ESCAPE

“The Mistys”, as the locals affectionately call them, are dominated by granite mountains and land forms, draped in a forested cloak.

The midnight blues, emerald greens and greys run deep here, providing a visual overload.

As the area receives 150in (3810mm) of rainfall annually, the monument usually sports a veil of moist air rising up from the fjords below that appears as fog and mist.

The Tongrass National Forest here is the largest in the US, covering six million hectares in total of temperate North Pacific coastal rainforest.

Tours are operated under permit and strict guidelines to preserve its pristine nature and the unique plants and animals that exist here, protected by natural boundaries.

As a result, little has changed in six million years since the glaciers carved, ground, pushed and scraped out the land forms in the ice age, coupled with the legacy of massive volcanic activity.

The result is a majestic tapestry of sea cliffs, granite rock walls, steep fjords, and waterfalls best seen from above and at water level.

This is serene, still Alaskan wilderness lost in time, yet so accessible.

Picturesque spots such as Walker Cove, Rudyerd Bay and Punchbowl Cove are the main attractions, accessed by Behm Canal, which separates the island from the mainland.

Waterfalls such as the 305m Big Goat Lake Falls are just one of the spectacles visitors just like us have come from all over the world to see.