Flying in Alaska

Misty Fjords, Alaska

 

I took these photos from a seaplane on a cruise to Alaska. The pictures on this page show the Misty Fjords National Monument, which is located in the Tongass National Forest in southeast Alaska. The forest covers nearly 17 million acres and makes up over 70 percent of the southeast Alaska panhandle. Be sure to see my other page of photos from the same Misty Fjords / Ketchikan area flight.

 

Misty Fjords (sometimes spelled Misty Fiords) itself covers 2.3 million acres, so it covers about one seventh of the Tongass National Forest. As you can see, the area is filled with trees, cliffs, waterfalls, and the name comes from the frequent cloud cover. It is also filled with wildlife, some of which we saw but aren't captured in these photos. Misty Fjords is said to have been created by fire and ice, a figurative way of saying volcanoes and glaciers.

 

If you are ever in Alaska, I can't recommend these sightseeing flights highly enough. They're offered from many cities, usually via seaplanes or helicopters, especially in areas where cruise ships frequently stop, such as Juneau and Ketchikan. As you would probably expect, the helicopter tours cost more than airplane flights. However, helicopters go places where seaplanes do not, and some helicopter tours offer experiences such as landing directly on a glacier. Some tours drop you off on a glacier and then pick you up later, so be nice to the pilot, especially on the first part of the flight!