Anchorage, Alaska is a consolidated city-borough (officially called the Municipality of Ankorage). It is also a census area with around 279,243 residents.

Anchorage, Alaska

Alaska's largest city

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 279,000 people and 700-1000 moose in the winter.

Cook Inlet Alaska Timelapses from Dennis Zaki on Vimeo.

Anchorage History:
(From Wikipedia) - Anchorage, unlike every other large town in Alaska south of the Brooks Range, was neither a fishing nor mining camp. The area within tens of miles of Anchorage is barren of significant economic metal minerals; there is no fishing fleet operating out of Anchorage. The city grew from its happenstance choice as the site, in 1914, of a railroad construction port for the Alaska Railroad. The railroad was built between 1915 and 1923. Ship Creek Landing, where the railroad headquarters was located, quickly became a tent city; Anchorage was incorporated on November 23, 1920. The city's economy in the 1920s centered around the railroad. Between the 1930s and the 1950s, the city experienced massive growth as air transportation and the military became increasingly important. Merrill Field opened in 1930, and Anchorage International Airport opened in 1951. Elmendorf Air Force Base and Fort Richardson were constructed in the 1940s.

On March 27, 1964, Anchorage was hit by the magnitude 9.2 Good Friday Earthquake, which killed 115 Alaskans and caused $1.8 billion in damage (2007 U.S. dollars). The earth-shaking event lasted nearly five minutes; most structures that failed remained intact the first few minutes, then failed with repeated flexing. It was the second largest earthquake in the recorded history of the world. Rebuilding dominated the city in the mid 1960s.

In 1968, oil was discovered in Prudhoe Bay, and the resulting oil boom spurred further growth in Anchorage. In 1975, the City of Anchorage and the Greater Anchorage Area Borough (which includes Eagle River, Girdwood, Glen Alps, and several other communities) merged into the geographically larger Municipality of Anchorage. The city continued to grow in the 1980s, and capital projects and an aggressive beautification campaign took place.

Anchorage Climate:
Anchorage has a subarctic climate but with strong maritime influences that moderate temperatures. Average daytime summer temperatures range from approximately 55–78 °F; average daytime winter temperatures are about 5–30 °F. Anchorage has a frost-free growing season that averages slightly over 100 days.

Summers are typically mild (although cool compared to the contiguous US and even interior Alaska), and it can rain frequently. Average July low and high temperatures are 52–66 °F and the hottest reading ever recorded was 92 °F on June 25, 1953. The average annual precipitation at the airport is around 16 inches. Anchorage's latitude causes summer days to be very long and winter daylight hours to be very short. The city is often cloudy during the winter, which decreases the amount of sunlight experienced by residents.

Alaska Native Heritage Center:
Feel the heartbeat of traditional Native dancing, visit traditional Native housing and touch and feel cultural objects, and interact with Alaska's Native People. There is something new to experience each week. You'll learn the life ways of long ago, traditions that endure and see how Alaska Natives survive and thrive today. (www.alaskanative.net)

Alaska Zoo:
Caribou, Dall sheep, reindeer, Siberian tigers, musk ox, seals, moose, and various Alaskan birds call this home -- you'll even find the state's only elephant. The star attractions are Oreo, a brown bear, and Ahpun, a polar bear; the two were orphaned as cubs and grew up together at the zoo. During the summer, the zoo operates a shuttle from downtown ($10 round-trip). 2 mi east of New Seward Hwy. Cost: $8. Open: May-Labor Day, daily 9-6; Labor Day-Apr., daily 10-5. www.alaskazoo.org

Sportfishing:
For a metropolitan area, the Anchorage bowl offers a surprising amount of good fishing. Streams and lakes in the area and nearby hold king, silver, pink chum, and red salmon; rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, lake trout, burbot, pike, grayling, smelt and whitefish.

Floatplane

Flightseeing:
Depart Lake Hood with an experienced Alaska bush pilot. Whether you want to land on a mountain lake, fly over fjords, view glaciers and wildlife or just enjoy the phenomenal and breathtaking beauty of the last frontier. Scheduled services are also available to Denali, Fairbanks, North Slope, Kenai Peninsula, the Mat-Su Valley and many other locations.

Location:
Anchorage is located in the Southcentral region of Alaska, 358 miles south of Fairbanks, 37 miles northwest of Girdwood and 127 miles north of Seward. It is a three-hour flight from Seattle.
Access:
Ankorage is centrally located in Alaska with more than 280 flights serviced daily by domestic and international airlines. Anchorage can be reached from anywhere in North America via the Alaska Highway. The Glenn and Seward highways lead into Anchorage and the Alaska Railroad travels between Anchorage from Fairbanks, Whitter and Seward.

Accomodations:
Anchorage has more than 8,000 hotel/motel rooms and more than 850 bed and breakfast/hostel beds. There are more than 600 restaurants/eateries.