Further Around Anchorage
Earthquake Park - 3.1 miles Located at the halfway mark on the Tony Knowles Trail across from the northern runways of the airport is a wonderful roadside park. Learn more about the Anchorage earthquake of 1964. All around are still signs of the huge subsidence and damage cause by the high tides and land movement, Accessed off of Northern Lights Blvd. or from the trail itself.
Lake Hood - 5.0 miles At the entrance to the Anchorage International Airport is Lake Hoodthe largest float plane lake-port in the world. Take International Airport Road to the airport. About ¼ down is the Lake Hood exit. Park behind the Department of Transportation building along the runway and watch the planes take off and land. It's quite a treat!
Flight-seeing, Bear Viewing and Fly-In Fishing from Lake Hood - 0.5 miles Alaska flight-seeing ranks very high on the must-do list for both visitors and locals in Alaska. OR Fly deep into Alaska wilderness to Redoubt Bay, Brooks River or Katmai National Park, Lake Clark National Park for observing North America's largest carnivorous mammal - the Alaska brown bear. OR Fly to a secluded trout or salmon fishing hot spot with a 1-day or overnight, guided or un-guided, Alaska fishing charter.
Alaska Heritage Library Museum - 1.6 miles With over 900 artifacts on display, the Alaska Heritage Museum is one of the largest private collections in the state. Originally assembled by the National Bank of Alaska, the collection includes items from several major Alaska Native cultures: St. Lawrence Yupik, Inupiaq, Athabascan, Alutiiq, Aleut/Unganun and Tlingit. The artifacts on display highlight cultural practices such as hunting and fishing, processing game animals, celebrating cultural activities and more.
Alaska Native Heritage Center - 6.8 miles Find out more about our Native Tribes in a few hours than you ever could get from a guidebook. A fifteen-minute drive east of downtown takes you to our new Native Heritage Center. It is located on the edge of Elmendorf Air Force Base and Fort Richardson. Here you will experience native culture at its finest. Dancing, story-telling, singing, representations of homes, huts, villages, and an incredible collection of some of the finest arts and artifacts in the state await you. Native docents and interpreters give you a real Alaskan experience.
Alaska Botanical Garden - 6.1 miles With over 1,100 species of hardy perennials, and 150 native plant species, the Alaska Botanical Garden is the place to experience the abundance of the summer sub-arctic growing season and to learn about flora native to south-central Alaska. From May through September (and occasionally into October) you will find flowering plants and shrubs in two perennial gardens, a formal herb garden, an alpine rock garden, and a wildflower walk.
Flattop Mountain and Lookout - 16 miles Drive straight up O'Malley Road and follow the signs to Flattop Mountain. Take a 10-minute stroll to the best lookout of the city and the surrounding 200 miles. Or challenge yourself a little more and join the rest of the more hearty for a climb to the top of the mountain itself. The trail starts with a wooden staircase and switchbacks through hemlock until reaching the alpine tundra at Blueberry hill. The last few hundred feet are steep & rocky. The views are great from the top of the 3550 ft peak. On clear days Mt. McKinley and Mt Redoubt can easily be seen. If so desired a person can continue along the ridge to the southeast to the next two peaks, elevations 3658 ft. and 4111 ft.
Alaska Zoo - 9.7 miles A wonderful two hours in our zoological park will enhance your knowledge of Arctic wildlife. Beautifully landscaped and small enough to be covered in a short time, view walrus, seal, beaver, moose, musk ox, wolverines, mink, fox, wolf, caribou and reindeer. You may even get to see the occasional elephant, tiger and snow leopard thrown in for fun.
Potter's Marsh - 10.5 miles Potter's Marsh is just past Rabbit Creek Road on the southern exit of the city lies Potter's Marsh and Nature Preserve. Park in the lot and walk out onto the boardwalk where you will be immersed in the middle of the marsh. Duck, geese, waterfowl and an occasional moose will greet and enchant you. Back to "How to Spend a Day in Anchorage"