Ketchikan Rainforest Canoe and Nature Walk
Description
Explore Ketchikan the way the natives did on this rainforest canoe trip and nature walk. On this 3.5-hour Alaskan tour, paddle through a pristine lake in the Tongass National Forest while learning about Ketchikan's history and natural beauty from your expert guide. Take a short walk through the rainforest with your guide and learn about the forest's flora and fauna. Don't forget to keep your eyes out for native Alaskan wildlife!
Tour Options
Itinerary
During a stop ashore, your knowledgeable guide will lead a short nature walk highlighting the flora and fauna of the rainforest, including a carnivorous plant, the Sundew, which uses it’s tentacles to ensnare small insects. After paddling back, guests re-board the motorcoach and return to the cruise ship pier.
The adventure begins with a scenic motorcoach tour to a secluded mountain lake nestled within the Tongass National Forest. There, you will board an Alaska Native-style canoe and embark on your adventure. The 37-foot, traditional Alaskan canoes are fast, stable, and easy to maneuver. Paddle through lush rainforest under the direction of an experienced guide while scanning the shoreline of Lake Harriet Hunt for wildlife and discover the unique natural and cultural history of the area.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
**Ketchikan Meeting Place:** Please meet us by the RAIN GAUGE located outside on the north end of the visitor center building on the dock. If your ship is docked at The Mill at Ward Cove dock, please meet in the WELCOME CENTER building at the Tour Departure sign. - Take careful note of your tour departure time noted above and please be at the designated location 15 minutes prior to departure time. - **Local Phone Number:** (907) 247-5295 - When you arrive at the meeting area, look for the Alaska Travel Adventures tour representative. They will be wearing a red jacket/shirt and a red hat. Look for our distinctive Caribou logo. Have your tour voucher ready to show the representative so that they can direct you to the appropriate transportation.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Please indicate your ship or hotel name when booking your tour
- Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult
- Children must weigh at least 40 lbs (18 kg) in order to fit into required life jackets
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
- Children 13-17 must have a signed parental consent form to participate in the absence of a parent or guardian
Reviews(91)
Great communication and clear instructions on meeting area. Both the driver and guide were personable with great information about the history and interesting facts about the area. The clam chowder was a pleasant surprise after the initial paddle!!! Highly recommended excursion.
Our guide Josh was great. He did a wonderful job at explaining the science behind how nature functions. Our bus ride was a little bumpy but it got us there and back in one piece.
We had a wonderful time, our guide Carlie Lafever, was a hoot, lots of fun and great info on the nature walk. Carlie was very good getting 12 people working together to navigate the lake, make our stops and great exercise .The lake and scenery was beautiful. The homemade snacks were very good, we had seconds! LOL.
This was a great tour. Our tour guide Carlie made it a lot of fun. It was a very rainy and windy day but we got all geared up with a coat, paddle, and life jackets and loaded into a bright red canoe. Our guide did a great job to inform us how to paddle whilst teaching us about the history of the lake and such. You paddle out to an island and learn about plants and different things. Then we made a pit stop on the way back and they fed us chowder, salmon dip, crackers/bread, and had some hot drinks to warm us up on the rainy day. The nature walk was cool and informative. After the nature walk we loaded back up into the canoes and headed back to the dock where we started. Overall, a fun tour!
10 of us paddled a 20 person canoe. It was much more stable than a regular canoe. Our guide Keetan was very good. The hike is on a boardwalk and about 1 km long. That part was very easy. We had a wonderful snack of clam chowder, salmon and jam on bread. Very enjoyable
Enjoyed the canoe ride, it was actually fun but wished we had time while on the lake to take a photo, we had plenty of time to do this but kept paddling. Also the nature walk was too short. The food and drinks provided was delicious too. The lake was beautiful. The traveling guides were nice and helpful.
The tour we went on due to major inclement weather conditions should have been CANCELLED. The lake was full of white caps, wind was howling. I’m actually surprised that the tour which was booked via Royal Caribbean Cruise line continued by both the company and the cruise line. The nature walk was around 100 m long, the food supplied was pitiful with amounts, to the point that the groups were told to have two slices of bread each which would have been no more than 3-4 cm in length. Whilst the tour guides seemed to try their best out of all the tours we have done in Canada / States this by far has been the worst and not even comparable with other tours of similar pricing. I regret wasting my money on this tour and should have gone with another tour group. I am aware that weather in Alaska is temperamental but this tour proceeding on this date in my view bordered on negligence. I wish I didn’t waste my money on this tour
The natural beauty on this trip was incredible! Mike our tour guide was knowledgeable and entertaining. We had a great time.
Wow! What a great experience! First we took a fun bus ride through the wilderness to arrive at the lake. Our driver, Brian, gave us a great tour of Ketchikan. When we arrived at the beautiful lake, we got our life vests and boarded our canoe. Our adventure guide, Lillian, was about the coolest guide we’ve had in all of our Alaska adventures. She was knowledgeable, kind, and funny. At the cook camp, we had a delicious snack of bread with salmon spread, salmon chowder cooked over an open fire, coffee, and hot cocoa. We then continued on a short hike through the rain forest. Lillian taught us a lot about the forest plants and geology of the area. We loved our tour!
Was a fun little trip. The Gentleman that drive the bus was Great knew all about the area and town. Lily was our guide across the like, she was a lot of fun and knew the area. Lunch was authentic camping food. Nice easy walk through the rain forest.
