The compact downtown of Anchorage, with its grid of streets around 4th Avenue, mixes frontier history with modern life, from the historic buildings and the imaginative Town Square to the shops, galleries and the famous statues and murals. Backed by the Chugach Mountains and looking out to Cook Inlet, it is the heart of Alaskas largest city. Exploring downtown on foot offers a sense of the citys character and its role as the gateway to the Alaskan wilderness.