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Alaska 
{State bird, Willow Ptarmigan} {State Flower, Forget-Me-Not} {State Tree, Sitka Spruce}
Economy: Fishing, Oil, Coal, Platinum, Gold, Uranium.
No other region in
North America possesses the mythical aura of ALASKA ; even the name - a
derivation
of Alayeska , an Athabascan word meaning "great land of the west" - fires
the imagination. Few who see this land of gargantuan ice fields, sweeping
tundra, glacially excavated valleys, lush rainforests, deep fjords and
occasionally smoking volcanoes leave unimpressed. Wildlife may be under
threat elsewhere, but here it is abundant, with Kodiak bears standing twelve
feet tall, moose stopping traffic in downtown Anchorage, wolves prowling
through national parks, bald eagles circling over the trees, and rivers
solid with fifty-plus-pound salmon.
Alaska's sheer size
is hard to comprehend: more than twice the size of Texas, it contains America's 
northernmost,
westernmost and, because the Aleutian Islands stretch across the 180th
meridian, its easternmost point. If superimposed onto the Lower 48 (the
rest of the continental United States) it would stretch from the Atlantic
to the Pacific, and its coastline is longer than the rest of the US combined.
All but three of the nation's twenty highest peaks are found within its
boundaries and one glacier alone is twice the size of Wales.
A mere 600,000 people live in this huge state - over forty percent of them in Anchorage - of whom only one-fifth were born here: as a rule of thumb, the more winters you have endured, the more Alaskan you are. Often referred to as the " Last Frontier ," Alaska in many ways mirrors the American West of the nineteenth century: an endless, undeveloped space in which to stake one's claim and set up a life without interference. Or at least that's how Alaskans would like it to be. Throughout this century tens of thousands have been lured by the promise of wealth, first by gold and then by fishing, logging and, most recently, oil. However, Alaska's 86,000 Native peoples , who don't have the option of returning to the Lower 48 if things don't work out, have been greatly marginalized, though Native corporations set up as a result of pre-oil boom land deals have increasing economic clout.
Traveling around Alaska
still demands a spirit of adventure, and to make the most of the state
you need to have an enthusiasm for striking out on your own and roughing
it a bit. Binoculars are an absolute must, as is bug spray; the mosquito
is referred to as the "Alaska state bird" and it takes industrial-strength
repellent to keep it away. On top of that there's the climate , though
Alaska is far from the popular misconception of being one big icebox. While
winter temperatures of -40°F are commonplace in Fairbanks, the most 
touristed
areas - the southeast and the Kenai Peninsula - enjoy a maritime climate
(45-65°F in summer) similar to that of the Pacific Northwest, meaning
much more rain (in some towns 180-plus inches per year) than snow. Remarkably,
the summer temperature in the Interior often reaches 80°F.
Alaska is far more
expensive than most other states: apart from two dozen hostels there's
little budget accommodation, and eating and drinking will set you back
at least twenty percent more than in the Lower 48 (perhaps fifty percent
in more remote regions). Still, experiencing Alaska on a low budget is
possible, though it requires planning and off-peak travel. From June to
August room prices are crazy; May and September, when tariffs are relaxed
and the weather only slightly chillier, are just as good times to go, and
in April or October you'll have the place to yourself, albeit with a smaller
range of places to stay and eat. Ground transportation , despite the long
distances, is reasonable, with backpacker shuttles ferrying budget travelers
between major centers. Winter , when hotels drop their prices by as much
as half, is becoming an increasingly popular time to visit, particularly
for the dazzling aurora borealis .
endured,
the more Alaskan you are. the Last Frontier Much of Alaska appears
as the Old west did over 100 years ago.
the Indian Art in Alaska is beautiful and makes wonderful gifts
Aurora
BorealisWinter visitors to Alaska see the skies ablaze with the shimmering
veils of the Northern 
Lights.
Sitka Russian influence blended with Native heritage and fabulous coastal scenery make this one of Alaska's most diverting towns.
The Chilkoot Trail Follow in the (frozen) footsteps of the Klondike prospectors on this demanding 33-mile trail near Skagway.
Talkeetna Every Alaska visitor's favorite small town is the base for superb flightseeing trips around Mount McKinley.
Salmon Join the anglers who line up elbow-to-elbow in the salmon-bearing rivers of the Kenai Peninsula, "Anchorage's Playground," where the savory species can weigh as much as 30 pounds or more.
ANCHORAGE is home to over forty percent of Alaska's population, and serves as the transportation center for the whole state. This sprawling city on the edge of one of the world's great wildernesses often gets a bad press from those who live elsewhere in Alaska - derided as being "just half an hour from Alaska" - but it has its attractions, and with its beautiful setting can make a pleasant one- or two-day stopover.
By the time Captain James Cook came up what is now Cook Inlet in 1778, in search of a Northwest Passage to the Atlantic, Russian fur trappers had already started to settle the area, trading copper and iron for fish and furs with the Native Americans. Though Cook was sure that the inlet was not the Passage, he sent boats out in a southeasterly direction to investigate. When they were forced to turn back by the severe tides, Cook named this gloriously scenic stretch Turnagain Arm .
Anchorage itself began life in 1915 as a tent city for construction workers on the Alaska Railroad. During the 1930s, hopefuls fleeing the Depression came pouring in from the Lower 48, and World War II - and the construction of the Alaska Highway - further boosted the city's size and importance. The opening of the airport established Anchorage - equidistant between New York and Tokyo - as the "Crossroads of the World," and statehood in 1959 brought in yet more optimistic adventurers
The
City
Travelers
eager to rush off into the "real" Alaska tend to overlook cosmopolitan
Anchorage - a blend of old and new, urban blight and rural parks - but
there is plenty to see, and it's worth spending some time here experiencing
big-city Alaska
FAIRBANKS , 358 miles north of Anchorage, is at the end of the Alaska Highway from Canada and definitely at the end of the road for most tourists. Though flat and somewhat bland, its central location makes a great base for exploring a hinterland of gold mines and hot springs, and a staging point for both the tiny villages scattered around the surrounding wilderness, and for journeys along the Dalton Highway (aka the "Haul Road") to the Arctic Ocean oil community of Prudhoe Bay .
Alaska's second most populous town was founded accidentally, in 1901, when a steamship carrying E.T. Barnette, a merchant with all his wares on board, ran aground in the shallows of the Chena River. Unable to transport the supplies he was carrying, Barnette set up shop in the wilderness and catered to the few trappers and prospectors trying their luck in the area. The following year, with the beginnings of the Gold Rush , a tent city sprang up on the site, and Barnette made a mint. In 1908, at the height of the gold stampede, Fairbanks had a population of 18,500, but by 1920 the population had dwindled to only 1100. To thwart possible Japanese attacks during World War II, several huge military bases were built and the population rebounded, getting a further boost in the mid-1970s when it became the transportation center for the trans-Alaska oil pipeline project: construction and other oil-related activities brought a rush of workers seeking wages of up to $1500 per week and the popu lation reached an all-time high. The city's economy dropped dramatically with the oil crash, and unemployment hit twenty percent before government spending put the city back on track.
The spectacular aurora borealis is a major winter attraction, as is the Ice Festival in mid-March, with its ice sculpting competition and open sled dog race on the frozen downtown streets. Summer visitors should try to catch the three-day World Eskimo-Indian Olympics in mid-July when contestants from around the state compete in the standard dance, art and sports competitions, as well as some unusual ones like ear-pulling, knuckle hop, high kick and the blanket toss, where age and wisdom often defeat youth and strength.
JUNEAU is unlike any other state capital in the nation. Accessible only by sea or air, it is exceptionally picturesque, hard against the Gastineau Channel , with steep, narrow roads clawing up into the rainforested hills behind. Gold features heavily in its history. In 1880, two prospectors - one of them Joe Juneau - made Alaska's first gold strike in the rainforest along the banks of the Gastineau Channel. Named Gold Creek, the camp grew rapidly. Until the last mine was shut down in 1944, this was the world's largest producer of low-grade ore - all the flat land in Juneau, stretching from downtown to the airport, is landfill from mine tailings.
TALKEETNA has a palpable small-town Alaska feel: rumor has it that this eclectic hamlet was the model for Cicely in TV's Northern Exposure , but to its credit Talkeetna doesn't use this as tour-bus bait. The town is lent an international flavor by the world's mountaineers, who come here to scale the 20,320-foot Mount McKinley , which in Alaska is usually referred to by its original Athabascan name of Denali , "the Great One." Whatever you choose to call it, North America's highest mountain rises from 2000ft lowlands, making it the world's tallest from base to peak (Everest et al rise from high terrain).
Though central to Denali National Park the mountain is best seen from Talkeetna, where the overlook just south of town reveals the peak's transcendent white glow, in sharp contrast to the warm colors all around.
From mid-April to mid-July Denali climbers amass in Talkeetna to be flown to the mountain: only half of the 1200 attempting the climb each year succeed, due to extreme weather conditions. Air taxi companies also run flightseeing trips ranging from a spectacular one-hour ($115) flight to the full ninety-minute grand tour ($165) completely encircling the mountain. K2 Aviation (tel 907/733-2291 or 1-800/764-2291, ), the choice of most climbing expeditions, offers the widest range of options, including glacier landings (extra $40) in planes fitted with skis.
Talkeetna's famed Moose Dropping Festival falls on the second weekend of July; little brown balls can be purchased (with a sanitary coat of varnish) for use as earrings, necklaces and so on, throughout the town. In addition to these highly desirable lumps of Alaskana, the festival features dancing, drinking and a moose-dropping throwing competition and some more drinking
SITKA ranks as one of Alaska's prettiest and most historic towns. The Fuji-like Mount Edgecumbe volcano rises menacingly across Sitka Sound from the spot where Russian colonists established a fort in 1799. Three years later Tlingit warriors massacred the imperialist troops and their Aleut slaves, but were themselves cannoned into submission in 1804. Under Russian occupation the town was rebuilt and christened Novaya Archangelsk (New Archangel), the capital of Russian America - a role it retained beyond the 1867 transfer of ownership to the US, until federal powers passed control to Juneau in 1906. Sitka today earns its keep mostly from fishing and tourism; it's all too keen to flog tacky "Russiocana" - you'll find more nesting dolls here than the rest of the US put together - but the town also has a wealth of great outdoor opportunities and a fine reputation for its festivals, especially the chamber-oriented Summer Music Festival each June and the Alaska Day Festival (celebrating the Russia-US transfer) on the days leading up to October 18.
The
Town
The
best place to get a grasp of Sitka's Russian past and the lay of the land
is from the rocky vantage point of Castle Hill , where Alaska was officially
transferred to the US on October 18, 1867; an informative plaque marks
the spot
KETCHIKAN
, five hundred miles north of Seattle, is Alaska's "first city," and as
the first port of call for many cruise ships, its historic downtown, wedged
between water and forested mountains, becomes saturated in summer with
elderly tourists. Beyond the souvenir shopping it can be a delight, built
into steep hills and partly propped on wooden pilings, with boardwalks,
wooden staircases and totem poles throughout.
