Selawik, AK

Selawik is an Iñupiaq village set along the Selawik River about 90 miles east of Kotzebue, right where the river opens into Selawik Lake. Because the town spans both sides of the waterway, residents get around on an extensive system of elevated wooden boardwalks, earning it the local nickname "Venice of the Arctic." The community takes its name from the sheefish that thrive in the surrounding waters, and its roots trace back through generations of seasonal camps before a permanent school and church were established in the early 1900s.

Life here revolves closely around the seasons and the neighboring Selawik National Wildlife Refuge, with families regularly heading out across the tundra and waterways to fish, hunt, and pick berries. Davis-Ramoth Memorial School serves local students through the Northwest Arctic Borough School District, and a local gravel airstrip provides essential year-round air service. As with many remote bush communities, travel in and out depends on small planes, while boats in the summer and snowmachines in the winter handle daily transportation.