Jason and I had just finished eating our breakfast when we called the taxi to hitch a ride. What, you ask, was our first destination on this most exciting trip in a land so beautiful? This place:
We arrive back at the hotel, grab a quick lunch, and head over to the Fairbanks airport to catch a flight to the Arctic Circle. We get assigned to an 8 passenger plane that I'm pretty sure is no sturdier than a paper airplane on a windy day.
I mean, the thing is tiny. But in we climb and, fortunately, the pilot had asked that Jason and I sit in the first row directly behind him. I convince myself that it will benefit me to be able to see directly out the front of the airplane windshield. Before I know it, our headsets are on, we've taken off and we're up in the air. The views were absolutely breathtaking. I cannot do it justice. I look around and we are surrounded by hills and mountains as far as the eye can go. All of it completely uninhabitated except for the wildlife that calls it home. You just cannot believe how much land it is until you see it in the air.
We were also able to see the Trans-Atlantic Pipeline, the Yukon River Valley, The Brooks Mountain Range and a whole lot more (more pics to come later). The most anticipated part of the flight, though, was entering into the Arctic Circle. The pilot tells us that we're about 10 minutes away from entering the Arctic Circle, which is at 66 degrees, 33 minutes latitude. He even suggests we take a picture of his GPS at the exact moment we enter to show the latitude measurement, which I thought was a cool idea. Or at least I would have thought it was a cool idea....had my head not been buried in the "air-sickness bag".
I did okay for the first 30 minutes or so of the flight, then I felt it coming on. I did everything I could to keep from getting sick; I fanned myself for air, I took off my scarf, I found a focal point outside the plane. Nothing worked. And wouldn't you know? The pilot is showing everyone his GPS, we're inches away from the Arctic Circle line, he says "And we're now in the..." and I didn't hear the rest. The timing was impeccable. As soon as the words "Arctic Circle" came out of the pilot's mouth was the exact moment that I gave in to the air-sickness. And wouldn't you know? At that exact moment, everyone else on the plane had their cameras aimed at the front of the plane (where I'm sitting) to take a picture of the plane's GPS. I'm fairly certain some of those poor people inadvertently captured me in a very vulnerable moment.
About 20 minutes later we land in Coldfoot, Alaska. After apologizing profusely to the other passengers, I stumble off the plane with so much thankfullness in my heart for good, solid ground to stand on. Our pilot was so gracious and understanding and assures me the flight back will be smoother. Oh yeah...hadn't really given much thought to the fact that I have to do that all over again.
In Coldfoot, Jason and I are quickly greeted by Nicolae who will be taking us to a tiny community that is literally in the middle of the wilderness. Nicolae is from Russia but has been living in Alaska for many years now, so he has this kind of funny Russian-Canadian accent. I liked listening to him talk and boy, did he talk. He gave Jason and I so much information that I think I'm still digesting it all.
He drove us up to Wiseman, Alaska...population 13. And quite honestly, this was my favorite part of the day. We met a man named Jack who lives in Wiseman year round. In fact, all 13 people in Wiseman stay there year round, which is remarkable considering it can get to -50 degrees in the winter. He showed us a moose he shot last year that would be his family's meat for the remainder of the year. He told us how he has to cut down firewood all year because that's the only way to heat his home in the winter. No gas. No electricity. No plumbing. This may sound really naive, but I just did not realize that people still lived like that.
We walk around the community for another hour or so before we start heading back to the van. We seem to be wrapping up, saying goodbyes, etc. when out comes this man from one of the cabins nearby. His name is Clutch and he is a real-life, genuine gold miner. He's lived in Wiseman for many years and he had some stories to tell. We say hello, nice to meet you and then he shows Nicolae and Jack a large load of dirt he purchased in hopes of finding some gold. I mean, this guy is for real. All he does is pan for gold. All day long. Then he looks at Jason and I and asks if we know how to pan for gold. We politely explain No, we're from Texas and that's just not something we do everyday :-) He smiles, then asks, you want to learn? Clearly, this was not part of the tour but since Jason and I were the only ones, Nicolae gives us a nod and says we have time.
This is Clutch :-)
Sadly, no gold was found. But it was fun and interesting to learn from a real prospector. Afterwards, we drove back to Coldfoot to catch our plane ride to Fairbanks. The flight was definitely a lot smoother and I at least got to see us leave the Arctic Circle this time.
On the agenda tomorrow: Train ride to Denali; helicopter ride to Yanert Glacier
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