Explora Journeys in Icy Strait Point (Hoonah)

Icy Strait Point is a converted 1912 salmon cannery on Chichagof Island, the only Alaska Native-owned cruise port in the state, built and run by the Huna Tlingit of neighboring Hoonah. It earns the day on two counts: the waters off Point Adolphus hold one of Southeast Alaska's densest summer humpback populations, and the heritage here is the community's own rather than a staged version of it.

What to do on a day in Icy Strait Point (Hoonah)

• Whale watching out to Point Adolphus, where every tour since the port opened in 2004 has seen whales, backed by a full refund guarantee if you do not
• The ZipRider, six side-by-side ziplines running about 5,495 feet with a roughly 1,330-foot drop off Hoonah Mountain at speeds over 60 mph
• The SkyGlider gondola up Hoonah Mountain (about a seven-minute ride), with the one-mile Hidden Lake Loop Trail at the top
• The restored cannery buildings and their free heritage museum displays, plus Huna Tlingit dance performances
• Hoonah village, the largest Tlingit community in Southeast Alaska, about a 30-minute walk or short shuttle, for the local brewery and shops
• The free Transporter gondola linking the two cruise piers (Wilderness Landing and Ocean Landing) on a four-minute ride through the rainforest

Getting ashore

Ships dock directly at one of two piers, Wilderness Landing or Ocean Landing, joined by a half-mile walking trail and a free gondola, so there is no tendering and you step straight onto the property. One day covers either a wildlife tour or the adventure rides plus the cannery and a Hoonah walk, but not comfortably all of it.

When to book the ship's excursion vs your own →

Weather and when to visit

• May to June. Typical daytime temperatures around 50 to 60F (10 to 16C), cool and often damp, frequent light drizzle, dropping into the 40s overnight
• July to August. The mildest and busiest window, typically 55 to 65F (13 to 18C) by day; this is temperate rainforest, so expect sun, wind, and rain in the same day
• September. Cooling and wetter as the season ends, typically 50s F (10 to 15C), rain more persistent, fewer settled days