During the 1964 earthquake in Girdwood, Anchorage, Alaska, the bedrock dropped nine feet, causing the mud, trees and everything else to drop. Then the tides swept in, trees were inundated with saltwater, soaking their roots and creating today's Girdwood Ghost Forest. New growth is beginning to make its way into the salty soil.
Low tide at Turnagain Arm off the Cook Inlet, Alaska. These mudflats, like quick sand, are deadly.
High tide on the Turnagain Arm as seen from Seward Highway. Turnagain Arm has the second highest tides in North America after the Bay of Fundy. These tides, which can reach 40 feet come in so quickly that they produce a wave known as a bore tide. Adventurous kayakers and surfers have taken to riding the tide as an extreme sport. Hikers should not get stuck in the quicksand-like mudflats that otherwise make up the beaches along Turnagain Arm.
