Even by inside passage standards Sitka is remote because, technically speaking, it’s not in the Inside Passage. Of all the south-eastern Alaska ports served by the Marine Highway and visited by cruise ships, only Sitka lies on the outside, facing the open Pacific.

Contemporary Sitka retains many of its past characteristics. This town of 8,800 still features a frenetic port, with a large commercial fishing fleet, hundreds of charter fishing boats, many private boats, and cruise ships visiting several times a week during the summer.

As you stroll around the perimeter, brace yourself for the staggering beauty of Sitka’s setting: mountains and forest to the north and east and islands and ocean to the south and west. The clustered part of town fans out a little beyond downtown, but the rest of Sitka, mostly residential, stretches out along the shore for several miles both east and wets.