Hoonah / Icy Strait Points of Interest

Right in the mid­dle of Hoonah is the tru­ly unique expe­ri­ence of see­ing local Tlin­git carvers at work and get­ting some insight into their cul­ture. Watch them carve totem poles and learn the pur­pose of these gor­geous works of art. You’ll also find many beau­ti­ful totem poles, as well as murals paint­ed by locals, all around Hoonah.

The ren­o­vat­ed, his­toric can­nery is the base for more than 20 local tours includ­ing bear-view­ing at near­by Spassky Creek, bird-watch­ing and guar­an­teed whale watch­ing. It also fea­tures restau­rants, a walk­ing trail, a can­nery muse­um and the world’s largest ZipRider.

Accord­ing to the Audubon Soci­ety, two of the most icon­ic and pho­to­genic birds of coastal Alas­ka — the belt­ed king­fish­er and great blue heron — are spot­ted fish­ing in this stream loca­tion. The bridge cross­ing Spass­ki is a good loca­tion to pull over and look.

Hoonah has a first-class har­bor, and guests can uti­lize the tran­sient dock in the inner har­bor or the city dock right down­town. You’ll find elec­tric­i­ty, fresh water, restrooms with show­ers, and Wi-Fi. If you’re boat­ing and need main­te­nance or repairs, you can take advan­tage of the tidal grid and dock­side hoist.

A nat­ur­al hot spring that is piped into an out­door hot tub acces­si­ble by a 0.2 mile board­walk that winds its way through a muskeg. It’s a nine-mile hike, bike ride or ski on a wide trail from Eight Fath­om Cab­in. Some vis­i­tors say the water is 5 – 7 degrees cool­er than the opti­mum of 102 degrees F., so go on a warm day.

Explore the gor­geous Ton­gass Nation­al For­est on more than 150 miles of old log­ging roads. Take advan­tage of all sorts of activ­i­ties like pic­nics, berry pick­ing, and hunt­ing (in sea­son). Pop­u­lar spots are Ken­nel Creek, Bear Paw Lake, and False Bay — home to a gor­geous beach that’s the per­fect spot for a bonfire.