1960 Map of Anchorage A-5

About this map

Upper Lake George and the expansive Lake George dominate this mountainous landscape within the Chugach National Forest. Photographed in 1957 and field-annotated in 1960, the map documents a massive glacial system where the Colony Glacier feeds directly into the upper lake's northern edge. The lack of roads or settlements underscores the wilderness character of the Chugach Mountains during this period, focusing instead on the movement of ice and water through high-altitude basins. To the east and south, the sheet traces the dramatic reach of the Stairway Glacier and Surprise Glacier, while the headwaters of the Twentymile River begin their descent toward the coast. This survey serves as a vital record of these massive ice fields, including Whiteout Glacier, before later twentieth-century environmental shifts significantly altered their footprints and the surrounding alpine terrain of Chugach State Park.