Beluga and bowhead whales migrate along the coast with ringed and bearded seals. Migratory birds flock here, some arriving all the way from Antarctica. Approximately 40 percent of the refuge been designated Wilderness, much of the eastern half on both sides of the Brooks Range. Within the refuge flows 155 miles of the Wild and Scenic Sheenjek River and 98 miles of the Wild and Scenic Wind River. River runners travel the waterways, and along streams and in the forests the backpacking rates as excellent.
Camping is unrestricted, but shortage of firewood demands the use of stoves.
In a century a tree may reach only knee-high on a caribou. Expect cool summers often shrouded in fog, and severe winters. Year-round winds vary from moderate to strong. Ice never melts 1.5 feet underground. Water usually melts by mid to late June when mosquitoes hatch in suffocating hordes.