Girdwood


Girdwood

Outdoorsy GIRDWOOD , 37 miles south of Anchorage, lies two miles inland in the shade of the Alyeska Resort ( ; $45), Alaska's largest winter sports complex and the lowest-elevation ski resort in the world - Mount Alyeska's 3939ft summit rises from just 270 feet above sea level. Downhill runs and an extensive night-skiing operation run from November to mid-April, and in summer you can ride the Alyeska Tramway ($16) up to stunning views and some good hiking territory.

Girdwood Ski and Cyclery, Mile 1.5 Alyeska Highway (phone 907/783-2453; closed Mon & Tues), rent mountain bikes ($25 a day) to explore the surrounding trails, and Class V Whitewater (phone 907/783-2004, ) run a range of rafting trips from gentle scenic float trips on the Portage River (3hr; $50) to serious Class III-V whitewater on the Six-Mile River ($65-130).

The resort's Alyeska Prince Hotel (phone 907/754-1111 or 1-800/880-3880; $160-200) is a grand ski lodge with half a dozen good restaurants and service to match. Alternatively, try the Austrian-run Alyeska View B&B , Vail Drive (phone 907/783-2747, ; $100-130), or Alyeska Home Hostel (phone 907/783-2099; up to $35), with $10 loft beds. There's inexpensive food at Chair Five in Girdwood (phone 907/783-2500; daily 11am-2am) or the un-missable Double Musky Inn on Crow Creek Road (phone 907/783-2822): budget on $25 a head and a meal to remember.

Eleven miles south of Girdwood, a road leads to Whittier, past Portage Glacier , an unbearably popular day-tour from Anchorage. Frustratingly, you can't see the glacier from the parking lot; instead you must pay Gray Line $25 for a cruise around the lake's corner to the glacier's snout. Two USFS campgrounds ($10) can be found two or three miles back down the road.

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