Things To Know (About Alaska)
You know you live in a harsh state, when you receive a booklet titled “Staying Alive in the Arctic: A collection of Anecdotes, Facts & Lies about life in Alaska”. Pretty rough when we need a guide book on how to keep alive here!
I did find it to be pretty interesting though, and you all know how I love to blog about the fine state of Alaska, so I thought I would go through the book and share portions of it with all of you. There are bound to be a few things that you might not of known.
This will be the first in a small series of posts I will be writing about the state.
Facts:
- Alaska is larger than the four largest states combined.
- Alaska contains 17 of the 20 highest mountain peaks in the U.S.
- Alaska is less than 3 miles from Russia (on very clear days, you can actually “see” Russia — no Sarah Palin jokes please).
- Kodiak Island (in Alaska) is the 2nd largest island in the U.S. Our state capital, Juneau, has no road access to the rest of the state (The Alaska Congress has to charter planes for their meetings).
- Alaska’s flag was designed by a 13 yr-old orphan by the name of Benny Benson.
- There are more than 3 million lakes in the state of Alaska.
- There are more private air plain pilots — per capita — in Alaska than in any other state.
- Half of the entire population of the state of Alaska lives in one city, Anchorage. (Hurray for Anchorage!)
- Alaskan National Park, Wrangell-St. Elias, is the largest National Park in the United States.
- Alaska is as big as England, France, Italy and Spain combined.
- If New York City had the same population density as Alaska, only 16 people would be living in Manhattan.
- Alaska is the only state to have coastlines on three different seas – the Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea.
- Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage, covers 1,955 square miles. The entire state of Rhode Island covers 1,045.
- More than 1/2 of the world’s active glaciers are in Alaska.
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In 1927 Alaska held a contest to seek ideas for a flag design that would represent the newly independent territory. A 13-year-old seventh grader named Benny Benson entered this flag design and won the contest. Benson chose the blue in the flag for the blue Forget-Me-Not (now the State flower).The gold is for the 1880s Gold rush in Alaska. The stars, the Big Dipper and the North Star, show how close Alaska comes to heaven.
Alaska’s Flag Song
Eight stars of gold on a field of blue,
Alaska’s Flag, may it mean to you
The blue of the sea, the evening sky,
The mountain lakes and the flow’rs nearby,
The gold of the early sourdough dreams,
The precious gold of the hills and streams,
The brilliant stars in the northern sky,
The Bear, the Dipper, and shining high,
The great North star with its steady light.
O’er land and sea a beacon bright,
Alaska’s Flag to Alaskans dear,
The simple flag of a last frontier.
—
Alaskan Words and Phrases
| Breakup | The time in spring with ice begins to melt and the rivers start to flow, signaling the end of winter. |
| The Bush | Any part of Alaska inaccessible by road. |
| Bush Pilot | A pilot who services remote areas in a small plane, which is commonly equipped with floats or skis. |
| Cabin Fever | The state of being housebound, typically in cramped quarters, due to inclement weather and darkness. |
| Calve | The action by which glacial ice breaks off, or calves, from a glacier to form icebergs. |
| Cheechako | A newcomer to Alaska; the opposite of a sourdough or old-timer. |
| Chum | Another name for dog salmon. |
| Iditarod | The thousand-mile sled dog race from Anchorage to Nome held annually in March. |
| Lower 48 | Local reference to the continental United States minus Hawaii, which is also normally excluded in special shipping rates. |
| Midnight Sun | The sun above the horizon at midnight on the longest day of the year. |
| Mukluks | Sealskin or reindeer-skin boots traditionally worn by the Inuit. |
| Outside | Any place not in Alaska. |
| Quiviut | Wool from the Alaskan musk ox. |
| Southeast | A local term for Southeast Alaska. |
| Sourdough | This term applies to anyone who has managed to weather an Alaskan winter, or an old-time resident who is “sour on the country but without enough dough to get out.” |
| Termination Dust | The first snowfall marking the beginning to winter. |
| Ulu | A fan-shaped knife used for chopping meat. |
