Welcome to Wings of Alaska

Since Gustavus is located on a peninsula, with Glacier Bay National Park surrounding the town from the landside, there are no roads that will get you there. But like many places in Southeast Alaska, that’s part of the community’s magic.

Once you arrive in Gustavus, however, there is road that goes from the airport to the lodge at Glacier Bay park, with several smaller roads branching off. The main road is about 75 percent paved, while the rest of all the connecting roads are dirt.

Fast Facts:

Location: Located 41 miles west of Juneau; Gustavus is the gateway to Glacier Bay

Population: 377

Miscellaneous: Entrance to Glacier Bay National Park - Seasonal economy

Fun Things To Do:

Wilderness adventures and activities: Gustavus and Glacier Bay National Park offer visitors a fantastic selection of exciting wilderness adventures and activities to choose from. World class ocean kayaking, sportfishing, whale watching, and hiking are just a few ideas.

Golf: For those interested in more relaxing activities, try a few holes at the world-class Golf course.

Sightseeing and wildlife tours: Take one of many fantastic sightseeing tours by boat or airplane. Apart from having the world's largest concentration of tidewater glaciers, Glacier Bay is the habitat for a variety of marine life, including whales. The humpbacks are by far the most impressive acrobatic, as they heave their massive bodies in spectacular leaps (called "breaching") from the water.

Adult humpbacks often grow to 50 feet and weight up to 37 tons. Other marine life seen at Glacier Bay includes harbor seals, porpoises, killer whales and sea otters, and other wildlife includes brown and black bears, wolves, moose, mountain goats and over 200 species of birds.

Glacier Bay is a park of contrasts. It is an area of lush spruce and hemlock forests, bare shores recently exposed by glaciers, steep fjords, the flat terrain around Gustavus and an inlet full of icebergs.

Current Community Information

Gustavus provides a wonderful lifestyle for its residents and is also a place where many Juneau residents have seasonal homes. The citizens of Gustavus include a mixture of professionals - doctors, lawyers, former government workers and artists - who have decided to leave the rat race behind and live in this place of natural beauty.

Tourism and Fishing

Gustavus has a seasonal economy; the lodge and park, located northwest of Gustavus, attract a number of tourists and recreation enthusiasts during the summer months. Some commercial fishing occurs. The lodge, airport, school, small businesses and the Park Service offer employment. Gardening is a prevalent local activity.

Climate

The area\'s maritime climate is characterized by cool summers and mild winters. Summer temperatures range from 52ºF to 63ºF; winter temperatures from 26ºF to 39ºF.

Early History:

When Captain George Vancouver sailed through Icy Strait in 1794, Glacier Bay was completely enclosed by the Grand Pacific Glacier. Over the next century, the glacier retreated some 40 miles and a spruce-hemlock forest began to develop. By 1916, it had retreated 65 miles from the position observed by Vancouver in 1794.

Gustavus began as an agricultural homestead in 1914. It was once known as Strawberry Point due to the abundant wild strawberries. The current name was derived from Point Gustavus, which lies 7 miles to the southwest.

Glacier Bay National Monument was established by President Calvin Coolidge in 1925. It became a national park in 1980, with the passage of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.