Easy to difficult outings near Anchorage Hitting the trail is a great way to enjoy summer in Alaska—it’s good exercise, you can unplug from technology for a few hours, and you might encounter wild animals. Here are five scenic hikes within easy reach of Anchorage. 1. Turnagain Arm Trail (easy) With four trailheads along this approximately 10-mile route, you can do a quick hike or bring a picnic and make a day of it. South-facing and snow-free early in the season, this trail is a great introduction to Alaskan hiking—you’ll see wildflowers, mountain views, and maybe even Dall sheep or brown or black bears. • • • 2. Dew Mound (easy) Trek through a forest of birch, cottonwood, and spruce on this 6.1-mile loop. Take a lunch break at the exposed rock of Dew Mound overlooking a quiet pond surrounded by snow-capped mountains. Watch for moose, bears, and many species…
A few days ago, my 13-year-old son Logan and I descended in the Southeast in the tiny hamlet of Haines, Alaska—aka the Valley of Eagles. I take photographers here in October and November for the annual spectacle of the thousands of bald eagles that congregate on the Chilkat for the last of the chum salmon run. They fight and soar and spend most of their time trying to figure out how to steal a fish from another bird, rather than snag one of their own. But spring here is a different story. Yes, there are eagles, but the natural landscape takes center stage—even for a teenage boy. Our VRBO for two weeks here cost more than our monthly mortgage—after you gulp and gasp as I did, I’ll tell you it was worth every penny. Our cottage sits at the end of Mud Bay Road on an isolated inlet aptly named…
By Steven Merritt With its vast wilderness and the chance to get an up close and personal look at wildlife, visitors to Denali National Park and Preserve often are pulled away from the core area of the park entrance, but there’s plenty to do in and around the Visitor Center—especially for day hikers. While many of the shorter trails in the area stick to the lowlands near the visitor center campus, the Mount Healy Overlook Trail—one of the steepest in the park and often lightly trafficked—offers a perfect outing with a hikers’ trifecta of views, exercise, and elevation gain. Located off the Taiga Trail, not far from the Visitor Center, it rises steadily through spruce forest before reaching benches at an overlook near the halfway point. From there, switchbacks introduce a steeper climb as you rise above tree line on your way to an elevation gain of 1,700 feet in…
The thought of king salmon fishing usually conjures images of casting off the shore of a remote river, or trolling behind a boat surrounded by wilderness. But in Alaska, you don’t need to travel any farther than downtown Anchorage, the state’s largest metropolis, to catch a king. Just a few blocks from downtown, with high rises on the horizon, anglers cast a line from the shores of Ship Creek to catch a salmon. Local outfitters rent gear and sell licenses to travelers. Even for those who don’t enjoy the sport, it’s fun to take a short walk from downtown Anchorage to watch the combat fishing. Every summer, the city of Anchorage celebrates with the annual Slam’n Salm’n Festival. It’s hosted by The Bait Shack and benefits local nonprofit organizations. Anyone who enters the derby has a chance to win thousands of dollars, fishing trips, kayaks, rods, and reels. The grand…
I always get questions about sunlight when I tell people I’m from Alaska. I have my typical spiel about our vast state, and how it’s different depending on the latitude. In Southcentral we must squeeze the most out of a meager five hours of sunlight in the depths of winter. But come summer, it’s light all day. The sun still sinks behind the mountains, but there’s enough light to function. Occasionally, someone will ask me how I sleep, and I explain that I’m conditioned. As a kid my mom would open our shades sometime in April and wouldn’t let us close them until fall. Sleeping through the midnight sun just became a way of life. But there’s not much sleeping this time of year anyway. Every Alaskan who just suffered months of darkness knows that winter is coming, and they’re determined to make the most of it. June is for…
Saddle up for an emerging adventure sport
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Alaskan hunters help those who have questions HUNTERS JOHN WHIPPLE AND CASEY DINKEL pride themselves on rugged DIY-type hunting adventures that take the duo on epic trips for goats on the south shores of Kodiak or brown bears on the remote island of Unimak. Both consider themselves fortunate to live in a state that allows for such opportunities, and both want other people to experience the same joy and fulfillment they get from those hunts. “We want to reach out to people in the lower forty-eight and show them that Alaskan adventures are very doable,” says Dinkel. 60th Parallel Adventures: “Barren Ground” – Coming Fall 2015 from 60th Parallel Adventures on Vimeo. That goal is accomplished through 60th Parallel Adventures, a company the friends founded in 2014 that features entertaining and educational content put together with photos and videos on their hunts. They cover hunting costs by acting as brand…
Tracy Arm invigorates locals and visitors
BY STEVE QUINN
