Transportation In Alaska
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Transportation In Alaska
This article discusses transportation in the U.S. state of Alaska. Alaska has a small population within a very large geographic area. The geographic differences mean that no single transportation strategy works for the state as a whole. Roads connect the major Southcentral population centers with Fairbanks and the Canadian border. Barges supply the communities along the coast and major rivers, and a ferry system supports the coastal communities in the south. A railroad connects the ports of Seward, Whittier, and Anchorage with the interior via Fairbanks. Many interior communities are connected by seasonal ATV trails when the weather is cold enough to freeze otherwise impassable grounds. Air travel is the critical connection between these various regions. Ground transportation Roads Alaska's climate and geography provide significant challenges to building and maintaining roads. Mountain ranges, permafrost, long distances between small population centers, and the cost ...
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Norton Sound
The Norton Sound ( Inupiaq: ''Imaqpak'') is an inlet of the Bering Sea on the western coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, south of the Seward Peninsula. It is about 240 km (150 mi) long and 200 km (125 mi) wide. The Yukon River delta forms a portion of the south shore and water from the Yukon influences this body of water. It is ice-free from June to October. Norton Sound was explored by Captain James Cook in September 1778. He named the body of water after Sir Fletcher Norton, then Speaker of the British House of Commons. The Norton Sound area has been home to Yup'ik and Iñupiat for many centuries. It is the boundary between the two peoples; the Inupiat live to the north and the Yup'ik to the south. The town of Nome is along the northern edge of Norton Sound. The villages of Elim, Golovin, Stebbins, White Mountain, Koyuk, Shaktoolik, St. Michael, and Unalakleet are on the shores or waterways flowing into Norton Sound. The Iditarod Trail Sled Do ...
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Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) was signed into law by U.S. President, President Richard Nixon on December 18, 1971, constituting what is still the largest land claims settlement in United States history. ANCSA was intended to resolve long-standing issues surrounding aboriginal land claims in Alaska, as well as to stimulate economic development throughout Alaska."Recognition of aboriginal land rights in Alaska was a sharp departure from American Indian policy in other parts of the US. Observers believe this was more a result of slow economic development within Alaska than rejection of Indian policy," citing Cooley, R.A. 1983. "Evolution of Alaska land policy." in Morehouse, T. A. (editor). ''Alaskan Resources Development: Issues of the 1980s''. Boulder: Westview Press, pp. 13-49. The settlement established Alaska Native claims to the land by transferring titles to twelve Alaska Native Regional Corporations, Alaska Native regional corporations and over 200 local vill ...
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Revised Statute 2477
Revised Statute 2477, commonly known as RS 2477 was enacted by the United States Congress in 1866 to encourage the settlement of the Western United States by the development of a system of highways. Its entire text is one sentence: "the right-of-way for the construction of highways across public lands not otherwise reserved for public purposes is hereby granted." The original grant did not require being recorded, meaning it was self-enacting, and in 1866 constructing a road often meant using a trail many times and perhaps filling low places, moving rocks and placing signs. It granted to counties and states a right-of-way across federal land when a highway was built. RS 2477 was repealed in 1976 under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA). The repeal was subject to "valid existing rights." The relevant text (Sec. 701. 43 U.S.C. 1701) reads (a) "Nothing in this Act, or in any amendment made by this Act, shall be construed as terminating any valid lease, permit, pate ...
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National Trails System
The National Trails System is a series of trails in the United States designated "to promote the preservation of, public access to, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the open-air, outdoor areas and historic resources of the Nation". There are four types of trails: the national scenic trails, national historic trails, national recreation trails, and connecting or side trails. The national trails provide opportunities for hiking and historic education, as well as horseback riding, biking, camping, scenic driving, water sports, and other activities. The National Trails System consists of 11 national scenic trails, 21 national historic trails, over 1,300 national recreation trails, and seven connecting and side trails, as well as one national geologic trail, with a total length of more than . The scenic and historic trails are in every state, and Virginia and Wyoming have the most running through them, with six. In response to a call by President Lyndon B. Johnson ...
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Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, more commonly known as The Iditarod (), is an annual long-distance sled dog race held in Alaska in early March. It travels from Anchorage to Nome. Mushers and a team of between 12 and 16 dogs, of which at least 5 must be on the towline at the finish line, cover the distance in 8–15 days or more. The Iditarod began in 1973 as an event to test the best sled dog mushers and teams but evolved into today's highly competitive race. Teams often race through blizzards causing whiteout conditions, sub-zero temperatures and gale-force winds which can cause the wind chill to reach . A ceremonial start occurs in the city of Anchorage and is followed by the official restart in Willow, a city north of Anchorage. The restart was originally in Wasilla until 2002, but due to too little snow, the restart has been at Willow since 2004. The trail runs from Willow up the Rainy Pass of the Alaska Range into the sparsely populated interior, and then along th ...
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Iditarod Trail
The Iditarod Trail, also known historically as the Seward-to-Nome Trail, is a thousand-plus mile (1,600 km) historic and contemporary trail system in the US state of Alaska. The trail began as a composite of trails established by Alaska natives, Alaskan native peoples. Its route crossed several mountain ranges and valleys and passed through numerous historical settlements en route from Seward, Alaska, Seward to Nome, Alaska, Nome. The Nome Gold Rush, discovery of gold around Nome brought thousands of people over this route beginning in 1908. Roadhouses for people and dog barns sprang up every 20 or so miles. By 1918 World War I and the lack of 'gold fever' resulted in far less travel. The trail might have been forgotten except for the 1925 Diphtheria, diphtheria outbreak in Nome. By making use of Dog sled, dog sleds, twenty drivers and teams carried the life-saving serum in 127 hours. Today, the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race serves to commemorate the part the trail and its ...
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Ice Road Truckers
''Ice Road Truckers'' (commercially abbreviated ''IRT'') is a reality television series that aired on History Channel from 2007 to 2017. It featured the activities of drivers who operated trucks on ice roads crossing frozen lakes and rivers, in remote territories in Canada and the U.S. state of Alaska. Seasons three to six also featured Alaska's improved but still remote Dalton Highway, which is mainly snow-covered solid ground. History In 2000, History aired a 46-minute episode titled "Ice Road Truckers" as part of the ''Suicide Missions'' (later ''Dangerous Missions'') series. Based on Edith Iglauer's book '' Denison's Ice Road'', the episode details the treacherous job of driving trucks over frozen lakes, also known as ice roads, in Canada's Northwest Territories. After 2000, reruns of the documentary were aired as an episode of the series '' Modern Marvels'', instead. Under this banner, the ''Ice Road Truckers'' show garnered very good ratings. In 2006, the History Channe ...
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Alaska Department Of Natural Resources
The Alaska Department of Natural Resources is a department within the government of Alaska in the United States. The department has the mission of responsibly developing Alaska's resources by making them available for maximum use and benefit consistent with the public interest. The department comprises seven divisions: * Division of Agriculture * Division of Forestry * Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) * Division of Mining, Land and Water * Division of Oil and Gas (including the Petroleum Systems Integrity Office) * Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation * Support Services Division Official mission The official mission of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources is "to develop, conserve and maximize the use of Alaska's natural resources consistent with the public interest". The Department of Natural Resources articulates its activities on its official website stating: "The Department of Natural Resources manages all state-owned land, water and natur ...
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Bureau Of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one-eighth of the United States's total landmass. The Bureau was created by United States Congress, Congress during the presidency of Harry S. Truman in 1946 by combining two existing agencies: the United States General Land Office and the United States Grazing Service, Grazing Service. The agency manages the federal government's nearly of subsurface Mineral rights, mineral estate located beneath federal, state and private lands severed from their surface rights by the Homestead Act of 1862. Most BLM public lands are located in these 12 Western United States, western states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington (state), Washington and Wyoming. The mission of the BLM is "to susta ...
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Alaska Department Of Transportation & Public Facilities
The Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (Alaska DOT&PF) is a department within the government of Alaska. Its headquarters are in Alaska's capital city, Juneau. The mission of Alaska DOT&PF is to "''Keep Alaska Moving through service and infrastructure.''" The Alaska Department of Transportation was established on July 1, 1977, by Alaska Highway Commissioner Walter Parker during the administration of Governor Jay Hammond. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities merged the former departments of Highways and Public Works. Alaska DOT&PF designs, constructs, operates and maintains the state's transportation infrastructure systems, buildings, and other facilities used by Alaskans and visitors. These include more than 5,600 miles of paved and gravel highways; more than 300 aviation facilities, including 235 rural airports and 2 international airports ( Fairbanks International Airport and Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport); 839 public ...
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Kobuk River
The Kobuk River (Inupiaq language, Iñupiaq: ''Kuuvak''; Koyukon language, Koyukon: ''Hʉlghaatno''), also known by the names Kooak, Kowak, Kubuk, Kuvuk, and Putnam, is a river located in the Arctic region of northwestern Alaska in the United States. It is approximately long. Draining a basin with an area of ,Brabets, T.P., Hydrologic Data and a Proposed Water-Quality Monitoring Network for the Kobuk River Basin, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, and Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska. U.S. Geological Survey, Water Resources Investigations Report 01-4141, 2001 the Kobuk River is among the largest rivers in northwest Alaska, with widths of up to 1,500 feet (460 m) and flows reaching speeds of 3–5 miles per hour (5–8 km per hour) in its lower and middle reaches.Kobuk Valley National Park Final Environmental Impact Statement, National Park Service The average elevation for the Kobuk River Basin is above sea level, ranging from sea level at its mouth on the Be ...
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