Saturday, September 29, 2012

North by Northwest

Juneau, Alaska
 
 
Last week, my Ramblin' Man traveled to Alaska on business and took some photos of his journey. In my last post, we explored Ketchikan.
 
Today we will explore Juneau.
 
Juneau is located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of S.E. Alaska and is only accessible by sea or air.
Juneau has been the capitol of Alaska since 1906.
 
 
Downtown Juneau, looking across the Gastineau Channel to Douglas Island
 
Juneau sits at sea level, nestled at the base of Mount Juneau and steep mountains of about 3,500 to 4,000 ft high. Atop these mountains is the Juneau Icefield, a large ice mass from which about 30 glaciers flow: two of these, the Mendenhall Glacier and the Lemon Creek Glacier are visible from the local road system.
 
Mendenhall Glacier - Juneau, Alaska
 
 
Juneau has a total area of 3,255 sq. miles making it the 3rd largest municipality in the US by area, with a population of about 31,000 people.
 
 
Major industries are Government, tourism, and fishing.
 
 
Juneau has an average low temperature in January of 21 degrees and an average high temperature in July of 65 degrees.
 
Rainfall annually is between 58"-90", depending on the location.
 
Spring is the driest and Fall is the wettest.
 
 
Juneau has Theater, Symphonies, Opera, and many Art Galleries.
 
 
Juneau is a major social center for the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples of S.E. Alaska.
 
 
 
Being so mountainous, there are no roads coming and in and out of Juneau, but plans are being made to build a road from Haines, Alaska, approximately 50 miles away.
 
 
Until then you have to take a high speed ferry, boat, sea plane, commercial airline or cruise ship.
 
In Alaska, the water is considered part of the highway system.
 
 
So what do you think? Would you live in a fabulous log cabin in Grizzly Bear country?
 
 
Or a fashionable apartment in the heart of Alaska's capital, going to the symphony and art galleries?
 
 
Or perhaps just a visitor, on a luxury cruise?
 
 
 
Just be sure to dodge the glaciers!
 


17 comments:

  1. I just love Alaska. I remember the glaciers quite well and also the 'mud flats' we used to see along the road when we traveled to Seward to go Salmon fishing.

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  2. I've just seen your dogs in the sidebar, how beautiful!

    Once again the photography on your blog is lovely, I really enjoy the stories behind them.

    Thank you for all of the sweet comments on my blog, I hope you carry on reading :)

    Have a great day!

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  3. Those glaciers are an incredible work of nature, aren't they. If I had my druthers, I'd live in the log cabin. You know my country proclivities, don't you, Karen? :)

    <3

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  4. More amazing photographs. The landscape is just stunning. I would love a cabin in the woods, but the grizzly bears are quite a thought. Whenever I hear the name Juneau, I think of being warned whenever we went to the Oregon coast, "Don't turn your back on the ocean". It's very wise advice, and in my mind it's always connected with Juneau. I think it's because my mother told me about the terrible earthquake in Juneau, and how the sea retreated, and everyone rushed forward to see the wonders uncovered - of course then there was a tidal wave. So my delight at being in the freezing waves was tempered by the idea that the sea might suddenly retreat, and I would know to run the other way.

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  5. Wow, what beauty there! The glacier is spectacular!

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  6. Dearest Karen,

    Again a very interesting and informative post about Alaska's Capital. Very different from other states and highly mountainous as shown on your husbands excellent photos.
    On Monday your angels ought to arrive...
    Hugs to you,
    Mariette

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  7. Alaska is so pretty and somewhere I'd like to see. My husband has been there a few times when he used to work for another company. I never would take a camera with him. Maybe one of these days we can afford an inside passage cruise to Alaska. That would be fun! Take care!

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  8. Great collection of photos. It's beatiful country.

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  9. that is a stunning nature you captured. But I´m not ready for winter just yet. :)

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  10. Visiting by way of Weekly Top Shot. Glad I dropped by and tour of Juneau. Beautiful scenery!

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  11. Hi Karen,

    This is one place on my list to visit. I'm sure you are happy to have your hubby back home. Gorgeous photos of those glaciers and the surrounding area. Everything looks so peaceful.

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  12. Thank you for sharing on Weekly Top Shot #50!

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  13. Wonderful landscapes, these pictures are beautiful.

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  14. Wonderful pictures! Thank you for the tour guide of Juneau.

    Cheers!

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  15. These are great photos from Alaska, Karen! Both my Father and Brother are Pilots for Alaska Airlines. As you can imagine, they have many flights in and out of these places so it's nice to see what they are up against! Have a great week!

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  16. Thank you for sharing a bit of Alaska with us. I know Alaska only from the TV series "Northern Exposure" and I always imagined it to be a kin to Canada's North.

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments are important to me and are very much appreciated. xx Karen

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