Alaska in September???
 

To all you Alaska experts:
We do not like crowds and cannot go before August. Therefore we thought of visiting Alaska in September. What are the pros and the cons? Will we be able to enjoy the wild life? Whales? Puffins? Salmons jumping up the stream? Bears? Other animals and birds?
Will we suffer from mosquitoes?
Will the boats be operating in Glacier Bay?
Could we travel in September without booking accommodations in advance?
Any other things we have to know?
Your help will be highly appreciated.

topping

Early September is a fine time to visit. Later in the month things start shutting down (Denali typically mid-month, some of the Prince William Sound cruises, etc.)

Much depends on your specific itinerary - Southeast Alaska "closes down" much later than farther north.

I was there in mid-Sept 2 years ago and enjoyed myself immensely. I only got as far north as Talkeetna and as far south as Seward and Homer but had no problems with mosquitoes. On the Kenai Fjords cruise, saw huge amounts of wildlife including several humpbacks, at least a dozen Orcas in two pods, and one bear ambling along the beach. Along Turnagain Arm, I saw at least six pods of Beluga whales.

The only drawback for me in traveling during that period was the fireweed and other flowering plants no longer bloomed and the hillsides were not as colorful as earlier trips I had made.

Have a great trip.

I think this varies depending on the part of the state, but September is definitely rainy season in Southeast. When I visited Sitka and Juneau in September '03 we had significant rainfall on 5 of our 7 days. Luckily, it was a business trip, so the weather was less of an issue.

On the plus side, the salmon were running in Sitka (not Juneau though) which was absolutely amazing to see. We did a fabulous evening wildlife cruise out of Sitka and saw plenty of humpback whales, harbor seals and otter. I believe we also saw sea lions although my memory is fading. No puffins though.

We had a fantastic time in Homer, Fairbanks, Valdez and Anchorage in mid-September. we loved color of the tundra in Katmai National Park and Preserve during our outing to see bears. They were so different than when we usually see them in July or Agust. They were fat, shiny and very playful. They looked as they did not care about salmon or berries any more. By then some of them gained a couple hundred pounds or more. It was amazing to see them so big with their bellies hanging down alomost to the ground. We hope to return there to celebrate my birthday in September. As to mosquitoes we never had problem with them except one time when staying at Kantishna Roadhouse in June. We did not see any whales, maybe they were on the way to Hawaii? We did not observed salmon jumping in September but there was plenty of them dead in the streams, enough to support a whole brown bear population. I am not certain when but I think in the end of September bear huning season starts. I am not sure what crowds are you talking about but only semi-crowded roads we observed are those leading to Denali, Seward and Homer in July and August. A few feet away from the roads we always find plenty of solitude any time of the year. if you like to hike or at least take walks September is great for it as it is June, July and August. We did some interesting hiking around Homer this winter. Not much snow in Homer this winter.

Thanks everybody! Great help.
Anymore good advise?

Early September is nice and the weather can be fairly good, depending on where you're going. The fall storms start in SE Alaska with rain, wind, and rough seas around the first part of the month. It can snow anytime in September in the Interior. No mosquitos usually, but some no-see-ums. There are some late run salmon, usually silvers in the rivers. Glacier Bay closes down on September 10, Denali about a week later. Puffins are usually still around, but head out to the open ocean in mid to late September. Bears are also around, especially near salmon streams. Whales are starting to migrate, but I've seen both humpback and orca near Juneau as late as November. In the "cities" you probably won't have to book unless there's a big event going on. September can be a really good time to travel, but don't count on avoiding the cruise ship crowds in SE Alaska, and everything pretty much shuts down after the cruise ships stop coming.

In Inside Passage, the only place you will see Puffins anytime is in Glacier Bay, so we were told by the park ranger who accompanied our ship into the bay. We enjoyed being there in mid-August. Crowds were not intolerable (I dont like them either); the salmon were running in Ketchikan; and the weather was glorious.