Kotzebue, Transportation hub in Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska.
Kotzebue is a community in northwest Alaska located on a narrow gravel spit at the tip of Baldwin Peninsula, roughly 550 miles (890 kilometers) northwest of Anchorage along the shore of Kotzebue Sound. The town stretches along the waterfront and is surrounded by tundra landscape, with low wooden houses and small buildings defining the townscape.
The settlement began in 1897 as a reindeer station and grew during the early 20th century into a trading center for surrounding villages. Official incorporation came in 1958 after the place served for decades as a supply post for the region.
The NANA Museum displays traditional tools, clothing and everyday items from the Iñupiat people who still live in the region. Many residents speak Iñupiaq alongside English and follow practices like whale hunting that go back thousands of years.
Ralph Wien Memorial Airport connects the town through regular flights to Anchorage and Nome, since no roads lead out of the community. Visitors should bring warm clothing as temperatures remain cool even in summer and wind from the water often blows strong.
A wind farm with 19 turbines, operating since 1997, supplies electricity to the town and reduces the reliance on diesel fuel in this remote location. The wind farm is the northernmost in the United States and one of the few renewable energy sources in the Arctic.
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