Northern Lights Forecast for Juneau

Northern Lights in Juneau

Juneau is the capital of Alaska, a city of about 32,000 on the Gastineau Channel at 58.3°N, in the temperate rainforest of the Tongass National Forest. The aurora is over Juneau more often than anyone sees it, because rain or snow falls on about 230 days a year. A National Weather Service meteorologist in Juneau says the chance of clearing is highest with offshore flow, when drier air reaches the panhandle, and that does not happen very often. The season runs from September to April; from May to August the nights are too light.

On a clear night with moderate activity the aurora sits low in the north; it takes stronger activity to bring it overhead.

Mendenhall Lake and the glacier

Mendenhall Lake is about 12 miles north of downtown, beyond the airport. From the lake shore you look north across the water to the Mendenhall Glacier, with the aurora above the ice, the view in many Juneau aurora photos. Skaters Cabin, a 1936 stone shelter on the west shore, and the paths by the visitor center both reach the water, and the outdoor areas are free. Like the other spots here, it needs a car or a taxi at night.

North Douglas and False Outer Point

The North Douglas Highway follows the north side of Douglas Island, across the bridge from downtown. The boat launch ramp, about 10 miles out, and False Outer Point further on are both used on aurora nights, as is Sandy Beach in Douglas. From the launch ramp, photographers have caught the sky lit from South Douglas to the glacier.

Out the road to Echo Cove and Eagle Beach

North of Auke Bay the Glacier Highway carries on to Echo Cove, roughly 40 miles from downtown, where it ends; locals call this stretch “out the road”. Eagle Beach State Recreation Area, 27 miles from town, has a wide beach looking over Lynn Canal to the Chilkat Mountains. Its gates are closed from October through April, so in winter it is walk-in only.

The airport and the Auke Bay ferry terminal

No road connects Juneau to the rest of Alaska. Juneau International Airport, about 8 miles northwest of downtown, has flights from Anchorage and Seattle all year. The Alaska Marine Highway ferry terminal is at Auke Bay, about 13 miles north of downtown, with sailings from Bellingham, Washington, and Prince Rupert, British Columbia, and ferries to Haines and Skagway, which are on the road system.