Barrow

It's breakup in America's farthest north town. Still chilly enough for there to be plenty of snow, and sea ice is still cemented to shore more than one mile thick along the coast. This was my first trip to Barrow. I was surprised by the number of cabs, and the number of cab drivers from Thailand.

 

My friend Ben took a shot of this cabin, or one very much like it, not long ago.

 

When the whalers fly their flags, they have been successful in harvesting a bowhead. Villagers got 14 bowheads this spring.

 

Another flag flying from another skin boat. Whalers are on teams of about a dozen, usually family members. They even make team jackets and wear them around town. More than 4,000 people live in Barrow, so it's not a small village. It's the only place in America where the local NAPA store has in stock brass points used to penetrate whale blubber.

 

Looks like there's been an oil spill up north, too. Or maybe just a bit of gas, on a road north of Barrow.