Zipping Through the North
The hottest new active-tourism excursion in Alaska and the Yukon is the zipline tour. There are now 4 lines operating in Ketchikan and Juneau, Alaska, another in Whitehorse, Yukon, 2 more slated to open in Girdwood and Hoonah, Alaska, and another one possible in the Yukon. A zipline tour (or “canopy tour”) is a unique adventure tour that involves being clipped into safety gear consisting of a harness, lanyards, carabiners, and a zip pulley on a heavy-duty steel cable. Once participants are clipped in, trained guides send and receive participants across the cable from one landing platform to the next. A new spin on wildlife viewing and flightseeing, ziplining offers a stunning sightseeing alternative for those who aren’t satisfied with staying on the ground.
Southeast Exposure in Ketchikan was the first to offer the zip tour experience in Alaska. Soaring above the forest canopy, visitors glide through the dense rainforest canopy along a series of cables suspended between tall spruce, hemlock and cedar trees.
Alaska Canopy Adventures operates in both in Ketchikan and Juneau. Their Ketchikan site features seven ziplines and 3 aerial bridges, 4,500 feet of high tension cables, and a network of nature trails and boardwalks on the ground. In Juneau, they do their tours near the old Treadwell Mine site on Douglas Island, a short boat ride from Juneau via the Gastineau Channel. There they have zips and swinging bridges and nearly a mile of high-tension cables linking a network of platforms mounted high in carefully selected Sitka spruce trees.
Alaska Zipline Adventures in Juneau is locally owned and operated. The tour starts at a higher elevation at Eaglecrest Ski area, and focuses on canopy and forest ecology. On wet days, participants are equipped with raingear and learn about the fascinating eco-systems of Southeast Alaska through photographs and narrative under the protection of the forest canopy.
Just north of Whitehorse, Equinox Adventure Learning has a climbing tower with a 1,000-foot zipline running from it, over a small lake (seen in the photo at the top of this post). The views from this zipline are superb!
Icy Strait Point will soon be home to the fifth zip line in Southeast Alaska. A new port of call which has 73 cruise ships scheduled to arrive this year, it is located 1.5 miles from the village of Hoonah. Their zipline is scheduled to open in mid-August and will be 5,360 feet long and only take 90 seconds to get from top to bottom. Six available lines will allow groups of four to “zip” at the same time.
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