North Pacific High Sea

North of the Pribilof Islands, the Bering Sea is a cold expanse subject to fog and seasonal ice. On the islands' shores, northern fur seals gather in great numbers to breed. Russian navigator Gavriil Pribylov reached their breeding grounds in the 1780s after a search among these waters. Russian traders then brought Unangan people from the Aleutians to harvest the seals, creating settlements that joined the islands to the Pacific fur trade.