Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage is the airlines' gateway for tourism and travel in Alaska. Its mild summer weather is a big draw. From its early days as a railroad camp in a spruce and birch forest, Anchorage has grown into Alaska's largest city and the first stop for many visitors. Anchorage is a modern city in a beautiful setting laid out between the Chugach Mountains and Cook Inlet, and within sight of Mount McKinley (Denali), the continent's tallest peak.

Travel in any direction and find an abundance of wilderness experiences - watchable wildlife, glaciers, mountains, northern lights, recreation and adventure. Winter visitors are thrilled to find spectacular opportunities for outdoor fun. Mild winter climate, snow-covered mountains and forests, an award-winning trail system, and miles of untracked snow create the ideal conditions for winter activities such as alpine and Nordic skiing, snowboarding, dog sledding, ice fishing, snowshoeing and more.

The city has its share of asphalt and tall buildings, but nature still runs wild. Spawning salmon migrate up Anchorage's streams, and anyone walking through the woods may come face to face with a moose. Anchorage was created as a railroad construction camp on Ship Creek in 1914. It grew quickly during World War II and in the pipeline construction boom of the 1970s. The 1964 Prince William Sound earthquake, with a magnitude of 9.2, severely damaged parts of Anchorage. The city healed quickly and is the financial, cultural and medical capital of Alaska. Ankorage has a population of around 260,000 people and 700-1000 moose in the winter.

Cook Inlet Alaska Timelapses from Dennis Zaki on Vimeo.