On August 15, I once again headed to the land of the midnight sun, this time as the assistant leader of a 14 day backpack in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The trip was comprised of 6 people -- 4 participants and 2 leaders. I was the only female. As the assistant leader, I was in charge of food organization for all meals of the trip. You can imagine the work and stress with that j
ob, not to mention the joy of packing up all that food and hauling it to the airport. I was very relieved once I checked the luggage and got on the plane.
ob, not to mention the joy of packing up all that food and hauling it to the airport. I was very relieved once I checked the luggage and got on the plane.We arrived in Fairbanks late Friday night, spent Saturday meeting everyone, running last minute errands, going over logistics and food distribution, and repacking. Did I mention that my pack weighed almost 50 pounds? Bright and early Sunday morning, we were on the road for the LONG drive up the Dalton Highway to our starting point, Atigun Gorge. On the way, we watched the pipeline snake its way across tundra, over the mighty yukon, through vast bu
rn areas, into a ferocious rain storm, and around glaciated mountains. Although it was still summer in Fairbanks, we passed through fall colors as we headed north. At times during my trip, I felt like those "highway" miles of fall were all we had between summer and winter! 11 hours and numerous rest stops later, we were there. By that time, it was almost dinnertime. At least it wasn't raining.
rn areas, into a ferocious rain storm, and around glaciated mountains. Although it was still summer in Fairbanks, we passed through fall colors as we headed north. At times during my trip, I felt like those "highway" miles of fall were all we had between summer and winter! 11 hours and numerous rest stops later, we were there. By that time, it was almost dinnertime. At least it wasn't raining.Over the next two weeks, the six of us enjoyed sun, wind, fog, snow, and a fe
w clouds as we circled the area around the Atigun River, the Sagavanirktok, and Accomplishment creek. We crossed a number of high passes and several big rivers. We watched a herd of about 100 caribou stream across the face of a large hill, possibly after a wolf had killed one of them. Later that night, we marveled at falcons playing and stalking, while a golden eagle soared overhead. and another hawk hovered nearby. We saw numerous dahl sheep, and got up close and personal with one large flock. We saw moose one morning at a lake just outside of camp.
w clouds as we circled the area around the Atigun River, the Sagavanirktok, and Accomplishment creek. We crossed a number of high passes and several big rivers. We watched a herd of about 100 caribou stream across the face of a large hill, possibly after a wolf had killed one of them. Later that night, we marveled at falcons playing and stalking, while a golden eagle soared overhead. and another hawk hovered nearby. We saw numerous dahl sheep, and got up close and personal with one large flock. We saw moose one morning at a lake just outside of camp. Did I mention the tundra? I hate tundra. We had lots of tundra. Hummocks and Tussocks. especially with marsh in between, are not much fun. One day, I think we must have walked through 8 miles of tundra. Looks beautiful, but miserable to walk in.
The trip, despite the hated tundra, was amazing. Our group of Eric, Peter, Larry, George, Mark and myself, got along fantastically. The weather was fantastic, (albeit cold), as was the scenery. We were constantly amazed at new views as we crossed over the various passes. The diversity of ecosystems was something that surprised us. In some places, we had peak foliage, and in other areas, it seemed winter had arrived.
