After two weeks of preperation in Fairbanks, I flew on a commercial flight to Kaktovic, a small community on the northern coast of Alaska on the Arctic Ocean. The town has a population of only about 250 people, mostly of Inupiak Eskimo heritage. Until the 1940's the Inupiak were transient and mobile, moving around the Alaskan coastal plain following seasonal resources. Only with the establishment of the DEW (Distance Early Warning) Line, a network of radar facilities around the coast of Alaska to detect incoming bombers from Russia, did the Inupiak settle near these facilities. We are staying in the Fish and Wildlife bunkhouse, which is one of the nicer buildings in town. All week we've been completing final preparations; today our entire crew went out in boats to set up one of the field camp sites.
I've been learning a number of new skills here in Kaktovic, including how to fix and assemble zodiacs, how to repair and mount boat motors, and how to shoot and clean Remmington 12 gauge pump-action shotguns. The shotguns are for bear protection - both polar and grizzely bears are common here, and all field teams are required to carry guns as a last option in a bear encounter. Rather than shot, we will have shells with us in the field - packs more of a powerful punch, which is desirable if you have a bear charging you at 35 miles an hour. We will likely move out into our field site permenantly in the next day or two.
Are those the bones of a whale? How did they end up there? Neat pictures, and I will enjoy reading your blog!
ReplyDeleteYeah, bones of bowhead whales, mostly! Thanks for reading, I think you are the only one! The bones were dumped there after the locals of Kaktovik finished slicing all the fat off them. They go out and catch a couple each fall, then bring them back to the village. The polar bears spend the winter gnawing on the bones.
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