A viral video shows Big Lake near Huslia rapidly eroding and draining into the Koyukuk River, alarming residents who say recent high water and thawing permafrost are accelerating change. Locals fear the erosion could threaten parts of town built near the lake.

With wildfires spreading in the Kobuk River country of Northwest Alaska, I just knew I needed to find a way to get home.The Nuna fire is burning still, pushed north by strong southerly winds. There has been some rain, not a lot. I remain concerned about my home. I’m worried about the caribou, too, and what brush will revegetate that tundra after these fires. I’m worried about that beautiful big land between the Jades and Onion Portage, the Hunt and Nuna river valleys.

River erosion is impacting the road and requiring the replacement of health infrastructure.

After significant rain and high water from the Kobuk River the Native Village of Kobuk is now flooded.

After he lost the trail, Jeff King stopped his dog team and draped his sleeping bag over his head to block the battering wind and blowing snow. He was somewhere between the villages of Ambler and Shungnak in the Kobuk 440 Sled Dog Race. Conditions ranged from howling to furious. King lay down with his team. He cuddled a dog named Twister and tried to sleep. That’s when a flaw in the plan rattled his bones. The work of getting there had caused him to sweat, dampness worsened by blowing snow that found its way inside his clothing.

The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope

High water in the Koyukuk River is causing erosion near Huslia as warm spring temperatures rapidly melt above-average snowpack.

The Baldwin Peninsula near Kotzebue has seen a massive increase in beavers over the last two decades, according to new research from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Dead chum salmon are lining the banks of one of the Yukon River’s largest tributaries. Koyukuk River residents and scientists alike suspect the deaths are

The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope

The sweeping list of potential health implications includes the introduction of new diseases, an increase in accidents and a worsening allergy season.

The statewide average temperature in December was 19.4 degrees, 15.7 degrees above the 20th century average.

A tundra fire has burned nearly 2,000 acres on the Selawik National Wildlife Refuge over the past week.

A wildfire is burning in a remote area of northwest Alaska. The Alaska Fire Service reports that the Zane Hills Fire was discovered this week, and mapped at 1,900 acres.

River Erosion

5-30-13 Flooding Kobuk River - Kobuk, Alaska, USA