Anchorage Trail Systems

[2] The trails, which are used primarily for recreation and commuter traffic, are heavily utilized year round for walking, biking, and skiing.

An innumerable number of trails cover this large area of land that stretches upwards of 495,000 acres (200,319 ha).

The first trails, constructed in the late 1950s, were developed by local people with private interests in recreation or transport.

[3] Paths in some of the original areas of the municipality linked neighborhoods and roadways but were used in a utilitarian manner rather than for sport.

[7] NSAA's contributions to the trail systems in Anchorage have been instrumental in creating well-kept areas for individuals to use in both winter and summer months.

Single Track Advocates is a group that has catered its efforts primarily to mountain biking and an indirect result, trail running.

[10] The initiative has experienced great success in creating a community that actively engages with trail maintenance out of private action groups or tax funded efforts.

Some of the activities that the trails host include Nordic skiing, hiking, trail and road running, walking, mountain biking, road biking, horseback riding, ski jouring, snowshoeing, rollerblading, and connections to innumerable parks, lakes, rivers and beaches that offer opportunities for fishing, water sports, and activities such as iceskating and ice fishing in the winter months.

[15] In conjunction with trails- sparse bike lanes, wide road shoulders, and sidewalks that are plowed semi-regularly during the winter months are utilized by commuter traffic.

The 32-mile loop not only opened up a great deal of new options for commuters to stay off the busy roads, but also provided for individuals wishing to see Anchorage in a non-commuter setting.

While the trail runs along Cook Inlet, it also connects its users to places such as Westchester Lagoon and has also been included as a part of the recently completed Moose Loop.

These statistics roughly represent the paved pathways in Anchorage but do not take into account possible commuter routes that are not official trail systems.