My parents and I visited the Shrine of St. Therese, a catholic retreat and chapel site about 20 miles outside of Juneau.

About the Shrine

The website for the Shrine indicates that the land was acquired in 1932, and the cornerstone for the chapel placed in 1938. I have a hard time imagining what Juneau was like in the 1930s. I can’t imagine that the 20 mile trek outside of town, currently a 2 lane highway but certainly something more rugged at the time, was a casual trip.

The grounds

The location is a peaceful secluded natural setting open to the public. The chapel is on an outcropping overlooking the sea and nestled in mature spruce trees. There is a rocky shoreline, a garden, cabins, a meditation labyrinth, and other unexplored wonders.

We stayed and wandered for about an hour enjoying the chapel, trees, water views, wildlife, and flowers. There are also informational signs along the way to teach you about the history of the site and the namesake St. Therese, but I honestly didn’t spend much time on those.

The chapel is a small cozy structure with serene views of the forest and surrounding water. We visited the chapel, lit a candle, and did a lap around the chapel where there are small monuments for each station of the cross.

Cute animals

As soon as we arrived we noticed an unusual ferret-like creature, about the size of a housecat crossing the main path. We met some photographers who pointed out some fuzzy baby marmots nearby, and deduced that the creature was, in fact, a marmot.

Baby Marmots:

Mama Marmot Gathering Nesting Grass:

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After admiring the adorable babies, we quickly noticed that the shrine in fact has a thriving marmot population throughout the rocky banks of the causeway, and they did not seem to feel threatened by us walking around and making plenty of noise nearby. They have them well-trained…

Assorted marmots:

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There was also a really cute squirrel that seemed to follow me along the path. No baby squirrels in tow, but cute nonetheless.

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