Alaska.com: Alaska's Travel Website

The city of Soldotna is a must-see attraction when visiting Alaska's Kenai Peninsula. Not only is the town full of excitement but the drive to Soldotna is packed with wildlife and breathtaking scenery.

Soldotna is 140 highway miles south of Anchorage and is famous for the Kenai River, which runs through town. The majestic turquoise river is filled with salmon in the summer, and bank fishing is accessible even by wheelchair.

The short but abundant history of the city founded after World War II can be found at the Soldotna Historical Society Museum on Centennial Park Road, off Kalifornsky Beach Road.

The museum features a wildlife display and historic log village. Among the log buildings is the last territorial school, built in 1958. Gas lanterns used by children during school still hang in the building. Other pieces of Soldotna's past are represented in a collection of homestead artifacts in the former Soldotna Chamber of Commerce log tourist center.

Soldotna is also known for its riverfront parks, more so than anywhere else in Alaska. The town boasts five river parks and 11 city parks, many with boardwalks and campsites.

The river parks include:

• Centennial Park: A campground with more than 190 designated campsites, picnic areas, two boat launches and about 850 feet of boardwalk.

• Swiftwater Park: A campground with 60 campsites equipped with picnic tables and fire pits. The park has 1,200 feet of boardwalk.

• Rotary Park: A park for watching birds and fish along the 625 feet of boardwalk.

• Soldotna Visitor Center Classic Fishwalk: A 250-foot-long walk with information about the river, salmon and the environment posted at each of the landings. Guests are invited to fish the area, which is known for sockeye, pink and silver salmon.

• Soldotna Creek Park: A five-acre spot with picnic areas, barbecues, playground equipment, volleyball nets and more than 500 feet of boardwalk and river access. A wide trail, which is handicapped-accessible with assistance, leads to the mouth of Soldotna Creek.

Driving instructions and more information for these parks and all other parks can be found at the Soldotna Chamber of Commerce.

Max Finch, owner of Alaska Canoe Trips, offers visitors a way to get out and be one with nature.

Finch has rental canoes, kayaks, rafts and mountain bikes. He also will guide the trip or provide all the essentials to help make it safer for participants.

"We tailor the trips for what they want," he said.

Finch said he has experience on the waters of the Kenai Peninsula.

"(I've been on) basically every stream on the Kenai you can get a boat in," he said.

But with experience comes knowledge, and Finch makes sure his clients are prepared.

He spends time with them before the trip to describe the area, its wildlife and potential dangers.

"It is all about making the experience as enjoyable as possible," he said.

Another convenient perk Finch provides is free parking for clients who go on day trips.

"Basically they can just show up in a rental car ... and they can go off on their own," he said.

For those who want to stay close, Finch also has a campground with 27 full hookups and tent sites, showers and laundry facilities at Mile 84 in Sterling.

While canoeing and kayaking are exciting, many like to exercise their bodies in closer quarters without mosquitoes and camp gear.

Lynn Morgan is the owner of Kenai Yoga, a studio that offers classes in hot yoga, classic yoga and restorative yoga.

Morgan believes that staying fit, even during off time, is essential.

"Yoga is a continual exploration of the body, mind and self," she said. "Vacation is an excellent opportunity to continue that exploration by experiencing new teachers and new styles."

Kenai Yoga offers classes Tuesday through Sunday, and visitors pay $10 to drop in. The studio is open six days a week.

According to Morgan, yoga is also a place of community.

"A yoga student is at home no matter what studio he or she visits," she said.

Ross Kendal of Healthy Changes agrees that staying fit is best, even when you're taken with the beauty of Alaska.

Healthy Changes has 10 classes including power pacing, mat Pilates and floor kick-boxing. Various classes are offered seven days a week.

If exercise indoors is not your idea of fun, then the Tsalteshi Trails located behind Skyview High School may fulfill the desire for a true outdoor venture.

The trails offer hikers, runners or bikers a great place to enjoy Alaska with all the senses. The course spans 22.2 kilometers with extreme, medium and short hills and rolling pathways. It is a series of seven smaller loops and trails of varying length and difficulty that branch off in many directions.

Mindee Morning, a runner with 27 years' experience, said the trails mimic the forest in many ways.

"It is very sheltered; you can't hear road noise in the heart of the trail," she said. "The sky is so blue."

But Morning warns of the wild animals that reside in the peaceful habitat.

"You have to take the same precautions as you would in the woods," she said.

Morning began running Alaska trails shortly after moving to the state. Her new husband was a runner and if Morning had not taken up the hobby, she would have been lonely.

"It was either that or I would stay home alone," she said.

While Morning has run in six other states and two other countries, she said the best thing about the trails, and Alaska, is the air.

"Its crisp, it's clean, it's refreshing, it is like water," she said. "Alaska is wondrous."

Freelance writer Sara J. Hardan-Smith lives in Nikiski.