Category:	Tourism By Region
Title:	Ketchikan Visitors Bureau
Listing URL:	http://www.visit-ketchikan.com/
Description:	Ketchikan has been designated one of the “Top 100 Small Arts Communities in the United States” and hosts arts themed festivals and special events throughout the year. Ketchikan is home to a diverse population of artists who find inspiration in the scenic beauty, flora and fauna and the historic and cultural attributes of our town. Most local galleries are artist-owned. Art show openings are a monthly event. The Ketchikan Area Arts and Humanities Council serves as an umbrella organization for the Ketchikan arts scene by promoting arts and cultural groups, local artists, art education programs and hosting performances and art exhibits throughout the year. The Tongass Historical Museum’s comprehensive collection of artifacts, documents and photography provide the inspiration for historically themed exhibits each year. Especially popular are the museum’s invitational exhibits – residents share their own treasures based on a common theme, offering a unique glimpse into the people who make Ketchikan their home. The Totem Heritage Center’s collection of 19th century totem poles, rescued from abandoned native villages is listed on the National Historic Register. Up until the center was established in 1976 these cultural treasures would have been lost to natural deterioration. Today the poles are protected, and provide present day native artisans a chance to study the traditional art forms of the Northwest Coast native tribes in our area. Dolly’s House Museum on Creek Street provides a glimpse at the life of a working girl back when the Creek’s “red light district” was in full swing. Furnishings, clothing and special features in the house capture the spirit of the Creek. A variety of performances are scheduled throughout the year featuring local and visiting artists in music, dance and theatre. Workshops and lectures offer learning opportunities in traditional native and classical art forms, natural and local history and science. Native dance performances, film presentations like the award-winning “Mystical Southeast Alaska” and the home-grown melodrama “Fish Pirates Daughter” provide a glimpse of the culture and history of Ketchikan. The rich history and scenic beauty of Ketchikan lays the groundwork for visits to many interesting attractions. The heart of downtown is Ketchikan Creek; where the earliest visitors, Tlingit natives, set up summer fish camps along its shores. Ketchikan Creek’s shoreline bends and curves past Creek Street, a pedestrian thoroughfare consisting of wooden boardwalks. During prohibition and in later years, buildings on the street housed several bordellos. Today, restaurants, galleries and gift shops are popular stops for visitors. A funicular tram glides up the hillside offering a birds-eye view of the downtown area and arrives in the lobby of the Cape Fox Lodge Hotel and its impressive display of Alaskan Native artifacts. Outside the main entrance the Gathering of the Clans totem collection can be viewed, and there is easy access to the Ted Ferry Civic Center, a modern meetings and conventions facility with a dramatic backdrop of Deer Mountain. A walk through the forested path of the Married Man’s Trail will return you to Creek Street. Or follow Venetia Way to Park Avenue for a brief walk to the Deer Mountain Tribal Hatchery and Eagle Center and the Totem Heritage Center. At the mouth of the creek, The Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show showcases the skill of woodsmen competing against each other in events like log rolling and tree-climbing. Next door, the Southeast Alaska Discovery Center is an outstanding interpretive facility highlighting the commercial, recreational and cultural significance of the Tongass National Forest among Alaskans. South of town, the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary combines a walk through the rainforest and shoreline area with an overview of early timber operations in the area. Sister attraction, Alaska Canopy Tours, provides an exhilarating “zip line” tour through the tree tops of the forest. A few miles further south, the George Inlet Cannery provides a historical perspective on the fishing industry as visitors walk through the site’s original buildings and display of equipment used in the 1940s. Ketchikan features an enticing variety of restaurants from which to choose. Alaska is famous for fresh seafood such as salmon, halibut, crab, shrimp, oysters and clams. These delicacies are fresh from the icy cold waters of the Pacific Ocean. Enjoy our local favorites: creamy seafood chowders; crab and shrimp tossed into omelets, salads or sandwiches; salmon, cod or halibut smoked, sautéed, broiled, battered, baked in an elegant sauce; or in traditional fish and chips. Try a salmon burger or salmon jerky – deliciously different from the beef versions. Gather beach asparagus, berries, seaweed and Hudson’s Bay tea leaves – all traditional native foods. Rest assured that your hometown favorites, from hearty steaks to pizza, fast foods and country-style breakfasts are served in local eateries. Your favorite beverages are available too, whether you crave a latte (locally roasted coffees are featured) or are interested in trying an Alaskan brand brew. Choose from casual or formal dining in local restaurants, cafes, snack bars and dining rooms in area resorts and lodges. Or, plan a picnic by stopping at a deli for a savory meal to go. Inspiring glacial beauty Magnificent Misty Fiords National Monument is a pristine masterpiece. Its fjords were created by massive glacier action in the ice-rimmed wilderness. Here is one of the country’s greatest treasures and some of Alaska’s most spectacular scenery. Its 2.3 million acres include soaring cliffs, sawtooth ridges shrouded in mists, sky-blue lakes, hanging valleys, countless waterfalls, bottomless saltwater fjords, and miles of glaciers. And the monument is home to a multitude of wildlife. Misty Fjords’ roadless location is accessed only by floatplane or boat from Ketchikan. Cruise (2-3 hours one way), fly (35 minutes one way) or choose a cruise/fly combination. Excursion vessels will carry your kayak to and from Misty Fjords, where you can paddle the pristine waters from a campsite or one of the U.S. Forest Service Cabins. Cruise passengers can see old pictographs (native rock art) painted along the walls within the monument, drink from fjord waterfalls, enjoy relaxed cruising while watching for shoreside wildlife, and see famous New Eddystone Rock, a picturesque volcanic core. Floatplanes provide a bird’s-eye view of the entire locale and land on an alpine lake, so passengers can absorb the serenity and astonishing beauty.
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Link added:	Apr 2, 2007
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