Kotzebue, Alaska sits on a 3-mile-long spit at the northwest end of Baldwin Peninsula in Kotzebue Sound and about 30 miles above the Arctic Circle. It may look isolated, but this town is the hub of commerce, culture and outdoor activity for the northwestern Arctic region.
Kotzebue is a popular stop for visitors on airline package tours who want to see a bit of the Arctic landscape and visit the Innaigvik Education and Information Center to learn about the people.
The northwest Arctic is a haven for wildlife and a heaven for who subsist on it or merely want to observe it. Birders come with binoculars to see the migratory waterfowl. In this flat area, the Inupiat Eskimos devised their own way of seeing: the blanket toss, in which a group flings an observer high into the air to look for walrus, whales or other game.
The Noatak, Kobuk and Selawik rivers flow into the sound near Kotzebue, allowing boat traffic to carry cargo and residents into the valleys where such villages as Noorvik, Ambler and Noatak lie. Kotzebue is also the center of air traffic in the region.
Kotzebue has long winters and cool summers, which means there's ice in the sound from early October until early July. The average low temperature during January is minus 12; the average high during July is 58. The record temperatures are minus 52 and 85. Snowfall averages 40 inches, with total precipitation of 9 inches per year.
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