Fort Abercrombie State Historical Park

This military fort and its pair of 8in guns were built by the US Army during WWII for a Japanese invasion that never came. In the end, Kodiak's lousy weather, not the army's superior firepower, kept the Japanese bombers away from the island. The fort is now a 186-acre state historical park, sitting majestically on the cliffs above scenic Monashka Bay. Between the guns is Ready Ammunition Bunker, which stored 400 rounds of ammunition during the war. Today it contains the small Kodiak Military History Museum.

Just as interesting as the gun emplacements are the tidal pools found along the park's rocky shorelines, where an afternoon of searching for sea creatures can be spent. Park rangers lead tidal-pool exploration walks most Saturday and Sunday mornings during the summer. Call the Alaska Division of Parks (907 486 6339) for exact days and times.