Alaska's cities
A city of parks
Location of Anchorage's state, city parks make outdoors accessible
By Steve Edwards / Anchorage Daily News
Alaska is a wild place, and millions of people visit Alaska just to get a taste of the state's natural beauty.
It's easy to see why.
Alaska is home to 39 mountain ranges, including Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America. It's also home to about 100,000 glaciers and too many lakes to count. It has more coastline than the rest of the United States combined.
Anchorage-area visitors can get a glimpse of the state's beauty without ever leaving the municipality -- through the parks system.
Look east and one of the area's jewels is staring back. The Chugach State Park, all 500,000 acres, has plenty of outdoor adventures awaiting visitors and residents alike. From a pleasant picnic to a heart-pounding adventure, the park is packed with action.
Chugach is one of the largest state parks in the nation and lies entirely within the Anchorage municipality boundaries.
"It's the closest place to get a view of wild Alaska," said Al Meiners, superintendent of Chugach State Park. "You can see most wildlife species found throughout the state right here in Anchorage. You can take short hikes. You can go on long expeditions.
"It's a great place."
Meiners said there are 2,000 Dall sheep, several hundred black bears, up to 30 brown bears and "a lot of moose" in the park. There also are wolf packs "roaming less than eight miles from downtown Anchorage. The wildlife is amazing."
There are a number of easy access points to the park.
Two local favorites are the Glen Alps trail head and the McHugh Creek trail head.
Glen Alps offers access to Flattop Mountain, the state's most often hiked peak. For the less adventurous there is a short walking path that leads to an overlook of Anchorage, Knik Arm, Turnagain Arm and Mount Susitna. On a clear day, Mount McKinley is easily visible to the north. Blueberry Knoll is an intermediate hike along a well-maintained trail and in late summer the area lives up to its name, and is covered with wild blueberries. Picnic facilities are located at the trail head.
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