You’ve probably never heard if it, but one traveller has given a glimpse into the explosive daily life of America’s most remote island.
Yes, we said explosive - it’s absolutely covered in unexploded bombs.
That sounds strange, but it’s all part of the everyday grind on Adak Island.
Where is Adak Island?
We were given a bit of a tour around Adak Island by TikTok creator Chris, who goes by the name ‘Authentic Travelling’ on the platform.
He certainly is authentic, as not many people are travelling to Adak to take holiday snaps for the ‘Gram.
Adak is a small island with a very small full-time population situated out on the Aleutian island chain off the end of Alaska.
It is accessible twice per week by plane, and the fact that it is a four hour flight from Anchorage tells you how remote we are really talking here.
Chris tells us: “The first thing about life here is that you will rarely have just one job,
“Most people have multiple jobs due to the nature of the economy.
“For example, people that work in the airport only work two days per week, in conjunction with the two [weekly] flights,
“On their off days they might work as the librarian or work as the municipal engineer for the city on some projects.”
He goes on to explain that some will even own business themselves that they open up after their day job finishes, such as restaurants.
According to Chris, the internet is ‘actually quite good’ - however much of a recommendation that is - but he says that Adak is ‘connected to the outside world’.
He also notes that many people don’t buy groceries on the island, as it is cheaper to have them brought over on the flight by delivery, or by ship - although that is no where near as regular as the flights.
Basically, you’d have to really want something - like a car, or something big.
You would want to buy a car though, as it’s $200 per day to rent one.
Wait, what about these bombs?
Of course - Adak is littered with unexploded bombs and there are loads of places you simply can’t go for that reason.
You see, the island’s closest neighbor is Russia and - well - you probably know how frosty that relationship can get, downright cold in fact.
Chris explains: “There are many unexploded ordinances from the military times on the island, and there are certain areas where you cannot leave the road due to the risk of the surrounding land.”
He concludes: “Adak is definitely a really unique place especially considering all the challenges of local life here.”