Extended Weekend Getaways By Tracy Ellen Beard
Freelance Writer
Ketchikan is walkable, historic, surrounded by rainforest, and shaped by generations of fishermen, artists, entrepreneurs, and Alaska Natives who built a life where land and water meet. For an extended weekend escape, it’s an easy destination to settle into—and one that rewards travelers who enjoy wandering just as much as sightseeing.
Base Camp at Cape Fox Lodge
Base Camp at Cape Fox Lodge
My home base was Cape Fox Lodge, perched on a hillside overlooking town and the harbor. The lodge has the warmth of a traditional Alaskan retreat—wood interiors, inviting common spaces, and views that stretch across the water toward forested ridgelines. Mornings began with coffee in my room, followed by breakfast in the hotel restaurant, the Heen Kahidi Dining Room. Evenings ended with quiet dinners and the comfort of knowing everything I wanted to explore was just downhill from the lodge.
The Storied Boardwalk of Creek Street
Storied Boardwalk of Creek Street Photo by Tracy Ellen Beard
From the lodge, I took the funicular into town and straight onto Creek Street Boardwalk, one of Ketchikan’s most iconic landmarks. Built on pilings over Ketchikan Creek, the boardwalk curves along the water with brightly painted buildings perched above the rushing stream. Today it’s filled with galleries, shops, and cafés, but its past is far more colorful.
Interpretive signs along the boardwalk tell the story of Creek Street’s early days, when it served as Ketchikan’s red-light district during the town’s boom years. In the early 1900s, Ketchikan was Alaska’s first incorporated city and a bustling fish camp that attracted prospectors, fishermen, merchants, and fortune-seekers heading north. When city leaders tried to clean up the town in 1903, they pushed the bawdy houses out of the central district and onto Creek Street—creating what became the most famous red-light district in Alaska.
The Brazen Women Who Built a Waterfront Legacy
One sign, titled Bawdy Houses, Booze…and the Brazen Women of the North, explains how independent women ran successful businesses here for decades, navigating Prohibition, shifting laws, and a changing economy. Another, Historic Creek Street—Revitalized and Restored, maps the women who owned property here in 1927, their names lining the curve of the creek like a roll call of the pioneering, brazen women of the north.
One of the most well-known figures was Dolly Arthur, whose house still stands on the boardwalk. Built around 1905, Dolly’s House served as both her residence and place of business from 1919 through the 1940s. Dolly, whose given name was Thelma Copeland, worked across Southeast Alaska before settling on Creek Street. A sign outside her home shares her own words later in life: “I never had any trouble getting along with men.” The house was restored in 1976 and is now open to visitors.
The Tongass Historical Museum
Just beyond Creek Street, I stepped into the Tongass Historical Museum, a compact but thoughtfully curated space that tells the deeper story of Alaska’s First City. Exhibits trace the development of Ketchikan from a Native fishing ground to a global seafood powerhouse.
The “Salmon Capital of the World”
One display explains how Southeast Alaska is home to one of the most extensive breeding grounds for Pacific salmon. For generations, Tlingit people relied on the annual salmon runs up Ketchikan Creek, using spears, nets, and beach weirs that worked with the tides. Drying and smoking techniques ensured winter survival. By the late 1800s, commercial operations followed, with early salteries packing salmon in barrels for shipment hundreds of miles away.
Another exhibit details the cannery boom of the early 1900s. By 1930, Ketchikan was home to 13 canneries and cold storage facilities, earning it the title “Salmon Capital of the World.” The industry attracted a diverse workforce, including Native Alaskans and immigrants from China, Japan, and the Philippines who settled in the Stedman Street District. The museum also documents the controversial fish traps that once dominated Alaska’s fishing industry—so efficient that salmon runs declined by the 1940s. In 1959, one of the Alaska Legislature’s first acts after statehood was to ban fish traps entirely.
After lunch at 108 Tap House and Burger Bar, where I enjoyed a fresh, satisfying taco salad, I headed out for one of the most memorable experiences of the trip: a guided tour at the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary.
The Tongass Rainforest
The sanctuary sits within the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest in the United States, and offers a rare opportunity to walk through coastal rainforest while observing wildlife in its natural habitat. Our group of five followed a wooden boardwalk through towering spruce and hemlock, past moss-covered logs and fern-lined trails.
A Bear Encounter to Remember
Mama bear and cubs
Photo by Tracy Ellen Beard
We spotted bald eagles perched high in the trees, their white heads unmistakable against the dark canopy. Then, along the river, we saw our first bear—a young black bear moving cautiously through the grasses. Not long after, a massive male emerged from the trees across the creek. He lumbered along the beach and then crossed the water, surprisingly assertive, stopping just 30 or 40 feet from us on the raised boardwalk. Moments later, a mother bear appeared, followed closely by her twin cubs.
The cubs tumbled and chased one another along the shoreline while their mother kept watch. When the mother saw the big male, she crossed the creek upstream with her twins to avoid an encounter with him. We watched the bears for close to two hours. It was one of those times where conversation stops, and everyone simply watches. Seeing five bears in such close succession felt extraordinary—and watching their behavior unfold naturally made it even more special.
Seafood, Local Flavor, and Laid-Back Evenings
Annabelle’s Famous Keg & Chowder House
Back in town that evening, dinner at Annabelle’s Famous Keg & Chowder House delivered exactly what you want after a long day outdoors: hot fish and chips, crispy and golden, paired with a light and refreshing glass of white wine. Another night, I stayed close to “home” and enjoyed a tasty steak dinner with a glass of bold Cabernet Sauvignon at Heen Kahidi Dining Room at Cape Fox Lodge. I sat in the bar and spent a couple of hours chatting with a seasonal local. She spends 3-4 months in Ketchikan each summer, working several jobs, meeting people, and then moving elsewhere for winter work. This practice is common in the area, and during my extensive trip to Alaska, I met many people who live this lifestyle.
Before leaving Ketchikan, I wandered the city streets once more, stopping into Crazy Wolf Studio, where Tsimshian artist Ken Decker often works on traditional carvings and jewelry right in the shop. Watching him create was a reminder that Ketchikan isn’t just a historic town—it’s a living one, shaped by artists, fishermen, and storytellers who continue to carry its culture forward.
A Town Made for Wandering
Totem and carving at Tongass National Park Photo by Tracy Ellen Beard
Ketchikan is not a place you rush through. It’s meant for strolling boardwalks, reading plaques, watching boats come and go, and listening to the creek run beneath your feet. It’s a place to enjoy good seafood, quiet views, and the kind of wildlife encounters that stay with you long after you’ve returned home.
For travelers looking for a relaxing extended weekend with just the right balance of adventure and ease, Ketchikan delivers—with mountains on one side, the sea on the other, and stories everywhere in between.
