Going to the supermarket to buy groceries is a simple thing for many people, but Salina Alsworth will have to fly more than 320 km to do this.
“The village is so remote, I have to fly more than 200 miles just to buy groceries,” said Salina Alsworth, who lives in Port Alsworth, Alaska. Her grandparents, Babe and Mary Alsworth, were among the village’s first residents, settling here in the 1940s.
Port Alsworth is accessible only by small plane because it is not connected to the federal road system, according to the National Park Service. The village has two cafes but no pub, restaurant or hospital. If they want to go on a romantic dinner date, they have to fly to Anchorage.
Salina next to the plane she usually sits on when she wants to go to the supermarket to buy things. Photo: Instagram
“The only shop in the village is the small gift shop at my family’s resort,” Salina said. The resort also has a small clinic for basic first aid. If you need medical treatment, childbirth or surgery, you have to fly elsewhere.
The nearest city is Anchorage, about 200 miles away, a one-hour flight. Salina is not alone, with more than 130 residents in the village considering “taking a plane to the supermarket” a normal thing.
About every three months, Salina hops on a plane to go to the supermarket. She buys enough food to last her a season. Life in the village “can be complicated at times,” Salina said, because of the elaborate planning required to stock up on supplies. Salina’s purchases are carefully packaged and shipped on another plane.
Shopping is not always easy. In winter, flying to neighboring cities is difficult because of snow and heavy fog. Sometimes there is only one flight for weeks.
Salina sits on an all-terrain vehicle used to move around the village, behind her are boxes containing things she bought from a supermarket in another city. Photo: Insider
Despite its remote location, Port Alsworth is a popular tourist destination. During peak tourist season, the village’s population can swell to 400. The Salina family also runs a resort called Lake Clark, which welcomes hundreds of tourists each year.
Port Alsworth is home to Lake Clark National Park and Preserve Headquarters, known for its wild, “astonishingly beautiful” natural scenery.
Natural scenery at Lake Clark National Park.
However, Salina has no intention of moving elsewhere because she loves the life surrounded by nature, the simplicity and familiarity of the village. “I fly over some of the most rugged and beautiful terrain in the world,” Salina said, describing the distance she has to overcome to get to the supermarket.
Salina met her husband, Jared, a fishing guide, when he came to work at her family’s resort. They married in May 2020. Her husband moved from Detroit, Michigan, to be with her. Salina feels “extremely grateful” to have found a man who wants to live in the village with her. “He loves the Alaskan lifestyle. We hope to have a piece of land to build our own house on soon,” Salina said.
Most visitors must fly to one of the two airstrips in the village. Seaplanes can also land on the water near the village, but they often have trouble finding parking because the areas near the coast are private land. As a result, few seaplanes choose to fly there.
Visitors are encouraged to walk around the village as the roads are often paved with gravel. In addition, people can use bicycles with large wheels, special cars that can move on all terrains. The best time to visit this place is summer, when the weather is warm and there is not much fog.
According to Anh Minh/VNE
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