Fairhaven Ditch, Bering Land Bridge National Preserve

The Fairhaven Ditch is a historic canal on the Seward Peninsula of northwestern Alaska. Located in the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, it is a 38-mile ditch dug in 1906-07 without the benefit of heavy equipment in extremely hostile terrain. The ditch was dug by miners engaged in placer mining on the peninsula, and was used to transport water from Imuruk Lake, the largest body of fresh water on the peninsula, to mining areas north of the lake. It is one of a large number of such canals dug on the peninsula, and was one of the longest. At the bottom it was 11 feet wide, and was hacked out of permafrost, a volcanic field surrounding the lake, and dirt. Cabins built to house workers and monitor water flow survive. The ditch was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. ()