ADAK: America’s Smallest Forest?

[Kyle]

THE HARSH ENVIRONMENT of the cold, windswept Aleutians keeps little foliage other than grasses from growing on the island of Adak, which is home to the westernmost city in the United States. But in WWII and during the Cold War, when the island was a strategic military outpost, a general thought it would boost morale for his soldiers to plant Christmas trees. Most of the trees died off, but a few hardy conifers refused to give way to the elements.

Alaska Magazine | America's Smallest Forest?

Don’t blink or you’ll miss it THE HARSH ENVIRONMENT of the cold, windswept Aleutians keeps little foliage other than grasses from growing on the island of Adak, which is home to the westernmost city in the United States. But in WWII and during the Cold War, when the island was a strategic...

alaskamagazine.com

 

[Monello]

I'm glad I got to go there once before they shut it down. I believe at 1 time it was the 8th largest city in Alaska. It's amazing at how much infrastructure the military will just abandon. It's not like there was a local population there that could use a school, clinic, airfield, gymnasium and hundreds of other assorted buildings.

 

[Merlin99]

I'm glad I got to go there once before they shut it down. I believe at 1 time it was the 8th largest city in Alaska. It's amazing at how much infrastructure the military will just abandon. It's not like there was a local population there that could use a school, clinic, airfield, gymnasium and hundreds of other assorted buildings.

I took every trip out there that came up, then took vacation to go halibut fishing. Bringing home 200lbs of halibut would more than pay for a week in the BOQ

 

[Kyle]

I took every trip out there that came up, then took vacation to go halibut fishing. Bringing home 200lbs of halibut would more than pay for a week in the BOQ

Sometimes people go fishing to catch something.... Sometimes they go just for the halibut.

 

[glhs837]

Did my first six month deployment there in 85. Chasing Soviet subs, getting intercepted by MIGs, what a great way for a young man to get tossed right into the Cold War. Did a detachment for two weeks on Midway, a couple torpedo exercises to Hawaii, a couple weeks in Elmendorf, a couple overnights to Anchorage with visits to the Great Alaskan Bush Company