Almost everything you see from Ketchikan — the hills behind town, the islands across the water, Misty Fjords — is part of the Tongass National Forest. At nearly 17 million acres it is the largest national forest in the United States and holds the biggest expanse of temperate rainforest left on Earth. The Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, run by the US Forest Service a block from the cruise docks, is where that forest is explained.
It is a proper museum rather than an information counter: you enter past three totem poles in the lobby and walk through a re-created rainforest into galleries on Native traditions, ecosystems, fishing, logging and mining. It is one of Alaska’s public lands information centres, so rangers here can also help with trail conditions, cabin bookings and wildlife viewing across the region.
Top things to do: Southeast Alaska Discovery Center
The rainforest room
A walk-through reconstruction of the forest floor and canopy, with the sounds of the Tongass, explains how salmon, bears, eagles and giant trees depend on each other — and on the rain.
Native traditions gallery
A fish camp scene, carved poles, tools and recorded voices introduce the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian peoples of Southeast Alaska and their relationship with the land and sea.
Natural resources exhibits
Hands-on displays cover the industries that built the region — commercial fishing, timber, mining and tourism — and the arguments about how a public forest should be used.
Film and ranger desk
A short film on the region plays in the theatre, and the trip-planning desk has maps, tide tables and advice on trails such as Deer Mountain and Ward Lake.
How to get there
- Address: 50 Main Street, one block from the waterfront, next to the lumberjack show.
- On foot: about 5 minutes from Berths 1 and 2.
- Access: fully accessible, with lifts and toilets.
Insider tips
- A small admission fee has applied in the summer season, with free entry for children and for holders of US federal recreation passes; in winter entry has been free with shorter hours. Check current details.
- Allow 45 minutes to an hour. It is an ideal stop for a wet hour or before a forest excursion.
- Ask the rangers about recent bear and salmon activity — they hear the latest from the field.
- The bookshop is one of the best in town for natural history and Native culture titles.
- It is next door to the lumberjack show, so the two combine easily.
Best tours for this sight
These bookable Ketchikan excursions fit best with a visit to Southeast Alaska Discovery Center:
Guided tour from $129 Premium Rainforest Experience in Ketchikan
A guided tour from Ketchikan into the Tongass National Forest, visiting waterfalls and salmon spawning streams and watching for black bears, eagles and seals along the way. A compact way to see the forest without a long hike.
- Guided exploration of the Tongass National Forest
- Waterfalls and salmon spawning grounds
- Look for black bears, eagles and seals
Bike & hike from $164 Ketchikan: E-Bike and Hike Tour
Explore beyond town on an electric bike, then leave the saddle for a hike through the rainforest with local guides. The motor takes the sting out of the hills, snacks are included and reviews are consistently excellent.
- Guided e-bike ride through Alaskan scenery
- Rainforest hike with a local guide
- Snacks included
Adventure from $149 Ketchikan: Tongass Forest Alaska Bigfoot ATV Ride and Hike
Head into the Tongass National Forest by ATV and on foot with a guide who mixes natural history with light-hearted Bigfoot lore. Small groups and one of the highest guest ratings in Ketchikan.
- Guided ATV ride in the Tongass National Forest
- Short hike to look for local wildlife
- Tall tales of Bigfoot’s “stomping grounds”
