Gates of the Arctic

Like many of us, I have a bucket list; well, maybe it is more like a dumpster list.  One of the items on the list is to visit all the U.S. National Parks.  One of the largest and most beautiful is the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Refuge here in Alaska.  This untouched wilderness is above the Arctic Circle and is one of the least visited of all the parks.  It is not wonder as there are no road to access the park.  The only way to see this wonder is to fly there.  I certainly never thought we would actually be able to go, but my wonderful Jim booked us a tour that would take us.

We joined our fellow passengers at the airport around 6 p.m. to go through the preflight instructions.  We would be flying in a 10 seater Piper twin engine plane.  We were very excited just to be flying as it has been quite a while since we were in a small plane.  As I expected, the first question was “how much do you weigh”.  Dear God, could we possibly do this in private?  In know that is very important to have the correct weights so the plane can be balanced so I quietly gave the number.  What do you need hearing aids or something?  What do you mean can I repeat it?  Dear Me, how humiliating.  Oh well, I guess it is the price I must pay to go on this trip. Then we were told that we were over weight and needed to shed 50 pounds of bags and possessions so the wing locker would not be overweight.  I agreed to leave my camera bag and extra zoom lens at the office to help with the weight.  I kept having this nagging feeling I would regret it.

From the moment the plane left the ground, I knew this would be a magical night, and it certainly was.  We left Fairbanks and headed north toward the Arctic Circle and on to Anaktuvuk Pass located deep in the Gates of the Arctic National Park.  Taking pictures was not easy as we flew into the sun outbound and my side was directly facing it.  But on the return flight, the sun was behind us and I hope you enjoy the results.  As it turned out, I did regret leaving my zoom lens as we flew over an area where there were Caribou and they look like black dots.  But, no matter there were so many other things of beauty to see.  I cannot show them all but here are a few.

The Alaska Pipeline is vital to the state.  Here the pipeline parallels the Dalton Highway.  This roadway was built in 1974 before the pipeline construction in 1974-1977.  Called the Haul Road, it cut through 416 miles of the arctic.  Trucks moved tons of equipment and materials using this gravel highway to support camps and work sites.  Oil companies owned the road and opened it for public use in 1980 when it became known as the Dalton Highway.  The road is so brutal that only the very brave will risk it.  It is notorious for ruining tires and breaking headlights.

The immediate landscape out of Fairbanks is flat and dotted with lots of lakes and ponds.  In the summer when the weather is warmer, it becomes a breeding ground for mosquitoes and all sorts of other insects.  Hunting and fishing here becomes a test of endurance.  Because of this, the locals hunt and fish in the winter.  Even though the weather is very cold, the frozen landscape makes movement much easier.

The landscape begins to change and mountain comes into view.  Here in the north, ice is still present here and there as the mountains get higher and higher.  In one place, we flew over a large patch of ice where a herd of caribou were moving across the ice.  In the summer, they move north and seek out these patches to find relief from the biting mosquitoes that mercilessly pursue the animals.

Our first look at the mighty Yukon River.  It flows east to west bisecting Canada and Alaska.  The river twists and winds it way across the landscape.  From mid-October to mid-May, the river is frozen over.  It has only three bridges that crosses it, two located in Canada and one on the Dalton Highway.  

There are few trees here.  The land is covered with lichens and mosses and other low profile grasses.  In the winter, the moose and caribou and other animals depends on these plants for survival.

Our first stop was Coldfoot where we took on gas.  Coldfoot came into being during the gold rush of 1898-1900.  It became a commercial center for miners and reach a population of 300 in 1902.  In 1906 and 1907, gold strikes to the north and west of Coldfoot depleted the population as the miners moved to new digs.  Then in 1970 it became a pipeline camp.  In the 80's, Dick Mackey, an Alaskan musher outfitted a bus with a stove and started serving foot to truckers who stopped over there.  Later, the truckers wanting more services brought wood left from hauls to the sight and together they built a cafe.  It is quite an interesting patchwork of materials that created the world's northernmost truck stop at Coldfoot.

After Coldfoot, the landscape changed dramatically.  The mountains are dark granite.  They are bare of trees and are stark but at the same time, they create a beautiful play of light and dark and you look to the horizon.

For the most part, it was a clear evening.  Our pilot pointed out the various peaks and told us what their names were.  He also told us a great deal about the native peoples and how they have lived and thrived in this hostile environment.  We passed Wiseman just north of Coldfoot.  It was the northern most gold mining camp but like many other camps suffered the boom/bust.  Unlike others, it has continued to be occupied even though there are no roads to support it.  Residents are self-reliant and independent and use traditional skills to support a subsistence life style.  They live off the land hunting and fishing and grow vegetables during the summer.

One of the mountains we flew over has a glacier flowing down one side.  At the base of the mountain is a high mountain lake.  This fresh glacier fed lake sparkles blue under the sun.  Alas, I could not get a good picture.

These tall peaks are part of the Brooks Range that extends from Canada to the coast of Alaska. the tallest of the peaks is over 9,000 feet.  This peak is one of two that mark the beginning of the Gates of the Arctic.  The clouds had begun to rolls in and the winds were increasing.  The flight because quite rough.  Several times, my head hit the roof as we were bunched about.

The entrance to the Anaktuvuk Pass, our final destination.  This name belongs to both the pass and the Nunamiut Inuit village located there.  The name Anaktuvuk means "the land of many caribou droppings".  The people here depend on the caribou for their livelihood.  The name is in recognition of a land of plenty where they could settle and survive.  It is home to about 300 people who are cut off from everything and depend on each other and the land to survive.  Unfortunately, the weather turned so quickly our pilot decided not to land for safety reasons.

Another view of the approach into the pass.  Further along, there was heavy fog and light snow.

On the return trip, the Brooks Range was magnificent to behold.

These peaks take their red color from copper

Beauty as far as the eyes can see.

 The changes in landscape as we neared Fairbanks.  Cinder cones remain where volcanic activity once ruled.

Back in Fairgrounds, the midnight sun hovered low in the sky creating beautiful sunset lights.  The sun actually set about 1:30 a.m. and rose again about 3:30 a.m.  This weekend there will be a festival to the midnight sun and the shortest amount of sunlight of any day of the year.

It was a wonderful trip.  I would love to see if all in the winter when the land is blanketed in snow and the aurora glistens above.  Ah, but that is another trip.  Maybe.......