Discover Sitka: Rainforest, Culture and Sea
Accommodation in Sitka
Sitka is a destination for anyone who wants to combine nature trails, seascapes and history. The town can only be reached by air or sea. This includes scheduled and charter flights, ferries and cruise ships. This special journey should therefore be factored into your travel planning early on. When looking for a holiday apartment or holiday home, it is worth first considering whether you want to focus primarily on museums and sights in the town centre, or on trails, the coast and wildlife viewing.
Downtown, History and First Discoveries
Most of Sitka’s downtown sights are within walking distance of one another. Those who prefer short distances between cultural attractions may wish to consider a location in the town area when looking for accommodation. One of the defining destinations is Sitka National Historical Park. It preserves historically and culturally significant sites and artefacts connected with the Battle of Sitka of 1804 and is the oldest federally designated park in Alaska.
Old Sitka State Historical Park also combines history with time outdoors. The park is designated as a National Historic Landmark and features information panels about the area’s history. It also has a public boat ramp and a dock providing access to the marine waters north of Sitka. The 1.25-mile Forest Muskegs Trail runs through the park. A self-guided interpretive brochure is available for the trail, which is also designated as accessible.
Forest Trails and Varied Hiking Experiences
Those who want to explore Sitka on foot will find a variety of landscapes. The half-mile forest trail at Halibut Point State Recreation Site leads to a beach where you can collect beachcombing finds and explore the intertidal zone. The 1.5-mile Mosquito Cove Trail runs along Starrigavan Bay and Mosquito Cove through a coastal forest of spruce and hemlock trees.
The Starrigavan Estuary Life Trail is a boardwalk through old-growth forest and a muskeg area. The Totem Trail passes through a temperate rainforest, where information panels explain the area’s natural and cultural history. The totem poles in Sitka National Historical Park come from coastal villages in Southeast Alaska. For a more challenging hike, a steep and partly difficult trail leads to Picnic Rock after at least half a day. From there, you can enjoy views over Sitka Sound and Silver Bay. The trail to Beaver Lake passes through a muskeg area by the lake and offers mountain and lake views. When choosing your accommodation and planning your days, you can therefore weigh up short, clearly defined trails against longer and more demanding excursions.
Museums and Russian-Indigenous History
The Sheldon Jackson Museum is Alaska’s oldest museum. During the Native Artist Residency, summer visitors can watch Indigenous artists from Alaska at work and talk with them. The Sitka History Museum has more than 8,000 three-dimensional artefacts and nearly 25,000 historic photographs.
The Russian Bishop’s House is one of the few surviving buildings from the Russian period in North America. Its first floor houses a museum with exhibitions on Russian exploration and settlement. Ranger-led tours are offered on the furnished second floor. Anyone interested in Sitka’s history can deliberately combine these sites with Sitka National Historical Park and the Totem Trail.
Marine Wildlife, Bears and Fishing Experiences
Wildlife can also be experienced in a variety of ways. At the Alaska Raptor Center, you can watch bald eagles regain their strength and practise flying before their release at the Suzanne and Walter Scott Flight Training Center. Fortress of the Bear offers indoor and outdoor areas from which rescued black and brown bears can be observed in naturalistic enclosures. The Molly O. Ahlgren Aquarium at the Sitka Sound Science Center features touch tanks with more than 200 local species.
Nature-guided boat tours depart from Sitka into Sitka Sound and along the remote outer coast. You may see humpback whales, sea otters, brown bears, Steller sea lions and puffins. Sitka also offers fishing charters and guided freshwater fishing excursions. Salmon, trout, char and steelhead trout are found in the freshwater.
The Right Base for Your Trip
A holiday apartment or holiday home in Sitka can be sensibly chosen according to your preferred travel pace. For days focused on culture, consider basing yourself near the downtown sights and museums. If hiking trails, coastal forest, waterways or wildlife viewing are the main focus, you should take your planned excursions into account when searching for a location.
For a broader overview, you can also open Sitka and then include your preferred holiday apartment in your travel planning.
For the higher-level travel overview: Alaska.
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