Mt. Denali, Earthquake Park, and Balto - Highlights of Anchorage

Calvin and I flew via Delta first to Minneapolis-St. Paul and then on to Anchorage. Thank you, Delta, for free movies on that long 5-hour flight! We were surprised when we deplaned to see bright sunlight at 9 in the evening! We marveled at the scene of mountains all around us.

Holland America staff met us, collected our luggage, and shuttled our group to the Westmark Hotel in downtown Anchorage. Our room was on the 14th floor and this was the lovely scene we viewed from our window.


We found we were located about 8 blocks from the Pacific Ocean, overlooking the port where almost all of the goods coming into Alaska are shipped. The Port of Anchorage website states, "If you eat it, wear it, or drive it, it came through the Port of Anchorage". Further, it states that "an estimated 90% of the merchandise goods for 85% of Alaska's populated areas pass through our facilities". The freight ship in the harbor stayed there all night until high tide. Dredge boats are utilized annually to remove silt and to keep the harbor navigable. Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska with a population of 402,000 in the metro area. The total population of Alaska is about 740,000. The demographics of the city are skewed on the young end with the median being about 33. We also noticed the people were very diverse with a variety of ethnicities and a number of inter-racial couples. Skateboards were a popular mode of transport. The city stays up late to take advantage of sunlight which in June lasts until 11 or 12 P.M.


We arrived on June 11th and spent June 12th exploring the city. Walking is the best way to tour, but with my two artificial knees we didn't wander very far. We did enjoy a couple of hours at the nearby Anchorage Museum of History and Art, the largest museum in Alaska. The building is pictured in the city scape photo above near the center of the picture; it's the contemporary building with tall arched floor-to-ceiling windows.


Here we viewed displays of Native peoples' art and artifacts, oil paintings of the incomparable scenery of Alaska, and exhibits of the Russian influence on Alaskan culture. Particularly striking were the videos, photographs, and oral history statements of individuals from First Nation peoples describing ways in which they honor their culture and family heritage. Educational activities happening at the museum included a floor for children with hands-on art projects and quirky science demonstrations that fascinated these two older adults. Also interesting to me as a historian were the curators' demonstrations of their precise work. You will likely remember the story of Balto, the Husky sled dog who was the hero of the 1925 serum run in which sled dog teams transported the medicine that would stop the diphtheria epidemic in Nome. Balto has had an animated movie made in his honor and also has a famous statue in Central Park. The Anchorage Museum actually has the stuffed Balto on display and we saw it!

Another highlight of the day was riding on the Anchorage Trolley for an hour on which the narrators (both long-time Alaskans) gave us colorful and informative descriptions of the city and its history. Earthquake Park showed us the devastation left by the Great Alaskan Earthquake that occurred on March 27, 1964 which lasted more than 4 minutes and measured a magnitude of 9.2 (the most powerful in North American history), resulted in tsunamis, and left about 139 people dead. Since it occurred on Good Friday, most offices and schools were closed, which likely limited the number of deaths from such a powerful quake. But much damage resulted from the inadequately engineered buildings and other infrastructure. The land was considered unstable for development; therefore, it was preserved as a park by the State of Alaska to leave a record of the severe drop-off from the landslide caused by the tremors.

Also fascinating to us was the seaplane airport area with many small and larger private planes with gear attached for water landings. The narrator explained that 1 of every 61 Alaskans are private pilots and many own seaplanes to access the many wilderness areas which are difficult to access by car. She commented that many young people learn to fly early in life, sometimes being taught by "Grandma".


The premier highlight of the trolley ride was being able to view Mt. Denali, North America's highest peak. My next post will include more information about this mountain and its traditions. Tour guides told us that only 20 to 30% of tourists are able to view Mt. Denali during their visits due to the frequent cloud covering at its high altitude which hides the peak.  We were lucky to be able to view it three days in a row during our tour.

We ended the day with dinner at Humpy's, a local favorite named after Alaska's humpback whales. One of us had salmon and the other tried cod tacos. The food was delicious and the people watching was interesting. We retired about 11, thankful for thick curtains to block out the bright sunlight!