Visitors standing on Little Diomede Island can see tomorrow, while those on Big Diomede Island can glimpse the past, despite the two islands being less than 3 kilometers apart.
Located almost in the center of the Bering Strait, the Diomede Islands consist of two islands: Big Diomede and Little Diomede. The unique feature that makes this remote location famous is its blurring of the boundaries of time and space.
From Little Diomede, looking towards Big Diomede, you can see “tomorrow,” and vice versa, even though they are just 2.4 kilometers apart by sea.
The two islands are only about 2.4 km apart but are nearly a day apart in time. (Photo: Ghostvillage).
This unusual occurrence happens because one island is in Russian territory, while the other is under U.S. ownership, resulting in two different time zones. The time difference between Russia and the U.S. is 21 hours.
When it is a new day in Russia, it is still yesterday in the U.S. Because of this time calculation, Big Diomede is also known as Tomorrow Island, while Little Diomede is referred to as Yesterday Island.
“It’s a real time machine. We can see what happened yesterday in real-time,” said 40-year-old former soldier Ramil Gumerov to Russia Beyond. Gumerov served in the Russian military for two years, starting in 1995, and spent over a year during that time on a part of the larger island, which today, besides a military base, only hosts a polar station and a border guard post.
“In reality, traveling to another island in a different country, or to yesterday on a day off, is purely an imagination,” Gumerov remarked. However, the ice bridge that forms between the two islands in winter could even allow people to cross between the islands and change their temporal boundary, although free movement between these two islands is illegal. Many jokingly say that if you want to “travel through time,” just cross these two islands.
In fact, only the indigenous residents, the Eskimos, can move freely between the Diomede Islands. They have inhabited these lands long before the first Europeans arrived, notably the Russian naval explorer Semyon Dezhnev, who reached the archipelago.
Going back in time to 1897 when the U.S. purchased Alaska, the contract included Little Diomede Island. At that time, a new border was drawn between the two islands, which still exists today.
In winter, when the weather is frigid, the sea freezes over, inadvertently creating a bridge connecting the two islands, allowing people to walk easily from the U.S. to Russia. However, this is considered illegal. Foreign fishing boats that come too close will face warnings from patrolling soldiers.
The village has a school, church, helicopter landing pad, clinic, and even internet and phone service. (Photo: Ghostvillage).
During the Cold War, Russia relocated all residents from Tomorrow Island to the mainland. Today, only military personnel reside there. Yesterday Island still has about 150 American residents, concentrated in a village known for its ivory carving.
According to a survey by the U.S. government, over 90% of the island’s population is indigenous. Of the 43 households, more than 37% consist of children under 18 years old, nearly 21% are couples living together, over 32% have no men present, while 18.6% are single. The income of the residents is low, with many households classified as poor. Additionally, there is a helicopter that transports food, mail, parcels, and even passengers from the mainland to the island.
In winter, the cold weather allows people from one island to cross to the other via an ice bridge. (Photo: Ghostvillage).
The island lacks paved roads, highways, railways, or waterways. The only way to get around is by walking on trails, using snowmobiles, or sleds. Besides tourists, the island also welcomes research groups and residents from mainland Alaska.
Contrasting Lives on the Two Islands
3,000 years ago, the two islands were inhabited by the Yupik Eskimos. The first European to set foot on this archipelago was the Russian explorer Semyon Dezhnyov in 1648.
80 years later, it was rediscovered by the Danish explorer Vitus Bering on August 16, 1728.
Today, Little Diomede is home to a small community of about 75 residents with a church and school. The Eskimos living on this island continue to maintain a traditional self-sufficient lifestyle. They catch crabs and fish, hunt beluga whales, walrus, seals, and polar bears for food.
Most essential goods are supplied through an annual barge delivery from stores like Wal-Mart. Some residents work for local government or the school. There has been some commercial fishing and extraction activity on the island, but both industries are declining.
In contrast, Big Diomede is completely uninhabited and is used by authorities for military purposes.
If traveling from Alaska (U.S.), the quickest way to reach the Diomede Islands is by helicopter. Visitors can also reach Alaska by road, sea, and air. Anchorage Airport has over 200 flights daily to and from various places around the world.
