The Alaska Zoo in South Anchorage is a perfect place for the family to enjoy Alaska wildlife in a natural, wooded setting. Home to many different wildlife species, the Zoo offers naturalist tours and enrichment programs, along with ongoing events such as Storytime at the Zoo and live music during summer.
Watch salmon struggle upstream at the William Jack Hernandez Sport Fish Hatchery, located near downtown Anchorage on the north bank of Ship Creek at the corner of Reeve Boulevard and Post Road. The newly expanded hatchery is owned and operated by the State of Alaska, Department of Fish and Game, Sport Fish Division.
Get nose-to-nose with bear, elk, bison, moose, coyote, musk ox, eagle and more at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC). Located south of Anchorage in Portage, AWCC takes in injured and orphaned animals and provides a permanent home for animals that can’t be released back in the wild. AWCC is committed to conservation of Alaska wildlife. Enclosures are spacious and “wild.”
Learn about musk ox history and watch these powerful ice age survivors at the Musk Ox Farm, located about an hour north of Anchorage in the Mat-Su Valley. Check out the qiviut ("key-vee-ute")products made from the soft under fur of the musk ox, woven into garments by Alaska Native women.
Oceans away from ordinary, the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska, provides a “window to the sea.” Witness 1,500-pound Steller sea lions gliding past underwater viewing windows, puffins diving in a naturalistic habitat, and harbor seals sprawling atop rocky beaches at this world-class marine science facility. Specialty tours include mammal, puffin and octopus encounters where visitors can go into the research and training areas and experience first-hand how to feed and care for resident animals.
