Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge

The Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge spans roughly 13,832 km² and encompasses about 2,500 islands, headlands, and reefs strung along Alaska's entire coastline, from Cape Lisburne in the northwest down to Forrester Island in the southeast panhandle. Established in 1980 under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, it protects the most important seabird nesting colonies in North America — common murres, horned puffins, and tufted puffins breed here in the millions alongside Steller sea lions, sea otters, and Pacific walruses. The Pribilof Islands, included within the refuge, host one of the world's largest northern fur seal rookeries, with hundreds of thousands of animals hauling out each summer. Reaching the refuge requires a small plane or boat charter; once there, guided birding tours and sea kayak expeditions offer access to an almost entirely untouched subarctic ecosystem that sees very few human visitors each year.