Alaska Yacht Charter: This is a great Charter Itinerary

I have cruised Alaska on charter yachts several times. There is so much to see and do, and on a charter yacht, you can see and do so much more of what Alaska is known for than on a cruise ship. A charter yacht is for a group of up to 12 guests and is smaller and more maneuverable than a cruise ship; able to cruise very close to shore and enter small secluded areas of the Inside Passage. A charter yacht in Alaska can sit right next to a pod of whales while they do their bubble feed dance, anchor in small isolated anchorages fringed with Bald Eagles, cruise up under the face of a calving glacier, anchor next to virgin forests, set crab pots, and offer fishing for salmon and haddock right from on board.

The following is a yacht charter itinerary that here at Northrop and Johnson Yacht Charters we recommend to our clients when chartering in Alaska, for a true slice of life in Alaska. This itinerary is a cruise from Sitka to Juneau.

Day 1: Begin your luxury, crewed Alaska yacht charter in Sitka, by exploring first by land. Take a walking tour of this beautiful town, and visit the Sheldon Jackson Museum to view Tlingit and Aleut artifacts. Continue your explorations and visit the Sitka National Historical Park to see more native artifacts and an impressive collection of totem poles. It is well worth following one of the nature walks through this park as more totem poles are on display along the sides of the paths. Board your yacht to begin your charter in the afternoon and enjoy cocktails and dinner on board with fresh Alaska seafood.

Day 2: Depart Sitka after breakfast, cruising through the Olga and Neva Straits. Fish for salmon right from your charter yacht while cruising to Kalinan Bay, north of Salisbury Sound, where you'll anchor for the evening. While cruising along look for dolphins and porpoises, which may come and swim alongside the bow to play in the yacht wake. Pounding on the hull, when you see these playful curious mammals in the distance, will catch their attention and they may swim over to check you out and play in the waves. Watch the shorelines for bear, and the hillsides for moose and mountain goats.

Day 3: Cruise through Sergius Narrows and see eagles flying overhead or perched in the trees, and on shore, see little Sitka Black Tail Deer and the magnificent Alaskan Brown Bear. Depending on where the whales are, you may spend some time alongside a pod watching humpback whales in their bubble net feeding pattern. You will find yourself holding your breath, waiting for the whales to breach the surface, mouths open with small fish that have been forced right out of the water by these massive mammals dangling in the air over their cavernous open mouths. After fishing and whale watching, cruise down the magnificent west coast of Baranof Island to overnight. Hike up to Baranof Lake or choose to simply sit in the hot springs above Baranof falls. Baranof Lake is a great location for fishing for Steelhead Trout if in season. The trail to the lake, in some parts, is suspended over the thick flora and fauna cover below. This hike is good exercise and having a relaxing steam in the hot springs pools on the way back down is an excellent natural way to ease your body.

Day 4: Heading further down Chatham Strait you'll cruise into Frederick Sound, the summer feeding waters for hundreds of migrating Humpback whales. You'll see the whales alone and in large groups or pods. Here again spend time watching the groups of whales repeat their bubble net feeding patterns over and over, a great example in nature of what can be achieved by cooperative group effort. Watch for Killer Whales as well. Overnight in the tranquil anchorage of The Brothers island group. Take a late afternoon hike through the virgin forests found on these islands, where you will be ankle deep in moss that has grown there for centuries.

Day 5: After breakfast, cruise through The Brothers, watching for whales and hundreds of sea lions sunning themselves on the rocks. Take a side trip in the ship´s tender right into the middle of the sea lions. This is an outstanding photo opportunity to capture the antics and facial expressions of these playful creatures. Anchor your charter yacht overnight in Cannery Cove on Admiralty Island, a primary summer nesting ground for eagles. This Alaskan island has the densest concentration of grizzly bears in the world – about 2000! Much of Admiralty Island is now the Admiralty Island National Monument and protected as a wilderness area.

Day 6: In the morning, if the right season, take a ride in the ship´s tender to see if the salmon have returned to spawn up the streams emptying into Cannery Cove. Watch the salmon fight their way up the streams by the thousands to reach their birth spot to spawn. Both male and female salmon will be fighting up the streams as the female salmon lays the eggs, the male salmon is needed to fertilize. Then, cruise up Stevens Passage fishing for salmon for dinner in "no name" cove at the mouth of Tracy Arm. Here you will also begin to see the ice floes of glacier blue green ice that have drifted down from the head of Tracy Arm from the calving twin faces of the Sawyer Glacier.

Day 7: Cruise up Tracy Arm, a Norwegian-like fjord 23 miles long, which leads up to the two faces of Sawyer Glacier, a tidewater glacier calving into the head of Tracy Arm. On the way watch the cliff sides of the fjord and you may see brown bears, mountain goats and moose, and will certainly see a number of beautiful waterfalls spilling over the fjord rim. At the head of Tracy Arm, are many harbor seals swimming and sunning on the ice floes that have that broken off of the face of the glacier, which will be littered around you. On arrival at the head of Tracy Arm, stay and watch for the glacier faces to calve, as the calving action on this glacier happens at least once an hour. Calving is always preceded by a very large cracking sound that reverberates across an otherwise silent landscape. Immediately after the cracking sound, huge pieces of the glacier will fall off of the face of the glacier and into the fjord with a huge splash and wave ripple. Cruise back down the fjord and anchor in Taku Harbor, a favorite among charter yacht Captains.

Day 8: Cruise past Taku Inlet, up Gastineau Channel and arrive in Juneau, the final stop of your luxury Alaskan yacht charter cruise and disembark. However, don´t leave Juneau, the state capital, without a look see. Be sure to visit the Alaska State Museum and Centennial Hall before ending your Alaskan yacht charter experience.

For more information on yacht charter in Alaska, please see: Alaska Yacht Charter Information

For more information on crewed charter yachts available in Alaska, please see: Crewed Charter Yachts available in Alaska