Exploring Juneau on your own - no cruise ship required - with Kristi Switzer and Liz Perry

Long time Juneau residents Kristi Switzer and Liz Perry join Jennie to share their favorite things to do in Juneau and why it makes the perfect base camp for Alaskan adventure. We also talk about all the things you can do if you have more time to spend there than just a day on a cruise ship, though you’ll get plenty of ideas for that too.

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Transcript

Are you looking for a way to authentically explore Alaska on your own? Well, one of the best places to do that is in Juneau, and that's what we're gonna talk about today. My guests today are Kristi Switzer and Liz Perry. Kristi has a background in craft beer, book publishing and tourism. She fell in love with Juneau on a brief business trip 34 years ago and has been living and adventuring in Alaska ever since.

She holds a deep reverence for the local Alaskan native culture and enthusiasm for outdoor adventures like hiking, foraging, and fishing. Her sense of wonder continues with every whale breach, bearing counter, glacier, hike, and eagle sighting. Kristi's dedicated to matching travelers and journalists interested in an authentic connection with the beauty and richness of life in Juneau.

Liz moved to Juneau 20 years ago from Missouri, and it has worked in a wide range of industries from manufacturing to education and tourism. Liz is on the board of the Alaska Travel Industry Association and has been the president and CEO of Travel, Juneau for the last 10 years. Kristi and Liz, welcome to Alaska Uncovered.

Thank you for being here. Thank you. Thanks for having us. Yes, I am so excited about this episode because I am constantly telling people, you know, my clients or people who are like, I wanna take a trip to Alaska, but I just wanna go on my own. I'm like, oh, you gotta go to Juneau. So I am so excited that we're gonna have this conversation today.

Before we get into that. I'd love to have each of you share a little more about your journey to Alaska. So Liz, can we start with you? I know you moved from Missouri about 20 years ago, but tell us a little more about that. Well, we had the opportunity to come to Juneau, as a part of a, ministry.

My husband is a retired pastor, okay. And we came up for a church 20 years ago. He has cool, since retired. And, as we followed his career, I, you know, picked up. I was always, you know, able to pick up jobs. But when I got to Juneau, I found that I was able to stay longer and, that has allowed me to join Travel Juneau when it was Juneau Convention Visitors Bureau.

I started out in convention sales here and then moved into the CEO position. And frankly, if I had discovered the visitor industry much sooner, I think that could have been a lifelong career for me. Aw, that's awesome. Okay, Kristi, how about you? I was working for, do you remember those TV guides that used to come in the Sunday paper?

Yes. Yeah. Okay. So that was sort of my job, fresh outta college. I just gotten back from a year in Europe and I took a job where I traveled the country and worked with different newspapers on building their, Sunday TV guide, and that brought me to Juneau. I'd been in with the company for about a year.

I came up to Juneau to work with the Juneau Empire as, uh, many people have worked at the Juneau Empire here in town. Yes. And I just, I fell in love with it. I went hiking, I caught a fish. I, met the most wonderful people. It was stunningly beautiful. And I basically woke up one morning and was having coffee on my deck and, and a, a bald eagle flew overhead.

And I was on the phone with my dad and I said, you know, dad, I think I could live here. And I walked in that day. Everything fell into place. I had a job, a place to live and all that within a span of several hours. That's awesome. So I figured that was a sign. Yes, absolutely. Cool. Alright, well thanks to both of you for, for sharing a little more about how you got to Juneau and, you know, as, as many of our listeners know, but they might not all know, you know, most people just get to Juneau for a few hours.

On a cruise ship, and not that Juneau isn't an awesome place to go on a cruise, but I mean, there's just so much more you can do if you have more time. So can you , maybe Liz, maybe we could start with you. Can you talk a little bit about why Juneau makes such a great base camp or home base for an Alaska trip for.

Longer, say a long weekend or a week or two. Sure. Juneau is well positioned because we are a transportation hub for Southeast Alaska. Yep. We're served daily with Alaska Airlines. We get Delta in here in the summertime. The Alaska Marine Highway has a dock here in Juneau, and then we're served by several commuter lines, float planes, and, you know, other, other kinds of craft to get.

In and around Southeast and actually back up to Anchorage. So we're a great hub. And there is just so much to do here. Yeah, and that would happen, you know, in the summertime if you're an outdoors person. There's just so much to do outdoors. In the wintertime, we've got a really thriving arts scene, so we have a lot of stuff to do in the wintertime.

We refer to Juneau time actually at the end of the summer season, but before the legislature arrives in January and that's when our arts really kick off. The symphony starts, the opera companies start, the theater companies start, and, all of that. Really just blossoms in, in fall and into winter. So Juneau just makes itself available to everybody who's here.

And, it's just, well, well located. Yeah, definitely. Do you wanna add anything to that, Kristi? I would just add that, maybe some people may not know that Juneau is only accessible. By air or by boat. Because we do not have a road in or out. And so that's why we talk a lot about the ferry system, the airplanes, all the different commuter lines.

Yep. Because that's the only way to get here and to get out. Yes, yes, really good point. By the way, listeners , Juneau is about a two hour flight from Seattle, so it's also not, you know, it's closer than Disneyland. I tell people that all the time. So, two Seattle. Now of course we have listeners all over the world, but I live in Seattle, so I always like to point that out to folks.

By the way, listeners, we also have many, many, many episodes of the podcast already about Juneau, about visiting Menden Hall Glacier, about, food. Experiences in Juneau. Many, many, many other things. So today we're really getting kind of beyond like what you can do in just a few hours.

So, Kristi, what are some of the things that, that you would say are great for visitors to do? That they need more time than just a day. So if you have more time, what are some of the things that you can do in Juneau? Well, thanks for asking, Jennie. You know, this is one of my favorite things to talk about because I know we are, we are more than just a port of call.

Yes. Um, there is so much to do here. Almost anything that you, almost, anything you wanna do in Alaska, you can do and see here. Yep. Um, so, you know, some of the things, when I think about, somebody coming in on a cruise ship that wants to do all the things, there are some things they can't do. So, for instance

you know, going on. Well, sometimes they can do this. It, it'll take all your time and your, your, your ship has to be coming in at the right time. But there is a fly-in pack rafting Glacier Trek tour with, above and beyond Alaska. Yes. That is pretty amazing. It's a good six hours. So that is something that you definitely wanna make sure you have plenty of time to do.

So if you're in one of those, ships come in for just. A handful of hours that may not be quite right. Yep. But, folks that come in for a while can also take a day trip to Tracy Arm, which, um, is just stunningly beautiful. Not just the journey amazing. But when you get up into Tracy Arm and you see all those icebergs and you see all these tidewater glaciers and they're calving and their seal, is just.

Really kind of one of the most remarkable things that I ever did until I went to following up after that is a day trip to Glacier Bay. Yes. And, I went for the first time last year. I mean, after all these years, I finally went and I saw more breaching and bubble feeding whales in the span of about 30 minutes.

And I had probably seen collectively in my life Yeah. In, in that area. It was just. I mean, I was flabbergasted and I was on a boat full of locals. And we were all just astounded and I recognized many of the people on board and they've been here forever. And they were just floored Yeah. By the amount of wildlife that we saw.

The otters, puffin, comran, uh, and then of course all the mini glaciers. And it, it just, there's nothing like it really anywhere, in my opinion, that you can get . Just really dive into that area and you feel like you're the only one out there. It's just amazing. Yeah. Yeah. Some of the other things that you could do, you can do a, a deep dive into any area of interest that you might have.

So like you could spend five days exploring glaciers and hiking glaciers and traversing glaciers and all the various ways you can do it by helicopter over it with float planes, um, by boat, all those things. You can, there's a southeast birding trail that is part of the Audubon Society, that's sort of relatively new.

So any birders. We've got like 350 species of, of birds that are here. So if you need to check some stuff off your list, this is the place to come. Yeah. And then, there are things like if you're really gonna be here for a week, you might, if you plan in advance, you can run a forest service cabin and for a, very small price.

I live in this cabin for a couple of days out in the middle of nowhere and just watch the world go by. Yeah. You might see, you know, if you're near the water, you might see whales and seals and, and you might see bears, uh, depending on the season. You certainly can go fishing, for any number of days.

I could fish for days. And then of course you've got things like, just eating your way through Juneau. There's so much good food here. Yes. And we have a wonderful food tour and wonderful restaurant. And just a lot of opportunities to try new and different things or to, catch your own fish and take it home and cook it or cook it on the beach while you're watching the sunset.

I mean, there are just a million ways to spend your time Yeah. Over a long period of time here. Yeah. And you know, one other thing that I'm thinking about while you're talking, Kristi, is that mm-hmm . you know, it's partly these longer trips like to Tracy Arm or Glacier Bay or, the PAC rafting trip with above and beyond.

And by the way, listeners above and beyond Alaska has also been on the podcast. And we talked about both things you can do if you have a day, plus things you can do if you have more time. If you have more time in Juneau, it also gives you time to do more of these things, you know, because if you're just there on for a day, you know, some of the shorter tours you can do, but you can't really do more than two of them at the most.

Yeah. . Liz, is there anything you wanna add to that, like long and amazing list of things you can do with that extra time? The other thing too is you can, rent a vehicle and go, you know, as we put it out the road. So yes, that whole area north of the main downtown area, and actually, you know, north of the ferry terminal is stunning.

And taking a day to go out and experiencing the coastline and getting down on the water, doing some tide pooling, for example. Yeah. Which of course is. Absolutely time dependent. And there are, hundreds of miles of hiking trails that could take most of a day. So allowing yourself time to immerse yourself into all of that, really helps you see why we love this place so much.

Yeah. Definitely. By the way, Kristi, when you were talking about Glacier Bay, I wanted to just mention that if you want to have more time for Glacier Bay also, which is my favorite national park in Alaska, you can, you can visit, do you know, and Glacier Bay, you know, you can spend a little time in both and that also makes for a pretty cool Alaska adventure.

Yeah. You know, is a great hub for things all, all things southeast, whether you want to go spend a couple of days in Gusav or Glacier Bay, you could , take the ferry over to Tenke, which is just a very small town with just a cluster of little homes and some rentable cabins right there on the water.

Yep. And you could spend a week out there and then come back and spend another week checking out the rest of everything else. There's a day boat that goes to. Chains gag way. There's a a day boat that, will run. I, last summer it was once a week out to Pelican of all places. And I mean, you talk about a really interesting little fishing town that's a great little place.

And, and you just get off. You have a few hours there and then you boat back. But think about all you see when you're out on a, on a ferry or a boat of any kind, just all the wildlife that's successful to you and the dramatic cliffs and glaciers that you see. Really, there's nothing like it. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

So, Liz, can we talk a little bit, you started, down this road a little bit talking about rental cars. I'd love to talk a little bit about just some of the logistics of, of staying and getting around Juneau. And again, you know, if you're, it's, it's different if you're coming in, you know, for a day trip on a cruise ship, I think.

But can you talk a little bit, Liz, about like. How to figure out kind of where to stay, what part of town, whether or not you need a car, navigating things like public transit and taxis, and which areas are walkable. I know that's a lot of different questions, but can you talk about that a little bit? Sure.

I, I think it depends on, what folks are looking for. So if they are looking for, you know, museums and retail and galleries, you know, that, that kind of thing, then they probably would want to stay more in the downtown area if they are looking more for hiking experiences out at the glacier or out the road.

As I mentioned before, really anywhere in town is. Is doable downtown Juneau, and, and a lot of geno is very walkable., And basically you can get around, I can get from my office downtown in about seven or eight minutes, and I can get all the way to the south end of the dock in about 15. Yeah. So it's, it's really easy.

To experience some of the hikes that we've talked about a little bit. Yes, you would need a rental car, although we do have a travel Juneau partner who will, drop you off at a trailhead and pick you back up. If that is something that you would like to do. Yeah. That's awesome. Yeah, so that would be a good a day thing, for example. And if you're wanting to hike out to a public cabin, then you probably would need to rent a vehicle, to do that. Yep. So I, I really think it depends on what the visitor is really interested in and the folks that travel, you know, the staff. We all live here. We've, we've been here for a while and we understand the town and we can help guide you through that process Yep.

  we've been talking a bit about outdoor adventures and things like that, and one thing a lot of people have questions about is bear safety. So can you share your bear safety tips for visitors who are getting out on the trail or having a picnic or going fishing? Any of those things?

Oh, sure. We ask all of our visitors to be very much bear aware. Even though you can't see them, there's a good possibility that they are watching you. And every time you step off of a designated trail, you are putting yourself and actually you're putting the wildlife at risk. So be mindful of your surroundings.

Remember that all of the animals in and around Juneau are wild. Do not hit yourself between a mama bear and it's. Cub or you, may end up in, in a really, really bad way. We have had instances where, you know, some visitors basically kind of cornered a bear and it had no outlet. So we don't want our bears to be euthanized because, they became.

Problematic for visitors. So we've got lots of information on the website. There's a lot of information on the Alaska Department of Fish and Game website about their awareness and how to behave. Staff here is absolutely happy to answer any questions you may have about our local wildlife. And just remember that just a few minutes outside your hotel or.

Just off the road, you're in the wilderness. We back right up to the tongass and, uh, you're in the wild in pretty short order, so be mindful of that. Yeah. Super important.

We do have good public transportation. So we're, we're asking folks really if you're interested in going out to the glacier and your downtown to, consider taking the permitted. The permitted rides out there. Yep. But you can certainly take a cab. Most cabs are permitted.

You can, like I said, grab a rental car. Biking is really popular in Juneau as well. There are bike rental operations, so you can get around and I think remembering that Juneau is, you know, maybe 40 miles from end to end is something we need to take into perspective as well. Yep. Deciding what your, priorities are in terms of, of your visit to June and the things you wanna do, will help determine how you want to get around.

But certainly we have, all the car rental services. We, Turo is operating in town and we have all of our, you know, taxis and shuttles and, and ways to get around. Yep, yep. I, I think that is a really good point that you made. Liz about just figuring out what kind of experience you want, because like being downtown and being able to walk everywhere is awesome, but if you wanna be kind of out in the middle of nowhere, then probably having a car makes sense.

I totally agree with that. One other thing I wanted to mention, I'd be curious what both of you think about this as people who live in Juneau is. Like, sometimes people are like, oh, well I don't wanna be anywhere near the cruise ships. I've heard people say that to me a lot, and sometimes that's even people who are on cruise ships saying that.

And I think, I guess from my perspective as a visitor, you know, a pretty frequent visitor. Did you know like yes, when there are many ships in the downtown area is very busy, but also. You know, if you're there in the evening, like people go back to the ship for dinner, like there are so many wonderful shops and restaurants down there that I haven't found to be that crazy in the evening.

So I'm just curious what advice you have for people who are really concerned about crowds, but also don't wanna miss things or they're worried about that. What would you say to them about that? Kristi, you wanna take a first run at that? Sure. I would say the first thing that I would personally do would be to check the cruise ship schedule, which is, linked on our website in like three different places.

So if you can't find it, call me. That will give you an idea of how many ships will be in town when they're arriving. There are some days where nothing comes in until like two o'clock sometimes. Yeah. There's certainly plenty of time when there are, when it's quieter. I think also it's, it's perhaps a, a mental shift for some people too.

For some people it might be exhausting other people, they find it exciting to be around that many people having a good time. Yeah, they're all on vacation. Everybody's in a good mood. The shopkeepers and the, and the restaurants, everything, they're, they're busy. But if somebody's looking to really just sort of get away, there are a hundred million places you can do that.

It does require like a rental car or, I guess you could take cab, but I would say a rental car would be the most desirable ride out to the end of the road. There are any number of pullouts along the road, that runs along the coastline for the end of the road, and you can stop and. Gaze at the view.

You can go to any number of the many parks that we have, with sunny views. Have a picnic lunch. You can hike out to say Herbert Glacier and sit there and have a nice little lunch while you're staring at the glacier and watching the, the stream roll by. Yep. There are just. Many ways to, to not necessarily be downtown.

So I would work around whatever schedules there are, and definitely check the open hours for the types of places that you might be wanting to visit, say the museum. Yep. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. I think one of the reasons I wanted to ask about that is sometimes I think people think everything is gonna be busy and crowded in Juneau, and that just isn't.

True. I mean, some places are busy and crowded at certain times, but I just want people who are listening to know that just because Juneau is a very busy cruise port doesn't mean that that's all there is. You know, and that's kind of what this whole episode is about. I would also add that .

I think it depends on the visitor's idea of what crowding looks like. Yes. So you know, Juneau by a lot of standards. I've been to a lot of places that even on our busiest days. Juneau does not feel as crowded as some places that at that I have been to. Yeah. As there. Yep. So I think it's, it is a little relative, in that way, and there are certainly ways, as, you know, as Kristi's pointed out there, there are a lot of ways that if crowds bother you in about five or six minutes, you can be out that, you know, just really, really quickly.

I it's a matter perspective too. Yep. Absolutely. Yeah. Sometimes it's as simple as walking up the hill. Yes. I mean, downtown is very walkable, but you get to a certain point where people just don't go any further. And there are some adorable little gold rush era houses that are around. And yes, some, really tall stairwells that, that go up into the mountains where other homes are.

And it's just , you really have to know just sort of what you're looking for or be willing to have an adventure and discover what's out there. Yeah, which is one of the things that makes traveling so fun is like, what's here. Yeah, absolutely. Alright, we're gonna take a short break and when we come back we will talk more about visiting Juneau on your own. 📍 





 



Hey everyone. Jennie here. I hope you're enjoying the episode so far. Just wanted to remind you that you can save 10% in my online shop with the Code podcast because you're one of my podcast listeners and you can pick up my done for You itineraries,  my on demand workshops, and also. My travel planners, so feel free to head on over there.

It's shop ordinary adventures.com. The link is also in the show notes. Alright, back to the show. I. 



Okay, we are back with Kristi Switzer and Liz Perry from Travel Juneau, and what we're talking about today is all the amazing things you can do in Juneau on your own, and why Juneau is such a great place to base your Alaska trip out of. So Kristi, I would love to talk a little bit about cultural experiences in Juneau.

Along with, you know, outdoor adventure and food, this is really something that is special and unique about visiting Alaska in general, but especially Juneau. So can you talk about some ways that visitors can engage with Alaska native culture while they're visiting Juneau? Yes. It's everywhere here in Juneau.

I mean, it's just a part of where we live and it's been, this land has been stewarded by the Alaska natives since time in memorial. There are three groups that are from this area, the Clink It, the Haida, and the Hin, and you can learn more about them. There are a number of ways. One, I would recommend if you have a nice day or even not a nice day, just go walking along the seawalk.

There is a, the Cilla Day and it's , a totem pole trail. There are currently 13. There will be eventually 30, totems that are all along the Seawalk, and they each have. Interpretive signs so you can look at them and learn about some of the history and the values of the Alaska Native. It's really a real learning experience, I think.

Yeah. To understand where they're coming from and their connection to the land. Yeah. And the bonus part is if you're walking down the seawalk, looking at the, the, that you can get down to stand. And there's a great big life-sized leaping whale statue. So cool. Yeah, it is very cool. So you can take your little leaping whale photo, where you're, you're doing it in front of the whale, but you can also go to what is known as Heritage Square.

And that is just. Right downtown, it's right across from Marine Park, which is where many of the cruise ships come in. And there, is an open area. Sometimes there are events going on. There's a series of workshops that the Alaska Heritage, , Institute has put together there where people are practicing, short craft , and putting their modern spin on it in many cases.

It's a fascinating thing to watch and kind of poke your head in and see what they're up to. Then there's also just across from that, there is the 360 degree totem pole, and it tells the stories of the four values of Alaska native culture. And then directly across from that is the Walter Soof building, and I highly recommend it's like seven bucks to get in.

It's the best seven bucks you'll ever spend in your life. Go inside there and you get a chance to see a full sized clan house. That was Handbuilt and has over a million ads marks on it. And there's a interpretive guide there that can explain any questions. There's signage. It's, there's a lot of really monumental art that's in there.

Some pretty terrific, form line, walls that are painted. There's a massive glass, Alaska native. Design in there inside the clan house, and you can kind of see how people lived back in the day. Yeah. It's also a small museum that has changing exhibits, that also talks about the relationship to language and the land and culture.

And then they have a wonderful little gift shop just off to the other side, which is where you buy your ticket and. They have a very highly curated selection of things from Alaska Natives that were hand, created. They've got some Alaska native, subject books. So if you've got grandchildren or children that might , appreciate learning about diversity, uh, there's some wonderful books that you can procure in there as well as some really amazing art.

Yeah. , That's. Really terrific. You can go up the, tram, the gold belt tram. It's owned by a native corporation. You can go up there. There's all things Alaska native labor up there. There is a wonderful little restaurant you can eat and look out over the, over the town. And then you can also, there's a award-winning film about Alaska native culture, so you can learn a little bit more that way.

Then Goldbelt has a couple of different tours that are based, in, rooted in, in Alaska native culture and sharing those stories. One that, takes you on a hike up on the mountain at Goldbelt, up Mount Roberts. Yep. Then also, another one that does some of the little tourist stops, like the whale and whatnot, but they, the, during the time they're there, your, your guide who is Mo Alaska native is, um.

It's talking to you about the relationship of Alaska native to land, um, and about their culture. So that's another good way. And then finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that if you go out to the glacier, they have a wonderful cultural ambassador program. Yes. And those people, they've got like eight people out there I think on most days.

Outdoor stuff, Liz. We've talked a little bit about hiking cabins, you know, we've kind of talked about this throughout the episode. Is there anything else you wanna really, bring up as far as other types of outdoor adventures that people have or can have in Juneau?

Well, yeah, I mean, one of the things, my family loves to do is get out and fish. Yeah. So, getting out on a charter, and, and take, you know, throw your line in the water and see, you know, kind of see what hits. You can do halibut fishing or salmon fishing. You can do a combo tour. There's also ways just to get out and spend, you know, most of an afternoon whale watching out on the water.

I mentioned earlier, you know, tide pooling. Most of us, you know, we either have an app or the physical book and our. You know, possession that tells us what you know when the tides are in and out. Yep. And, extreme low tides are great times to pull your boots on and go, kind of muck around and take a look at what's, you know, what's in the tide pools, the urchins, the little octopi, and all that manner of things too.

We are an outdoor. Group of people here. And I think if, if you, you know, you and your listeners are are outdoorsy types, even sitting on, a rocky beach and lighting a fire and watching the sunsets are just magnificent. So I would say any of those things, and even in the wintertime too, and I think that's something we're not, you know.

We, we tend to forget a little bit when we, you know, those winters when we do have, you know, terrific snow. We've got a great ski hill here , and a, a lot of folks like to get out cross country ski. For myself, I like to get out on, snowshoes and just get out and trek with my poles. So there are all manner of opportunities to come in , almost year round.

Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. There are just so many cool outdoor things you can do in Juneau. I think Kristi, earlier in the, in our conversation, one of you, I think it was you, Kristi said, you know, kind of anything you would think you would wanna do in Alaska, almost all of those things you can do in Juneau.

Exactly. And you know, I, I think Liz makes a good point that at all times of year, not just summer, which is when the majority of people come. Certainly is a lovely time of year. We all enjoy it as well, and we're always happy for the extra sunlight and, and warmth, but Yep. Uh, you know, there are, and you can go dog flooding on the glacier, um, you in the summertime.

And, uh, you can also mush dogs on the ground with wheels, um, here. Yep. But you know, it, you dress for the weather and that's another thing we should talk about and that, that it rains here. We're in the middle of the largest temperate rainforest in the world. There are 17 million acres of rainforest here.

We're right smack dab in there, and there is just between the, the trails and uh, everything else, you just get out and do it. It doesn't matter if it's raining. And for us, rain isn't normally a downpour. It just sort of a soft miss. Like you would imagine a rainforest would be. Yeah. And uh, so you just suit up.

We don't carry umbrellas because sometimes it's windy and those aren't very useful if it's windy. So just get yourself some good rain gear, some waterproof shoes. Make sure you layer up and you get out on the trail and you just do it anyway. And yeah, you will find that it's really not quite as wet underneath the tree.

As it is if you're just sitting out in the open, like fishing on the shore or something like that. Yeah. It really, it makes it coming home or to wherever you're staying. So wonderful. You can come back to a fire or some hot chocolate or, uh, you know, a hot meal somewhere along the way. And it's just really rewarding to get out and do it anyway.

You'll feel so good. And the air's so clean. And it's just so beautiful. Yeah. It's really food for the soul. Yeah. It really is. The last thing I wanna really talk about before we get to our couple of wrap up questions is food. We also have touched on food already. We do have, in June, 2023, we had an episode all about food in Juneau with , Midge Moore who owns a Juneau Food Tours, which we talked about a few minutes ago.

Mm-hmm. But I'd love to know, and, and my opinion again as a person who's not representing Juneau, I think that Juneau is one of Alaska's two best food cities. The other one I think is Fairbanks. And I think both of those kind of fly under the radar as far as being how amazing they actually are. So I'd love to know, and I know this is hard to like say, oh, this is my favorite restaurant.

Um, but what kinds of food experiences do you feel like people have to have when they come to Juneau? Well, I'm happy that. Yeah, go ahead Kristi. I was just gonna jump in. You know, I, I come from the world of beer and it's like people asking you what's your favorite beer? And it's like, whatever's in my hand at the moment, right?

Really it's about people have this way of associating memories and feelings with who they're with. You know, it might not be that it was the best beer I ever had, but it was the people I was with. It was the situation of where I was when it was going on. Yep. So it's kind of like that for food as well, I think a lot of times.

Yeah. But we do have some standout gems. I recommend that people try fresh, fresh crab, fresh, Alaska seafood of any kind. Yep., Pretty much anywhere. And better yet, if you catch it yourself and cook yourself down on the beach. It's just, there's really nothing else like it. Yeah. Make sure you're following the rules, of course.

Um, but I think that those types of experiences are things that you can't just do anywhere else. Um, you know, if you're from Kansas, chances are you catching the salmon and Kansas is zero. So, right. So you're gonna wanna take advantage of those moments and those opportunities here. For Fresh Alaska seafood, we have, um, some award-winning chefs here in town.

Um, we have a seven time, I think seven or eight time, uh, no James Beard nominee here in town. Some other national seafood Cookoff, um, winners. And then there are things like, we've got four breweries and two distilleries in town, and a place that makes kombucha.

You're not gonna get too thirsty for very long in this town either. Yes. And there's a lot of culture surrounding those things too. So it's not just food, but it's food and drink and situations. So if you're, , if you're grilling salmon down on the beach or you're, you're down there and you catch a dolly bar and then you throw it on the grill, , or you're.

Picking blueberries and having blueberry pancakes for breakfast the next day. I, you know, there are just a lot of opportunities to engage with and have an authentic experience with. Yeah. Food and a lot. Yep. Absolutely. Go ahead. Go ahead, Liz. What did I miss? Oh, uh, I don't think you missed anything.

I, I just wanted to, to add in that, you know, our food truck culture is really expanding as well. Yeah. And, we have a lot of international food, so Yeah. It was, when I moved to Juneau, I was introduced to Filipino food. Yeah. And. You know, all manner of, you know, some Alaska native foods that we had, you know, we gifted to us.

So it's an opportunity to get some really terrific international style foods that are easily available. Filipino and um, even Thai. We've got some terrific Thai. Uh, restaurants here in town. Uh, we've got one of the best sushi restaurants in, you know, I, I've had people tell me it was some of the best sushi they ever had.

Yep. So it's not just, you know, we, we like to focus on Alaska seafood because it is delicious and Yep. Kind of one of a kind. But we have a lot of opportunities. Indian food is really popular here as well. Yeah. So it's, we are becoming more of a, an international food destination, um, as well. And as Kristi pointed out, our chefs who are James Beard Award nominees, uh, dabble in infusion.

So they, they mix up styles all the time. Yeah. Very creative. Yeah. So it's, you know, you won't. You could be here for quite a while and not have the same meal twice. It's really easy to kind of, as Kristi put it, each way around town. Yes. One more reason to stay longer. 'cause I'm sorry, one day is just not gonna be enough to try all this Right.

Stuff. That's exactly right. The other thing that I would recommend, and this is just a personal, um, local tip. Is the find your way out to, if you've rented the car, this is easy. Find your way out to Western Auto, which is in the Lemon Creek area. And at the very back end of it, there's a little place called Jerry's Meats and Seafood and they have some of the bus salmon dip in town.

And if you go to a party around Juneau and there's no Jerry's, it's not a party. Oh, that's awesome. You gotta go get some Jerry Salmon dip. Out at Jerry's. You can pick up if you, if you were, um, s dunked out on your, on your charter, then you can pick up some black cot or some salmon too.

Love that. Okay, Liz and Kristi, I've got a couple questions for each of you before we wrap up today that I like to ask. All of my guests in, in one way or another. So I'd love to know for each of you as locals, what is your favorite month in Juneau?

Wow.

That's not fair. I know it isn't. Well it, I guess if I had to choose, I would say. It is the, the run up to summer solstice. So I would say may I have a birthday in May too, but yeah, every day is a little longer than the one before. Mm-hmm. And that to me, makes it magical. May tends to be a little drier than some of the other, months.

And, so things are blooming. The trees are, have all leafed out. It's just a late. Spring kind of magical time for me , here in June because I love watching those days just get longer and longer. Yeah. Oh my gosh, I, that was a good answer. It was a great answer. And, and you're absolutely right, but I'm gonna take.

A little bit of the opposite tack in that, because, I love summer because I have a garden and I like harvest my vegetables. I like to forage. In the spring or the Yeah, well the spring and the fall. But for me it is as a sense of community in this town between, around Thanksgiving to about mid-December.

Mm. There is something going on all the time. So basically for me, the run up to. The shortest day of the year Yeah. Is the most fun because we have the public market, which is a three day market with things that only are found at the public market. Usually a lot of artisan work, local photographers , Alaska native artists.

It's just, you know, it's the place to go too. And you go and you see people you haven't seen all year. Believe it or not, in a town this size. Yeah. Sometimes that happens. Right. Um, but then there's also following that, there's the governor's open house where you can go stand in line and go in and greet the governor and go into the governor's mansion and have, uh, cookies from Chef Seth and, , get your picture taken with the governor

There's a beautiful library there. The, the building was built when it was still a territory. So, over the fireplace, there's like a little seal for the territory of Alaska, which a friend of mine pointed out and I just fell in love with that. And then in between that are all these community events.

There's gallery walk where, for , a week, there's just all kinds of artists and showings. Specials at the stores and, people mill around on that Friday night and there are, there are drinks and cookies and people greeting each other. It doesn't matter how cold it is, snowy or rain, uh, people are out and about and enjoying, um, seeing each other and being together as, as a, uh, as a community.

You have a lot of, uh, plays and musicals and, christmas concerts and the symphony plays and the v Alis, uh, you see them singing everywhere. I'm a little biased. My son's in it. Um, that's awesome. But they're just, there's always something going on. It's so busy. You, you can be as busy or as not busy as you choose to be during that time of year.

And there are a lot of options Yeah. For, different types of entertainment. And unique things that you would not get to do anywhere else. That is amazing . I love that you both gave such different answers. That's really fun. Okay, so my last question to each of you before we wrap up today is, what is one thing that you wish visitors knew before they came to Alaska for the first time?

Wow. That's a great question. There are so many things. Yeah. And I mean that with great love. I just, I know, I feel like, um, there, there was an article that Liz gave me when I first started here. In fact, I still have a piece of paper Thumbtack to my wall here. It says tourist versus traveler. And I think that there is a, a distinction between the two.

And you're on vacation and you're, you know, we're welcoming you into our home. So, um, respect the native culture, respect, uh, the locals that live here. This is our home. You know, mind, mind yourself, um, behave as if your mother were watching and, um. But on the flip side, have a wonderful time that we live here for a reason, because it's the most spectacular place we've ever been.

We love living here every day and we want to share it. So be open to learning and listening and be excited about exploring all the wonder and the newness for you of being in such a remarkable place because you know, the world is changing and.

Come and enjoy yourself and educate yourself. and remember that this is our home and we welcome you and we'd love to see you come and stay a while. We, we love our. Our long term visitors. We love all our visitors, but, but come and be a traveler, not a term. Yeah. Great advice.

Kristi, how about you, Liz? Well, I think Kristi pretty much nailed it. The idea that. When you're here, we ask that you be curious about your surroundings, be respectful of your surroundings, and understand that Juneau has been here for 10,000 years. One, one form or another.

We live, we work here, and, we want to share with those who want to learn more about this place and, and its history. Yeah. Love it. Well, Liz and Kristi, thank you so much for joining me today and sharing your love for Juneau with all of our listeners, thank you so much. Thanks  📍 for having us. .







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