EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Into the Gates

John River, Gates of the Arctic National Park
Alaska, USA

Explanation:  Behold the serpentine meanders of the John River, here in the high arctic of northern Alaska.  

On a recent expedition into the Brooks Range, we flew in float planes known as Beavers, winding our way through the immense landscapes of north-central arctic Alaska, into the heart of Gates of the Arctic National Park.  This is a land without roads or trails, without villages or settlements, a land as remote and pristine and wild as any on the continent.  

We were there scouting out locations for a study to monitor climate change impacts on predator-prey food webs of the arctic north.  

How fortunate we all are to have this land in our national park system.  Long may it remain untrammeled with visitation limited to temporary stays only.