Alaska is on everyone’s bucket list for various reasons. Located at the northwesternmost part of North America, “The Last Frontier” offers towering snow-covered mountains, active volcanoes, vast coastlines and wondrous wilderness for visitors to enjoy and explore. On the flip side of these, Alaska has floods, wildfires, earthquakes, mudslides and avalanches.
The 49th state is the largest in the country, and its name, which roughly means “great land” in Aleut, is appropriate. With a land area of 586,000 square miles, you won’t soon run out of places to discover.
“Alaska should be high on anyone’s list of places to visit. It is home to multiple mountain ranges, and one of the world’s longest coastlines,” award-winning photographer Gary Arndt told UK tour operator Canadian Affair. “There is so much to Alaska that you could spend your entire life exploring it without ever visiting the same place twice.”
Here are some of the other things Alaska is known for.
Glaciers
When it comes to glaciers, Alaska has tons of them. According to the National Parks Conservation Association, while there are glaciers in eight other states, around 100,000 of them are concentrated in Alaska. Some of the most famous include Mendenhall Glacier, Hubbard Glacier, Exit Glacier, Spencer Glacier, and Matanuska Glacier.
You’ll find glaciers on mountains in the Interior and along waterways of the Inside Passage. About 25% or 4.6 million acres (approximately 2 million hectares) of Alaska’s glaciers are within its national parks, for instance, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve and Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.
Seeing a glacier is a must-do when you’re in Alaska. It’s a quintessential experience that most visitors say are the highlight of their trip. You can see them via a river cruise, a flightseeing or helicopter tour, or through a multi-day glacier trek.
The Big Five
Alaska is well-known for its diverse wildlife population. Carnivore species alone number to 32, which is more than any other state in the country. However, the celebrities in the area are bears, moose, wolves, caribou, and Dall sheep, collectively known as “The Big Five.”
Bears
There are three species of bear in Alaska and two subspecies. Black bears inhabit the forested areas of the state, brown bears roam the coastal regions, and polar bears can be found farther north. Grizzly bears are a subspecies of brown bears, and you can find them in Denali National Park. Another subspecies is the Kodiak brown bear, which only resides in the Kodiak Archipelago. You can join bear viewing tours from Kodiak, Juneau, and Anchorage to catch a sight of these creatures.
Caribou
Caribous are a member of the deer family. What’s special about them is that both male and female caribous grow antlers. If you’re not an expert and go looking for them without a guide, you might mistake them for reindeer. Denali National Park is a great place to view some of them.
Dall sheep
Head-butting males with massive curled horns might be the first image of Dall sheep that come to mind for many people. Another one is how they can climb precarious ridges and steep slopes.
Dall sheep live in the alpine areas of the subarctic mountain ranges of Alaska. You can find them at Kenai Fjords National Park, Denali National Park, and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.
Moose
Another favorite of visitors to Alaska are the moose. They are the largest members of the deer family, and the species living in the state (Alces alces gigas) is the largest of them all.
Moose reside in the northern forests. Their habitat ranges from the Unuk in the Southeast to the Colville River on the Arctic Slope. For viewing opportunities, head to Denali National Park, Kenai Peninsula, or Anchorage.
Wolves
Gray and black wolves are the two subspecies roaming the Frontier State. There are more wolves in the Southeast where deer are plentiful and fewer in the coastal areas of western and northern Alaska. They avoid people as much as possible, so wolf spotting can be hard. Try Denali National Park to get the highest chance of seeing a lone wolf or a pack.
Mount Denali
Among the state’s mountains, there isn’t one more famous than Denali. Also known as Mount McKinley, Mount Denali stands 6,190 meters (20,310 feet) tall. The name “Denali” actually means “the tall one” in Koyukon, a traditional Native Alaskan language.
It is the tallest mountain in the continent and a resident of Denali National Park and Preserve. The park is among the top national parks out of eight in the state. With 6 million acres (around 2.4 million hectares), there is an abundance of scenery, wildlife, and outdoor activities you can enjoy here. For instance, climbers and other adventurers, such as skiers and dog mushers, have been answering the beckoning of the tall mountain for more than a century.
Denali National Park and Preserve is around 130 miles (210 km) north-northwest of Anchorage in the south-central part of the state. It only has one road, which in the summer you can partly drive through and partly traverse by bus.
Northern Lights
Alaska is a prime location to view the Northern Lights or aurora borealis. Thanks to the state’s long nights and remote areas, you can gaze at a sky free from light pollution to be mesmerized by the amazing dance of the bands of brightly colored lights.
Aurora borealis season runs from August to April. Guided tours and overnight tours are available. Fairbanks is a great choice for Northern Lights viewing, but if you’re in the state in September or March, you might get lucky and catch the sky show anywhere in Alaska. Other places that offer a good view of the night sky include Coldfoot, Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Wiseman, Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse, and Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve.
Alaska Native Culture
Although Alaska only became a state in 1959, its history stretches back some 10,000 years. This heritage continues with the living descendants of Alaska Native peoples. There are five major groups, namely:
The Eyak, Haida, Tsimshian, and Tlingit in the Inside Passage
Learn about this group’s stories at Hoonah, the largest Tlingit village in Alaska, and in Sitka, where a visit to the Sheet’ka Kwaan Naa Kahidi Community House also showcases their traditional drumming celebration. Meanwhile, totems and their carving techniques are the highlight at the Totem Heritage Center in Ketchikan.
The Iñupiat and St. Lawrence Island Yupik in the Arctic
In Utqiaġvik, the Iñupiat Heritage Center features collections of ancient archaeology along with modern Alaska Native art, while the Northwest Arctic Heritage Center in Kobuk Valley National Park shines the spotlight on personal stories of Arctic life. If you visit in May, you can witness Nalukataq, a Native Alaskan festival celebrating the end of the whaling season.
The Unangax̂ and Sugpiaq (Alutiiq) in Southwest Alaska
There are two ways you can learn about the culture of this group. First, you can peruse the Museum of the Aleutians in Unalaska and the Alutiiq Museum in Kodiak. Or, you can travel to the ancient Alaska Native village sites of King Cove, Cold Bay, Akutan, Unalaska, False Pass, and Sand Point.
The Athabascan in Southcentral and Interior Alaska
You can start your exploration of Athabascan culture in Fairbanks. Here, the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center features permanent and rotating exhibitions for you to look at. There is also an annual Tanana Chiefs Conference, where you can join classes and cultural programs about daily Athabascan life.
The Yup’ik and Cup’ik
For this group, head to Bethel. The Yupiit Piciryarait Cultural Center has a library and museum where you can learn about Yup’ik and Cup’ik cultures. If you arrive in March, you can also join the Cama-i Dance Festival. It’s a celebration of togetherness filled with music and dancing that lasts for three days.