BEAUTIFUL PLACES - ALASKA

  Alaska is not a country as it is not an independent sovereign state. Alaska is instead the 49^th State of the United States of America.Alaska gained statehood leading to its proclamation as a state On July 17, 1958, 

.The name "Alaska" is derived from the Aleut "alaxsxaq", meaning "the mainland" or, more literally, "the object towards which the action of the sea is directed". It is also known as "Alyeska", the "great land", an Aleut word derived from the same root.

 Alaska's indigenous people, who are jointly called Alaska Natives, can be divided into five major groupings: Aleuts, Northern Eskimos (Inupiat), Southern Eskimos (Yuit), Interior Indians (Athabascans) and Southeast Coastal Indians (Tlingit and Haida).

 Anthropologists believe that today's Alaska Natives originated in Asia, either crossing over the Bering land bridge from Siberia or traveling by watercraft along the shorelines.

Alaska is famous for salmon, moose, caribou, bears, whales, bison, puffins, jellyfish, etc. When it comes to scenery, Alaska is famous for glaciers and fjords, mountains, and more lakes, rivers, and waterways than one could dream of.

Alaska  is    
Big and beautiful, there's so much to do in the 49th state. Here are just a few of the highlights. Few places inspire the same level of awe as Alaska. With breathtakingly beautiful and unspoiled wilderness, towering, snow-capped peaks, and prodigious wildlife, it's a place that inspires big dreams and epic adventures.

Nature and landscapes! Of the 20 highest peaks in the U.S., 17 are in Alaska, including the highest peak in North America (20,320 feet above sea level), Denali.  Alaska contains more than 100 volcanoes and volcanic fields which have been active within the last two million years.

 Alaska—has about two months of darkness in the winter, from about November 18 to January 22. But in the summer, the sun doesn't completely set for about 82 days, from roughly May 11 until July 31.

Coldest month is January when the average temperature overnight is 9.3°F. In July, the warmest month, the average day time temperature rises to 65.3°F.

  The best time to travel to Alaska is in June, July and August. The best month to visit Alaska is July, when travelers will experience the best combination of weather and wildlife.

 

What kind of clothes should you wear in Alaska?

Packable down- or synthetic-filled sweater jackets also work well. Many Alaskans will like to wear a down or fleece vest to help warm the body core while leaving arms less encumbered. For extremely frigid days, fleece pants or heavy long underwear bottoms can be handy.

waterproof shoes for Alaska.

 You need 100% waterproof shoes for Alaska, you need those shoes to be certified to keep your feet warm. This means that some winter boots are just waterproof while others are certified to keep your feet warm up to a certain temperature on the ground such as -30*F.30.

 

Almost one-third of Alaska’s land is in the Arctic Circle. From Fairbanks, it’s easy to make the trip to the Arctic Circle.

 
Alaska is the only state to have coastlines on three different seas: the Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Bering Sea.

Alaska is the only state that does not collect state sales tax or levy an individual income tax (some cities have sales tax, however).

Dog mushing is the official state sport.

 
In 1867, Russia agreed to sell Alaska to the United States for $7.2 million, which amounted to about two cents an acre.

 

Alaska's nickname   is   The Last Frontier

 Myosotis alpestris

Flower 

The Forget-me-not, Alaska's state flower, is a small clump-forming plant that grows 5 to 12" high in mountain meadows.

Alaska's northern lights (also known as the Aurora Borealis) are in Fairbanks, and above the Arctic Circle.  If you visit Alaska in November, December or January, you will experience a very short period of daylight providing a unique experience in the high northern hemisphere.

 Aurora Borealis

 

 Surprising facts about Alaska

• There are 20 highest mountain peaks in the United States.
• Alaska has about 100,000 glaciers, covering 5% of the state. 
• The Northern Lights can be seen in Fairbanks 243 days a year.
• Anchorage's Lake Hood is the world's largest and busiest seaplane base. 
• In Alaska, there is approximately 1 bear to every 21 people.

 The Moose: Alaska's State Mammal

 

The moose was made the official Alaska land mammal when Governor Tony Knowles signed SB 265 into law on May 1, 1998. Moose can be found from the Unuk River in Southeast to the Arctic Slope, but are most abundant in second-growth birch forests, on timberline plateaus and along major rivers of Southcentral and Interior.

 Adult moose can range in size from 800 pounds (small adult female) to1,600 pounds (large adult male), and they can be up to almost 6 feet tall.

 

 

 

 

 The famous food in Alaska.

• Reindeer Sausage. Native Alaskans have preserved game meats for decades. 
• Anything Salmon. With such an abundance of wild salmon, it's not hard to see why the pink fish makes the list of quintessential Alaskan dishes. 
• Kaladi Brothers Coffee.
• Fish and Chips. 
• Berry Cobbler. 
• King Crab Legs. 

 Famous  places in  Alaska

Brooks Falls.

 

If you want a photograph of a bear grabbing salmon as they jump upstream, then the world-renowned Brooks Falls is the place where professional photographers get that iconic shot. Usually there are dozens of bears in view at once and with an expert park ranger you will be safely led to the falls viewing platform.

The best time to visit Brooks Falls is from late June until late July as the sockeye salmon swim upstream. Bears also go fishing at falls in late summer and autumn so make sure you bring your camera and plenty of memory cards if you’re visiting during these times.

 

 

The wildlife and wilderness.

 When it comes to wildlife, Alaska is famous for salmon, moose, caribou, bears, whales, bison, puffins, jellyfish, etc. When it comes to scenery, Alaska is famous for glaciers and fjords, mountains, and more lakes, rivers, and waterways than one could dream of. Alaska is  famous for the Iditarod, gold mining, sourdough, the Alaska Railroad, aviation, Alaska Native heritage, homesteading, world-class fishing and seafood, outdoor adventures, fresh air, and a slower, more self-sufficient way of life.

Glaciers

  There are believed to be around  100,000 glaciers in Alaska alone.

Glaciers are constantly on the move and can travel several feet a day, meaning an ice sculpture you see one day might be completely different the next. In Alaska, some glaciers are retreating, so if you go back to the same glacier in a few months you are likely to notice a difference from the first time you went.