Ketchikan Public Use Cabins

Prior to video games, young men of Southeast Alaska hunted and fished for recreation. During the 1950s and 60s, school was let out whenever the salmon peaked, hooligans showed up, or deer hunting season started.

Over 240 cabins were built back then to accommodate the goat and deer hunters and fisherman. Today, the cost of flying out to cabins – as well as the overall culture of spending weekends hunting and fishing – has changed.

However, the Forest Service has maintained and upgraded some of those original cabins. For $25 to $45 a night, you can have a private cabin on a private lake in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness.

There are even cabins nestled in the Misty Fjords National Monument. What could be more amazing on your Alaskan adventure than staying in a Switzerland-style cedar cabin in the middle of a glacially carved valley looking at a lake full of rainbow trout?

It’s the deal of the century. Once you get there, you can’t believe you could find such a private pristine place for $25 a night. Visit the Forest Service website and browse the cabins available in Southeast Alaska. Spots fill up 6 months in advance, so plan early and then contact the recommended carriers by sea and by air to make sure you can get there on the day of your reservation.