Page 86 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide 2017 - Alaska

84  ALASK A AREA B Y AREA

s Turnagain Arm Tour

The curious name of the 50-mile (80-km) long fjord known
as Turnagain Arm was bestowed by explorer Captain James
Cook in 1778. He was forced to “turn again” after discovering
that it was impossible to navigate a sea route between
Cook Inlet and the fabled Northwest Passage. Today, a
drive along the Arm’s shore makes a rewarding day trip
from Anchorage. A lovely stretch of the 120-mile (200-km)
Seward Highway, which connects Anchorage and Seward
(see pp102–3), following the fjord’s north shore through Driving along the scenic Seward Highway
Chugach State Park and Chugach National next to Turnagain Arm
Forest, offering spectacular views of the Anchorage
Kenai Mountains across the water. SEWARD HIGHWAY

Bird Creek
ALASKA RAILROAD
Cook
Inlet
1 Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge
Just south of Anchorage at Mile 117, a series
of boardwalks provide views across Potter Bird
Marsh, frequented in the summer by nesting
ducks, geese, swans, and other waterfowl.
Bird Point
Hope
Key
Turnagain Arm
Sunrise
Tour
Main road
2 Beluga Point
Minor road At Beluga Point (Mile 110) visitors Resurrection Creek
Trail can observe Turnagain Arm empty and
refill twice daily in a wall of water known Sixmile Creek
Alaska Railroad
as the Bore Tide, which ranges from
Road­rail tunnel 2 to 6 ft (60 cm–2 m), occasion ally
Peak topping a dramatic 8 ft (2.5 m).
Chugach National Forest
Beluga Whales
The distinctive whale known as the beluga
(Delphinapterus leucas) is one of several
beaked whales that inhabit the Arctic, North
Atlantic, and North Pacific Oceans. The name
beluga, meaning “the white one,” was given
by Russian explorers, who probably first
observed them in the Bering Sea. These
mammals are 13 to 15 ft (4 to 4.5 m) in length
and weigh about 2,500 to 3,500 lbs (1,100
to 1,600 kg). In the summer, pods migrate
into Turnagain Arm to feed and may be
observed from the shore, although the Cook
Inlet population has been declin ing drama­
tically in recent years, alarming scientists. Beluga whale breaking the surface
For hotels and restaurants in this area see p242 and pp250–51 For keys to symbols see back flap

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