Posts by ChenaAuroraViewLodge

Alaska has a reputation for being a cold, inhospitable wasteland, and there is some truth to this. While the southern coasts of the state have a more temperate climate, the northern part of the state, dipping into the Arctic Circle, is known for life-threatening, below-freezing weather. Additionally, Alaskan weather is famously unpredictable and can change…

The Alaskan Interior is the large, sparsely populated, and seemingly foreboding inland expanse of the state. Far away from Alaska’s coasts, the Interior boasts gorgeous mountains and valleys, as well as fantastic manmade attractions such as the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. Despite Alaska’s cold climate, countless tourists visit the Interior every year to witness the Northern…

No event has shaped Alaska more than the Klondike Gold Rush. Taking place between 1896 and 1899, the Klondike Gold Rush saw thousands of migrants relocate to the neighboring territory of Yukon in Canada in search of riches. While Alaska was not directly part of the Klondike Gold Rush, it was a major transit point…

Fairbanks is the second-largest city in Alaska and the largest city in the Interior, the vast, sparsely inhabited inland region of the state. Founded in the early 1900’s as a gold mining boomtown, Fairbanks has since become a major service center for the Alaskan oil industry as well as a transit point for individuals traveling…

Alaska, the most northern of the 50 U.S. states, is popularly thought of as being largely uninhabited. While much of the state is only sparsely inhabited, Alaska has a number of large cities that have played significant roles in American history. Cities such as Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Sitka, and Skagway have served as port cities…

In recent decades, climate change has become a cause for concern across the world. The rise in global temperatures and concomitant rise in sea levels is a major threat to people living on the coast, particularly in poorer countries with high poverty and less-developed infrastructure. While most are vaguely aware about the effects of climate…

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, also known as ANWR, is a wildlife sanctuary that has become a significant cornerstone of Alaskan culture and American culture at large. Created in 1903, ANWR is by far the biggest wildlife refuge in the U.S. and one of the biggest in the world. It consists of over 19 million…

Alaska is one of the most unique places on the Earth, featuring a plethora of flora and fauna that cannot be seen elsewhere. Due to Alaska’s remote location and extreme climate, few plants can thrive in its lands, and those that do are specially adapted for survival there. In addition, Alaska’s sparse population has allowed…

While America has become more urbanized in recent decades, a significant portion of the country’s population still lives in rural areas. The countryside is defined by wide, open spaces and a lack of creature comforts compared to the city, requiring residents to become self-reliant and take care of themselves. There is no more extreme example…

Alaska is known as America’s most distant and remote state, located far to the north and physically separated from the rest of the country by Canada. Many visitors or migrants to Alaska prefer to visit by air or sea, but not many people know that it is also possible to reach Alaska by car. Car…