At the northern end of Sitka’s road network, Starrigavan Bay and its surroundings provide outdoors opportunities including hiking, wildlife viewing, and camping.
For casual hikers, the Mosquito Cove trail – situated in the Starrigavan campground – presents a simple, 1.5 mile trek along the shore and into the woods. The charming, popular loop trail is not challenging, but does climb about a few hundred vertical feet. A portion of the hike that follows the shoreline is handicap accessible.
The Ben Grussendorf Forest and Muskeg Trail meets Halibut Point Road at the Starrigavan boat launch parking lot. The short trail meanders through the forest into an open muskeg. In clear weather, sizable mountains can be seen from the trail. From the muskeg, the trail descends back to sea level at a parking lot on the Nelson Logging Road, where it connects to a boardwalk at the Starrigavan Creek estuary.
The Sitka Cross Trail ends at the boat launch parking lot, too, and offers trail access from Starrigavan to downtown Sitka.
For those interested in wildlife viewing, the Starrigavan estuary boardwalk follows the tidal grass flat at the mouth of Starrigavan Creek. Birds, bears, fish, blacktailed deer and other wildlife often can be seen from the handicap-accessible boardwalk. This short trail begins at the Starrigavan campground and continues to the Nelson Logging Road.
A U.S. Forest Service cabin is available for rent at the Starrigavan campground. Reservations can be made at recreation.gov. Tent camping spots also are available.
A boat launch, located on Halibut Point Road near the Old Sitka State Historical Park, serves as a gateway to surrounding waterways and islands for those with boats. The Historical Park itself commemorates the 1802 Battle of Sitka, in which Tlingit people drove Russian invaders from a fort on the south side of the Starrigavan estuary. Translated from Russian, “starie gavan” means “old harbor.”
