Juneau, the capital of Alaska, bursts during the summer with hundreds of thousands of cruise-ship passengers. Twelve decades ago, the young city was swamped with prospectors.

Location

Situated on the upper Inside Passage in Southeast Alaska, Juneau is almost 600 air miles from Anchorage and 900 miles from Seattle.

Population

31,200 (2003 state estimate)

Notable

Juneau was founded as a gold-mining camp in 1880. It became Alaska territorial capital in 1900, home of the Legislature in 1912 and Alaska state capital in 1959 upon statehood. There's no highway access to rest of Alaska or to Canadian provinces. It's the home of University of Alaska Southeast.

Popular Juneau attractions

Mount Roberts tram, Alaska State Museum, Capitol, Mendenhall Glacier, flightseeing, salmon hatchery and fishing.

Juneau events of note in 2004

    • Gold Rush Days, June 26-27
    • Fourth of July celebration, July 3-4
    • Golden North Salmon Derby, Aug. 20-22
    • Statewide calendar of events

Juneau weather

Remember your rain jacket. The Juneau and Inside Passage climate is wet. It rains, on average, between 3 inches (April) and 7 inches (September) a month. Average summer high temperatures are in the 50s, with lows in the 40s.

Juneau activities

There's a lot to do in Juneau, both indoors and out. Museums, flightseeing, fishing, hiking and camping are part of the fun, as are rides on the Mount Roberts tram and the downtown trolley.

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