A few sprawling two-story encampments that have grown in the Northwood/Strawberry/Raspberry Road area of Anchorage are hidden from view, unless you have a drone camera. From above, the encampments can be seen in all their glory.
These are not the only ones. Around Anchorage, those who are living outdoors are increasingly building shelters, some quite elaborate. Others who are down on their luck but not as motivated simply curl up for the night in doorways in Alaska’s largest city.
Some recent photos and videos of Anchorage’s outdoor living community of vagrants, hobos, and criminals:
The location of these makeshift huts can be seen on this map:
The encampments around Anchorage feature destruction of public property, trash, and stolen property. The taxpayer cost of cleaning up these sites will likely run into the tens of thousands of dollars.
Fire season started early this year, and several of the encampment fires have gotten out of control, including:
- A fire at a homeless encampment in Davis Park, Mountain View, on Feb. 17, which burned multiple structures.
- A significant fire on March 30, at an encampment on Northwood Dr. in Spenard, involving propane tank explosions.
- A fire on March 26, 2025, at the Campbell Creek Trail near Foxridge condominiums.
- A fire at Resolution Park near downtown, also in late March 2025.
The Anchorage Fire Department has not released a count of encampment fires for 2025 in the available data. However, in 2023, AFD reported 360 fires classified as “homeless encampments or homeless associated,” with 30 being wildland fires. In 2024, fires at encampments like those near Cuddy Park and Davis Park were frequent.
The Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection and the Municipality of Anchorage declared fire season starting on March 27, earlier than the usual April 1 start, due to low snowpack increasing wildfire risk.
Mayor Suzanne LaFrance says that the city will abate camps on a case-by-case basis but she has provided no plan or leadership to solve the problem. The executive director of the Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness, Meg Zaletel, has recently announced her resignation following years of failure to reverse the growing problem. Anchorage had at least 47 outdoor deaths reported in 2024.
Meanwhile, in the past month, two people have been murdered in one of the larger encampments in Davis Park, in the Mountain View area.
