Vancouver, surrounded by mountains and the ocean, is a vibrant haven for outdoor lovers and cosmopolitan travelers. Its neighborhoods-Stanley Park, the West End, Gastown, Yaletown, and Chinatown-blend scenic pathways with rich arts, food, and culture. Famous as a filming location, it offers old-growth cedar forests, dramatic landscapes, and abundant wildlife: a big city perched on the edge of wilderness.

This lesser-traveled wonder embodies the Last Frontier: vast terrain, few crowds, and wild nature. At Anan Bear & Wildlife Observatory, brown and black bears feast on pink salmon for a few frenetic weeks each year. From town, walk to Rainbow Falls, jet boat the Stikine River, and watch Bald Eagles ride currents above glaciers and jagged peaks. Then ponder 3,000-year-old Tlingit petroglyphs at Petroglyph Beach.

Alaska's Hoonah Island is an epic land of humpback whales, bountiful bears and legends of the indigenous Tlingit told for thousands of years. A rugged paradise big on nature, you can kayak the coast, hike the Tongass National Forest, flight-see Glacier Bay and eye the waves for pods of orca and sea lions on scenic sailings. Cook up a feast with coho salmon or king, snow and Dungeness crab, and take in an eagle's-eye-view of the world while ziplining over the forested slopes of Mount Hoonah.

Seward offers big nature and bigger adventures, with calving glaciers and seabirds as the soundtrack. Sail Kenai Fjords National Park for waterspouts, tailfins, epic icefields, and tufted puffins on shale cliffs. Hike past glacial waterfalls, tackle the Harding Icefield trail or the easier Exit Glacier loop, and take in stunning views of Resurrection Bay's deep glacial waters and towering cliffs.

Haines, where Alaska's wilderness meets the fjords and glaciers of the Inside Passage, draws bears, bald eagles, and people alike. Fish for sockeye and chinook in scenic streams, or float and hike riverside trails in Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve, where eagles gather year-round. Explore local history at Fort William H. Seward and take in the lakes and rivers of Chilkoot State Park.

Juxtaposed between Mendenhall Glacier and jade mountains, Juneau is an eclectic capital on the edge of wild nature. Explore the glacier and hear Nugget Falls; ride the Goldbelt Tram to Mount Roberts for sweeping views. Skirt islands and ice floes to spot humpback and orca whales, then enjoy fresh seafood, pine-scented forests, and the totem pole-lined seawalk.

Ketchikan offers a journey through thousands of years of history and a wild landscape alive with moose, mountain goats, brown bears, and black-tailed deer. Explore Creek Street Historic District, where bridges cross salmon-filled creeks, then soar by seaplane to Misty Fjords National Monument, with granite cliffs dropping 3,000 feet into fjords, snowcapped peaks, and forests of spruce, hemlock, and cedar. Visit some of the oldest totems of the Tlingit and Haida peoples.

Vancouver, surrounded by mountains and the ocean, is a vibrant haven for outdoor lovers and cosmopolitan travelers. Its neighborhoods-Stanley Park, the West End, Gastown, Yaletown, and Chinatown-blend scenic pathways with rich arts, food, and culture. Famous as a filming location, it offers old-growth cedar forests, dramatic landscapes, and abundant wildlife: a big city perched on the edge of wilderness.