A mix of the familiar and the unusual, the metropolitan and the rustic, Anchorage is a place where it is not uncommon to see moose walking through the parking lot of a downtown skyscraper, or to find yourself stuck in traffic as dogs fill the road as they begin the Iditarod sled dog race.

Government Hill

The oldest district and the northernmost part of Anchorage, Government Hill was one of many places to feel the destruction of the 1964 earthquake. When 400 feet of its bluff collapsed, it destroyed a school and dropped the railroad yard and shipyard by 30 feet. Only partially rebuilt, its shipyard has six fuel ports, which handle approximately 15 million barrels of petroleum each year. The Alaska Railroad Depot operates daily with freight and passenger service.

Ship Creek

Ship Creek was selected as the original tenting site of the pioneers who arrived in the area to build the railroad in 1914 and 1915. They first filled the area located nearby, the Ship Creek Viewing Platform, then spread north up to Government Hill.

Visitors who come during summer can experience the fun of amusement rides, car races and the Anchorage Weekend Market & Festival. Ship Creek is also a great place to be when the salmon are spawning, and it provides excellent salmon fishing, as approximately 9,000 king salmon spawn here yearly. The large parking lots used by fishermen in summer play host to the ice sculpting contests held during February's Anchorage Fur Rendezvous.

Downtown

An area teeming with activity and filled with high-rise buildings, businesses, restaurants and hotels, Downtown allows you to experience both the historic and the modern within the space of several blocks. From the small log cabin that houses the ACVB Log Cabin Visitor Information Center, you will find yourself in view of such hotels as the landmark Captain Cook Hotel, the Anchorage Marriott and the Hilton Anchorage. Several blocks away are glass-walled skyscrapers housing offices for multi-billion-dollar oil companies and other businesses. Nearby, the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts offers local and international opera, theater, dance, chorus and symphony performances. From that building's second floor, take the Fifth Avenue skywalk to overlook the town square as you walk toward the Egan Convention Center. Here also is the Anchorage Fifth Avenue Mall. Finally, don't miss Captain Cook's Resolution Park platform at the Inlet's edge. With the telescope available, you can close the 120-mile gap between yourself and Mt. McKinley and see why this 20,320-foot mountain is referred to as the "Great One."