Set along Eagle River Road in Chugach State Park, Eagle River Nature Center is an interesting place to visit for nature lovers. Before it was transformed into a nature center, this building was used to house the Paradise Haven Lodge. Visitors can hike along the three-miles (4.8 kilometers) long Albert Loop trail and revel in the surrounding mountains, cliffs and waterfalls. They also host guided tours and programs that allow visitors of all ages to experience the wilderness. This visitor centre is equipped with an information desk, a souvenir store and clean restrooms.
This large wooden platform offers terrific views of Cook Inlet (named for the man who discovered this waterway in 1778). A bust of Captain Cook and biographical and historical information are part of the monument. For 25 cents, visitors can peer through a telescope to look at Fire Island, Mt. Susitna or the Alaska Range across the Inlet. This is also a great way to get a closer view of the largest mountain in North America, Mt. McKinley (20,320 feet), 120 miles away. No admission is charged.
Kimball Building
Built in 1915, this was the first multi-story building built, and filled with early commerce. Providing one of the earliest stores, Kimball's stocked the items necessary for the flood of Tent City residents who were moving into their own, more permanent homes. Della Kimball, daughter of the pioneer, was 12 years old when her father opened the store and is one of the pioneers who rests in the Anchorage Memorial Cemetery. There is no admission.
Part of the Anchorage walking tour, this house was built by the self-proclaimed "18th person" to walk into Anchorage, Oscar Anderson, in 915. Restored in 1982, it is open for guided tours Memorial Day to Labor Day. At the museum one gets a glimpse of the life style of the Andersons, and learns more about the early history of Anchorage. Exhibits discuss a roughly ten-year period from 1915 to 1925. The home is directly adjacent to the paved Tony Knowles Coastal Trail that follows the Inlet.
