Juneau Report - Day 1

Juneau is great so far. I was able to fly in a little earlier yesterday, arriving at 1:30pm. I checked into my hotel (the Goldbelt) and then headed over to the DNR offices which are just around the corner.

Flying in, I snapped some photos from the plane window. The city of Juneau is a long strip of civilization on the edge of nowhere. It is banked by steep peaks on one side and the Gastineau Channel on the other. You can drive all the roads in and around Juneau in less than 2 hours. One of my colleagues and his girlfriend took me on a driving tour of the area last night after work. I think we hit all the main roads. Including a dinner stop at a fabulous Thai restaurant, I was back at my hotel by 8:30pm.

Given the limited road access, it amazes me that everyone here has a relatively newer model vehicle, sometimes several. Most people also have some form of water craft. There is a large marina with lots of USS Minnow looking boats and then you see lots of smaller skiffs tucked under stilted houses clinging to the edge of the hillside, just above the high tide mark.

The town is currently waiting with bated breath for the first cruise ships to arrive. They are scheduled to start rolling in this weekend. Every shop owner in the quaint, touristy, downtown area knows exactly which ship will arrive when and how many passengers will be browsing their aisles. There’s a measure of financial anticipation in the air.

Despite the popular belief that it constantly rains in Juneau (and the entire Southeast AK region), yesterday was absolutely beautiful. Bright blue skies, sunshine, and mild temperatures. Hopefully today will be a repeat performance. I’ll be doing some GIS and GPS training all day at the office and then catching the 7:50pm flight back to Anchorage.