Things to Do in Alaska

Alaska is home to three million sparkling lakes, but you won’t want to swim in cement-fringed and square-edged Lake Hood. Three miles southwest of Anchorage, this lake serves as the runway for one of the world’s busiest seaplane hubs. Large swaths of wilderness and remote Alaskan communities are made accessible by seaplanes departing from Lake Hood. Nearly 200 daily flights hydroplane off the water when its not frozen over—to the delight of on-lookers—ferrying supplies or passengers on quests to find grizzlies, caribou, secluded fishing spots and wild mountain and glacier landscapes. Across from the Five Fingers docks, the Alaska Aviation Heritage Museum tells the story of the importance of aviation to the vast state. Bush planes have been instrumental in Alaska’s recent history, and the museum is an homage to both pilot and craft with twenty-five planes housed inside its hanger.

A watershed extending from Anchorage to the Gulf of Alaska, the Cook Inlet encompasses 180 miles (290 km) of beauty and recreation. It’s surrounded by mountains, waterfalls, glaciers and volcanoes, including the active Augustine Volcano and Mount Redoubt, linking the area with tsunamis and earthquakes in the past. The Upper Cook Inlet is also one of few places in the world that experiences a tidal bore, allowing visitors to see the unusual phenomenon of waves crashing against the current rather than with it.

The Cook Inlet also holds much history, from Russian fur hunters to European explorers like Captain James Cook—after whom the site is named—visiting and mapping out the area as they tried to find the Northwest Passage in 1778. Around Upper Cook Inlet were Native Alaskans from eight different villages, with some descendants of these families still living there today.

Taking a ride on the narrow-gauge White Pass and Yukon Railroad is a fun way to see spectacular historic scenery from a train inching up steep tracks that were carved out of the side of the mountains. A number of routes take you through White Pass, which travels from Alaska to Canada on historic trains.

You begin your journey on the White Pass and Yukon Railroad in Skagway. The summit excursion takes you 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Skagway to the White Pass Summit, 2,865 feet (873 meters) high. Another trip takes you up to the summit, then down to British Columbia. The historic cars are more than 100 years old, and you’ll definitely get a sense of how travelers in the late 19th century got around. While you’re traveling you’ll see breathtaking mountain and forest vistas – you may even see a bear or caribou frolicking about.

Lake Spenard (along with Lake Hood, which it is connected to by canals) is the world’s busiest and largest floatplane runway. Visiting is a truly memorable experience, and in the summer it’s a popular place to enjoy a picnic and watch a free air show. Aircraft are almost constantly taking off and landing—about 200 per day–and heading in and out of the lesser-explored parts of Alaska.

Even if you aren’t an aviation enthusiast, there are other activities to enjoy at Lake Spenard. Along with a playground and swimming area with a lifeguard—perfect for families with children—there are picnic tables, volleyball courts and other areas for sport and recreation. Additionally, photographers will love capturing the action, especially with the sparkling glaciers and soaring peaks in the background.

This top-rated visitor attraction at the University of Alaska Fairbanks boasts being the only research and teaching museum in Alaska. With a goal of acquiring, interpreting and showcasing collections relating to Alaska’s natural, cultural and artistic heritage, the University of Alaska Museum of the North currently houses 1.4 million artifacts and specimens. Visitors can peruse the collections and exhibits to gain a true understanding of the development and culture of Native Alaskans. These are separated into 10 different categories: Archaeology, birds, documentary film, earth sciences, ethnology/history, fine arts, fishes/marine invertebrates, insects, mammals, and plants.

Visitors can also see ancient artwork spanning from 2,000 years ago to present, like ancient ivory carvings; contemporary sculptures; Alaska’s most comprehensive public display of gold and Blue Babe; a light installation that changes with the position of the moon and sun.

For those interested in learning about Interior and Arctic Alaska as well as Native culture, the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center is a must-have experience when visiting Fairbanks. The mission of the attraction is to celebrate the people and culture of Interior Alaska while also promoting the local economy and acting as a community gathering place to exchange cultural ideas, and they do this in a number of ways.

First, the center showcases a number of free exhibits on Interior Alaska and its people, providing insight to the heritage of the area. For example, their main exhibit, “How We Live: The People and the Land”, features life-sized dioramas depicting the seasons of Interior Alaska. You can also shop for Native Alaskan artwork in their Alaska Geographic store; dress up in traditional Athabaskan attire for a photo; see a traditional performance of music, art and storytelling; create your own traditional Athabascan moose skin bags or sun catcher.

Arcing upwards from the waterfront at Juneau’s cruise terminal to the crest of Mt. Roberts, a ride aboard the Mt. Roberts Tramway is one of Juneau’s signature experiences.

The enclosed gondolas swing away from the dock to glide over downtown Juneau and up through the rainforest to the 1,800-foot (540m) summit of Mt. Roberts.

Panoramic views take in stunning vistas of sea and mountains, over to the Chilkat Mountains to the north, the Gastineau Channel, Douglas Island and Silver Bow Basin. Peering down, you might be lucky enough to spot marmots, deer and even a bear.

The ride ends on the top of the mountain at the Mountain House cultural center, picturesquely surrounded by Sitka pines and wildflowers. Visit the nature center to learn more about this beautiful part of the world, or follow one of the hiking trails winding away from the terminal. There’s a wheelchair-accessible trail, and a short mile-loop trail with interpretative signage.

The Alaska Native Heritage Center serves as a welcome wagon for all visitors to Alaska’s rich and diverse history. Here you’ll be able to experience and interact with Native people and their traditions first-hand. Native storytelling, artist demonstrations, Native dance and game performances allow visitors to feel as if they’re living an authentic experience. This is not just a museum - audience participation is encouraged!

In “The Hall of Cultures” you can contemplate over artifacts, manuscripts and images of frontier days in Alaska. You’ll learn what rugged mountains and wildlife helped to make the Yukon great, and what traditional people did to stave off the cold winters and feast in the bright summers. You’ll see how earthen buildings were constructed to be structurally sound and thermally efficient, as well as have the opportunity to buy a traditional Native artifact for a loved one.

Take a cab from the port to the Alaska Native Heritage Center. This is a good place to start your day in port, as it’s much more than a museum. Across the center’s 26 acres, you can watch artists work, see a native dance performance and check out the replica villages. Enjoy a walk around the lake and discover what life was like in native Alaskan cultures.

Grab a taxi back to downtown and the Anchorage Museum (or take the shuttle that runs between the two properties). Admire the displays of Alaskan paintings and learn about the state’s long history. When you’ve had your fill of Alaskan culture, head to the Anchorage Zoo (shuttles run from downtown). Explore the zoo’s collection of northern animals, including caribou, moose and bears, of course. When you’re ready to rest your legs, enjoy a picnic in Valley of the Moon Park.

In pioneering days every red-blooded gold-rush town had a red-light district, and during Ketchikan’s frontier past it was Creek Street.

This historic bordello hub was built over Ketchikan Creek, hence the neighborhood’s name. In Ketchikan’s gold-mining heyday, more than two dozen houses of ill repute lined the boardwalk. Prostitution wasn’t outlawed here until 1954, and was legal as long as business wasn’t transacted on dry land. This explains why Creek Street isn’t a street at all, but an elevated boardwalk built on wooden pilings. Things are a lot more tame these days, and the red-trimmed Dolly’s House museum is Creek Street’s most colorful remnant. The boardwalk stretches over the creek, and gaily painted wooden buildings line the waterfront here.

Animal lovers heading to Sitka should consider visiting Fortress of the Bear, a non-profit bear rescue facility and the largest of its kind in the United States. Focused on educating the public on bears and how to help their populations, Fortress of the Bear takes in orphaned bear cubs and creates a protective and enriching environment for them. The operation was started by couple Les and Evy Kinnear who transformed Sitka’s old pulp mill into a place where baby bears could be cared for. Visitors can watch the bears being fed, observe and photograph bear interactions, and hear the story of each bear and how it ended up at Fortress of the Bear.

Keep in mind this is not like a typical zoo where you see an animal in a cage. Instead, you’ll watch the bears playing with large barrels and tire swings and being active in a large expanse of land. Additionally, the attraction has a non-touristy, non-commercial feel, allowing for a more authentic experience.