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A common saying in
Alaska is “All
roads lead to Anchorage.” Anchorage has two roads that bring you
into the city; one from the north and one from the south. But the
most common way to get to Anchorage is by air. Although Anchorage is
not the capital, it is the largest city in the state with a
population hovering around 260,000. Anchorage is the crossroad into
sleepy villages that dot the highways and rustic wilderness that lay
claim to abundant wildlife. But the bustling city is far from those
remote areas.
Spending Time in
the City
Ship Creek Center is
located right in
the heart of downtown Anchorage at 4th and C Street. This
will be easy to find since all roads in downtown are either numbered
or lettered. Ship Creek offers a lot of information about the
history of Alaska and has an exhibit depicting the 1964 earthquake
that holds the record as being the largest earthquake to hit North
America, registering at 9.2 on the Richter scale. You can take a
historical timeline walk down 4th Avenue as well as enjoy
the outdoor murals on the Iditarod Sled Dog race. 4th
Avenue is the starting point of the Iditarod appropriately called the
“The Last Great Race.” It runs 1,150 miles from Anchorage to
Nome in honor of the men who carried mail and supplies in to the
coastal towns and interior mining camps and brought gold out.
If you’re brave enough
to visit
Anchorage in February, the town welcomes the annual Fur Rendezvous,
known locally as Fur Rondy. This begins mid-month as a way to break
the locals out of their deep dark winter slumber. It originally
started in the 1930’s as a three-day celebration marking the time
when the trappers and miners would come to town to sell their furs.
Since then it has turned into the event of the year and is pushing
towards a month-long celebration. There is a parade, carnival,
snowshoe softball, an authentic Alaskan Native Blanket Toss, ice
sculpting contest, the Iditarod, and the World Championship Dog
Weight Pull to go along with many other community events.
The Crystal Gallery of
Ice Show is held
on 6th Street during the month of February and exhibits
ice sculpting at its best. International teams using chainsaws,
chisels and other tools turn blocks of ice into art in only 48 hours.
Imagination is set free as life size wildlife, angels, and
architectural designs are created before your very eyes. At night,
each piece is displayed with colorful lights illuminating the ice.
The Alaska Experience
Theatre is also
on 6th street. This is a 180 degree wrap around screen
nearly 3 stories tall. Daily showings of the Omnivision motion
picture “Alaska – The Great Land” puts you in the
drivers’ seat—literally. You will be in the engineers’ seat of
a train engine viewing the scenery and feeling the rumbling of the
tracks, in the cockpit of a small plane flying over the glaciers and
mountain tops, and on the rivers and streams watching the brown
bears. This is a tremendously unique and enjoyable experience.
Also downtown on 3rd
and L
Street is the Captain Cook Monument at Resolution Park. Resolution
Park overlooks the inlet that is named in his honor and gives
visitors a sweeping view of Cook Inlet, the Port of Anchorage and Mt.
Susitna, known to locals as the Sleeping Lady. On a clear day you
can also see Mt. McKinley in the distance.
In the summer months,
The Alaskan
Center for the Performing Arts located at 6th and F Street
holds daily showing of its performance “Aurora – River of Light.”
This is a photography show set to music
depicting the
fascinating dance of the Aurora Borealis, more commonly known as the
Northern Lights. If you’ve ever had the fortune to have seen their
radiant commanding color and hear their sharp crackling beats, you’ll
never forget it.
Into the Wilderness
Anchorage sits between
the Chugach
Mountain Range and Cook Inlet. There are numerous hiking trails
inside Chugach State Park, including the Flattop Mountain Trail Hike.
It’s a 3 mile round trip hike climbing 1,200 feet in elevation. The
Flattop is a popular trail but can be treacherous, with a wooden
staircase at the trailhead and makes a few switchbacks before a steep
and rocky ending. The view of the city below, the inlet across the
way and Mts. McKinley and Redoubt make for an awe inspiring moment.
The Potter Marsh Bird
Sanctuary is
located 12 miles out of Anchorage and not far from the turn off for
Flattop. This 2300-acre wetland is guarded by a wooden boardwalk
that you can take to view the 220 species of birds that use the marsh
as their home or migratory stopovers. The boardwalk is spotted with
informative displays about the birds and their habits.
If you continued on
the only road going
south out of Anchorage, stop at Portage Glacier and Alyeska Ski
Resort. Portage is an hour’s drive from Anchorage. Stop in at the
Begich-Boggs Visitor Center to learn more about the history of the
glacier. There are tour boats that will take you out to Portage
Glacier or you can hike out to and on Byron Glacier. Alyeska Ski
Resort is not far past Portage and offers a myriad of summer and
winter activities. From golfing, river rafting and paragliding to
downhill and cross country skiing, dog sledding, and heli-skiing.
Alyeska is a great place to hang out for a few days.
Going further south
will find you on
the Kenai Peninsula, where the salmon and halibut fishing is first
class. If you keep driving you will eventually come to a place
“Where the Road Ends,” in Homer, Alaska. It is literally at the
end of the road on the Homer Spit overlooking Kachemak Bay. Getting
there will take you through small remote villages that have one
store, one bar, and one church and are all surrounded by steep
mountains and clear running rivers.
Heading north out of
Anchorage, you can
venture northwest up to Fairbanks and the Denali National Park, where
Mt. McKinley looms overhead or northeast to the Matanuska-Susitna
Valley leading to Valdez or Tok. There are quaint villages and
townships dotted along the highways that are must-sees. All along
the roads you are just inches from being into a vast, encompassing
wilderness.
Come Prepared
For summer time
travel, make sure you
purchase mosquito repellant before heading out into the woods.
Temperatures average 60 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. If you’re
not used to these cool temperatures, you may want to bring a light
weather jacket as night time temperatures can drop to the low 50’s
in the city. One of the things that will throw you is the amount of
daylight. Alaska is truly the “Land of the Midnight Sun”. Sunrises
occur around 4:30am and the sun does not set on the horizon
until 11:30pm. You’ll find yourself going and going and going
enjoying all the great activities only to look down at your watch and
realize its 11:00 at night. The amount of daylight in the summer
throws your internal clock out of sync.
For winter time
travel, bring the long
johns. Average temperatures are 20 degrees Fahrenheit dropping down
to the single digits at night. For what light you enjoy in the
summer, you lose twice that in the winter. Sunrise occurs around the
9:30am hour and it is dark by 3:30pm. Your outdoor time is limited,
so enjoy it or invest in a good headlamp. You’ll use it.
Written
by Penny Smith
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