Visit Alaska's "First City", starting point for boating through the Inside Passage to Glacier Bay.
Ketchikan is located at the extreme southern end of the southeast Alaska panhandle. Alaska's "First City" is for most people the first port of call on their boating trip through the fabled Inside Passage that reaches from Seattle to Glacier Bay. A popular destination for cruise ships, commercial fishermen, shippers and recreational boaters, Ketchikan is the quintessential waterfront community.
The Ketchikan Port and Harbors Department operates six harbors (marinas in the lower 48). They are Bar Harbor North and South, Thomas Basin, Casey Moran, Knudson Cove and Hole in the Wall. Port facilities routinely handle four to six major cruise ship during the high season.
Facilities available to boaters include:
- Three launch ramps
- Three fuel docks
- Public restrooms, laundry facilities, and showers
- Two tidal boat grids
- Internet access and public telephone
- Dockside cranes and fishing gear work float
- Scheduled airline service, water taxi, and public transportation
Things to do in Ketchikan:
- Saxman Native Village and Totem Bight State Park
- Misty Fiords National Monument
- Historic Creek Street Area and Downtown Ketchikan
- Fishing, Kayaking and Remote Cabin Rentals
- Nearby Prince of Wales Island, Anan Bear Observatory and Stikine River
Boaters should contact the harbor office on VHF channel 16 or 73 upon arrival in Ketchikan. Staff is on-duty from 0600 to 2200 everyday of the week from May through September. The harbor office is located in the parking lot above Bar Harbor North. Marine charts of interest are NOAA 17428 Revillagigedo Channel-Nicholas Passage and NOAA 17430 Ketchikan Harbor, which are available from NauticalCharts.com.
Contact Information:
Harbormaster Office
2933 Tongass Avenue
Ketchikan, Alaska 99901
Office: (907) 228-5632 Fax: (907) 247-3610
