Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

Arctic NWR, Fairbanks, Alaska: The only time the braided rivers of the lowlands can be seen at Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is during the short polar summer. The rest of the year, they lie under several feet of snow and ice. The 20 million acres of this northernmost refuge encompass all of the arctic and subarctic habitat types: mountain, tundra, boreal forest, barrier islands, coastal, riverine. It is a land of superlatives. From the magnificent Brooks Mountain Range to the coast of the Beaufort Sea, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge harbors the greatest diversity of wildlife of any protected circumpolar area. Birds from four continents are found here at one time or another during the year. Many nest and breed here. And there are 45 species of mammals—36 land and 9 marine—many found on no other refuge.