Little Diomede Island, Bering Strait, Russia

The Diomede Islands consist of two rocky, tuya-like islands: the U.S. island of Little Diomede and the Russian island of Big Diomede. They are located in the middle of the Bering Strait between mainland Alaska, USA and Siberia, Russia, with the Chukchi Sea to the north and the Bering Sea to the south. The islands are separated by an international border and the International Date Line which is approximately 1 km (0.6 mi) from each island. At the closest distance between Little Diomede and Big Diomede, the two islands are only about 4 km (2.4 mi) apart.

Little Diomede is flat-topped, steep-sided and very isolated by its location, by rough seas, and by the persistent fog that shrouds the island during the warmer months. The small habitation is centered to the west side of the island at the village of Diomede. Little Diomede sits on the edge of the U.S.-Russia border.

This steep-sided island is home to hundreds of seabirds, including auklets, murres, and Black-legged Kittiwakes. Visitors will visit Ignaluk, the island's sole village, and meet some of its residents, who are primarily Inupiak Eskimos.

Cruise Season - March - Nov
Currency - Ruble (RUB)
Language - Russian
Land Area - 6 sq km
Population - 146 approx
Electricity - 2 round pins European style
Time - GMT plus two hours to plus twelve hours
International Country Telephone Code - + 7

Travel Links - There are weekly flights by small planes from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to Nikolskoye, on Bering Island, departing and returning to the peninsula on Mondays.

The limited terrain on Little Diomede island does not allow for a runway, so weekly mail delivery is made by helicopter. Float planes rarely risk landing on the rough seas in summer, but ski planes do occasionally land on an ice runway during the winter months. Most supplies come from an annual barge delivery.