Ship Creek is an Anchorage, Alaska river that flows from the Chugach Mountains into Cook Inlet.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

This 134-acre park is set in the woods where, in 1964, an entire neighborhood slid into the ocean during last century’s most powerful earthquake. The earthquake was measured at a 9.2 on the Richter scale and lasted 4 minutes. Today, this tragic event is commemorated in Anchorage’s Earthquake Park, where you’ll find signs explaining the circumstances of the quake and its effect on the area.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Downtown viewpoint offers view to the Anchorage skyline and also to Denali and the Alaska Range if it’s clear.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Lake Hood Seaplane Base is a state-owned seaplane base located 3 miles southwest of the central business district of Anchorage. Operating continuously and open to the public, Lake Hood is the world’s busiest seaplane base, handling an average of 190 flights per day. It is located on Lakes Hood and Spenard next to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport three miles from downtown Anchorage.

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Beluga Point Site is an archaeological location along Turnagain Arm of Cook Inlet. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 30, 1978. Artifacts of the area are evidence of early human habitation. Beluga Point North 1 (BPN1) artifacts are 8,000–10,000 years old and believed to be evidence of the oldest habitation in Anchorage municipality. Beluga Point is also a wildlife viewing area. Beluga whales can be sighted seasonally July through August as hundreds of the cetaceans visit Cook Inlet to feed on the Pacific salmon run.

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Potter Marsh, at the southern end of the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge, is an ideal break from Anchorage for birders and other wildlife viewers. From the Seward Highway just before the left turn into the Potter Marsh parking lot, you are treated to a stunning view of Turnagain Arm. A wooden boardwalk winds 1,550 feet from the parking area through the marsh and across watery openings and sedges, perfect habitat for a rich variety of birds. From late April through September, Canada geese, northern pintails, canvasback ducks, red-necked phalaropes, horned and red-necked grebes, and northern harriers use this wetland. Look for eagle nests in the cottonwoods near the base of the bluff using binoculars or a spotting scope.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Glen Alps trailhead in Chugach State Park affords spectacular views over the Anchorage bowl and up into the alpine areas.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Alaska’s premier small group tour operator.

• Admission Ticket Included