Anchorage, Alaska, is a city where urban comforts meet rugged wilderness, and nowhere is this more evident than on the stunning Tony Knowles Coastal Trail. This 11-mile paved pathway offers breathtaking views of Cook Inlet, the Alaska Range, and the Anchorage skyline. On day 1 of our recent Alaskan adventure, we decided to tackle it the modern way: on e-bikes, and let me tell you, it was the best decision for this trail!
While a regular bike, and even a tandem bike (which Denise wanted to get) would certainly get you there, we wholeheartedly recommend an e-bike for the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail. At 11 miles each way, it’s a good distance, and while generally flat, there are a few gentle hills and one larger hill at the end, that the electric assist makes incredibly easy. It allows you to cover ground faster, conserve energy for soaking in the views, and truly enjoy the ride without feeling too winded. We completed the entire round trip in just over three hours, with stops for photos, a snack, and a few moose-spottings.
The trail itself goes through a few areas of open space, wooded, a little bit of everything. Riding on it felt a little relaxing and exciting — we were in Alaska. Winding along the coast, it offers peeks of the sparkling water, backed by the imposing Chugach Mountains. We saw/experienced planes landing at the airport flying over our heads, birds at the marsh area, and a great view of the Anchorage skyline. The air was crisp, and the scenery was pure Alaskan beauty.
We saw a moose in the thick wooded area on our way out. With all the trees, it was a little hard to see. We stopped and admired the large animal hoping to catch a better glimpse. Eventually we kept going, maybe there would be more…and there was.
The absolute highlight of our outbound journey came relatively early on. As we pedaled along, we saw someone waving us over, a magnificent moose and her calf were calmly walking along the coast. It was a truly magical moment, seeing these iconic Alaskan Moose in their natural habitat, walking and grazing peacefully with the ocean as their backdrop, and feeding its young. While we were able to see her good enough from our overlook, we took out our binoculars and watched her a little closer and even biked to the next overlook to get more. We were captivated by their serene presence, feeling incredibly fortunate to witness such a sight.
We eventually arrived at the end of the trail at Kincaid Park, where we stopped and had a few sips of water and a little snack. There was a sighting of a bear on the 13th hole of the disc golf course, we didn’t venture over to look, but instead headed back. I should also mention on this trail there are five of the planets from the Light Speed Planet Walk. We saw the signs for Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto (last at Kincaid park). It was fun to see the size of the plants on the board with some information about them. The other 4 (Mars, Earth, Venus and Mercury) as well as the Sun are downtown. The Planet walk is a scaled model of the solar system designed by Eli Menaker. It really gives you a good idea how far the planets are away from each other and their sizes relative to the sun.
The return journey brought a slightly different kind of wildlife encounter – one that gave Denise a bit of a startle! As we rounded a bend, there was a moose directly on the trail ahead of us. It was a reminder that while the trail feels accessible, we are very much in moose country, and we must be aware. A few more of these massive animals were visible in the dense brush just off the path, quietly munching on foliage. We tried to give them plenty of space, waiting for them to move on and also carefully (and quietly and quickly) biking around them. It added an unexpected dose of genuine wilderness thrill to our ride!
The e-biking experience on the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail was fantastic and a great thing to do on our first day in Anchorage. The only downside was that the bikes did not have baskets or a rack. So be prepared to have a bag that comfortably sits on your back. Justin had a cross body bag and Denise had more of a backpack with our layers.
Costal Trail Info
Bike Rental: Pablo’s bike rental