GCI Refuels Mountaintop Towers — Using Only Helicopters
![A GCI telecommunications tower in rural Alaska, silhouetted by a fiery sunset](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/dime_tower_sunset_2.slideshow-e1523466105252.jpg)
To keep its TERRA broadband network running, each summer GCI has to refuel, by air, giant diesel tanks at 22 remote mountaintop repeater sites throughout Western Alaska.
The Cost of Living in Alaska
![Gas Prices in Nome, Alaska, March 2016](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/2016-03-17-static-misc-008-2432px-1200x900.jpg)
Among the exceptional challenges of life in rural Alaska is its very high cost of living. Explore a few concrete examples of just how more expensive basic staples are in Alaska, compared to their Lower 48 counterparts.