The second port we visited on our Alaskan cruise was Sitka! What a cute town! The port is just outside of the downtown area, so you are shuttled by bus to a visitor's center. The center itself is in a perfect picture spot. This is the most photogenic city! 

We elected to walk to the Raptor center there. It was offered as a cruise sponsored excursion, but I'm very happy we did not do that. The center itself is quite small, and only took about 15 minutes to tour start to finish. I would have been irked at paying a hefty fee just for a bus ride and that short tour. It was a very nice place, and I think they intend to expand in the future. Very walkable distance though, and if you'd like to see it - highly recommend the DIY version.

We walked along the water, pausing every once in awhile for a photo. We also stopped to watch a bald eagle that was really close by in a tall tree. Once you walk along the harbor/marina, you quickly end up at the National Forest which has a great trail that's very easy to do. Plus LOTS of photo ops along the way. I wish we spent more time walking the beach and climbing the rocks. 

After you walk through the forest, you just cross the highway (at nicely marked crosswalk) and you're at the Raptor Center.

The Raptor Center also had a really great trail. At first we hesitated to do it, but I'm glad we did! It's short (3/4 mile) and it ends up at the most peaceful river shoreline. 

After our trek - we walked over to Harbor Mountain Brewing. Excellent beer and the pizza also looked fantastic. 

There are also quite a few touristy style shops downtown, and we loved the crab salad sandwich we got at a food truck. If you want any kind of chowder, get it early! Everywhere sold out by the time we went looking for it. 

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