Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage has sometimes been described as "Half an Hour from Alaska". An half-hour trip in any direction from the city offers diverse wilderness experiences, but this is a modern metropolis with features that make it uniquely Alaska.
It is a melting pot culture: Eskimos and Indians who first entered the area 6000 years ago, Russians who came for the abundant fur found in the area, prospectors who searched for gold and adventurers who established a city of tents. The name Anchorage was adopted because this is where the boats anchored for inland expeditions. It is located at the top of Cook Inlet.
We went for a walk along one of the many walking/bike trails and enjoyed a great view of the MUD FLATS as the tide was out. These mud flats are potentionally dangerous. There are warning signs along the edge to tell tourists not to walk out on them. A tidal bore here is second only to the one in Nova Scotia Canada.
We read in the Anchorage daily newspaper this week that a morning jogger had encountered an aggressive black bear on the same trail. All ended well as the jogger continued to jog. Grizzly bears are less aggressive than black bears we have been told. This is a picture of the Mud Flats at the top of Cook Inlet.