2-Hour Wildlife and Culture small van Excursion in Ketchikan
Description
Enjoy a narrated small group island excursion where you will have a chance to watch for wildlife, and see the authentic art and culture of the area with a local guide. Stops may include: Herring Cove (the best place we can drive to for a chance to see wildlife) Salmon ladder (if visiting in spawning season) Totem heritage center (amazing art, and 200+ year old totem poles) A beautiful waterfall A drive through Saxman native village A popular local beach (if the tide is low enough)
Tour Options
Itinerary
Herring Cove is the best place we can drive to for the chance to spot some wildlife. Bears are very common there especially in salmon spawning season (mid July through late September) If any questions please call 9078218383 Bald eagles are extremely common there from May to August. There are many different bird species you can sometimes spot including Kingfishers, blue heron, steller blue jays, and ravens. other possible wildlife includes seals, salmon, Sitka blacktail deer, and otters.
We make this stop only during salmon spawning season, and you can see salmon jumping up the rapids, and swimming up the ladder. Customer service: 9078218383
Founded in 1976 the Totem Heritage Center contains amazing art, and 200+ year old totem poles. The Totem Heritage Center preserves the art of the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian peoples. The Center houses endangered 19th century totem poles retrieved from uninhabited Tlingit and Haida village sites. The Center contains 33 authentic poles, numerous historic artifacts, and Native art works.
We drive through a Tlingit town, known as Saxman. We will pass by totems, a clan house, and a totem carving center.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(97)
Tucker was awesome-shared a lot of information with us about the area and the local people and we ended up being a very small group...no cattle car feeling. 100% recommend!!
Tiffany was fantastic. This small group tour is worth every penny. We got to see eagles, black bears, black bears eating salmon, the salmon ladder, a waterfall, a totem heritage museum; could not have asked for more.
Very knowledgeable guide. Saw a bear briefly but he was catching salmon. The salmon ladders were amazing and all the salmon in the water trying to get upstream, an unbelievable sight. The waterfall from melted snow and the drop in temp nearby. It all was enjoyable. If you get the chance go you won't regret it
This excursion was not worth the cost. The guide was not informative or friendly. No over view of what the tour entailed. During the drive between stops he provided no information. Dead silence with the exception of the radio. There was an elderly woman in the group and the company provided no stool to get in and out of the van. The guide did not assistance or even ask if any individuals needed help. The tour was to include a stop at the beach. The guide stated on the way that we could not stop there because only locals can go on the weekend. He stated he would get fined if we stopped. Guides play a critical role in the success of the tour and this guide definitely missed the mark and did not do it justice.
Very good tour. And kind guide. However, it was very hard to understand him in the vehicle, as his base voice was extremely low and he was speaking very quickly. His microphone we felt was too close to his mouth. However, at the stops we made we had very good conversations with him, and he explained about salmon migration and their spawning very well. Even showing eggs prior to fertilization and after. We did not see a bear, but not without his many efforts to find one. A very good tour.
Tucker did a great job trying to fit in as much as he could. but we had already been to some of the places he was planning on taking us. He was extremely flexible and really tried to show us as much as he could. He was very knowledgeable about the area, and we saw star fish, jelly fish, sea anemones, bald eagles, different types of birds, ate salmon berries. No bears unfortunately.
PJ picked us up exactly as planned. The van was very clean and comfortable. We went straight to the bear watching area and saw 4 bears right away. We stayed there until the bears finally vanished from view. PJ then took us to a waterfall and to see the totems. We concluded at top of salmon ladder. PJ was bright, well informed, exceeded my expectations. Highly recommend
Straight forward with no problems A good guide tried hard to find is wildlife. Saw mother bear and cubs, eagles and eagle nest
Wow! Spectacular from start to finish. Tucker was the host with the most! Stop at Herring Cove where we missed a bear sighting by 15 minutes but saw 15-20 eagles fighting over fish! Saw waterfall and ate native berries right off the bush. Went to a beach where there were tide pools and held moon jellyfish, tiny crabs and saw starfish. Then to the Totem Heritage Center which was rich in history and very interesting. Finally he dropped off both parties where they wanted to go! Oh and did I mention snacks? Next time, I’ll time it better to see bear. It was an unusually hot & sunny week! Great guy & guide!
We were very disappointed as your review indicates our opportunity to see wildlife of all kinds…. For 2 hours we saw one small bird sitting in a tree and that was it…..!!!! No salmon in the River. No bears anywhere. No nothing … the only consolidation was our tour guide was very courteous and knowledgeable about the island that he was born and raised on. We could read all that in a brochure. I would not recommend to spend so much money with nothing to show. Thank you …. From Alberta, canada
