Most people visit Juneau, Alaska during summer cruise season. However, its winter climate is similar to Seattle, with milder temperatures than other parts of Alaska.

September and October are ther rainiest months. April, May and June are sunniest and June, July and August are warmest. In winter, you can downhill ski, heli-ski, cross-country ski and snowboard.

A tip for independent travelers: almost 900,000 people visited Juneau, Alaska by cruise ship in 2004. To find it less crowded, go between September and May.

Juneau has a mild, maritime climate. The mean annual temperature is 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Winter temperatures seldom drop below 20 degrees Fahrenheit and summer temperatures seldom exceed 65 degrees.

Abundant rainfall contributes to the growth of very large Sitka spruce and Western hemlock in the coastal forests and to abundant fish populations in local waters. Snowfall is heavy in most winters, averaging 101 inches. Statistically, June is the month with the least rainfall.

Juneau, Alaska does not have the “midnight sun” experienced further north in Alaska, but day length is much longer in the summer and much shorter in the winter than in the “Lower 48″ states. Long twilight makes the effective day length longer in summer and shorter in winter than the times shown in the table below.

In Alaska, municipalities are arranged into boroughs, a term which is roughly equivalent to “county” or “parish” in the rest of the country. Some boroughs are “unified” with city governments, meaning that there is only one level of administration.

The City of Juneau was incorporated as a home-rule city shortly after statehood in 1960, and the Greater Juneau Borough was incorporated as a first class borough in 1963. The two government structures were unified in 1970.

Juneau County, Wisconsin was established in 1857 when the State of Wisconsin passed legislation separating lands west of the Wisconsin River from what was then Adams County. After a contest with neighboring New Lisbon, the county seat was established in Maugh’s Town, which is known today as Mauston.

The county was named after Solomon Juneau, a Milwaukee legislator who influenced the legislation establishing Juneau County. The county board of early Juneau County convened only once a year to conduct the business of the slow moving, remote county. (more…)

As of the 2000 censusGR2, there were 30,700 people, 11,500 households, and 7,600 families residing in Juneau. The population density was 4.4/km² (11.3/mi²). There were 12,300 housing units at an average density of 1.7/km² (4.5/mi²).

By race Juneau was 75% white, 11% Native American, 5% Asian, 0.8% black, 0.4% Pacific Islander, and 3% Hispanic or Latino of any race. One percent belonged to other races, and 7% to two or more races. 2.61% reported speaking Tagalog at home, while 2.38% speak Spanish and 1.07% Tlingit.

There were 11,500 households out of which 37% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51% were married couples living together, 11% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34% were non-families. 24% of all households were made up of individuals and 4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.6 and the average family size was 3.1. (more…)

You might know that Juneau has no roads coming into town. Juneau is easily physically accessible via sea or air. The State-owned ferry is called the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) to indicate that water is a transportation system. Nearly one million passengers arrive each summer on cruise ships. About 40 miles of paved road provide local transportation only. Juneau residents own more vehicles than there are people; many here also own light planes, floatplanes, and boats. Local government operates Capital Transit, a bus service; several taxicab companies provide service.

Tour buses also take many cruise ship visitors to local sights and excursions. Alaska Airlines is now the only commercial jet passenger operator here (Western, successor Delta, and start-up Mark Air no longer providing service here), with service to Anchorage, Fairbanks, and most Alaskan communities over 3,000 population and to Seattle and beyond. Barge lines (Alaska Marine Lines, etc.) transport heavy freight; some freight also arrives via AMHS ferries or by jet.

Different jet carriers provide U.S. mail service. Some (relatively few) Juneauites bicycle to work even in inclement weather; many walk, hike, or ride bikes for sport or exercise. Local government did conduct a study to make it a more walk able community; many residents still use cars or pick-ups; four-wheel and front-wheel drives are popular, especially in winter weather. There are several motorcycle clubs.

Islands, waterways, avalanche hazards, steep slopes, extreme weather, wilderness and environmental protection concerns often make road construction and maintenance here difficult, costly, and sometimes impractical; these reasons explain why Juneau’s road system remains separate from the continental road network, except via AMHS ships. The State of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities by press release of August 10, 2005, announced a partial road and fast ferry connection — East Lynn Canal Highway to the Katzehin River with shuttles to Haines and Skagway. (more…)

Long before European settlement in the Americas, the Gastineau Channel was a favorite fishing ground for local Tlingit Indians, known then as the Auke and Taku tribes, who had inhabited the surrounding area for thousands of years. The native cultures are rich with artistic traditions including carving, weaving, orating, singing and dancing, and Juneau has become a major social center for the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian of Southeast Alaska.

In 1880, Sitka mining engineer George Pilz offered a reward to any local chief who could lead him to gold-bearing ore. Chief Kowee arrived with some ore and several prospectors were sent to investigate. On their first trip, to Gold Creek, they found little deposits of interest. However, at Chief Kowee’s urging Pilz sent Joe Juneau and Richard Harris back to the Gastineau Channel, directing them to Snow Slide Gulch (the head of Gold Creek) where they found nuggets “as large as peas and beans,” in Harris’ words.

On October 18, 1880, the two men marked a 160-acre (0.6 km²) town site where soon a mining camp appeared. Within a year, the camp became a small town, the first to be founded after Alaska’s purchase by the United States. The town was originally called Harrisburg, after Richard Harris; some time later, its name was changed to Rockwell. In 1881, the miners met and renamed the town Juneau, after Joe Juneau. In 1906, after the diminution of the whaling and fur trade, Sitka, the original capital of Alaska, declined in importance and the seat of government was moved to Juneau.

Originally fishing grounds for local Tlingit Indians, the Gastineau Channel area became a focus of attention in the late 1800 ’s when a Tlingit named Kowee of the Auk Tlingit Tribe provided gold ore samples in response to a reward offered by George Pilz, a Sitka engineer. Pilz grubstaked prospectors Richard Harris and Joseph Juneau in August 1880. They found plenty of color in Gold Creek, but did not follow the gold to its source. At Kowee’s urging, Pilz sent the pair back again. Harris and Juneau climbed Snow Slide Gulch at the head of Gold Creek and looked down into the mother lode of Quartz Gulch and Silver Bow Basin.
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Juneau, the capital of Alaska, bursts during the summer with hundreds of thousands of cruise-ship passengers. Twelve decades ago, the young city was swamped with prospectors. Juneau is the place to let your imagination run wild. Explore the lush Tongass National Forest. Visit the rustic shops in town. Or get out and kayak, dogsled, raft, whale watch, flight see or fish.

There’s no end to the adventure because we’re in port long enough to truly take advantage of the long daylight hours. The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel on the Alexander Archipelago of Alaska. Juneau is the capital of the U.S. state of Alaska. The municipality unified in 1970 when the City of Juneau merged with the City of Douglas and the surrounding borough to form the current home rule municipality.

The area of Juneau is larger than that of Rhode Island, Delaware, or Connecticut and almost as large as Connecticut and Rhode Island combined. Juneau is nestled at the base of Mount Juneau and across the channel from Douglas Island. As of the 2000 census, the City and Borough had a population of 30,711. The U.S. Census Bureau’s 2005 population estimate for the City and Borough was 30, 987. Juneau’s only power utility is Alaska Electric Light & Power. (more…)

MACS provides local bus transportation in the Fairbanks area Monday to Friday, with limited services on Saturday. Transit Park, on the corner of Cushman St and 5th Ave, is the central terminal for the system. All buses pass through here.

For two or three travelers, a used-car rental is the cheapest way of getting around the city and into outlying areas such as Chena Hot Springs. What many car rental agencies won’t let you do, however, is drive the rough Steese, Elliott or Dalton Hwys to visit such places as the Circle or Manley Hot Springs. If that’s your destination, look around for an agency that lists ‘gravel road permission’.

Like so many other towns, Fairbanks is well on its way to putting together a fine network of bike routes in and around the city. Bike paths begin at 1st Ave and Cushman St and extend all the way past Pioneer Park, across the Chena River and to UAF and Parks Hwy. There are several companies that rent both road and mountain bikes. (more…)

Access by air: Multiple domestic flights arrive in Fairbanks daily. Alaska Airlines is the carrier with the most frequent flights to Fairbanks. Northwest Airlines provides flights to Fairbanks on a seasonal basis, beginning in the late spring and completing their runs in the autumn.

Fairbanks’ close proximity to Europe makes the once-weekly eight-hour flight in the summer months from Frankfurt, Germany on Thomas Cook/Condor Airlines a pleasure. Locals take advantage of this close relationship and fill the seats going the opposite direction.

Fairbanks is also served by a dedicated group of smaller commuter airlines, many of which fly to remote communities that cannot otherwise be reached by road. This robust service makes Fairbanks the ideal spot from which to explore rural Alaska.

Access by rail: If you are looking for a more scenic, leisurely experience, consider taking the Alaska Railroad to Fairbanks. As the northern terminus of the Alaska Railroad, Fairbanks enjoys daily service to and from southern stops such as Denali National Park, Anchorage and the other communities along the way. (more…)

Fairbanks is located at 64.837780° North, -147.71639° West (Sec. 10, T001S, R001W, Fairbanks Meridian)GR1. Fairbanks is located in the Fairbanks Recording District. Fairbanks is located in the heart of Alaska’s Interior, on both shores of the Chena River, near its confluence with the Tanana River in the Tanana Valley. By air, Fairbanks is 45 minutes from Anchorage and 3 hours from Seattle. It lies 358 road miles (576 km) north of Anchorage. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 84.6 km² (32.7 mi²). 82.5 km² (31.9 mi²) of it is land and 2.1 km² (0.8 mi²) of it (2.48%) is water.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB), a local government unit similar to a county, covers 7,361 square miles and has 82,840 residents. Within the Borough are two cities, Fairbanks and North Pole as well as several unincorporated communities. The Tanana Valley surrounds Fairbanks at an elevation of 436 feet above sea level and rises east to about 2,000 feet at the Canadian border. Fairbanks has stunning views of the Alaska Range to the south, including Mt. McKinley, and the White Mountains to the north. By air, Fairbanks is approximately three and a half hours north of Seattle and fifty minutes from Anchorage, Alaska’s largest city.

The Borough is also the northern terminus of the Alaska Railroad with access to the ports of Seward, Whittier and Anchorage. Other than the Glenn and Sterling Highways, all major Alaskan highways meet at or near Fairbanks. FSNB’s location in Alaska, along the transpolar air routes (64º50′ latitude, about the same as Oslo, Norway) makes it logistically attractive to air cargo airlines and the military; by air Fairbanks is less than nine hours from both Europe and Asia.