I am trying to book my flights for my June bear trip coming into Wrangell. Flights run through Juneau and the best schedule leaves only 30 minutes for connection in Juneau. Last time I was in Juneau was pre 9/11 and I would not have worried, but now am not sure if this is enough time. Is there anyone who travels through there enough to give me an idea if this is likely to work, or if I need spread my flights over 2 days?

If you book your gear to Wrangel you shouldn,t even need to go thru security . You are flying to Wrangel on Alaska arn,t you .

Yeah, should be checked thru. Just concerned about my bags making it thru and making sure to have enough time for the connection, which is really more dependent on my arrival flight being on time I imagine. Just seems awful tight.

Alaska is pretty good about not leaving people stranded . at least in Southeast .Juno is a fairly little airport . I think there are only 2 gates . pretty sure . Used to be anyway . last year . If the wx is crappy it could mess up your flight . But being fogged out of Juno is one of the most common problems , tho mostly in summer . There is this huge ice box 7 or 8 miles from th runway called the Mendenhall Glacier . Also the Juno Ice Field . And Juno is fronted by sea water , Gastinau Channel , Stephens Passage , Lynn Canal .. pm Muskeg Man . He,s a Junoite ..

Thanks GB, appreciate it.

jcarr,

As gumboot said weather really has a big effecton arrival and departures in SE, AK. I would not book a flight with only 30 minutes between flights. I think I would just eat the hotel etc and spend a night in Juneau. You'll get your bags off the flight to Juneau and recheck them on the Wrangell flight the next day. That way your gear will probably get there with you.

Mark

Mark is totally right there . getting your gear there with you ..Extended Stay Suites hotel is right near the airport .150 yrds or so . Its best to book ahead . Juno is a good town to have a look around also . All the cabs will do tours

Thanks guys, I'm sure you're right. Just trying to squeeze it into too short of a time frame. If they at least made the layover 45-50 minutes I think I would chance it, but 30 is just too quick. Thanks again.

It's not too short a time to transfer between planes, nor too short for them to tranfer your bags.

Are you flying Alaska Air into Wrangell? If so, and the weather is too bad to land, then it's probably too bad to take off. So either way, your plane will probably be waiting for you when you arrive.

They are pretty good about that sort of stuff.

quote:

Originally posted by gumboot458:
.Juno is a fairly little airport . I think there are only 2 gates .

Hey man, we're 50% bigger than you think. A whopping THREE gates!

30 minutes is a bit tight for a connection. June weather is pretty stable, so weather problems shouldn't too much of a problem.

Really I think the plane leaving Seattle 20 minutes late is more of a concern. Now, thing is I don't imagine any plane leaving Juneau for Wrangell would have too many folks on it if they took off before the flight from Seattle arrived. One never knows though.

When flying Alaskan Airlines, I prefer to allow a minimum of a 2 hour layover. I've also started to really detest flying Alaska air into or out of Seattle.

Landing minimums are higher than takeoff minimums so it is possible for departures when arrivals are shutdown. I do not have access to my approach plates for Juneau so I cannot give you the exact numbers. There is a possibility that the aircraft you fly to Juneau may be the aircraft that is continuing on to Wrangell. Check with Alaska Airlines.

The OP has not stated whether he's coming into J-town from the north or south. I'm assuming from the north, as the milk run stops in Petersburg and Wrangell on the way up from Seattle.

Route is DEN-SEA-JUN-WRG, contacted Alaska Airlines and it is not unfortunately the same plane going on to WRG that comes in from SEA. Customer service at AK Air informed me this connection should be no problem . So I am gonna try it, but heading up one day early so if I get jacked I can still get into WRG on time for my hunt. Thanks for all they advice.

If everything goes right, you might be ok. If the airline is late just a little, if the weather is bad, if a baggage handler gets back late from a break, etc you're cutting it very close. Not a risk I would take with a fairly expensive trip in the making.

. Ideally you would have tons of time .. But Alaska has a way of doing things . If things go totally gunny bag with the flights a good backup is the Alaska Marine Hwy. I gotten grounded in Sitka because of weather in Juno. . got on the LeConte and was home in Huna before thr jet could land in Juno .

I checked into the AK marine hwy, sounded like a good idea and pretty decently priced. Unfortunately according to their online schedule I either have to go up 3 days early or one day late. Honestly though if the timing were right I would probably do it just for something different.

not much to worry about in june, if the weather is nice an probably will be, fog in juneau can slow progress but it burns off by 10 am
just come a day early

imho. the Ak.Marine Hwy is about the best way to see Southeast . And by that I mean the older ships . Southeast is a marine environment , so being on a ship just fits .. I tell everyone up here in the interior that is the best way to do Southeast .