Alaska’s economy isn’t in need of salvage (“Trail Blazing,” HCN, 6/26/17). There is already a multibillion dollar tourist economy in the state. There are glacier tours, whale-watching tours, dog-sledding tours, bear-watching tours and hiking tours, in addition to fishing and hunting tours. Alaska actually has too many tours. We are selling off our wilderness as a commodity. Some trails are almost unusable because guided tours block your way as you hike. I hope the Tongass and the Chugach national forests build more trails, but don’t try to pretend that tourism is new or that one project is going to “save” Alaska.
Carl Reese
Juneau, Alaska
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Tourism is nothing new.
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