Petersburg is a small fishing town in
the Southeastern region of Alaska.
Get in
By plane
• Alaska Airlines -
Providing two jet flights in per day.
• Various float plane and air charters also serve the area.
By boat
One of the charms of Petersburg is that it doesn't have a deep
water port, so it's not accessible by big cruise ships, but some smaller
ships stop there. The Alaska
Marine Highway provides regular ferry service.
Attractions
• Le Conte glacier. The southernmost tidewater glacier in the
northern hemisphere. The glacier moves extremely quickly, offering almost
continual calving, including underwater calving leading to "shooters" as
icebergs rise rapidly to the surface from the hundreds of feet of submerged
ice. Hundreds of harbor seals also inhabit the fjord created by the glacier;
closer to the face you're likely to see them lolling about on icebergs.
• Petersburg is located on the south end of Frederick Sound, where
many humpback whales summer, making this an ideal starting point for whale
watching. Although it's less comfortable to be out on the sound during
rougher weather, days with lots of waves are better for seeing aerial
displays.
• Clausen Memorial Museum
has local history exhibits.
Shopping
Because Petersburg doesn't have a deep water port it doesn't get
the large cruise ships, thus it isn't overrun with the large cruise line
operated tourist shops that plague many such coastal towns. There are a few
little locally owned galleries with local artists, and a bookstore with some
nice coffee table books, but most of the town actually exists for the local
population.
Lodging
• Morning Mist Bed and
Breakfast - The hosts, Mel and Sherry Stockton, are great hosts.
• Water's
Edge Bed and Breakfast - The host, Barry, is a very friendly person
and delightful host. |
|
Get around
There is a local taxi and some local shuttle services. The local roads
are also nice for bicycling, although the size of the island limits the
overall distance one can travel.
Activities
• Blind
River Rapids, mile 14.2 on Mitkof Highway. A boardwalk through the
muskeg to Blind Slough, where the salmon are numerous and other wildlife is
often visible.
• Behind the school there's a boardwalk through the muskeg (extremely soft
nutrient poor meadow) that's worth walking.
Dining
• Coastal Cold Storage
1-877-257- 4746 . Assorted fried seafood in a take-out ambiance, but the
real treats are the vacuum packed smoked fish in the cooler.

|