Unalakleet, pop. 750, is on the Norton Sound, an inlet of the Bering Sea. The sound was explored by Captain James Cook in 1778. He named the inlet after Sir Fletcher Norton, Speaker of the British House of Commons. The people of UNK are accustomed to winds and extreme cold in the winter. The community lies between the homelands of two Eskimo cultural groups. The Inupaig live to the north and the Yupik live to the south. With its trees, tundra and hills, Unalakleet is a very beautiful place.

The local economy is very active. There are many jobs in fishing, air cargo, education, construction and government. The people fish many species of salmon, hunt seal, caribou, moose and bear and pick berries as a part of their traditional lifestyle.

A few years ago, wind chargers were installed on the hill top near the village.  This is a place where the wind always blows.  With the chargers, the village saves approximately 80,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year in generating electricity.

Unalakleet is served by daily flights from both Anchorage and Nome. There are a couple of stores, a gas station, a bed & breakfast, a coffee shop and two restaurants. The recently built Annikan Clinic is an important regional health facility. To get around, locals mainly use snowmachines and 4-wheelers although they share the roads with a few cars, pick-ups and suv’s. If you order a pizza from Peace on Earth restaurant, it’ll be delivered by 4-wheeler or snowmachine.

The Unalakleet School is part of the Bering Strait School District. The school is divided into the elementary school, the middle school and the Frank A. Degnan High School. Combined, the population of the school is close to two hundred. Sports offered at the school include basketball, mixed 6 volleyball, cross country, wrestling, ski/biathlon and Native Youth Olympics.

The Iditarod checkpoint is located in a large community building behind the post office. Villagers organize and conduct operations. Snow is scooped into berms on the slough for dog team parking, drop bags are sorted, water is heated, food is provided for mushers and volunteers and teams are checked in by the villagers. Unalakleet has won the Golden Clipboard Award voted on by the mushers for checkpoint hospitality.

During Iditarod week, there are a couple of great community social events the Iditarod volunteers very much look forward to.  The school age ski races are held across the slough from the checkpoint.  Parents, friends, family and volunteers are there to take pictures and cheer the skiers on.  The other not to be missed event is the Pie Social at the Covenant Church.  In the days preceding the pie social, It’s fun to hear the village women talk about what kind of pie they plan to bring – maybe blueberry, maybe raspberry cream or maybe spicy raisin pecan.   It’s all delicious!       

Born to Run,

Sanka