Last Day of Civilization

Today is my last day of civilization for over a month.  Our crew leader Nate and me will be the first ones to depart for the field today.  We will be responsible for setting up the weather port station, hauling gear, and getting camp set-up.  The rest of the crew will depart later today or tomorrow and our research will then be under way.  The birds have already started nesting over the weeks, so we will have to hit the ground running searching for nests!  After you read this post you will not hear back from me until after July 4th.  Nothing like spending independence day in the field with no grill!  However, we did buy steaks!!

Life In Bethel, AK

I have been in Bethel, AK for 3 days now and have experienced a little of what Alaska life is like.  The bunkhouse (Fig. 1) we are staging at is now packed full since another bird group came into town yesterday.  We are all waiting on the weather and tides to be just right so the pilots can take us to our field sites. As we are playing the waiting game to be dropped in the field I have been exposed to the culture of Bethel.  Life here is far different than anything I have experienced.  In the lower 48 we are used to pampered lawns and gardens, clean shiny cars in driveways and reasonable prices at the grocery store.  Here in Bethel, AK those things are not to be found, the presence of trucks overwhelm cars, and dust coats them from top to bottom.  Lawns are non existent and are replaced with tundra and grocery store prices are overwhelming considering everything has to be shipped in.

Figure 1- Refuge visitor center, offices and bunkhouse.

Our crew had to go to the grocery store to pick up misc food items, and I was completely shocked at the prices!  Good thing the food bill went on a US Fish and Wildlife credit card or our crew would be forced to sell our gear to afford the grocery bill (Fig. 2).  The other thing that is different about here compared to home is how the sewer lines are above ground, not below (Fig. 3).  Due to the permafrost (frozen soil under ground), they can't penetrate beneath the surface for pipes, it's very different to see big pipes connecting all the houses and businesses.  

Figure 2- Price of potatoes in Bethel, AK.

Figure 3- sewage pipes in Bethel, AK.

Hopefully today will be our last day in the bunkhouse, it's nice to have amenities and a bathroom, but when they're being shared by 12 other people it can get quite absurd.  I am ready for the field life and am eager to board the float plane (Fig. 4) and venture out into the Alaskan wilderness.  Hopefully the weather cooperates tomorrow and we can head out to our field site, get camp set-up and begin our field research. 

Figure 4- An example of a float plane we will be using to reach our research site.

Until then we are hunkered in the bunkhouse and doing last minute preparations, watching lot's of TV, surfing the web, and soaking in our last moments of civilization!  Once we depart we will not see civilization for over a month. 

Departure Day to Bethel, AK

I have now made it to Bethel, AK. After four flights, going from one extreme of North America to the other.  It was a long day of travel to be rewarded in the end with sunlight after 830pm.  The travel experience was how should I say...interesting.  I witnessed  a change in people on each flight, as I got closer to Alaska it seems the plane was filled with more outdoor enthusiasts than before.  Once I stepped onto Alaska Airlines, I knew I was on my way to the last frontier.

Upon arriving in Anchorage I was surprised and greeted with a bar, at this bar you could purchase your own growlers and have them filled with your choice of brew.  I decided I better get two of these since Bethel is a "damp" village (you can brig it in, but you can't buy it).  I then decided to head to my last gate and ran into my boss Kyle for this summer research!

Growler you can purchase in airport and fly with!

Kyle and I began to board our last flight into Bethel, AK by scanning our tickets at the gate like any other flight.  Then we began walking down a stairway and onto the tarmac.  It hit me then that we were flying into no-mans land.  We boarded a plane that was filled half way with cargo and half with passengers, it was an interesting set-up.  I noticed how this flight changed, the last flight was filled with outdoor enthusiast and now this flight seems to be filled with ALL locals.  Locals who were sweating constantly in the semi-warm plane.  I guess when you're used to living in below freezing temps, 50 degrees is pretty hot!

We landed in Bethel, AK and were greeted by our other group members.  I waited at the baggage claim which was really just a conference hall with a conveyor belt.  I quickly noticed the items on the belt were not normal travel items!  Big Rubbermaid totes, coolers duck taped closed and a variety of other boxes.  These were locals literally flying into town to go to Wal-Mart and the such, and the coolers were certainly people like me flying in their favorite brew.

I then arrived at our bunkhouse where we talked and shot the crap.  I was introduced to Elk tongue and had to try it!  It was surprisingly good actually, but a little chewy. Around 9pm since the sun was still up I decided to take a stroll around to soak in Alaska, of course I took my binoculars and camera in case some awesome wildlife crossed my path. The first bird sighting was a Robin, whoopee! We have those back home.  Then two Fox Sparrows crossed my path.  This is just the beginning of this adventure, only day 1, many more to come.  The sun didn't begin to set until after 1130pm and began to rise around 5am, out of everything in Alaska I think this will be the hardest thing to get used to. 

Fox Sparrow-Gerrit Vyn

Test Post

Just seeing if those who put their email address in to follow my Alaska blog are receiving updates regarding posts.

Departure Time is Near

May 25th is my tentative departure date.  The date in which I have been waiting for, for years.  Soon I will be waking up to the sounds of waterfowl and birds instead of a barking hungry dog.  It is almost surreal that this trip is happening!  I haven't even begun to pack for this wilderness I am about to enter.  I just received an email from the biologist saying that the travel arrangements are being made and that 2 airplanes and 1 helicopter have dropped off over 2300 pounds of gear for our crew at Kigigak Island, AK (Figure 1).

Figure 1- Displaying the gear waiting for us (C. Moore, 2014).

Soon I will be unplugged from society and all its distractions, and will only be surrounded by the true beauty of this world we have been given.  It will be a life filled with waterfowl, shorebirds, songbirds and many other flying critters (bugs!).  However, it will be all worth it and I will enjoyed it to the fullest.  This is a once in a lifetime experience I am blessed with and I can't wait to get started.  

Follow my journey by inputting your email in the bar provided above.  You can see what life is like in the field, see the field projects we are working on, follow bird sightings, and see what the Alaskan Yukon-Delta wilderness is like.  I won't update the blog very often once we are deployed.  Internet will be non-existent for us and communication to loved ones back home will consist of 15-min sat phone conversations.  But when I do blog it will be worth it to see what is happening and how we are all progressing.  

A few more weeks left and off to Alaska I go! (Figure 2)

Figure 2- Displays where I will be in Alaska.