Unique vegetation, marine life, and wildlife, thrive in the wilderness of Alaska’s Far North. Most people imagine snow-covered tundra, but the warm summer sun (which shines for days without end) creates a lush carpet of wildflowers and berries.

One of America’s most glorious wilderness prizes is the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. This 8-million-acre park and preserve is home to the mighty Brooks Range, which begins at the Canadian border and stretches across Alaska.

About Tundra
Tundra has been described as a featureless, very barren place with no specific use. Nothing could be further from the truth. We found a whole ecosystem of plants, insects, tiny rodents, interspersed with a few hardy, weathered shrubs and even a few desperate specimens of spruce. Plants on the tundra grow close to the ground in an attempt to escape the bitter, drying winds of the long winters. We found many plant species growing in a dwarf form as they adapt to a difficult environment. Large animals roam the open spaces of the tundra feeding on plants, flowers, sedges and grasses. Most of the tundra is laced with ancient caribou tracks.

Tundra consists of flat to rolling moisture retaining soils with cement-hard permafrost for sub soil. When we placed our tent anchors we would often penetrate only 4 or 5 inches before being stopped by the permafrost, which is frozen solid and varies in thickness. And of course the ever-present ankle twisting clumps of tussock grass were always on hand to greet us. Upon close examination we found the tussock clumps to be a garden for a variety of plants. Most of Alaska above the Arctic Circle is covered with tundra.

The area north of the Brooks Mountain Range—the region of tundra—has weeks of continuous darkness in winter and of continuous daylight in summer. Moderated by ocean influences, the winter is somewhat less harsh here than in interior Alaska. While the snow cover is thin, strong winds at times create extremely cold wind-chill temperatures. The average annual precipitation is less than 200 mm (less than 8 in).