Expeditions: Adventure Grants: July 24 Journal

Expedition Journal--July 24

Alex Perry
To pick up where I left off yesterday, we took off in tiny float planes about 4 p.m. We had planned to take separate flights and arrive about two hours apart from one another, but the two planes took off and arrived simultaneously. Vanessa, Deb, and Rachel were in the smaller plane; myself and the others crammed into the larger. The flight lasted an hour, and was about the most amazing thing I have ever experienced. The mountains rise thousands of feet right out of the riverbed, and although the best description for them is the absolute silence evoked upon their viewing, suffice it to say that they are the teeth of God. I was fascinated by riding in the Beaver (the name of our plane) as it was my first flight ever in a float plane. Aside from the awe-striking view, the most interesting part of the flight for me was the landing, which was so smooth I hardly noticed any jolting or bouncing at all. We immediately were given a chance to test the waterproofness of our boots, as it was too shallow to get the planes ashore.

After unloading and organizing our gear, we had a meeting in the separate groups and then set out in the direction of our pre-planned campsites. We hiked for about two and a half hours before deciding on a suitable gravel bar for camp. We "bomb-proofed" our tents and cooked dinner; the whole business took about three-plus hours. We finally went to bed about 2 a.m. after watching an amazing sunset (it never really got very dark, however).

I woke up at 10. Cleve was already awake, and we went over to the kitchen to start heating up water and preparing for breakfast. After eating some granola and Cream of Wheat, a rain and wind storm blew in and we retreated back to the tents. We awoke at 2 p.m. and lazily started making plans for the day hike. We left at 4 p.m. and hiked up within about a mile of the true headwaters of the North Fork Koyukuk. Through the duration of the hike, we asked Cleve many questions about the flora and the wildlife. Cleve is abounding with information and helpful tips. As well as being a great person and fun to be around, his knowledge and ability to teach leave me very impressed. Hopefully this knowledge will be a resource I can utilize for the rest of my life.

Now that I am finally here, and this planning we have done is paying off, I feel a sense of amazement and awe. The whole area is extremely and indescribably gorgeous, and the feeling of being so far out here is absolutely incredible. I am finally here! And loving it!

Rachel Flood
I woke this morning feeling very well-rested. It was probably the first time on this trip that I have felt like I've gotten any sleep. It did rain for a good portion of the day which sort of drove us back under the shelter of our tents for awhile. About mid-afternoon, we set out on a little day hike. We climbed up onto the ridge of the mountain near our camp. It was actually a pretty tough hike. We gained about 2,000 feet in elevation and walked mostly on loose rocks. Once we reached the summit, we could see for miles. It was a great opportunity to scope out what we will be hiking for the next couple of days. We took a slightly different route down. We veered off in the other direction and made a gradual descent. We ate a wonderful meal of beans, rice, tortillas, and melted cheese and called it a day.

Vanessa Bacher
One thing I have noticed about being out in the wilderness is that you really can't hide anything or be ashamed about anything. I found it really funny when Cleve announced to us that he had to take a dump. It seemed like he was making a family outing of it and in fact he really was. He described to us that it was very important to all take dumps together. He even demonstrated the whole art of "dumping" without actually taking a dump. I found that dumping is one of the funniest subjects to talk about. I also found that dumping is a great opportunity for a wonderful bonding experience.

We woke up around 9 a.m. because the night before we didn't close camp until 1:30 in the morning. After we woke up we had some cold cereal and left-over mac and cheese. After we finished up in the kitchen we decided to go back to our tents and rest for an hour. Well, we ended up resting for two hours but we really needed it. After we managed to wake up and get going we went for a day hike up towards the headwaters of the river. It was great hiking without our packs because we had a chance to really scope out the place. I learned a lot about the flowers that grow in Alaska because Cleve knows an amazing amount about flowers. The amount of wildlife out here is incredible. We have only been here two days and already we have seen the feces of caribou, moose, several different kinds of birds, wolf, and bear.

We have also seen the remains of a caribou attacked by wolves, a bear digging, and many different tracks. I doubt I will see a bear on this trip.