This town of 3,000 people on the shores of Resurrection Bay is named after William H. Seward, the US Secretary of State who was responsible for negotiating the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. The town sits on the eastern side of the Kenai Peninsula, 127 miles from Anchorage via the Seward Highway. Founded in 1903 as an ocean terminus for the Alaska Railroad, the town’s economy originally relied almost exclusively on the fishing and railroad industries. With the opening of the Seward and Sterling Highways on the Kenai Peninsula after World War II, Seward’s economy gradually shifted, making tourism and fishing the leading industries today. Throughout the summer, the town vibrates with life as thousands of visitors arrive each day by road, sea, and rail to explore the area. From the bustling small boat harbor, visitors can join halibut and salmon fishing charters, take tour boats to view the abundant wildlife and magnificent tidewater glaciers of Kenai Fjords National Park, or rent kayaks and paddle the shores of Resurrection Bay. After a day on the water, visitors leaving the harbor can either head directly downtown via 4th Avenue or opt to walk part of the Iditarod National Historic Trail that parallels the shoreline all the way to one of Seward’s newest and most impressive attractions, the Alaska SeaLife Center. Opened in 1998, it’s a combination marine research station, wildlife rehabilitation center, and hands-on interpretive venue. The highlight of the summer is the town’s 4th of July celebration, the largest in Alaska. A multi-day event, it’s capped off by the Mount Marathon run, a grueling 3 mile out-and-back course in which runners run through the downtown area, claw their way to the top of 3,022-foot-high Mount Marathon, and then turn around and come pounding back down the scree-filled hillside, ending up in the center of town to the cheers of thousands of spectators lining the streets. For athletes and spectators alike, it’s a breathtaking event.