Cruising Chatham Strait

The scenic, 150-mile long Chatham Strait runs from the confluence of Icy Strait and the Lynn Canal to the open sea, through the Alexander Archipelago in Southeast Alaska. Varying between 3 and 10 miles wide, it is bounded on the east by Admiralty and Kulu Islands and in the west by Chichagof and Baranof Islands. The strait has had many names since its original Tlingit one, being designated on maps by Spanish, French and British explorers as well as different bands of fur traders before George Vancouver formally named it in 1794 in honor of William Pitt, the first Earl of Chatham.