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The Alaska Panhandle, sometimes referred to as Southeast Alaska, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of Alaska
Alaska

Alaska is the largest U.S. state of the United States by area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait....
, which lies just west of the northern half of the Canadian province
Provinces and territories of Canada

The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the List of countries and outlying territories by total area. The major difference between a Canada province and a territory is that a province receives its power and authority directly from the Monarchy in Canada, via the Constitution Act, 1867, whereas territories derive their manda...
 of British Columbia
British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
. The majority of the panhandle's area is part of the Tongass National Forest
Tongass National Forest

At 17 million acres , the Tongass National Forest in southeastern Alaska is the largest List of U.S. National Forests in the United States. It is a temperate rain forest within the Pacific temperate rain forest zone, and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna....
, the United States' largest national forest. In many places, the international border
International Border

The India?Pakistan Border, known locally as the International Border , is the international boundary between India and Pakistan that demarcates the Indian States and territories of India of Punjab , Rajasthan and Gujarat from the Pakistani Subdivisions of Pakistan of Punjab and Sindh....
 runs along the crest of the Boundary Ranges
Boundary Ranges

The Boundary Ranges, also known in the singular and as the Alaska Boundary Range, are the largest and most northerly subrange of the Coast Mountains....
 of the Coast Mountains
Coast Mountains

The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the British Columbia Coast....
 (see Alaska boundary dispute
Alaska Boundary Dispute

The Alaska Boundary Dispute was a territorial dispute between the United States and Canada , and at a subnational level between Alaska on the U.S....
).

Alaska Panhandle is the northern terminus of the Inside Passage
Inside Passage

The Inside Passage of the Alaska Panhandle and coastal British Columbia is a coastal route for oceangoing vessels along a series of passages between the mainland and the coastal islands....
, a protected waterway of convoluted passages between islands and fjords, beginning in Puget Sound
Puget Sound

Puget Sound is an inland marine complex of waterways from the Pacific Ocean, connected to the rest of the Pacific by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, in the Pacific Northwest of the United States....
 in Washington state
Washington State

Washington State may refer to:* The state of Washington* Washington State University, a land-grant college in that state....
.






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The Alaska Panhandle, sometimes referred to as Southeast Alaska, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of Alaska
Alaska

Alaska is the largest U.S. state of the United States by area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait....
, which lies just west of the northern half of the Canadian province
Provinces and territories of Canada

The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the List of countries and outlying territories by total area. The major difference between a Canada province and a territory is that a province receives its power and authority directly from the Monarchy in Canada, via the Constitution Act, 1867, whereas territories derive their manda...
 of British Columbia
British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
. The majority of the panhandle's area is part of the Tongass National Forest
Tongass National Forest

At 17 million acres , the Tongass National Forest in southeastern Alaska is the largest List of U.S. National Forests in the United States. It is a temperate rain forest within the Pacific temperate rain forest zone, and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna....
, the United States' largest national forest. In many places, the international border
International Border

The India?Pakistan Border, known locally as the International Border , is the international boundary between India and Pakistan that demarcates the Indian States and territories of India of Punjab , Rajasthan and Gujarat from the Pakistani Subdivisions of Pakistan of Punjab and Sindh....
 runs along the crest of the Boundary Ranges
Boundary Ranges

The Boundary Ranges, also known in the singular and as the Alaska Boundary Range, are the largest and most northerly subrange of the Coast Mountains....
 of the Coast Mountains
Coast Mountains

The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the British Columbia Coast....
 (see Alaska boundary dispute
Alaska Boundary Dispute

The Alaska Boundary Dispute was a territorial dispute between the United States and Canada , and at a subnational level between Alaska on the U.S....
).

Geography

The Alaska Panhandle is the northern terminus of the Inside Passage
Inside Passage

The Inside Passage of the Alaska Panhandle and coastal British Columbia is a coastal route for oceangoing vessels along a series of passages between the mainland and the coastal islands....
, a protected waterway of convoluted passages between islands and fjords, beginning in Puget Sound
Puget Sound

Puget Sound is an inland marine complex of waterways from the Pacific Ocean, connected to the rest of the Pacific by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, in the Pacific Northwest of the United States....
 in Washington state
Washington State

Washington State may refer to:* The state of Washington* Washington State University, a land-grant college in that state....
. This was an important travel corridor for native canoeists, as well as gold-rush steam ships, and in modern times is an important route for ferries and cruise ships. The Panhandle
Panhandle

A panhandle or salient is an informal Political geography term for an elongated tail-like protrusion of a geo-political entity, such as an administrative division or a Sovereignty state that extends into another such entity as a peninsula extends into the water body....
 has a land area of 91,008.18 km2 (35,138.46 square miles), comprised of six entire borough
County-equivalent

A county-equivalent in the United States is a term used by the federal government to describe one of the two following U.S. state subdivisions:...
s and three census areas, in addition to the part of Yakutat Borough
Yakutat City and Borough, Alaska

Yakutat City and Borough is a unified city-Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the United States Census, 2000, the population was 808....
 lying east of 141° West
141st meridian west

The meridian 141? west of Prime Meridian is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
 longitude. Although it has only 6.14 percent of Alaska's land area, it is larger than the state of Maine
Maine

The State of Maine is a U.S. state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast....
, and almost as large as the state of Indiana
Indiana

The State of Indiana was the 19th U.S. state admitted into the union. It is located in the Midwestern United States of the United States of America....
. The 2000 census
United States Census, 2000

File:US-Census-2000Logo.svgThe Twenty-Second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the United States Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons Enumeration during the United States Census, 1990....
 population of the Panhandle was 72,954 inhabitants, about 42 percent of whom were concentrated in the city of Juneau.
  • Haines Borough
    Haines Borough, Alaska

    Haines Borough is a home rule Borough located in the U.S. state of Alaska, United States. According to United States Census Bureau estimates for 2006, the population was 2,257....
  • Hoonah-Angoon Census Area
  • Juneau Borough
  • Ketchikan Gateway Borough
    Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska

    Ketchikan Gateway Borough is a Borough located in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the United States Census 2000, the population was 14,070. The borough seat is Ketchikan, Alaska....
  • Petersburg Census Area
  • Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area
  • Sitka Borough
    Sitka City and Borough, Alaska

    The City and Borough of Sitka is a unified city-Borough located on the west side of Baranof Island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean , in the U.S....
  • Skagway Borough
    Skagway, Alaska

    Skagway is a first-class borough in Alaska, on the Alaska Panhandle. It was formerly a city first incorporated in 1900 that was re-incorporated as a borough on June 25, 2007....
  • Wrangell Borough
    Wrangell, Alaska

    Wrangell is a city and List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 2,308....
  • Yakutat Borough
    Yakutat City and Borough, Alaska

    Yakutat City and Borough is a unified city-Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the United States Census, 2000, the population was 808....
     (the part east of 141° W
    141st meridian west

    The meridian 141? west of Prime Meridian is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole....
      longitude; 12,506.53 kmē, or about 63.12 percent of the borough)
It includes the Tongass National Forest
Tongass National Forest

At 17 million acres , the Tongass National Forest in southeastern Alaska is the largest List of U.S. National Forests in the United States. It is a temperate rain forest within the Pacific temperate rain forest zone, and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna....
, Glacier Bay National Park, Admiralty Island National Monument
Admiralty Island National Monument

Admiralty Island National Monument is located on Admiralty Island in Southeast Alaska. It was created December 1, 1978, and covers 955,747 acres of Tongass National Forest in the Alaska Panhandle of southeast Alaska....
, Misty Fjords National Monument
Misty Fjords National Monument

Misty Fjords National Monument was created December 1, 1978, and covers 2,294,343 acres of Tongass National Forest in the Alaska Panhandle of southeast Alaska....
, Alaska's Inside Passage, and myriad large and small islands. The largest islands are, from North to South, Chichagof Island
Chichagof Island

Chichagof Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Alaska Panhandle. At long and wide, it has a land area of , making it the List of islands of the United States by area and the List of islands by area....
, Admiralty Island
Admiralty Island

Admiralty Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in Alaska Panhandle, at . It is 145 km  long and 56 km  wide with an area of 4,264.1 km? , making it the List of islands of the United...
, Baranof Island
Baranof Island

Baranof Island, also sometimes called Baranov Island or Sitka Island, is an island in the northern Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle, in Alaska....
, Kupreanof Island
Kupreanof Island

Kupreanof Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska at . The island is 84 km long and 32 km wide with a total land area is 2,802.84 km? , making it the List of islands of the United States by area and the List of islands by area....
, Revillagigedo Island
Revillagigedo Island

Revillagigedo Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska of the Alaska Panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska....
 and Prince of Wales Island. Major bodies of water of the Alaska Panhandle include Glacier Bay
Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay is a bay in south-eastern Alaska, United States. It runs north northwest to south south-east for about 105 km between two pinchets of Alaska....
, Lynn Canal
Lynn Canal

The Lynn Canal is an inlet into the mainland of southeast Alaska.The Lynn Canal runs about 90 miles from the inlets of the Chilkat River south to Chatham Strait and Stephens Passage....
, Icy Strait
Icy Strait

The Icy Strait is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska, at about . The strait separates Chichagof Island to the south and the Alaska mainland to the north....
, Chatham Strait
Chatham Strait

Chatham Strait is a narrow passage of the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It separates Chichagof Island and Baranof Island to its west from Admiralty Island and Kuiu Island on its east....
, Stephens Passage
Stephens Passage

Stephens Passage is a channel in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It runs between Admiralty Island to the west and the Alaska mainland to the east, and is about 170 km long....
, Frederick Sound
Frederick Sound

Frederick Sound is a passage of water in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska that separates Kupreanof Island to the south from Admiralty Island in the north....
, Sumner Strait
Sumner Strait

Sumner Strait is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is about long and wide, extending from the mouth of the Stikine River to Iphigenia Bay on the Gulf of Alaska, separating Mitkof Island, Kupreanof Island, and Kuiu Island on the north from Zarembo Island and Prince of Wales Island o...
, and Clarence Strait
Clarence Strait

Clarence Strait, originally Duke of Clarence Strait, is a strait in southeastern Alaska, in the United States in the Alexander Archipelago....
.

On August 20, 1902, President
President of the United States

The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition....
 Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt , also known as T.R., and to the public as Teddy, was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States....
 established the Alexander Archipelago Forest Reserve, which formed the heart of the Tongass
Tongass National Forest

At 17 million acres , the Tongass National Forest in southeastern Alaska is the largest List of U.S. National Forests in the United States. It is a temperate rain forest within the Pacific temperate rain forest zone, and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna....
 National Forest that covers most of the region.

National Parks and Monuments

  • Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
    Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve

    The area around Glacier Bay in southeastern Alaska was first proclaimed a U.S. National Monument on February 25, 1925. It was changed to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act....
  • Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
    Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

    Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park commemorating the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 1890s....
  • Sitka National Historical Park
    Sitka National Historical Park

    Sitka National Historical Park is a National Historical Park in Sitka City and Borough, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. It was established on October 18, 1972 "...to commemorate the Tlingit and Russian experiences in Alaska."...
  • Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve
    Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve

    Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve is a United States national park in southern Alaska. It was established in 1980 by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act....
     (part, the southeasternmost section only)
  • Admiralty Island National Monument
    Admiralty Island National Monument

    Admiralty Island National Monument is located on Admiralty Island in Southeast Alaska. It was created December 1, 1978, and covers 955,747 acres of Tongass National Forest in the Alaska Panhandle of southeast Alaska....
  • Misty Fjords National Monument
    Misty Fjords National Monument

    Misty Fjords National Monument was created December 1, 1978, and covers 2,294,343 acres of Tongass National Forest in the Alaska Panhandle of southeast Alaska....


Ecology

Southeast Alaska is a temperate rain forest
Temperate rain forest

Temperate rainforests are coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive high rainfall....
 within the Pacific temperate rain forest zone, which extends from northern California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
 to Prince William Sound
Prince William Sound

Prince William Sound is a Sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula....
. The most common tree species are sitka spruce
Sitka Spruce

The Sitka Spruce is a large coniferous evergreen tree growing to 50?70 m tall, exceptionally to 100 m tall, and with a trunk diameter of up to 5 m, exceptionally to 6?7 m diameter....
 and western hemlock
Western Hemlock

Tsuga heterophylla is a species of Tsuga native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma County, California, California....
 Wildlife includes brown bear
Brown Bear

The Brown Bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It weighs 100 to 700 kg and its larger populations such as the Kodiak bear match the Polar bear as the largest extant land predator....
s, black bears
American black bear

The American Black Bear is the most common bear species native to North America. It lives throughout much of the continent, from northern Alaska south into Mexico and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean....
, wolves, Sitka deer
Sitka Deer

The Sitka Deer or Sitka Black-tailed Deer , is a subspecies of Black-tailed Deer, sometimes referred to as the Mule Deer. Their name originates from Sitka, Alaska, Alaska....
, humpback whale
Humpback Whale

The humpback whale is a Baleen whale whale. One of the larger rorqual species, adults range in length from 12–16 metres and weigh approximately 36,000 kilograms ....
s, orca
Orca

The Killer Whale or Orca , less commonly, Blackfish or Seawolf, is the largest species of the dolphin family. It is found in all the world's oceans, from the frigid Arctic and Antarctica regions to warm, tropical seas....
s, five species of salmon
Salmon

Salmon is the common name for several species of fish of the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the family are called trout,the difference is often attributed to the migratory life of the salmon as compared to the residential behaviour of trout, this holds true for the Atlantic salmon....
, bald eagle
Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America that is most recognizable as the List of national birds and national symbol of the United States....
s, harlequin duck
Harlequin Duck

The Harlequin Duck, Histrionicus histrionicus, is a small Merginae. In North America it is also known as Lords and ladies. Other names include painted duck, totem pole duck, rock duck, glacier duck, mountain duck, white-eyed diver, squeaker and blue streak....
s, scoter
Scoter

The scoters are stocky seaducks in the genus Melanitta. The drakes are mostly black and have swollen bills. Females are brown.They breed in the far north of Europe, Asia and North America, and bird migration further south in temperate zones of those continents....
s, and marbled murrelet
Marbled Murrelet

The Marbled Murrelet is a small seabird from the North Pacific. It is a member of the auk family. It nests in old-growth forests or on the ground at higher latitudes where trees cannot grow....
s.

Cities and towns

Major cities are Juneau, Sitka
Sitka City and Borough, Alaska

The City and Borough of Sitka is a unified city-Borough located on the west side of Baranof Island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean , in the U.S....
, and Ketchikan
Ketchikan, Alaska

Ketchikan is a city in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, Alaska, United States, and the southeasternmost sizable city in that state. With an estimated population of 7,368 in 2007, it is the fifth most populous city in the state....
. Other towns are Petersburg
Petersburg, Alaska

Petersburg is a city in Petersburg Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, in the United States. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 3,010....
, Wrangell
Wrangell, Alaska

Wrangell is a city and List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 2,308....
, Metlakatla
Metlakatla, Alaska

Metlakatla is a census-designated place on Annette Island in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 1,375....
, Haines
Haines, Alaska

Haines is a census-designated place in Haines Borough, Alaska, Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the population of the area was 1,811....
, Hoonah
Hoonah, Alaska

Hoonah is a city on Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 860....
, Angoon
Angoon, Alaska

Angoon is a city on Admiralty Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 572....
, Kake
Kake, Alaska

Kake is a town in Petersburg Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. The population was 710 at the United States Census, 2000. The name comes from the Tlingit language word ....
, Craig
Craig, Alaska

Craig is a first-class city in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska in the Unorganized Borough, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 1,397 at the United States Census, 2000....
, Klawock
Klawock, Alaska

Klawock is a city in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, in the U.S. state of Alaska, on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island , on Klawock Inlet, across from Klawock Island....
, Yakutat, Skagway
Skagway, Alaska

Skagway is a first-class borough in Alaska, on the Alaska Panhandle. It was formerly a city first incorporated in 1900 that was re-incorporated as a borough on June 25, 2007....
, and Gustavus
Gustavus, Alaska

Gustavus is a city in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the United States Census, 2000 the population was 429....
. There are also many tiny (under 100 people) towns and villages, such as Baranof Warm Springs
Baranof Warm Springs, Alaska

Baranof Warm Springs is a small, primarily seasonally-occupied community in the U.S. state of Alaska, located on the eastern side of Baranof Island in the Alexander Archipelago....
, Edna Bay
Edna Bay, Alaska

Edna Bay is a census-designated place on Kosciusko Island in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. The population was 49 at the 2000 United States Census....
, Elfin Cove
Elfin Cove, Alaska

Elfin Cove is a census-designated place near the northwestern corner of Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States....
, Excursion Inlet
Excursion Inlet, Alaska

Excursion Inlet is a census-designated place in Haines Borough, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 10 at the United States Census, 2000....
, Hyder
Hyder, Alaska

Hyder is a census-designated place in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the United States Census 2000 the population was 97....
, Meyers Chuck
Meyers Chuck, Alaska

Meyers Chuck is a neighborhood in the City and Borough of Wrangell, Alaska, Alaska, United States. The population was 21 at the 2000 United States Census, at which time it was a census-designated place ....
, Pelican
Pelican, Alaska

Pelican is a city in the northwestern part of Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the United States Census, 2000, the population of the city is 163....
, Port Alexander
Port Alexander, Alaska

Port Alexander is a city at the southeastern corner of Baranof Island in Petersburg Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 81....
, Port Frederick, Port Protection
Port Protection, Alaska

Port Protection is a census-designated place in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. The population was 63 at the 2000 United States Census....
, and Tenakee Springs
Tenakee Springs, Alaska

Tenakee Springs is a city on Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 United States Census the population was 104....
.

Culture

This area is the traditional homeland of the Tlingit
Tlingit

The Tlingit are an Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Their name for themselves is Ling?t , meaning "people". The Russian language name Koloshi or the related German language name Koulischen may be encountered in older historical literature....
 people, and home of a prehistoric settling of Haida
Haida

The Haida are an Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. The Haida territories comprise the archipelago of the Queen Charlotte Islands, known in the Haida language as Haida Gwaii , and the southern half of Prince of Wales Island in the southernmost Alaska Panhandle, which is the home of a subgroup called the '...
 as well as a modern settlement of Tsimshian
Tsimshian

The Tsimshian are an Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Tsimshian translates to Inside the Skeena River. Their communities are in British Columbia and Alaska, around Terrace, British Columbia and Prince Rupert, British Columbia and the southernmost corner of Alaska on Annette Island....
. The region is closely connected to Seattle and the American Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest is a region in the northwest of North America . There are several partially overlapping definitions but the term Pacific Northwest should not be confused with the Northwest Territory or the Northwest Territories of Canada....
 economically and culturally.

Industry

Major industries in Southeast Alaska include commercial fishing
Commercial fishing

File:Greetsiel 33 Poseidon 01.jpgCommercial fishing, also known as industrial fishing, is the activity of capturing fish and other seafood for Commerce profit, mostly from Wild fisheries of the world....
 and tourism
Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational or leisure purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from...
 (primarily the cruise ship industry). Logging
Logging

Logging is the process in which certain trees are cut down for forest management and timber....
 has been an important industry in the past, but has been steadily declining with competition from other areas and the closure of the region's major pulp mills.

Transportation

Due to the extremely rural nature of Southeastern Alaska, almost all communities (with the exception of Hyder, Skagway, and Haines) have no road connections outside of their locale, so aircraft and boats are the major means of transport. The Alaska Marine Highway
Alaska Marine Highway

The Alaska Marine Highway or the Alaska Marine Highway System is a ferry service operated by the government of the U.S. state of Alaska....
 passes through this region.

Air transportation

Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines, is an airline based in SeaTac, Washington, Washington, United States, near Seattle. It operates four hubs located at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, Portland International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport....
 is by far the largest air carrier in the region, with Juneau's Juneau International Airport serving as the aerial hub for all of Southeast and Ketchikan's Ketchikan International Airport
Ketchikan International Airport

Ketchikan International Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located one nautical mile west of the central business district of Ketchikan, Alaska, a city in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska in the U.S....
 serving as a secondary hub for southern Southeast Alaska. However, Alaska Airline's Boeing 737
Boeing 737

The Boeing 737 is a short to medium range, single aisle, narrow-body aircraft jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower cost twin engine airliner derived from Boeing's Boeing 707 and Boeing 727, the 737 has nine variants, from the early -100 to the most recent and largest, the -900....
s can only be handled by a few airports in the region and Alaska's bush airlines serve many of the smaller and more isolated communities and villages in the regions. L.A.B. Flying Service
L.A.B. Flying Service

L.A.B. Flying Service is an United States airline based in Haines, Alaska, Alaska, United States It operates scheduled, charter and sightseeing flights in Alaska Panhandle....
 (based out of Haines), Wings of Alaska
Wings of Alaska

Wings of Alaska is an United States scheduled and charter airline airline company based in Juneau, Alaska in the U.S. state of Alaska....
 (based out of Juneau), Alaska Seaplane Service
Alaska Seaplane Service

Alaska Seaplane Service is an airline based in Juneau, Alaska, USA. It operates scheduled services around Alaska, as well as charters. Its main base is Juneau International Airport....
 (based out of Juneau), and Skagway Air Service (based out of Skagway) are the primary bush carriers in region and also offer cargo service to smaller communities.

Numerous carriers serve other parts of the Alaska Panhandle. For example, [Sunrise Aviation] (based in Wrangell), provides flightseeing and chartered service to outlying areas and international charters up the Stikine River to places such as Telegraph Creek, Dease Lake as well as numerous lakes and communities in Northern British Columbia.

Marine transportation

Southeast Alaska is primarily served by the state-run Alaska Marine Highway
Alaska Marine Highway

The Alaska Marine Highway or the Alaska Marine Highway System is a ferry service operated by the government of the U.S. state of Alaska....
 and secondarily by the Prince of Wales Island-based Inter-Island Ferry Authority
Inter-Island Ferry Authority

The Inter-Island Ferry Authority is a ferry service in the U.S. state of Alaska with its headquarters based in Craig, Alaska on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska....
 although small companies like Sitka-based Alaska Catamaran and a myriad of independent operators in the Lynn Canal
Lynn Canal

The Lynn Canal is an inlet into the mainland of southeast Alaska.The Lynn Canal runs about 90 miles from the inlets of the Chilkat River south to Chatham Strait and Stephens Passage....
 also occasionally offer marine passenger service. Ship traffic in the area is also seasonally busy with cruise ship
Cruise ship

File:MSMajestyOfTheSeasEdit1.JPGA cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience....
s.

External links

  • / prepared for Alaska Conservation Foundation ; prepared by Steve Colt, Darcy Dugan, Ginny Fay (EcoSystems). Hosted by .
  • / prepared for The Southeast Conference ; by D. Hittle & Associates, Inc., in association with Commonwealth Associates, Inc. Hosted by the .
  • / prepared for the Four Dam Pool Power Agency ; prepared by CAI, Commonwealth Associates, Inc. Hosted by .