The Kenai peninsula today captures a lot of Alaska’s tourism especially by boat, from fishing boats in Homer, to float trips on the Kenai river, to Kenai Fjord tour boats in Seward, to the Alaska Marine Highway in Whittier and cruise ships on their way to Anchorage. The greater area around Anchorage is flat in the river delta of the Cook Inlet surrounded by mountains. To get from Anchorage to the Kenai peninsula, you drive around the Turnagain Arm, a branch of the Cook Inlet with the highest tides in the US. Watch for the tidal bore and telltale mud flats.
This heritage area celebrates the various communities from Coopers Landing in the west with river and lake guides, to the port of Whittier in the east, to the Iditarod trail connecting Seward in the south to mountain resorts like Girdwood north near Anchorage. Girdwood has an appealing upscale hippy take on Alaska, with popular summer festivals and winter Nordic spa experiences. Honestly, compared to where I grew up, the history is a bit sparse, but the tiny museum in Seward includes Native American artifacts and relates engaging stories showcasing how tough Alaskans are, including surviving bear attacks, a 9.2 earthquake, winter and running incredible endurance races for fun.
Mostly, you need to appreciate just how wild and seasonal Alaska is, in order to have an enjoyable visit. Winter can extend well into May on the mountains, and the short summer season is frenetic, with locals working long hours while the sun shines. Major hotel chains and national franchises have trouble adapting to Alaska, as their business models don’t normally allow for months of darkness, closing up and waiting for the thaw. Local businesses adapt much better, using the ample open spaces to run strings of seasonal businesses, often following fish and wildlife. Small villages like Moose Pass on Trail Lake below in the middle of the heritage area hold small communities tightly together during winter and then open up to visitors in summer.
Life in Alaska is both simple and also nuanced in how in tune it is with nature. Unfortunately, our carbon pollution is changing the environment, helping cause a devastating forest fire in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge west of the heritage area. We need to respect our fascinating and fragile natural world more.
