Where is Barrow, and what's it like?

Barrow, Alaska is the United States' most northern community and is located 330 miles north of the Arctic Circle and just 1200 miles south of the North Pole. The Chukchi Sea in the Arctic Ocean surrounds Barrow to the west, north, and east. To the south, level tundra or permafrost (permanently frozen ground) stretches for some 200 miles until the Brooks Mountain Range begins, separating and isolating the North Slope (both a geographic and political designation) from the rest of Alaska. KBRW is the only broadcast outlet originating in the region and its AM signal (through a complex series of translators and repeaters) reaches approximately 90,000 square miles from the Canadian border to the Bering Sea.

Barrow is named after polar expedition sponsor Sir John Barrow, following an 1826 visit of British sailing captain, Frederick W. Beechey. Beechey is believed to be one of the first Caucasians to encounter the Inupiat (or "real people" as the residents called themselves in Inupiaq, the language of the Eskimo) and to sail around 'The Point' or a narrow spit of land that marks the northern edge of the continent. The village where Barrow now stands was known then as Utkikvik, or place where the snowy owl flies. These early people are believed to have migrated to this region thousands of years ago from Siberia, across the land bridge that is now the Bering Sea. These early people were nomadic hunters who lived in skin tents and sod homes. (Igloos are rarely found in this region.)

In the mid 19th Century, while commercial whaling and fur trading were a common sight in Barrow, these encounters with Caucasians had a significant effect on the local people like other indigenous people around the world. Rifles and liquor were introduction and a variety of diseases such as measles, small pox, and influenza. One particularly devastating strain of the flu killed more than 200 Eskimos in 1900.

How do I get to Barrow?

There are no roads linking Barrow to any other community or village. In fact, there are only three possible ways to get here:

• The most difficult method is overland by snowmobile or sled dog from the surrounding communities of Umiat, Point Lay, Point Hope, Nuiqsut, Atqasuk, Kaktovik, Wainwright, Anaktuvuk Pass, and Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay.

• The second way to visit Barrow is by ocean barge, but is available approximately only two months a year during the summer months and only if the ice flow allows passage.

• The third way, and definitely the most commonly used method, is by air.

Barrow is served by 737-jet service from Alaska Airlines, connecting the community with Fairbanks (approximately 465 miles away) and Anchorage (about 750 miles away) either one or two times a day. There are also several smaller commuter airlines that link the villages with Barrow, as do several cargo carriers that transport the goods to make life comfortable here. Barrow is separated by approximately 2,200 miles of breathtaking landscape from the rest of the United States.

In fact, the airplane has played a very important part of life in Barrow and the development of the North Slope in general. In 1927, a Fokker airplane piloted by Hubert Wilkins was the first airplane to land in Barrow. Eight years later, an airplane flown by Wiley Post and carrying famed American humorist Will Rogers crashed about seven miles southwest of Barrow, killing both passengers. Today, the airport terminal serving Barrow is named for both gentlemen.

One might think that because of its isolation, most people get around Barrow on foot. However, Barrow has an extensive network of plowed roads that stretch the community into an adjacent "suburb" called Browerville. Browerville is named after Charles Brower, one of the first fur traders to arrive here in 1863. He later married a local Inupiat woman and descendants from that union continue to live and work in Barrow today. Many residents today maintain their own vehicle, usually a 4-wheel drive truck, or make use of the city bus system or some fifty cabs that ply the streets each day. Even though the nearby oil industry has brought improved economic conditions to many families here, the price of gasoline at Barrow's lone service station is set once a year when the barge comes in the summer to fill storage tanks.

The price of gasoline is currently $3.95 a gallon.


What is the flora and fauna near and around Barrow?

Because of the harsh conditions, only the hardiest of animal and plant life survives here. Yet, the array is amazingly interesting and varied. During the summer season, which is generally June through mid-August, the tundra reveals itself to be a flat, treeless series of lakes and bogs. The tundra is covered with moss, shrubs, and plants such as goldenrod, willow, buttercup, and woodrush. A visitor to the region may also see the pica, a small chipmunk-like rodent, which makes its home in the tundra.

The most important mammal of the region is the Bowhead whale, which can be found about seven miles offshore. The whale is harvested by the Inupiat community here and is completely used for subsistence, as it has for thousands of years. Whaling season is generally confined to the spring and October, when migration patterns make capture possible. There are also several varieties of fish (with the grayling as the most common, along with whitefish and trout) found in the waters surrounding Barrow, as well as seal and walrus. Polar bears roam throughout the entire region and are not an uncommon sight around Barrow.

Many tourists come to Barrow to safely view these solitary animals, or to watch a mother and her cubs hunt for food. Large roaming herds of caribou and some moose and reindeer can also be found near the Brooks Range. The Arctic white fox is also quite common along with the hare, wolverine, and wolf. The thousands of small lakes and ponds of the North Slope are ideal for attracting migratory waterfowl including the Eider and Mallard duck, Snowy owls, Snow buntings (whose arrival coincides with the whale) Canadian geese, Pintail, Ptarmigan, and the Golden Plover which flies all the way here from South America.


What is the weather like in Barrow?

Obviously, because of its location, Barrow is one of the coldest places in the United States.

However, most people are surprised to learn that the climate of the North Slope is considered an Arctic desert, and is extremely dry. As a result, it rarely rains, averaging only four to five inches per year (accumulated mostly in July and August). Heavy fog is also not uncommon. Snowfall can occur in every month of the year and averages just a bit more than two feet annually. Heaviest snows are found in September and November and whatever falls stays on the ground until the spring thaw. Winds are constantly present and generally come from the east at 12 miles per hour with steady speeds of 35 mph recorded every month of the year. Blizzard conditions are common during the winter months and can occasionally reach gale force or hurricane force, at 60 to 80 mph. Of course, often the wind combines with the real air temperature to make conditions outdoors uncomfortable.

The temperature can fluctuate greatly in Barrow, but most of the year, the thermometer remains below freezing. In fact, there are only about a hundred or so days per year when the temperature is above 32 degrees Fahrenheit (or 0 Celsius). February is the coldest month of the year and July is the warmest. The record low temperature of 56 below zero was recorded in February 1924, and the warmest temperature was recorded as 78 degrees, occurring in July 1927. Barrow is also unique for its extended periods of darkness and sunlight. In the winter, the sun dips below the horizon about a week before Thanksgiving and does not rise again until late January. While it is technically "dark" through this period, there is a dusk-like quality to the sky at midday that allows citizens to read a paper outdoors or conduct normal activities outside. By the second week of May, the sun has increased so much that the North Slope is bathed in 24-hour sunlight, which lasts until the first week of August. During this time, Barrow residents and especially children are often found outside the entire day when it's not uncommon to hear of a baseball or softball game beginning at 3 a.m.

Other residents need to block their windows or install heavy curtains in order to "trick" their minds into falling asleep!