Juneau

The adventures began in Juneau. Accessible only by water or air, Juneau is an interesting little city. The natural splendors around it, like the Mendenhall Glacier, radiate the natural beauty for which Alaska is known. Tlingit totem poles and artifacts are scattered around the town. Aside from running the state government, the other major activity is tourism. The “downtown” section of this quaint city of 30,000 people is crammed with souvenir and tourist shops catering to the huge cruise ships that are in port daily. Click here to see our travels to Juneau (city), Mendenhall Glacier, and Auke Bay	Map from Google. Click photo for larger version. Click here to link to original Google map.


We made two visits to Juneau; both before and after Glacier Bay. We also had our best meals here; an elegant and delicious meal at the Gold Room of the Baranof hotel, a casual but equally delicious meal at Twisted Fish at the piers, and a fabulous fresh crab lunch at “The Crab Shack”! Jade is the state gem of Alaska. There is an entire mountain of jade on the Kenai Peninsula. I was fortunate enough to buy unstrung jade beads in Juneau to create a one-of-a-kind souvenir. Juneau is also the departure point for the numerous bush plane and air taxi services that connect Juneau with the rest of Southeast Alaska … like Gustavus and Glacier Bay.



Our first glimpse of Juneau	Kinda picturesque ...

The airport sits next to a marshy wetlands where we saw water birds and an occasional bald eagle	The glacier is easily visible from the airport

Along the tourist strip

Downtown	Our favorite "Crab Shack"

Tlingit artifacts