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Anchorage
Alaska
Anchorage
is the gateway for tourism and travel in
Alaska. Its mild summer weather is a big draw.
From its early days as a railroad camp
in a spruce and birch forest, Anchorage has
grown into Alaska's largest city and the
first stop for many visitors. Anchorage is a
modern city in a beautiful setting laid out
between the Chugach Mountains and Cook Inlet,
and within sight of Mount McKinley, the
continent's tallest peak.
The city has its share of asphalt and tall
buildings, but nature still runs wild. Spawning
salmon migrate up Anchorage's streams, and
anyone walking through the woods may come face
to face with a moose. Anchorage was created as
a railroad construction camp on Ship Creek in
1914. It grew quickly during World War II and
in the pipeline construction boom of the 1970s.
The 1964 Prince William Sound earthquake, with
a magnitude of 9.2, severely damaged parts of
Anchorage. The city healed quickly and is the
financial, cultural and medical capital of
Alaska. Anchorage has a population of around
260,000 people and 700-1000 moose in the
winter.
Alaska Native
Heritage Center:
Feel the heartbeat of traditional Native
dancing, visit traditional Native housing and
touch and feel cultural objects, and interact
with Alaska's Native People. There is something
new to experience each week. You'll learn the
life ways of long ago, traditions that endure
and see how Alaska Natives survive and thrive
today. www.alaskanative.net
Alaska Zoo:
Caribou, Dall sheep, reindeer, Siberian tigers,
musk ox, seals, moose, and various Alaskan
birds call this home -- you'll even find the
state's only elephant. The star attractions are
Oreo, a brown bear, and Ahpun, a polar bear;
the two were orphaned as cubs and grew up
together at the zoo. During the summer, the zoo
operates a shuttle from downtown ($10
round-trip). 2 mi east of New Seward Hwy. Cost:
$8. Open: May-Labor Day, daily 9-6; Labor
Day-Apr., daily 10-5. AlaskaZoo.org
Sportfishing:
For a metropolitan area, the Anchorage bowl offers a surprising amount of good fishing. Streams and lakes in the area and nearby hold king, silver, pink chum, and red salmon; rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, lake trout, burbot, pike, grayling, smelt and whitefish.
Flightseeing:
Depart Lake Hood with an experienced Alaska
bush pilot. Whether you want to land on a
mountain lake, fly over fjords, view glaciers
and wildlife or just enjoy the phenomenal and
breathtaking beauty of the last frontier.
Scheduled services are also available to
Denali, Fairbanks, North Slope, Kenai
Peninsula, the Mat-Su Valley and many other
locations.
Location:
Anchorage is located in the Southcentral region
of Alaska, 358 miles south of Fairbanks, 40
miles north of Girdwood and 127 miles north of
Seward. It is a three-hour flight from
Seattle.
Access:
Anchorage is centrally located in Alaska with
more than 280 flights serviced daily by
domestic and international airlines. Anchorage
can be reached from anywhere in North America
via the Alaska Highway. The Glenn and Seward
highways lead into Anchorage and the Alaska
Railroad travels between Anchorage from
Fairbanks, Whitter and Seward.
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