Things to do in Kotzebue
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Paddling the Noatak National Wild River
The Noatak National Wild River is a 16-day, 350-mile float from Lake Matcharak to the village of Noatak, where Bering Air (www.beringair.com) has scheduled flights to Kotzebue. However, the numerous access lakes on the river allow it to be broken down into shorter paddles. The entire river is rated from Class I to II. The upper portion, in the Brooks Range, offers much more dramatic scenery and is usually accessed from Bettles.
The lower half, accessed through Kotzebue, flows through a broad, gently sloping valley where hills replace the sharp peaks of the Brooks Range. The most common trip here is to put in at Nimiuktuk River where, within an hour of paddling, you enter…
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NANA Museum of the Arctic
Kotzebue is named after Polish explorer Otto von Kotzebue, who stumbled onto the village in 1816 while searching for the Northwest Passage on behalf of the Russians. Much of the town's history and culture can be viewed at the NANA Museum of the Arctic, at the western end of town. The centre is owned and operated by the Northwest Alaska Native Association (NANA), and a two-hour programme of indigenous culture is held at 4pm and 6.30pm daily in summer. The programme includes demonstrations of Inupiat handicrafts and a nalukataq, the traditional blanket toss, which historically allowed people to gain enough elevation to observe vast distances of terrain. Although the…
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Paddling the Kobuk National Wild River
Trips along the Kobuk National Wild River often consist of floats from Walker Lake traveling 140 miles downstream to the villages of Kobuk or Ambler. From these villages there are scheduled flights to both Kotzebue and Bettles, another departure point for this river. Bering Air Service (www.beringair.com) can transport you and your gear from either Kobuk or Ambler to Kotzebue.
Most of the river is rated Class I, but some lining of boats may be required just below Walker Lake and for a mile through Lower Kobuk Canyon. Paddlers usually plan on six to eight days for the float. For more information contact the Innaigvik Public Lands Information & Education Center before you…
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Shore Avenue
Perhaps the most interesting thing to do in Kotzebue is just stroll down Shore Avenue, where the old and new Arctics collide. On the beach, elders gut seals and dry salmon in preparation for the long winter ahead; meanwhile, youth skim their supercharged snowmachines across the water, wowing their buddies on shore. Across the road, a long line of caribou antler-adorned, weather-battered shacks stands as testament to the endurance of this place. Shore Ave also offers the best views of the midnight sun as it rolls along the horizon, painting the sea reddish gold with reflected light. From early June the sun doesn't set for almost six weeks.
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Arctic Circle Education Adventures
Arctic Circle Education Adventures has a couple offerings that may well be the best way to crack the nut of Kotzebue. If you're just in town for the day, its four-hour custom tour will take you to look for birds - from swans to short-eared owls - explore the tundra and meet Inupiat residents.
Better yet, stick around for a few days and get the real Bush experience at owner LaVonne Hendricks' fish camp, five miles south of town, where you can hike, beachcomb and participate in the local subsistence lifestyle.
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Northwest Arctic Borough Giftshop
For local art, check out the Northwest Arctic Borough Giftshop, with an extensive array of masks, birch-bark baskets, sealskin moccasins and mammoth-bone carvings. They're hoping to soon open a new art center, which will be half gallery and half workshop, at the corner of Second Ave and Lake St.
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Arctic Blues Coffeeshop
Right at the airport, has Internet, espresso, some Alaska Native crafts, plus the highly recommended books of locals Nick Jans and Seth Kanter.
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cemetery
Also of interest is a large cemetery in the center of town, where spirit houses have been erected over many of the graves.
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Northwest Alaska Backcountry Rentals
Canoes, rafts and other gear are available through Northwest Alaska Backcountry Rentals in Kotzebue.
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Empress Chinese Restaurant
Next door to the Bayside, this place has more Spartan decor and a similar menu, but better food.
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AC Store
This supplies your basic groceries.
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