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The Alaska Panhandle, sometimes referred to as Southeast Alaska, is the southeastern portion of the coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, which lies just west of the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The majority of the panhandle's area is part of the Tongass National Forest, the U.S.'s largest national forest. In many places, the international border runs along the crest of the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains.The Alaska Panhandle is the northern terminus of the Inside Passage a protected waterway of convoluted passages between islands and fjords, beginning in Puget Sound in Washington state. This was an important travel corridor for native canoeists, as well as gold-rush steam ships, and in modern times is an important route for ferries and cruise ships. The Panhandle has a land area of 91,008.18 km2 (35,138.46 square miles), comprised of four entire boroughs and three census areas, in addition to the part of Yakutat Borough lying east of 141° West longitude. Although it has only 6.14 percent of Alaska's land area, it is larger than the state of Maine, and almost as large as the state of Indiana. The 2000 census population of the Panhandle was 72,954 inhabitants, about 42 percent of whom were concentrated in the city of Juneau.

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Local News from KTVF Fairbanks via Yahoo! News

Conservation groups hail ruling

Nov 21, 2008 12:50 am

Conservation groups are hailing an appeals court decision today.

Woman accused of multiple frauds

Nov 20, 2008 10:22 pm

Anchorage police are looking for a 30-year-old woman who is accused of passing stolen checks around southcentral Alaska.

Court orders review of Beaufort drilling plan

Nov 20, 2008 10:22 pm

A federal appeals court has ordered the Minerals Management Service to take another look at Shell Oil's offshore drilling plan for Alaska's Beaufort Sea.

Stevens gives last Senate speech as staffers weep

Nov 20, 2008 10:21 pm

Republican Senator Ted Stevens has spoken and yielded the floor for the last time.

Bar groups seek Stevens law license suspension

Nov 20, 2008 10:21 pm

Bar associations in Alaska, California and Washington, D.C., are seeking the law license suspension of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens over his felony convictions.

Juneau hires avalanche forecaster

Nov 20, 2008 10:21 pm

Alaska's capital has hired a full-time avalanche forecaster.

Low prices, new tax mean less petroleum investment

Nov 20, 2008 10:21 pm

Executives of major petroleum companies say work on some Alaska projects will be dialed back now that the price of crude oil has dropped.

Croatian village celebrates victory of US senator

Nov 20, 2008 10:21 pm

Mark Begich's victory in the U.S. Senate race in Alaska is being celebrated in a Croatian village where his grandfather once lived.

Sea lion numbers a mixed bag

Nov 20, 2008 10:20 pm

The latest survey of Steller sea lion numbers is a mixed bag.

Report: Smoking prevention program funding lacking

Nov 20, 2008 1:50 am

Ten years after the tobacco settlement, a national report suggests states aren't spending enough on programs to keep people from smoking.

Local News from Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via Yahoo! News

Kenai hospital suspends plans for trauma center

Nov 21, 2008 1:15 am

KENAI -- The central Kenai Peninsula will have to wait for a trauma center.

First planes take off, land at new Sea-Tac runway

Nov 21, 2008 1:14 am

SEATAC, Wash. -- The new third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is officially open. The first plane to take off was an Alaska Airlines flight and the first to land was a United jet.

European Union announces interest in Arctic region

Nov 20, 2008 9:30 pm

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The European Union's executive body said Thursday that the bloc should try to obtain its fair share of oil, gas, minerals and fish exposed by the melting of the Arctic ice cap.

Alaska woman accused of multiple frauds

Nov 20, 2008 9:30 pm

ANCHORAGE -- Anchorage police are looking for a 30-year-old woman who is accused of passing stolen checks around Southcentral Alaska.

Court orders review of Beaufort drilling plan

Nov 20, 2008 9:30 pm

ANCHORAGE -- Federal regulators improperly granted Shell Oil permission for exploratory drilling in Alaska's Beaufort Sea, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

States, including Alaska, accused of misdirecting tobacco funds

Nov 20, 2008 7:44 pm

In 2006, Alaska desperately needed cash to complete a museum featuring a mummified bison and other natural wonders of the frozen north. So the state dipped into its share of the landmark 1998 tobacco ...

Bar groups seek suspension of Stevens' law license

Nov 20, 2008 7:15 pm

ANCHORAGE -- Bar associations in Alaska, California and Washington, D.C., are seeking the law license suspension of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens over his felony convictions.

Juneau hires avalanche forecaster

Nov 20, 2008 7:14 pm

JUNEAU -- Alaska's capital has hired a full-time avalanche forecaster.

Croatian village celebrates Begich's victory for Alaska U.S. Senate seat

Nov 20, 2008 6:14 pm

ZAGREB, Croatia -- Mark Begich's victory in the U.S. Senate race in Alaska is being celebrated in a Croatian village where his grandfather once lived.

Low prices, new tax mean less petroleum investment in Alaska

Nov 20, 2008 5:15 pm

ANCHORAGE -- Executives of major petroleum companies say work on some Alaska projects will be dialed back now that the price of crude oil has dropped.

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