Shaped by the collision of two tectonic plates, the islands of the Southeast panhandle have proven too jagged and fractured for a road network. Most towns are situated along the sheltered Inside Passage waterway, so passenger ferries transport their boatloads between communities along this route, aka the Alaska Marine Highway. Sometimes cruising alongside glacial geology and lush rainforest on a ferry is nicer than zipping by scenery in a car.

What's the rush? Go microcosmic and investigate every shoreline nook and cranny by sea kayak. Tour the islets on a bicycle. Wait for a giant chunk of glacial ice to splash down in front of your tiny zodiac inflatable. If you really need more action than that, fly into Juneau (the state capital) and watch Alaska politics at work.

Alsek/Tatshenshini Rivers

The Last Wild Rivers
Looking for a wild river ride? The Alsek and the Tatshenshini Rivers are wild in the uncultivated sense — running unrestricted, untouched by mankind, through 160 miles of pristine wilderness.

Read The Last Wild Rivers

Running the Tat
Ride the Tatshenshini — the Alsek River's major tributary — with author Lisa Jones. There are no towns or roads alongside the Tat, but there are plenty of bears. . . .

Read Running the Tat

Glacier Bay

Kayaking Glacier Bay
Glacier Bay comes in at No. 4 on the GORP sea kayaking top ten. These two trips take paddlers up close to wildlife and through an area of rapid geologic change.

Read Kayaking Glacier Bay

Inside Passage

Riding Alaska's Marine Highway System
A sightseeing cruise or practical transportation? Ride the Marine Highway ferry through the Inside Passage and decide for yourself.

Read Riding Alaska's Marine Highway System

Frontier History

Klondike National Historic Park
Thousands of would-be prospectors took off for the Klondike in the late 1890s, stricken by gold rush fever. The bustling boomtowns have long since busted, but you'll find traces of the rush in historic Skagway and Dawson City.

Read Klondike NHP

Gulf of Alaska

Glacier's Retreat
One hundred years ago, Icy Bay did not exist — as glacial ice slowly melted from the fjords it occupied, this new inlet was revealed. Kayak through forty miles of undiscovered wilderness inside the infant bay.

Read Glacier's Retreat

National Parks & Preserves

Glacier Bay Wrangell-St. Elias

National Forests

Tongass

National Historical Parks
Klondike Gold Rush

National Monuments

Admiralty Island

Misty Fjords