For a small island community 800 miles from any major metropolitan area, the Ketchikan Gateway Recreation & Aquatic center is exceptional. These facilities feature enough equipment and activities to please a wide range of interests. There’s a weight room (with weight machines and free weights), a cardio room (with treadmills, ellipticals, stationary bicycles, and rowing machines), an indoor track, two full-length basketball courts, three racquetball courts, ping-pong tables, an eight-lane competition pool, 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards, two waterslides, a warm water pool, a lap area, a resistance training vortex, and a dry sauna. Locker rooms and showers are available. And bring the kids: these family-friendly facilities have plenty of activities for children. There’s even on-site childcare (for children aged 2–6) for parents who would like get in a kid-free workout.
Do you need some direction in your workout? The Rec Center and the Aquatic Center both offer a variety of classes: yoga, Pilates, Zumba, martial arts, step aerobics, swimming lessons, dance, and more! Weekly schedules are available on the Rec Center website, their Facebook page, and just inside their front doors. Equipment rentals are also available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Take a canoe out to one of the beautiful lakes on a hot summer day; in winter, grab a pair of snowshoes and head out onto the mountain hiking trails.
The original Rec Center was built in 1998, and the Aquatic Center was completed in the summer of 2012. Both are open 7 days a week and are conveniently located close to downtown Ketchikan—just a 15-minute walk from the docks or a 5-minute taxi ride. Monthly and yearly passes are available at discounted rates for locals, but punch passes or day passes are also available if you’re only in town a short time.
The Rec Center hours are Monday–Friday 5 am–9 pm; Saturday 7 am–9 pm; and Sunday 11 am–6 pm. The Aquatic Center hours are Monday–Friday 5 am–8 pm; Saturday 7 am–4:30 pm; and Sunday 11 am–4:30 pm.
