Anchorage

Pacific Northwest and Alaska 2022

We definitely had the best day to see Denali – the day before had been misty and spitting rain, and the day after, on the Wilderness Train to Anchorage, it was flat out raining for the first half of the 8-hour trip. We sat in a second-floor observation area which gave an excellent view along the edge of Denali National Park and then into the interior of Alaska.

We saw lots of trees, some swans, loons, ducks and eagles – but no moose. We passed by the town of Talkeetna – the town that inspired the TV series Northern Exposure (it was filmed in Rosslyn, Washington). There is a fairly booming tourist industry there, and is a stop for some of the Princess Overland Cruise passengers. For the residents in this region, the train is one of the few ways to access the outside world, so there are flag-stop trains. If you put a flag out, they stop and get you (ours was a private train, so we didn’t get to meet any interesting locals). By the time we reached Anchorage, the weather had improved, a little misty, though still chilly in the 50’s. 

To learn more about the city, we took the “Deluxe 2-hour trolley tour” ($50/pp). Anchorage, est. 1915, was originally called “Ship Creek” – emphasis on the “p”. For the first 25 years of its existence, it was a company town for the Alaska Railroad. During WWII, it became a hub for many military facilities, including Elmendorf Air Force base, which became the hub for the Aleutians and the northern Pacific theatre. Now, Anchorage boasts the biggest air cargo hub in the world – almost anywhere in the northern hemisphere is less than 10 hours from Anchorage (Tokyo and NYC are equidistant), making it an ideal technical stop for cargo planes. You are likely looking at something in your room right now that came through Anchorage.

The growing city was devastated by a massive 9.2 magnitude earthquake on March 27, 1964 that created a 220-foot-high tsunami. Amazingly – only 131 people died – because it happened on Good Friday after 5PM. Everyone was home, almost all of the residents live in the hills above the main part of the city, and there were few high rises. (As an aside – the great Lisbon earthquake/tsunami of 1755 that killed over 12,000 was estimated to have been a 7.7). The physical rift created by the earthquake can be seen today in Earthquake Park next to the airport. The 134-acre Earthquake Park is also great to visit due to its nature trails and meadows which provide great cover for recently calved moose. In order to keep the moose off of the runway, the airport hires teenagers to ride up and down on 4-wheelers to keep them away. There at the park, we finally saw a moose (with her two calves). 

Anchorage is also, by far, the largest city in Alaska – home to almost half of the state’s total population of 733,000. The city sits on Turnagain Arm of the Cook Inlet. (When Captain Cook was looking for the NW Passage, they hoped to find it near here, only needing to “turn again”; not long after, he gave up and returned to Hawaii – only to end up killed by the Hawaiians).

Overall, the food we had at restaurants was very good, but expensive since almost everything needs to be flown in from the lower 48 or from overseas (a simple lunch for 2 of sandwiches and water can run over $30).

Anchorage does have a public bus system ($2/pp per ride or $5pp day pass that expires at midnight), but it is not reliable on the weekends. The conveniently posted times at the well-marked stops are apparently suggestions. John and I waited for close to 45 minutes at a stop that the bus was supposed to come every half-hour. We were told by others waiting that it is normally very reliable during the work week. 

A more fun way to get around is by small single and twin-engine plane. John and I were amazed at how many people commute by bush plane, equipped with pontoons or tundra tires in the summer, and skies in the winter. We were told that in Alaska, there are more small planes than licensed pilots – many people who live in the bush are taught to fly by family members but never actually get their license. In Anchorage, so many people raised here become pilots the basic training course to get the student pilot certificate is taught in high school along with driver’s ed. 

Next up – back on a cruise on the Holland America Nieu Amsterdam!