Entries Tagged "alaska land tours"

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Anchorage is Alaska’s largest city and home to approximately fifty percent of the entire population of the state. The city is situated on a triangular peninsula bordered on the east by the rugged Chugach Mountains, on the northwest by the Knik Arm, and on the southwest by the Turnagain Arm. Anchorage can trace its origins to the railroads, as it began as a tent city in 1915 for construction workers on the Alaska Railroad. In its first year, Anchorage grew to a population of 2,000; most of them railroad workers.

Saturday, August 08, 2009

Before Fairbanks was founded, Koyukon Athabaskans lived, fished, and hunted in the area with the Tanana and other rivers serving as trade routes with other Athabaskans and Eskimos. By the early 1900s, gold rush prospectors were spreading out into Alaska in search of gold. The discovery of gold in the nearby area led to the creation of Fairbanks. It began with a trading post started by E.T. Barnette who was forced to disembark on the shores of the Chena River in 1902. The Fairbanks Gold Rush led to the development of an established mining community and it became an important commercial center within a short time. In 1903, Fairbanks was incorporated as a city and named after a popular Senator, Charles W. Fairbanks, soon to become Vice President under Teddy Roosevelt. Eventually the gold panned out and Fairbanks settled into fifty years of modest growth marked by rail and highway construction.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Denali National Park and Preserve is located in Interior Alaska and contains Mount McKinley, named after former US President William McKinley. It is one of the world’s greatest places for viewing wildlife and bird species amid a spectacular mountain backdrop. Wildlife viewing is a popular summertime activity at Denali, with grizzly bears, moose, caribou, dall sheep, foxes and wolves roaming in the park. Bird watchers have a vast array of over 130 species of birds that may be found in Denali at various times throughout the year. Wintertime recreation includes dog-sledding, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling where allowed.