Starrigavan Campground and Day Use

Starrigavan Campsites lie within Starrigavan Recreation Area about seven miles north of Sitka. Access to Sitka is by boat or airplane, and the campsites are a two-minute drive from the Alaska Marine Highway Sitka Ferry Terminal or a seven-mile drive from downtown Sitka or the airport. Hiking, picnicking, photography and wildlife viewing are popular pursuits at Starrigavan, and visitors also enjoy fishing in saltwater and freshwater areas as well as kayaking. Hiking options include the Estuary Life Boardwalk Trail, the Forest and Muskeg Trail, the Mosquito Cove Trail and the numerous intertwining paths and roadways of the recreation area. This primitive camping area is fully accessible and offers a variety of accommodations, including group tent sites, individual campsites (drive-in, one pull-through, and hike-in) and Starrigavan Creek Cabin. Several sites overlook Starrigavan Bay; others are close to Starrigavan Creek. Maximum RV length accommodated is 38 feet. Two small group tent sites accommodate up to 20 people, offering twice the tent space and vehicle parking of individual campsites, along with covered cooking shelters with two picnic tables, a large grill and a fire ring with two log benches. Picnic tables, campfire rings, gravel tent pads and gravel parking spurs are furnished at the individual sites. Vault toilets, drinking water, bear-proof food lockers and seasonal trash collection are provided, firewood is provided for a small fee, and a dump station is located in Sitka, seven miles away. The campsites are situated within a typical temperate rainforest of hemlock and spruce trees with salmonberry bushes, low shrubs and mosses covering the forest floor. The Starrigavan Recreation Area is home to a diverse range of forest, estuary and marine habitats. Depending on the season, visitors might spot brown bear, spawning coho (silver) and pink (humpy) salmon, common merganser, bufflehead, bald eagle, great blue heron, kingfisher, river otter or Sitka black-tailed deer. The State of Alaska's Old Sitka State Historic Site is nearby, and visitors can take half or full-day kayak trips to Katlian Bay and Siginaka Islands.