Today was a day of preparations for my 8 days in the wilderness with Ranger T. We met with the park's backcountry ranger early this morning to discuss logistics. We will be keeping an eye out for, and documenting, a number of things like illegal campsites, plane and helicopter activity, any archaeological sites, and more. We'll also help restore some wilderness by breaking down an old outfitter's camp.

We talked safety about bears and float planes, went over bear spray and shotgun usage. We reviewed our three methods of communication: satellite phone, aviation radio to talk to airplanes flying overhead, and the GPS beacon. We will be calling to check in twice each day, so we won't have to wait days for rescue if anything goes wrong.

There is all kinds of gear and food packed up. Tents that are reputed to be bomb-proof, the kind people use at Everest base camp. Our sleeping bags are rated for 30 below plus we have extra liners along. We have bear barrels, camp stoves, lots of food. I have my cameras, lenses, many batteries, memory cards, battery packs. And a small set of paints and sketchbook.

We have quite a lot of stuff packed. Says Ranger T "It's like car camping but with an airplane" except the airplane doesn't stay with us. And we'll be really remote. The backcountry ranger commented this morning that while we know these areas, and people have been out there before, we are some of the first few crews to visit and explore the area for the park. There is still a lot to discover and learn here, and I'm really excited for tomorrow. We head out at 2pm. I'll keep a log of each day, and post it with photos after we return next Thursday. Have a great week everyone! I'm sure I will!

Looking out on the lagoon where the planes take off.

Park Service and Fish and Wildlife float planes.

A portion of the gear we
packed up today.

Location of our two destinations.
West is Rainbow Lakes, east is Long Lake.
Noatak River is to the south and Brooks range to the north.

Rainbow Lakes is near the Kelly River,
Long Lake is near the Nimiuktuk.
You can see Kotzebue on this map, too.

I arrived in Kotzebue, AK a little before noon today and was met by a friend (and park ranger) I got to know duing my last residency for Badlands National Park more than two years ago. We delivered my bags to the house I'm staying at and then spent the afternoon taking a brief tour of town, the park visitors center, and the school. I had a pretty good idea of what I'd see up here in a very small town along the arctic ocean, but there are a few details I really love, such as the two runway crossings. Because the road crosses the airport runway. There are signals, but they don't work right now, so you're expected to stop and look for airplanes. I'm enjoying the change in sounds. Instead of road noise coming mostly from cars, there are frequent airplanes, helicopters, and ATVs.

For dinner we went to the courthouse which was hosting a dinner to celebrate the opening of the new Coast Guard facility. There was traditional Eskimo food such as caribou soup, salmon, and muktuk (whale -Beluga and Bowhead) and drumming, singing, and dancing. It was a really great first night.

Thursday morning I head into the wilderness with my ranger friend, so tonight we went to the grocery store to buy meal ingredients. Tomorrow will be a long day of prep.

Across the street from the house I'm staying at is the home of an Iditarod racer (and winner) and his dogs, who take to howling together sometimes. It's fantastic. Behind his house is the Arctic Ocean where I spent time watching the sun get closer to setting late tonight. The salmon were jumping, the birds calling, and now the dogs are howling again. It's late, though still light, and time for me to sleep before an early meeting tomorrow. Very happy to be here, thrilled to have the experience further brightened by friends. A huge thank you to my hosts who are generously letting me stay with them. Good company, great knowledge.