A Short Tour of Haines

I wrote this for an Alaska tourism website, they asked for a local perspective on Haines. I didn't get paid, and I have modified it for this site. It isn't the only word on Haines and Klukwan, but a good place to start if you want to learn about our community and what there is to do here. My book, If You Lived Here... will tell you more, but this is a good place to start.

My Alaska: Haines
By Heather Lende

I love living in Haines, it is so beautiful – the mountains rise right up from the beach and river valleys. There are lots of fish and wildlife and plenty of interesting, friendly people. I also like the influence my Tlingit neighbors have on our culture and community values. Without traffic or chain stores, Haines is more like older towns Outside than many Alaskan communities. There are three downtown churches, and several more scattered about the valley, bars with names like Pioneer and Fogcutter, shops that are owned by locals. Main Street ( and much of town) could use a face lift, or at least some fresh paint, but no one has the money. The new school is full of children ( about 300 k-12) whose families I know. We have sidewalks, but not one traffic light. It is a great place to walk, run and ride bikes.  There's an indoor pool, regular yoga classes, and a weekly hamburger feed at the Elks. The high school basketball team won the state small schools championship in 2008. The school also has strong drama and debate, cross-country, and cheerleading teams. We just voted to ban smoking in all public places. We are half liberal and half conservative politically, which means we have had a peace walk and a tea party in the last year. I’ve lived here all of my adult life, and can’t imagine living anywhere else. Haines is small ( about 2,000 people) but we have everything, from books and groceries (including organic ones) to building supplies (thanks to my husband’s lumberyard, Lutak Lumber) and sporting gear. You can buy a sofa and a TV, but you can't find a formal dress or a sport coat anywhere except the Salvation Army Thrift Shop. Our library is in the heart of town and was voted The Best Small Library in America a few years back by Library Journal (I’m on the library board). We have a public radio station, KHNS (I am a volunteer), and a terrific weekly paper, the Chilkat Valley News (I write the obituaries and contribute). The Chilkat Center for the Arts has wonderful acoustics for concerts and plays, the Arts Council is active, sponsoring everything from classical pianists to local swing bands. Our volunteer ambulance crew is first rate and the SEARHC clinic is modern. There are a lot of hunters, and it is not alarming to see a kid on bicycle with rifle over his shoulder pedaling out to the flats in duck season. It snows and rains a lot, last year winter lasted a solid six months. When the sun shines it feels like heaven.

1.) A taste of art and culture

The best place to learn local history is The Sheldon Museum and Cultural Center. Everyone in Alaska knows Haines for our eagles, and in the fall we host the  Chilkat Bald Eagle Festival. The Kluane to Chilkat International Bike Relay from the Yukon down to Haines in June is a big regional event, attracting over 1,000 cyclists, and another good reason to come here. (Contact Chip Lende, my husband, at 907-766-2700 for more information) Also, the Southeast Alaska State Fair  at the end of July  is a great long weekend of fun, entertainment, music, and food. One new attractions for both locals and visitors is the Klukwan Traditional Knowledge Camp ( 20 miles from town in Klukwan, 907-767-5505) It is good place to spend some time learning about Tlingit culture from the people who have lived here for thousands of years. While still under construction, and slightly funky, it is well worth your time to get there. One other neat place to go out the road near Klukwan, that sounds hokey at first, but is not, is  Steve Krochel's wildlife park.  Steve lives among the critters in a homestead-y Alaskan place and he is as interesting as the animals he raises. I love taking visitors there.

I've heard that Haines has more artists per capita than any small town – and not just in Alaska but the whole country.  I believe it. When you live with artists, community discussions change. They see the world in a different way, and I appreciate their attitude toward work and life. It spills over into a town where people don’t live and work all that conventionally and don't want to. You can find the work of many of them at Alaska Indian Arts, the Whale Rider Gallery and the Wild Iris in Fort Seward, as well as out at John and Sharon Svenson's Extreme Dreams gallery on the Chilkat State Park Road.(A talk with John, an elite mountaineer and guide as well as artists, is always worth the drive.)

2.) Getting from here to there
I like our isolation, but I also like all the ways we can come and go, especially the Alaska Marine Highway (The Haines terminal  number is  907-766- 2111 or 2113). Ferries are such a relaxing, civilized way to travel.I hope they never build a road to Juneau. It takes about five hours to reach Haines from Juneau on most of the ferries, the fast ferry Fairweather does it in half the time, but doesn't run as often or if it is too rough. If you want a quicker, 45-minute trip with flightseeing thrown in for free, try Wings of Alaska (907-766-2030) or the new Air Excursions.(800-354-2479). You can drive to Anchorage or Miami from here, but you'll need a  passport to get through the border stations. The Haines Highway  was just made a national scenic by-way for good reason and it is as nice to cycle on as it is to drive. There's hardly any traffic.

3.) Hiking in Haines My favorite hike, winter (with snowshoes) and summer, is Mount Ripinsky. The 3,600-foot peak rises right up behind town and has several trails that offer steep terrain, great views and a quiet wilderness experience from our big woods, and lush coastal brush to the heath and flowered alpine. On the Fourth of July, there’s a race on one of the trails that is more of a rock scramble. It only takes about a half hour, but it may the hardest half hour you’ve ever spent. It is crazy and I love it. Truly, in rain or shine, winter snow or under blue summer skies, even in the moonlight, it is a world-class hike right behind downtown Haines.

4.) A relaxing day in Haines
The coastal Battery Point Trail makes a good, short, lunchtime walk with the dogs, especially since they can swim when we get to the beach. Mount Riley is a longer, woodsy hike, and just as pleasant in the rain thanks to the canopy cover of big trees. The Seduction Point Trail at Chilkat State Park is a good trail run or Sunday afternoon walk and nice when the blueberries are ripe. I like to mosey around historic Fort Seward, especially on summer afternoons when the shops and eateries are open. The Fireweed Bakery has great pizza and cold beer, I like the smell of the smoking salmon from Dejon Delights smokery, and love hanging out in the English-style garden of  former Mayor Fred Shields's art shop, The Wild Iris (907-766-2300) – the view is great, the flowers, fruits and vegetables are incredible, and Fred is always interesting to talk with. He has memorized most road maps in the lower forty-eight and reads all kinds of journals. From there you can walk along Portage Cove to downtown. The giant hammer in front of the Hammer Museum ( 907-766-2374) is a stunner, and it is really something when it’s wrapped in Christmas lights. I can’t go into the Babbling Book bookstore (Main Street, 907-766-3356) without buying something. I like poking around the boat harbor when the gillnet fleet is in, looking at the boats and hearing the conversations and picking up some fresh crab, shrimp, salmon or halibut for dinner. There is a secret raspberry patch close by that is a good grazing spot. Speaking of local food,  Mountain Market (3rd Ave., 907-766-3557) roasts their own coffee beans, and thanks to them we are all now as used to that aroma as we are to woodsmoke, not mention addicted to good coffee. The best beer in the world comes from Paul Wheeler's  Haines Brewery (108 White Fang Way, 907-766-3823). It goes equally well with a salmon picnic on the beach on a warm summer evening, or moose stew on a snowy Sunday afternoon.