and salmon-laden commercial fishing boats motor through Tongass Narrows. In the last decade Ketchikan's rowdy, blue-collar heritage of logging and fishing has been softened by the loss of many timber-industry jobs and the dramatic rise of cruise-ship tourism. With some effort, though, visitors can still glimpse the rugged frontier spirit that once permeated this hardscrabble cannery town. Art lovers should make a beeline for Ketchikan: the arts community here is very active. Travelers in search of the perfect piece of Alaska art will find an incredible range of pieces to choose from.The town is at the foot of 3,000-foot Deer Mountain, near the southeastern corner of Revillagigedo (locals shorten it to Revilla) Island. Prior to the arrival of white miners and fishermen in 1885, the Tlingit used the site at the mouth of Ketchikan Creek as a summer fish camp. Gold discoveries just before the turn of the 20th century brought more immigrants, and valuable timber and commercial fishing resources spurred new industries. By the 1930s the town bragged that it was the "salmon-canning capital of the world." You will still find some of Southeast's best salmon fishing around here. Ketchikan is the first bite of Alaska that many travelers taste. Despite its imposing backdrop, hillside homes, and many staircases, the town is relatively easy to walk through. Favorite downtown stops include the Spruce Mill Development shops and Creek Street. A bit farther away you'll find the Totem Heritage Center. Out of town (but included on most bus tours) are two longtime favorites: Totem Bight State Historical Park to the north and Saxman Totem Park to the south.