A fascinating vlog takes viewers inside one of the most remote towns in America, which is dubbed ‘the town under one roof,’ as most residents live in one giant apartment block.
YouTube creator Nomadic Introvert ventured to Whittier, which is in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness and just over an hour by car from Anchorage.
In the introduction to her video tour, the adventurer gives viewers a brief rundown of the place. She explains: ‘[Whittier] is one of the most isolated towns in America. There’s one way in and one way out, and that’s through a tunnel.
‘This town is so unique… [because] a majority of [the people] lives under one roof and one building.
‘In this building, there’s a post office, a grocery store, tunnels that connect schools… laundry… housing of course. There’s everything in there [so] there’s literally no reason to leave the building.’
YouTube creator Nomadic Introvert ventured to Whittier, which is in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness and just over an hour by car from Anchorage
The Begich Towers were originally built as army barracks that served as a ‘secret’ military facility for the U.S. Army during WWII before it was later converted into a residential unit
!['[Whittier] is one of the most isolated towns in America. There's one way in and one way out, and that's through a tunnel,' Nomadic Introvert tells viewers](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/07/15/21/87373067-13636261-image-a-1_1721075026650.jpg)
‘[Whittier] is one of the most isolated towns in America. There’s one way in and one way out, and that’s through a tunnel,’ Nomadic Introvert tells viewers
Before heading into the building, the content creator explains that there are currently around 120 to 150 people living in Whittier, and ’90 per cent of those people live in this building’
After navigating the town’s tunnel – which is the longest highway tunnel in North America at 2.5 miles long – Nomadic Introvert parks up and ventures inside its infamous apartment complex.
The Begich Towers were originally built as army barracks that served as a ‘secret’ military facility for the U.S. Army during WWII before it was later converted into a residential space in 1974.
Before heading into the building, the content creator explains that a local she met told her that there are currently around 120 to 150 people living in Whittier, and ’90 per cent of those people live in this building.’
She adds that visitors can only gain access to the ground level of the 14-story complex, and the rest of the floors are only accessible to residents.
As the content creator ventures inside, she says the aesthetics remind her of an ‘old school’ with billboards lining the entranceways with an array of messages on display.
Some of the public facilities she highlights include a small post office, a ‘really nice’ grocery store stocked with a spread of goods, an ATM, laundromat, bathroom and notary.
Back in her car, Nomadic Introvert tells viewers that she wished she could have offered a ‘more in depth tour,’ but she didn’t want to invade peoples’ privacy.
She explained: ‘Yes, the first floor is for tourists but it also has amenities that [residents] use on a daily [basis] and I just didn’t want to invade their privacy.
Some of the public facilities she highlights include a ‘really nice’ grocery store stocked with a spread of goods
The camera pans around to show the community’s small post office
Back in her car, Nomadic Introvert tells viewers that she wished she could have offered a ‘more in depth tour,’ but she didn’t want to invade peoples’ privacy
Next up on her town tour, Nomadic Introvert takes viewers inside the town’s pedestrian tunnel which runs under the railway
‘I wish I could have showed you guys the inside of the laundry room because it looked pretty cool but there was a a person in there doing their laundry and I didn’t want to go in there with my camera while they were folding their laundry.
‘I [also] wish I could have showed you guys the inside of the grocery store. I mean, I showed you guys the inside, but I I wanted to show you what was around the corner, where the the register was.
‘It was so cool but again there were people in there shopping and I didn’t want to invade their personal space.
‘I could only imagine being a resident in this building and having tourists come with cameras and filming as you’re trying to shop and things like that.’
Next up on her town tour, Nomadic Introvert takes viewers inside the pedestrian tunnel which runs under the railway.
The avid traveler says, as she navigates the thoroughfare: ‘Okay, it’s lit… it’s not dark.
‘This is probably one of the craziest tunnels I’ve ever been in as far as walking on foot.
‘I hope the restaurant is open [on the other side] once we’re done exploring, because I am starving.’
When she exits the tunnel, Nomadic Introvert heads to a store which is famed for its fudge but she orders a French vanilla latte instead.
The YouTuber ventures to a restaurant at the Anchor Inn, and she is pleased to find that it is open
Offering an overall verdict on the dining spot, she says: ‘I like the food, the atmosphere was good… the ambiance. It was very peaceful, very quiet, very serene’
After hearing it’s the best dining spot in town, the YouTuber plumps for the halibut fish and chips, which comes in at $23.95
The next day, before leaving the far flung town, she checks out a building on the outskirts which was never completed and stands abandoned
She then ventures to the restaurant at the Anchor Inn, and she is pleased to find that it is open.
After hearing it’s the best dining spot in town, the YouTube creator plumps for the halibut fish and chips, which comes in at $23.95.
She gives the seafood dish a thumbs up, with ‘tender’ fish and a ‘crispy’ batter.
Offering an overall verdict on the place, she says: ‘I like the food, the atmosphere was good… the ambiance. It was very peaceful, very quiet, very serene.
‘[It had a] kind of like hometown kind of feel, where everybody knows everybody.’
Instead of checking into the Anchor Inn, Nomadic Introvert decides to sleep in her car, which she found got pretty cold during the night.
The next day, before leaving the far flung town, she checks out a former U.S. military building on the outskirts which was never completed and stands abandoned.
As she nears the creepy looking structure in her car, the urban explorer says: ‘It’s called the Buckner Building… [and] this is an abandoned building.
‘According to what is online… they never tore this building down [and] they never made it into housing because it is full of asbestos.’
Summing up her visit to Whittier, the filmmaker concludes: ‘I hope you guys enjoyed the video. It was a pretty cool stealth overnight in one of the most isolated towns in America.
‘It was just cool to see a unique town such as Whittier…. an entire 90 per cent of the people living under one roof and they’re making it work… I thought that was pretty cool.’
