Received a call from Cameron on Tuesday night at 11:21 pm AST. He says that they are 9.22 miles WNW of the Iko Bay hut. They were dropped off on the Gas Well Road by Mark Hoffman, then they walked 3 miles that evening after being dropped off. They are going to push on today (17 Dec.), and they might even make it to the Iko Bay Hut today. Cameron said that he and Chiu had a good dinner last night in their tent and that they were warm and dry.
Below is some tracking data:
DATE: 16 December 2008
TIME: 23:21 AST
LAT: 71 degrees, 14 minutes, 30.2 seconds North
LONG: 156 degrees, 20 minutes, 07.5 seconds West
ELEV: 3 feet
TEMP: 3 F
PRESS: 1030 mb
WIND VEL: 14 mph
WIND DIR: S
CLOUD: 5/8 cloud cover
VISIB: Over 500 feet
PRECIP: N/A
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
North Slope news: 16 Dec. 2008--update
An email update from Cameron sent at 2:05 pm AST:
"Well it's still a waiting game as some roads are cleared; till then we're still laying in our sleeping bags, eating, reading and getting fat! But it will be worth the wait; since the points of this expedition are (a) to fly the paraglider at Iko Bay, (b) to take film, sound and video recordings of the winterscape, and (c) reconnoiter a site for the 2009-2010 SCUBA dives beneath the sea ice, our objective is to get to Iko Bay as easily as possible, not to makegreat distances on foot pulling our sleds, as we've focused on in other wild places. So, we're taking every opportunity we can to be dropped off as near as Iko Bay as possible; we might get half way there if the roads are well-cleared.
An interesting aside; in the space program a real catastrophe is "LOS", or Loss of Signal, that is losing radio contact with a spacecraft crew. Here my personal LOS crisis would be Loss of Spoon, which I endured in Iceland some winters ago. To prevent this possible calamity I have tied my spoon to my feed pot with a length of string. We exist in crude and primitive ways here.
On a more serious note, the weather is indeed perfect, clear, about ten below zero (which is about 80 degrees below room temperature) which prevents you from overheating while dragging a sled, and I am hopped up and thrilled, anticipating leaning into the harness and getting underway. There are fresh arctic fox tracks in the snow just outside the door. Who knows what we'll see this time out.
Lights in the sky indicate Santa Claus is sending out a number of sleighs, possibly as reconnaissance for the Big Night. A Holly Jolly Christmas and Happy New Year to All! -- Cameron"
"Well it's still a waiting game as some roads are cleared; till then we're still laying in our sleeping bags, eating, reading and getting fat! But it will be worth the wait; since the points of this expedition are (a) to fly the paraglider at Iko Bay, (b) to take film, sound and video recordings of the winterscape, and (c) reconnoiter a site for the 2009-2010 SCUBA dives beneath the sea ice, our objective is to get to Iko Bay as easily as possible, not to makegreat distances on foot pulling our sleds, as we've focused on in other wild places. So, we're taking every opportunity we can to be dropped off as near as Iko Bay as possible; we might get half way there if the roads are well-cleared.
An interesting aside; in the space program a real catastrophe is "LOS", or Loss of Signal, that is losing radio contact with a spacecraft crew. Here my personal LOS crisis would be Loss of Spoon, which I endured in Iceland some winters ago. To prevent this possible calamity I have tied my spoon to my feed pot with a length of string. We exist in crude and primitive ways here.
On a more serious note, the weather is indeed perfect, clear, about ten below zero (which is about 80 degrees below room temperature) which prevents you from overheating while dragging a sled, and I am hopped up and thrilled, anticipating leaning into the harness and getting underway. There are fresh arctic fox tracks in the snow just outside the door. Who knows what we'll see this time out.
Lights in the sky indicate Santa Claus is sending out a number of sleighs, possibly as reconnaissance for the Big Night. A Holly Jolly Christmas and Happy New Year to All! -- Cameron"
North Slope news: 16 Dec. 2008
Got a call from Cameron. He says they'll be leaving for Iko Bay today. He described the weather as perfect: 0 degrees F, winds 10 mph. Cameron's not sure if they'll get a ride part way out of Barrow. The hut on Iko Bay is about 20 miles from Barrow.
--Chuck
--Chuck
Monday, December 15, 2008
North Slope news: 15 Dec. 2008
Got a call from Cameron this morning. The lads will not be leaving for Iko Bay today. Overnight a serious wind came up, and it's now blowing steady at 30 mph, with gusts over 40 mph. Outside of Barrow the winds are probably worse, blowing steady at around 40 mph, with gust around 50 mph.
Cameron says that putting up a tent in the dark in those kinds of winds is foolishness.
Depending on conditions, they boys aim to head to Iko Bay tomorrow (16 December).
--Chuck
Cameron says that putting up a tent in the dark in those kinds of winds is foolishness.
Depending on conditions, they boys aim to head to Iko Bay tomorrow (16 December).
--Chuck
Sunday, December 14, 2008
North Slope news: 14 Dec. 2008--more news
Got a message from Cameron today. He has permission to use the hut on Iko Bay. This is the same hut Cameron stayed in last year. It belongs to Geoff Carroll, biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
Cameron and Chiu have all their equipment, fuel, ammo, etc., ready, and they'll be leaving on foot for Iko Bay tomorrow (Monday 15 December). It will probably take two to three days to make it to the hut on Iko Bay, so the lads will be sleeping in tents for one or two nights, and traveling about 6-8 miles a day.
Cameron tested his paraglider today by pulling it above his head in the wind. He reports that it felt good. The weather was unusually warm today: about 20 degrees above F.
Below are some photos from today.
Click photos to enlarge:
Bell 412 Chopper used by Search & Rescue. Pilots can fly these craft in wind gusts up to 60 knots:
A fence by the airstrip. The orange light on the right is not the sun (it doesn't rise above the horizon this time of year). Rather it's a a wind sock illuminated by a lamp to help pilots judge the wind on landing:
Another photo of the helicopter:
Inupiat Heritage Center with bowhead whale skull mounted in front:
Cameron with new ruff sewed onto his hood:
Cameron and Chiu have all their equipment, fuel, ammo, etc., ready, and they'll be leaving on foot for Iko Bay tomorrow (Monday 15 December). It will probably take two to three days to make it to the hut on Iko Bay, so the lads will be sleeping in tents for one or two nights, and traveling about 6-8 miles a day.
Cameron tested his paraglider today by pulling it above his head in the wind. He reports that it felt good. The weather was unusually warm today: about 20 degrees above F.
Below are some photos from today.
Click photos to enlarge:
Bell 412 Chopper used by Search & Rescue. Pilots can fly these craft in wind gusts up to 60 knots:
A fence by the airstrip. The orange light on the right is not the sun (it doesn't rise above the horizon this time of year). Rather it's a a wind sock illuminated by a lamp to help pilots judge the wind on landing:
Another photo of the helicopter:
Inupiat Heritage Center with bowhead whale skull mounted in front:
Cameron with new ruff sewed onto his hood:
North Slope news: 14 Dec. 2008
Got a phone message and email from Cameron yesterday evening (Dec. 13).
Cameron says that he did his talk on Neanderthals on Saturday. It was a nice audience of 10-12 people. Cameron met with Glenn Sheehan, the Executive Director at BASC, and also met with Nok Acker the Assistant Logistics Coordinator at BASC. Cameron picked up his sled, borrowed ammunition from BASC, and he and Chiu are dialing in their fuel needs, for which they'll be using white gas.
Cameron says that the sea ice is frozen about a half mile out from land, but that normally it would be frozen further out.
The lads are eating the food rations in order to save on food costs, and Cameron reports that the rations are quite tasty.
They hope to head out from Barrow on Monday.
Here's a picture of Nok and Chiu (sled is in foreground).
Click image to enlarge
Cameron says that he did his talk on Neanderthals on Saturday. It was a nice audience of 10-12 people. Cameron met with Glenn Sheehan, the Executive Director at BASC, and also met with Nok Acker the Assistant Logistics Coordinator at BASC. Cameron picked up his sled, borrowed ammunition from BASC, and he and Chiu are dialing in their fuel needs, for which they'll be using white gas.
Cameron says that the sea ice is frozen about a half mile out from land, but that normally it would be frozen further out.
The lads are eating the food rations in order to save on food costs, and Cameron reports that the rations are quite tasty.
They hope to head out from Barrow on Monday.
Here's a picture of Nok and Chiu (sled is in foreground).
Click image to enlarge
Friday, December 12, 2008
North Slope news: 12 Dec. 2008--more updates
Got another phone message and an email (with photos) from Cameron. It's around -20 F, and the winds are around 8-10 mph.
Cameron explained that they're dialing in their clothing even more, because everything has to be perfect. He says that you can't stop and fix your clothing in the cold if it's not working right. The boys went to a fur shop where some natives gave them some excellent advice. Now Cameron and Chiu are both sewing ruffs onto the hoods of their jackets.
Here are the most recent photos below.
Click to enlarge photos.
The cost of 12 ounces of coffee beans
The cost of a 22 ounce bag of corn chips
Cameron and Chiu eating dinner
A Barrow street at "high noon"
Chiu with large-format camera
Chiu with large-format camera again
Cameron explained that they're dialing in their clothing even more, because everything has to be perfect. He says that you can't stop and fix your clothing in the cold if it's not working right. The boys went to a fur shop where some natives gave them some excellent advice. Now Cameron and Chiu are both sewing ruffs onto the hoods of their jackets.
Here are the most recent photos below.
Click to enlarge photos.
The cost of 12 ounces of coffee beans
The cost of a 22 ounce bag of corn chips
Cameron and Chiu eating dinner
A Barrow street at "high noon"
Chiu with large-format camera
Chiu with large-format camera again
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