Alaska cruise

August 14-21, 2005 - RT from Seattle, Washington aboard Holland America's ms Amsterdam (Ports of call: Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, Alaska & Victoria, British Columbia )
As LOW as $878*

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702-655-0919.
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Ports Of Call:

Juneau:

Juneau ( ju ' no ) , city (1990 pop. 26,751), state capital, SE Alaska, in the Alaska Panhandle; settled by gold miners 1880, inc. 1900. A port on Gastineau Channel, Juneau is a trade center for the Panhandle area, with an ice-free harbor and an airport. The state and federal governments are the major employers. Salmon and halibut fishing, mining, and tourism are also important economic activities.

Joseph Juneau and a partner discovered gold nearby in 1880, and the city developed as a gold rush town. It was officially designated as capital of the Territory of Alaska in 1900 but did not function as such until the government offices were moved from Sitka in 1906. In 1959 it became state capital with the admission of Alaska to the Union.

Juneau lies at the foot of two spectacular peaks, Mt. Juneau and Mt. Roberts. Douglas Island, a part of the city, lies across the channel. The huge boxlike Federal Building dominates the skyline. The Alaska Historical Library and Museum and the Alaska State Museum are in the city. In 1970 the municipal boundaries were extended, then making Juneau the largest city in area in the United States, at 3,108 sq mi (8,050 sq km). Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (see National Parks and Monuments , table) is to the northwest.

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Sitka:

Sitka ( sit ' k? ) , city (1990 pop. 8,588), Sitka census div., SE Alaska, in the Alexander Archipelago, on Baranof Island; inc. 1971. Fishing, its first industry, remains important; salmon, halibut, red snapper, crab, herring, abalone, and clams are caught. There are canneries, and tourism is also economically significant. Sitka was founded (1799) by Aleksandr Baranov . Destroyed by Tlingits in 1802, the city was rebuilt and became the flourishing capital of Russian America. There, in 1867, the United States officially took possession of Alaska from Russia. Sitka remained the capital until 1900. The Univ. of Alaska Southeast campus and Sheldon Jackson College are in the city. Points of interest include Sitka National Historical Park, scene of a decisive battle (1804) between the Russians and the Tlingit; the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Michael (built 1844-48); and Castle Hill, site of the transfer of Alaska to the United States, which is commemorated by the annual Alaska Day Festival in October. State logging championships are also held in Sitka. Mt. Edgecumbe, on an island to the west, can be seen from Sitka's harbor.

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Ketchikan:

Ketchikan ( ke ' chikan ' ) , city (1990 pop. 8,263), SE Alaska, a port of entry on Revillagigedo Island in the Alexander Archipelago. A supply point for miners in the gold rush of the 1890s, it has become a center of Alaska's fishing industry (especially salmon, halibut, and abalone). Its logging, and pulp industries are declining, but tourism adds to the economy. There are major molybdenum deposits nearby. Its excellent ice-free harbor on Tongass Narrows makes it an important port on the Inside Passage and a distribution point for a large area. The headquarters of Tongass National Forest are in Ketchikan, and Dolly's House Museum preserves some of the 20 brothels that operated in the city until 1954.

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Victoria / British Columbia:

Vic·to·ri·a ( vik-tôr ' e-?, -tor ' - )
Victoria city (1991 pop. 71,228), capital of British Columbia, SW Canada, on Vancouver Island and Juan de Fuca Strait. It is the largest city on the island and its major port and business center. In addition to its importance as the seat of provincial government, Victoria is noted as a residential city because of its mild climate, beautiful scenery, many parks (including Beacon Hill Park) and drives. It is also a popular center for American and Canadian tourists. It has sawmills and woodworking plants, fish-processing factories, grain elevators, and cold-storage plants. The city is the base of a deep-sea fishing fleet; a large naval installation is nearby. Founded (1843) as Fort Camosun, a Hudson's Bay Company post, the city was later called Fort Victoria. When Vancouver Island became a crown colony, a town was laid out on the site (1851-52), named Victoria, and made the capital of the colony. With the discovery (1858) of gold on the British Columbia mainland, Victoria became the port, supply base, and outfitting center for miners on their way to the Cariboo gold fields. In 1866, when the island was administratively united with the mainland, Victoria remained the capital of the colony and became the provincial capital in 1871. It is the seat of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory and the Univ. of Victoria.

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