The Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge located in the Anchorage Municipality.
The Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge is located on a 16-mile-long section of coastline in Anchorage, Alaska, stretching from Point Woronzof to Potter Creek. [1] The vast majority of the refuge is located on intertidal floodplains of glacial silt, with a smaller portion consisting of coastal wetlands, bogs, wooded areas, and Potter Marsh, a popular wildlife viewing area. [2]
The Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge is a seasonal home for many migratory bird species, including grebes, swans, Canada geese, yellowlegs, and northern phalaropes. [3] Eagles, moose, porcupines, and, less frequently, black bears inhabit the wooded areas closer to shore. While the glacial silt plains are generally devoid of visible life, they are traversed by thousands of salmon every year when much of the refuge becomes submerged at high tide.
The refuge is open to the public year-round. Popular activities include birdwatching, hunting, trapping, fishing, camping, hiking, snow-shoeing, and cross-country skiing. Potter Marsh is open during the winter for ice skating. [4] Despite its proximity to urban Anchorage, public access to much of the refuge is limited to unmarked trails through wooded areas, and the glacial silt floodplains that make up most of the refuge can be dangerous. Toward its southern end near Potter Marsh, the refuge sits directly behind an active rifle range. Though not illegal, traveling across that portion is dangerous and disruptive to shooters. [5]
Usage of the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge has been a topic of continuing controversy. Repeated attempts to extend the Anchorage Coastal Trail through the refuge have been opposed by various groups, including wildlife enthusiasts and homeowners whose property abuts the refuge. [6]
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States. It consists of 19,286,722 acres (78,050.59 km2) in the Alaska North Slope region. It is the largest national wildlife refuge in the country, slightly larger than the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is administered from offices in Fairbanks. ANWR includes a large variety of species of plants and animals, such as polar bears, grizzly bears, black bears, moose, caribou, wolves, eagles, lynx, wolverine, marten, beaver and migratory birds, which rely on the refuge.
Soldotna is a city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2010 census, the population was 4,163, up from 3,759 in 2000. It is the seat of the Kenai Peninsula Borough.
Mendenhall Glacier is a glacier about 13.6 miles (21.9 km) long located in Mendenhall Valley, about 12 miles (19 km) from downtown Juneau in the southeast area of the U.S. state of Alaska. The glacier and surrounding landscape is protected as part of the 5,815 acres (2,353 ha) Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area, a federally designated unit of the Tongass National Forest.
Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife preserve, one of the national wildlife refuges operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, located in the westernmost part of Clark County, Washington. The refuge protects more than 5,200 acres (2,100 ha) of marshes, grasslands, and woodlands. The refuge was established in 1965, in response to a need to establish vital winter habitat for wintering waterfowl with an emphasis on the dusky Canada goose whose nesting areas in Alaska were severely impacted by the violent earthquake of 1964. Ridgefield NWR is part of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge Complex, headquartered in Ridgefield, Washington, which oversees the management of four refuges in the southwestern part of the state: Ridgefield, and three refuges in the Columbia River Gorge: Franz Lake, Pierce, and Steigerwald Lake. This place was closed in spring of 2019 to cut down Douglas fir and change the trail. In fall of 2020, the construction of a new visitor center began.
Chugach State Park covers 495,204 acres immediately east of the Anchorage Bowl in south-central Alaska. Though primarily in the Municipality of Anchorage, a small portion of the park north of the Eklutna Lake area in the vicinity of Pioneer Peak lies within the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. Established by legislation signed into law on August 6, 1970, by Alaska Governor Keith Miller, this state park was created to provide recreational opportunities, protect the scenic value of the Chugach Mountains and other geographic features, and ensure the safety of the water supply for Anchorage. The park, managed by Alaska State Parks, is the third-largest state park in the United States, and consists of geographically disparate areas each with different attractions and facilities. Only Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in California and Wood-Tikchik State Park in western Alaska are larger. Hunting and fishing are permitted in the Chugach under regulations established by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game for game management unit 14c. Target practice is not allowed within the park boundaries.
The question of whether to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) has been an ongoing political controversy in the United States since 1977. As of 2017, Republicans have attempted to allow drilling in ANWR almost fifty times, finally being successful with the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge is a 240,000-acre (970 km2), 261-mile long (420 km) National Wildlife Refuge located in and along the Upper Mississippi River. It runs from Wabasha, Minnesota in the north to Rock Island, Illinois in the south.
Horicon Marsh is a marsh located in northern Dodge and southern Fond du Lac counties of Wisconsin. It is the site of both a national and a state wildlife refuge. The silted-up glacial lake is the largest freshwater cattail marsh in the United States.
The Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge is a 14,000-acre (5,666 ha) National Wildlife Refuge in eastern and central Minnesota. Located just south of the city of Minneapolis, it is one of fourteen Regional Priority Urban Wildlife Refuges in the nation. Many parts of the Refuge are near large establishments of the Twin Cities; the Bloomington Education and Visitor Center and two trailheads are located just blocks from the Mall of America, the Wilkie Unit is just east of Valleyfair and the Louisville Swamp Unit is just south of Minnesota Renaissance Festival.
The Weymouth Back River, sometimes called Back River, is a short, primarily tidal river in Hingham and Weymouth, Massachusetts, about 10 miles (16 km) south of Boston. It arises from a number of tributaries in ponds and swamps, most notably Whitmans Pond, flows northward, and empties into Hingham Bay.
Kincaid Park is a 1,516.78-acre (6.1382 km2) municipal park in Anchorage, Alaska, located at 9401 W. Raspberry Road. The park is bounded on the south by Turnagain Arm, on the west by Knik Arm, and on the north by Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Noted for Nordic skiing trails, in snowless months the park is frequented by runners, bikers, hikers, archers, dog-trainers, motocross users, disc golfers, soccer teams, and rollerskiers. Other winter activities include snowshoeing, sledding and biathlon. The park was created in 1978 and in 1978 expanded to include the location of a deactivated former Nike missile site. The park continues to evolve with changing demands of local residents. In 2009, a full 18 "hole" disc golf course that meanders through the wooded Mize loop area was completed. In 2010, several new soccer fields were completed and open for use in the area near the chalet. In 2012, a single artificial turf soccer field with stadium seating was completed just south of the chalet. Cook Inlet, Fire Island with its wind turbines, and Mount Susitna are visible from most hilltops in the park. On a clear day, Denali can also be seen from the park.
The Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge encompassing 965 acres (3.91 km2) located in the California coastal community of Seal Beach. Although it is located in Orange County it is included as part of the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex. It was established in 1972.
The wildlife of Alaska is diverse and abundant.
Elkhorn Slough is a 7-mile-long (11 km) tidal slough and estuary on Monterey Bay in Monterey County, California. It is California's second largest estuary and the United States' first estuarine sanctuary. The community of Moss Landing and the Moss Landing Power Plant are located at the mouth of the slough on the bay.
The Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex consists of six National Wildlife Refuges along the Oregon Coast. It provides wilderness protection to thousands of small islands, rocks, reefs, headlands, marshes, and bays totaling 371 acres spanning 320 miles (515 km) of Oregon's coastline. The areas are all managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail is an 11-mile-long (18 km) trail along the coast of Anchorage, Alaska designated for non-motorized use. The trail runs from Second Avenue in downtown Anchorage and finishes in Kincaid Park. The trail is entirely paved, supports two-way traffic, and connects with the Chester Creek Trail. Point Woronzof Park borders the coastal trail to the east for about a mile, starting at about mile 5.0. In the summer the trail is used extensively by walkers, runners, rollerbladers, and cyclists. In the winter the trail is used primarily for cross country skiing and also skijoring. The trail is a portion of the annual Tour of Anchorage cross country ski marathon.
The Koyukuk National Wildlife Refuge is a 3,500,000-acre (14,000 km2) conservation area in Alaska. It lies within the floodplain of the Koyukuk River, in a basin that extends from the Yukon River to the Purcell Mountains and the foothills of the Brooks Range. This region of wetlands is home to fish, waterfowl, beaver and Alaskan moose, and wooded lowlands where two species of fox, bears, wolf packs, Canadian lynx and marten prowl.
The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail is a state-designated system of trails, bird sanctuaries, and nature preserves along the entire length of the Texas Gulf Coast in the United States. As the state of Texas hosts more bird species than any other state in the U.S. the trail system offers some of the most unusual opportunities for bird-watching in the world. The "trail" is actually 43 separate hiking and driving trails that include 308 birding sites. The sites themselves feature a variety of viewing opportunities with boardwalks, observation decks, and other amenities. The trails boast more than 450 bird species. The trail system is managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as part of the Great Texas Wildlife Trails which also include the Heart of Texas Wildlife Trail, the Panhandle Plains Wildlife Trail, and the Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail.
The San Francisco Bay Salt Ponds are an approximately 16,500-acre (6,700 ha) part of the San Francisco Bay that have been used as salt evaporation ponds since the California Gold Rush era. Most of the ponds were once wetlands in the cities of Redwood City, Newark, Hayward and other parts of the bay.
Hidden Lake is a lake on the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska, formed by an ancient channel of the Kenai River. It is located entirely inside the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. The lake is deepest at its southeast end, with depths up to 148 feet (45 m). The back country section of the lake in the northwest has several islands and depths in the range of 10–70 feet (3.0–21.3 m). Being in the foothills of the Kenai Mountains, much of the shoreline is very steep, and wooded with birch and spruce trees. The only outflow from the lake is Hidden Creek, a short, shallow creek that flows into the Kenai River just North of Skilak Lake.
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Coordinates: 61°06′11″N149°54′11″W / 61.10306°N 149.90306°W