Welcome to Juneau and our first breathtaking ride in Alaska. The morning starts with a bike fitting & orientation and a final cup of coffee before setting off on our 42 mile pedal out of town.

Following Alaska Route 7, our ride takes us through the Tongass National Forest. At sixteen million acres, it’s America's largest forest preserve. Route 7, known as the “Glacier Highway,” provides views that will likely have you off the bike at regular intervals for photos. Route 7 consists of four unconnected sections running the entire length of the Inside Passage. We’ll rejoin Route 7 again in a few days just outside of Haines. As we cycle north, the road skirts Point Bridget State Park before reaching Echo Cove, the proverbial “end of the road,” at least for this section.

Tonight enjoy an evening in lively Juneau, a capital city unlike any other in America. Surrounded by spectacular scenery, famous for its welcoming attitude and recently hailed as one of America’s must-experience food scenes. As one critic noted, “When you eat here you learn about our history, our culture and what’s to come.”
Now you can experience it for yourself!

The Alaska Ferry is a vital cog in the Alaska Marine Highway System, connecting the remote areas of this enormous state. The ferries provide both a fun and ‘eco-friendly’ method of transporting us from Juneau to Haines. After an early breakfast we’ll board the morning departure and head further north.

Our Grasshopper tour leader is a professional naturalist and he’ll be with us on the outside decks to describe the incredible wildlife viewing. Dall’s porpoises are known to follow the vessels year-round, and migrating whales begin moving south in August. Bountiful nature is on full display during this exciting overwater journey.

On arrival in Haines we’ll check-in to our hotel, change into our bike gear and head out for a 22 mile ride to Chilkoot Lake. Surrounded by Sitka Spruce and towering mountains, the lake is one of the most picturesque in the region and a beautiful afternoon ride.

This morning’s ride takes us along the Chilkat River to the Tlingit village of Klukwan. The town's name, Klukwan, means "eternal village.” Unlike other Tlingit communities, Klukwan is governed exclusively by a traditional tribal council. This modest town has a small school, a health clinic open two days a week, a community garden, and a small grocery store. In 2017 the tribe celebrated the opening of a new Cultural Heritage Center with hopes of attracting tourists to support their community. Inside the center you’ll find colorful totems and traditional weavings on display.

After lunch we’re in for an unbelievable experience: floating through the world-famous Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, boasting the largest gathering of bald eagles anywhere in the world. This is a peaceful journey (no whitewater), and we’ll be on the lookout not only for eagles, but also for bears, moose, even wolves, all drawn to the preserve by the spawning salmon. Our day ends back in Haines with time for you to explore the small town’s big food reputation as you wish.

Commercial fishing started in Haines in the 1880s, and by the early 1900s several canneries lined the town’s waterfront. Our day starts with a harbor ride, cycling past the historic cannery row. Our route continues south along a small peninsula surrounded by deep channels and steeply rising mountains.

Haines is unique geographically, as several coastal mountain ranges converge in this area, providing views of both open waters and beautiful peaks. We’ll pedal to Chilkat State Park, as trails here offer us close-up views of two nearby glaciers: Rainbow and Davidson. A shaded forest hike leads to dramatic viewing points. We’ll enjoy a picnic lunch and then return to town with some free time to explore Haines this afternoon and evening.

This morning a private ferry takes us along the Taiya Inlet to Skagway, gateway to the Klondike. The name Skagway is a Tlingit idiom that refers to the rough seas of the inlet caused by strong north winds. Founded in 1897, a year after gold was first discovered near Dawson on the Yukon River, Skagway served as a base of operations for thousands of prospectors during the Klondike gold rush of 1897-98. For a while it was the largest city in Alaska.

Skagway today looks like a Hollywood movie set, only the history here was real. A ranger-led walking tour of the historic downtown will get us away from the tourist shops and offer an oral history of this remarkably resilient community. As the White Pass & Yukon Railway is closed this summer, after lunch we will drive to the top of the White Pass for a scenic downhill ride back to town.

An hour of biking this morning brings us to historic Dyea, once known as Skagway’s sister city. In 1897 Dyea boasted over 150 businesses, including the Olympic Hotel, a three-story structure billed as “the largest in Alaska.” Change came quickly though, with the building of the Whitehorse & Yukon Railway, and by 1903 the town was being abandoned.

After a picnic lunch we’ll hike a short section of the historic Chilkoot Trail, a route carved through a beautiful glacial valley by native tribes and used by miners to access the British Columbia goldfields. The trail is now part of Alaska’s U.S. National Historic Parks. Back in Skagway after a picnic lunch, there’s time to explore the downtown. Tonight we’ll have dinner in the private dining room of Skagway Brewing. We’ll meet the brewing team, sample their award-winning beers, and also tour their state-of-the-art indoor hydroponic gardens.

Early Skagway promoters planted big, showy gardens to impress tourists, naming the town "Garden City of Alaska." Jim and Charlotte Jewell revived this tradition using grounds originally planted by gold-rush stampeder Henry Clark in the 1880s. After breakfast we’ll visit the gardens to see some of Clark’s original plantings on beautiful grounds full of blooming flowers, Alaskan-sized vegetables, and inspiring glass garden installations.

If you’re joining our 2-day Tour Extension: Kayak the Mendenhall Glacier, we will be heading to the seaplane dock after lunch. For those not joining the extension, tour services conclude late morning with transfers available for seaplane departures and for the Alaska State Ferry south for Juneau.