The Kenai peninsula: an Alaska playground.

• Author: Barbour, Tracy
• Position: REGIONAL REVIEW

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Jutting from Alaska's Southcentral coast, the Kenai Peninsula offers a spectacular landscape and an abundance of wildlife and outdoor activities. The peninsula is home to various awe-inspiring geographical elements, including beautiful glaciers, majestic mountains and active volcanoes.

Kenai Fjords National Park is a natural wonder and a magnet for tourists and residents of the peninsula. The park is heavily accented by glaciers and a plethora of wildlife, including sea otters, puffins, sea lions, harbor seals and humpback and orca whales. Other protected areas on the Kenai include Chugach National Forest, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge and Kachemak Bay State Park. These areas, with their breathtaking views of glaciers, expansive mountains and lush forests, represent a virtual paradise for adventurers.

The Kenai Peninsula also gives residents and visitors the unique ability to behold four active volcanoes. From north to south, Mount Spurr, Mount Redoubt, Mount Illiamna and Saint Augustine all can be seen across Cook Inlet from the western shore of the Kenai Peninsula. Several major rivers also wind their way through the peninsula. They include the Kenai, Russian, Kasilof and Anchor rivers, all of which are popular locations for sport and subsistence fishing.

KEY COMMUNITIES AND ECONOMY OF THE PENINSULA

Major cities on the Kenai include Kenai and Kalifornsky, both with about 7,100 residents; Sterling, with a population of 5,120; Nikiski, with 4,345; and Soldotna, with 3,980. Other communities within the Kenai Peninsula Borough are Anchor Point, Clam Gulch, Cohoe, Cooper Landing, Crown Point, Fox River, Fritz Creek, Halibut Cove, Happy Valley, Homer, Hope, Jakolof Bay, Kachemak, Kasilof, Moose Pass, Nanwalek, Nikiski, Nikolaevsk, Ninilchik, Port Graham, Primrose, Ridgeway, Salamatof, Seldovia, Seward and Tyonek.

During winter, communities on the peninsula have temperatures ranging from 4 to 22 degrees Fahrenheit; in the summer, temperatures typically run 46 to 65 degrees.

Unlike many regions of Alaska, the Kenai Peninsula has a diverse economy supported by commercial fishing, oil and gas production, tourism, retail and government. Kenai's economy is relatively flat, marked by notable highs and lows, according to Neal Fried, an economist with the Alaska Department of Labor. For instance, in 2008, oil industry activity was up on the peninsula and neighboring Cook Inlet. That same year, the urea plant (Agrium USA) closed...