arctic

Late every summer, polar bears gather outside Kaktovik, a remote Alaskan Native village situated on the edge of the continent, deep within the Arctic Circle. Here, they feast on whale remains left by hunters, patiently awaiting the deep cold that will freeze the sea. This unique spectacle once drew over a thousand tourists annually to the settlement, the only one in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, for what was dubbed "last chance tourism" – an opportunity to witness these magnificent creatures before climate change threatens their very existence. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and a feder