The first few weeks of travel in Alaska and Canada have been a wild ride both figuratively and literally. We’ve taken Stan the Tan Van on 6 boat voyages, kayaked with sea lions (not intentionally, mind you), camped across from a glacier, celebrated Canada Day with a sour-toe cocktail (complete with a mummified human toe) in an old mining town, and US Independence Day at the crossroads of Tok, Alaska. Needless to say, we have a lot to share already about our time in the Last Frontier, but today we’re starting with one particularly memorable day at our first Alaskan destination—Sitka. Specifically, a day we spent exploring the city with Sitka Tribal Tours.

We’re thrilled to have partnered with the Sitka Tribe of Alaska who operate Sitka Tribal Tours to create this post. They generously provided us with complimentary tickets to their Raptor Cultural Tour. This tour encompasses three unique experiences in Sitka that were all high on our list of things to do during our visit.

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This isn’t your run of the mill tour. We learned about the local life, culture, and history of Sitka from actual residents. We met regal feathered friends at the Alaska Raptor Center (not the dinosaur kind), trekked through the largest temperate rainforest in the world, and beheld captivating traditional Tlingit dancing. Here’s how the day with Sitka Tribal Tours unfolded.

Sitka Tribal Tours: Merging Culture, Nature, History, and Wildlife

The tour begins at the Old Sitka Dock. This is where the cruise ships dock so if you arrived by boat, it’s very convenient. If you’re taking a vehicle to reach the tour, you still won’t have much of a drive since Sitka only has 14 miles of paved road from end-to-end.

At the harbor, we boarded a bus with about 40 other visitors. I recommend sitting in the front so you can hear everything the tour guide says. Our tour guide—Darrell—shared information about the area as we rode through the city and towards our first destination—the Alaska Raptor Center.

Alaska Raptor Center

This is the largest rehabilitation center for injured birds in Alaska. The goal of the organization is rehabilitation and release into natural habitats. Unfortunately, sometimes a bird’s injuries are so extensive that it wouldn’t survive in the wild. These birds become long-term residents of the center. There are a number of resident eagles so it’s a great place to get a closer look and learn about these majestic creatures.

Over 50% of the world’s bald eagle population resides in Alaska—approximately 30,000 birds. Whether or not you’re a birder (that’s a word, right?), there’s something undeniably breathtaking about watching these feathered pilots glide gracefully through the air.

We learned all about eagle calls at the center. Before visiting Alaska, I’d never heard an eagle call before, and if I did, certainly wasn’t able to identify it. By the time we left Sitka, I’d heard the call so often that I could easily distinguish it from other birds.

One thing we really appreciated about the center was that their focus is clearly on the birds, not tourism. This is refreshing when we all too often see and hear about animals being held in captivity for no other reason than so humans can interact with them. The Alaska Raptor Center is not a petting zoo in any way. In fact, the birds are never pet. Why? Simply because they wouldn’t enjoy it.

Sitka National Historical Park (aka Totem Park)

Just down the road form the Alaska Raptor Center is the second Sitka Tribal Tours stop—Sitka National Historical Park, often referred to as Totem Park. This area is a perfect example of nature, history, and culture combined into one unique experience.

You can explore the visitor center, where you’ll see elaborate Tlingit art and artifacts while learning about the history of the area. Alternately you could spend your time outdoors in the world’s largest temperate rainforest and view some of the 18 magnificent totem poles that are placed throughout the park. You can dial in to the self-guided cell phone tour to obtain more information about each pole.

We had about an hour in the park and Darrell offered to show us the totem pole that was raised on the day he became chief of his clan. The pole is a stunning work of art located in a circular grassy plot surrounded by lush forest. We spent some time in this serene place listening intently to Darrell’s stories and the calls of passing eagles and ravens. Wherever you go in the park, you’ll be taken with the juxtaposition of the lush green forest meeting the rugged gray coastline.

Traditional Tlingit Dance

The last Sitka Tribal Tours destination was the highlight for us—the traditional Tlingit Dance performance. Typically, it’s held in the Tlingit Clan House. However, the day we visited there was a venue change. Instead we saw the performance at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall. A place that’s designated as a National Historic Landmark. Again, we recommend sitting near the front. Notice a trend yet? Here, you’ll have the best views and can even participate at one point.

Dancing is more than just celebratory in the Tlinglit culture—it’s storytelling, it’s history, it’s education. Each dance has a meaning and a use—for example, a welcome dance. Dances tell the oral history of Tlingit ancestors and teach lessons.

Through the reverberation of drums, the convergence of voices, and the stomping of feet you not only hear, but feel the stories. It’s an honor and a privilege to witness a historic part of a culture that may not be our own, but that we can certainly appreciate, value, and learn from. I think that more cultures could benefit from embracing their past in the present as a form of teaching. Before I get too philosophical here, let’s get back to the tour.

Downtown Sitka

After the dance performance it’s decision time. You can either stay downtown and explore the restaurants, shops, and museums or go back to the dock. If you stay downtown, a Sitka Tribal Tours bus will go by every 30 minutes and take you back to the dock.

If you only have a day in Sitka, I highly recommend spending as much time in the city as you can. There are so many things to do, see, and learn about here that you can’t possibly see them all in a day—or even a week for that matter.

What we loved about Sitka Tribal Tours was that we could enjoy a variety of places and events in a limited amount of time. Additionally, what we experienced was more than an average tour. It was a merging of past, present, and future that comprises the culture of this small coastal city. Whether traveling by cruise ship or independently, this is a perfect way to begin learning about the deep culture and history of Alaska.

If you want even more tips about things to do in Sitka, Alaska check out this post of all our favorite things from a week there.

Have you ever gone on a cultural tour? What was your experience like? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below.

A huge thanks to the Sitka Tribe of Alaska for making this Sitka Tribal Tours experience possible!

Related Posts:

• Our Favorite Things to Do in Sitka, Alaska
• How to Plan a Trip to Alaska
• What to Pack for a Trip to Alaska in the Spring and Summer

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