Tongass Recreation

The Tongass is known for many uses. Economic activity and recreation in the temperate Tongass include everything from commercial and sport fishing, food gathering, hunting, mining and timber processing to snowmobiling, glacier viewing, mountain biking, river running and birding. More and more people visit southeast Alaska for pleasure every year. Tourism supports hundreds of businesses and is the only industry able to maintain steady annual increases in employment. With an increasing number of tourists visiting Alaska for recreational purposes, Alaskans are striving to find a balance between a healthy tourist industry and maintaining a peaceful and unique way of life for themselves.

Courtesy of USDA Forest Service

The Tongass National Forest provides amazing recreational opportunities, opportunities so unique that they cannot be experienced in any other forest in the United States. For those who are adventurous and enjoy exploring world-class caves, saltwater fjords and many other unending waterways by canoe or kayak is a lot of fun. For those who like to enjoy the Tongass in a more subtle way, visiting the bear-viewing facilities, hiking through an old-growth forest or an amazing open meadow, visiting one of the world-class visitor centers complete with real glaciers for viewing also sounds ideal. Not to mention the fact that there are campgrounds available in the majestic forest, as well as 150 rustic cabins scattered throughout the Tongass.