So, ever sense I last went down to the ‘Lower-48’ a few things have bugged me about the way Alaska’s size is portrayed. I was asked ‘Why is it so cold, you are so close to Hawaii!’, ‘How come Google Maps doesn’t have images for Barrow and large chunks of Anchorage?’, ‘Is there a bridge to Russia?’. The answer to these questions have led me to believe that the way Alaska is put onto maps has made most people unaware of the vast scale of the state. I will explain these questions and more, with help from a few scale comparisons.
Let’s talk about Alaska’s placement on most maps of the United States. It’s usually close to California and Hawaii (which is also misrepresented as being really close to the Continental U.S.). In practice, this is done to show Alaska in some way as being part of the United States. It’s understandable from a space standpoint. To place Alaska on a map of the United States, that was at the same scale, you would need a map twice the size. Here’s why:
This is to scale.
As you can see, Alaska spans from San Francisco to Jacksonville. If you cut Alaska in half Texas would still be the third largest state. Needless to say, we tend to rub it in their faces when given the chance (sorry Texans, you still have the ability to secede without permission though!)
As for distances between cities this should help.
Anchorage to Dutch Harbor (made famous by Deadliest Catch), is roughly the distance from Miami, FL to Richmond, VA. Also, you must fly to Dutch Harbor, as there are zero roads leading there.
Anchorage to Fairbanks is about the same as Pittsburg, PA to Indianapolis, IN. There is one road that leads to Fairbanks from Anchorage directly.
Anchorage to Prudhoe Bay (North Slope Oil Fields) would be similar to driving to Cleveland, OH from Boston, Ma. There are no public roads that lead to Prudhoe Bay, and the commercial road only runs in the winter.
Distance arcoss the Bering Strait, the only place you actually can see Russia from in Alaska. It’s only about 80 miles across, and hits two islands (Big and Little Diomede), but the distance from Anchorage to the Bering Strait is the same as Anchorage to Prudhoe Bay. It is also inaccessible by road.
‘Why don’t we have roads everywhere by now?‘, ‘ Those don’t seem very far when you compare them to the popular cities in the U.S. We have roads that lead there!’ Yes, but, the city of Los Angles has more people in it than the entire State of Alaska…twice over. The Continental U.S. has an average population density of 79.6 people per square mile, Alaska has a ratio of about 1.1 person per square mile. Did I mention Alaska is 571,951 square miles? ANWR is about the size of West Virginia and Connecticut put together with some room to spare. Seems pretty big when you think about how many huge (by Alaska standards) cities are in those states.
On top of the lack of population another reason for no roads is the harsh terrain. Some villages in the Alaskan Bush are isolated until winter when planes and sleds can return to the area. Most of Alaska is squishy most of the year, and the forests are so dense you can’t see three feet in front of you. Because of the general squishyness of the ground in Alaska, making a road that won’t crack and sink is nearly impossible. That goes for the entire state. Most roads crack because of freezing and thawing. You also have to remember that we don’t have the same resources to ship things around that the Lower-48 has. There are two ways to get large machinery and supplies into the state of Alaska, by barge and by truck through Canada. You can fly it, but it’s incredibly expensive. There are no railroads, and no bridges linking Washington to the Southeast Islands.
I hope this gives you a better idea of Alaska’s vast size and why we love it so much!