Juneau

Juneau (JOO-noh) is the capital of Alaska, in the state's Southeastern region. Juneau is on the North American mainland and yet cannot be reached by land. Effectively, the rugged mountains surrounding it make Juneau into an island city, reachable only by air or by sea. Juneau experiences a daily influx of thousands of people from visiting cruise ships between May and September.

Understand
It has a population of about 32,000 (2019). The municipality of Juneau, with an area larger than Rhode Island and Delaware combined, is the second largest in area in the country. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-Alaska Territory was moved from Sitka. Alaska became a state 53 years later.

It is the only state capital that can not be reached by land from the state it serves. Moreover, Juneau is the largest US state capital in area and the only one that borders a foreign country. The economy is based on government, tourism, mining, and fishing.

One of the interesting things about Juneau and Alaska is the effect on public life of being such a geographically large state with an "island" state capital. The state legislature, for instance, takes telephone testimony during its committee hearings. They have a state-wide video conferencing system to facilitate government meetings and deliberations. There are more state employees in Anchorage (600 miles northwest) than in Juneau.

Geography and climate
The climate in Juneau and the southeast panhandle is best described as a "cooler, wetter version of Seattle." It is a mid-latitude oceanic climate in the southern sections and a subarctic oceanic climate in the northern parts. On an annual basis, this is both the wettest and warmest part of Alaska with milder temperatures in the winter and high precipitation throughout the year. Juneau averages over 50 inches (1,270 mm) of precipitation a year, while other areas receive over 275 inches (6,990 mm). This is also the only region in Alaska in which the average daytime high temperature is above freezing during the winter months.

Average annual rainfall ranges from 55 inches to over 90 inches (1400 to over 2300 mm) depending on location; annual average snowfall is 101 inches (257 cm).

The average high temperature in July is 65°F (18°C), and the average low temperature in January is 20°F (-4°C).

Tourist information

 * Travel Juneau website

Get in


Juneau is Alaska's capital and is on the mainland, but you can't get there by road or rail. Southeast Alaska is sandwiched between the rugged coastal mountain range and the Pacific Ocean. Constructing roads between many of the towns and cities of SE Alaska is prohibitively expensive and sometimes impossible. Only three towns (Haines, Hyder, and Skagway) in the SE Panhandle are connected by a roadway to the lower 48 states (often called "down south"). Access to the rest (including Juneau) is only possible by air or by sea.

By sea
Juneau is a main port for the, Alaska's ferry system. The ferry runs regularly throughout Southeast Alaska with regular stops in Ketchikan, Petersburg, Wrangel, Sitka, Haines, and Skagway. Small communities, such as Angoon, Hoonah, Tenakee Springs, Pelican, and Kake, get occasional AMHS service. The closest port with a road connection is Haines, about a five-hour ride away from Juneau by regular ferry or a two-hour ride on one of the state's new catamaran ferries. The ferry system is the only way to transport a car to Juneau, short of shipping it up on a barge. The ferry terminal is on the northern shores of Auke Bay at from Juneau on the Glacier Highway (Hwy 7).

Juneau is a major port of call for cruise ships plying the Inside Passage, which bring several thousand visitors almost every day between May and September. The cruise ships typically dock just south of downtown Juneau in the following docks, listed in order of distance from downtown Juneau, with nearby facilities: A typical summer day may have four or five cruise ships calling on Juneau, which could bring up to 10,000 visitors for the day. To plan your day, check the cruise ship schedule for Juneau.
 * Sea Drome Dock (SD) -- small ship
 * Alaska Steamship Dock (AS) -- large ship -- Library and parking garage
 * Cruiseship Terminal (CT) -- large ship -- Visitor Information Center (summer)
 * Intermediate Vessel Float (IVF) -- medium ship -- Mt. Roberts tram
 * South Franklin Street Dock (FKL) -- large ship
 * A J Dock (AJD) -- large ship -- the furthest dock sticking out into the harbor, 1 mile walk around the fuel depot or shuttle to CT and visitor information center

Juneau is also the Alaska home port for the luxury yachts of the UnCruise.

On foot
Downtown Juneau is compact and very walkable, though above 4th Street it gets very hilly. The downtown streets are on a slanted grid, with Franklin, Seward, and Main Sts running parallel, and with Front, First, Second, Third, Fourth, etc., cutting across. The State Capitol is at Fourth and Main, City Hall is at the foot of Seward and Marine Way, and touristy grazing is along Franklin. Watch for the 20 historical plaques that detail the fascinating history of Juneau.

By bus
The public Capital Transit provides daily bus service for downtown Juneau and vicinity and charges $2.00 for travel in one direction (Oct 2019). The Downtown Transit Center is on Main St and Front St, two blocks northwest of City Hall. Route 3/4 serves the Mendenhall Valley, but can get you no closer than about a mile to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center.

Capital Transit offers a Ride Free Zone that includes the Capitol, the Juneau-Douglas City Museum, the Dimond Courthouse, the hostel, and other locations at the top of the hill.

At the cruise ship docks, several bus services offer low-cost rides to the Mendenhall Glacier during the summer visitors season.
 * Mighty Great Trips "Blue Glacier Express" is a blue schoolbus that departs every 30 minutes, 9AM to 6:30PM on most summer days ($20 round trip).
 * Juneau Tours Glacier Shuttle runs from the cruise ships to the Mendenhall Glacier and back every 30 minutes on most days ($30 round trip).

By taxi
Taxis are an economical alternative. Taxi vans can carry up to 7 passengers and cost about the same as buses for 5 or more. Drivers who want to do tours can often be found in the taxi zones near the Mt. Roberts Tram or the Red Dog Saloon. Metered fares and charter rates are regulated by the city.

By car
Car rentals are available at the airport and are necessary if you wish to explore the surrounding areas, outside of town on your own. The following are the main roads through the area:
 * Alaska 7 shield.svg Egan Dr / Glacier Highway serves as the main highway through the area, spanning, between Thane and Point Bridget State park in the north. It goes from Thane into Juneau as Thane Rd and another  to its northern terminus at the southern shores of Berners Bay in Point Bridge State Park as Glacier Highway and through town as Egan Dr. It passes by the airport and the ferry terminal at Auke Bay.
 * Douglas-Juneau Bridge goes across Gastineau Channel between Juneau and Douglas Island. On the other side, the road goes around to the northwestern side of Douglas Island as Douglas Highway.

See




Do
The most popular activities in Juneau for visitors are shopping, flight seeing, charter fishing, visiting the Mendendhall Glacier, and hiking. Be aware that Juneau is very spread-out. It is broken into sections. There is "Downtown", and "The Valley" (where the Mendenhall Glacier, Mendenhall Mall, a skate park, and most of the residential are located). The distance between the two is a good 15 minutes.

Of the cruiseship tour options, an air tour leaves the biggest impression—especially if the weather is clear. Behind Juneau lies the Juneau Icefield. Helicopter and floatplane tours are available. The most popular floatplane tour is with Wings Airways to the Taku Lodge. Most of the helicopter tours include a stop landing on the glacier. Trips are fairly expensive (about $200 per person and up, depending on the length of the excursion), but a remarkable experience that many consider well worth the price. Alternatively, get a group together and charter a small airplane tour. These will generally be less expensive (you pay by the hour) and allows you to customize your experience. Ward Air is highly regarded, but Wings of Alaska and other carriers offer charter flights.

Be sure to go for a hike while in Juneau. There are over 90 hiking trails in the area (many very steep). A few lead to rental cabins available from the US Forest Service or State of Alaska parks. If you want a guide, Gastineau Guiding offers guided hikes on many popular trails and combines some hikes with whale watching or kayaking.


 * - located in Juneau
 * - located in Juneau

Buy
Juneau, like many towns dominated by the cruiseship industry, is ripe with jewelry, t-shirt, and trinket shops. On busy cruiseship days you can watch as thousands of cruisers in matching track outfits ply the shopping district to get trinkets for their grandchildren and jewelry for themselves.

There are a few locally owned stores that attract locals and tourists: look for a sign in shop windows that says "This store is owned by an Alaskan family."



Drink
By far the most popular with locals is the Alaskan Bar (South Franklin Street) to hang out with locals, listen to music (Thursday is open mic night) and drink an Alaskan (beer) with an Alaskan in the Alaskan. A bit rough looking but a great hangout.


 * Shuttle bus available from downtown, also reachable by public bus (Anka Street stop)
 * Shuttle bus available from downtown, also reachable by public bus (Anka Street stop)
 * Shuttle bus available from downtown, also reachable by public bus (Anka Street stop)
 * Shuttle bus available from downtown, also reachable by public bus (Anka Street stop)
 * Shuttle bus available from downtown, also reachable by public bus (Anka Street stop)

Respect
Juneau is in a temperate rain forest, so complaining about the rain will probably warrant a few eye rolls, or flat-out rudeness.

Go next


Juneau is a great place to base for a camping vacation or cruise tour. It's the gateway to the Admiralty Island National Monument and the Tracy Arm/Ford's Terror Wilderness Area. Both areas are popular with kayakers.


 * The U.S. Forest Service operates two campgrounds on the Juneau road system, one at Auke Bay Recreation Area at the site of Juneau's original Tlingit village, and one located on Mendenhall Lake near Mendenhall Glacier.
 * If you don't want to tent camp, there are a number of public use cabins in the Juneau area, some on trails accessible from the Juneau road system. Those located in state parks are operated by Alaska State Parks, and those located in Tongass National Forest are operated by the U.S. Forest Service.  They are often fully booked for weekends and holidays early in the year, but it's possible to find cabins available on weekdays.
 * Tracy Arm/Sawyer Glacier and Endicott Arm/Dawes Glacier are two spectacular deep-water fjords with active tidewater glaciers at their termini (Dawes, a compound glacier, is about 20 stories high and a mile across). The mouth of these sister fjords (Tracy is the north arm and Endicott the south arm) is about 50 miles south of Juneau, off Stephens Passage east of Admiralty Island, and both fjords/glaciers are accessible by cruise ship big and small.  Small vessel day cruises operate daily in the summer.