Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

We started the trip by flying from San Francisco to Fairbanks via Seattle. At Pike's Waterfront Lodge in Fairbanks we met our guide, Kevin McDermott, and the three other folks who would be joining us -- Cindy and Brian Reid, and Magnus Sprenger. After collecting our rental gear, Magnus, Michelle, and I headed to downtown Fairbanks for dinner and a quick look around. Cindy and Brian relaxed at the Lodge. Kevin shopped for food and packed the shared gear.

Next morning we were driven to Wright Air at the Fairbanks airport, and underwent our first experience with bush-flight logistics. Our landing site in the Refuge was a gravel bar alongside a river, accessible only to fairly small planes. However, we had more people and more gear than would fit in such a plane. So Kevin, Cindy, and Brian, and part of the gear, went in one plane directly to the Refuge. Magnus, Michelle, and I, and the rest of the gear (digitally photographed so we could tell which was ours) were packed into a larger plane along with some other hikers and flown to Arctic Village (an Athabascan Indian town in the Interior). Cindy and Brian had spent time in Arctic Village on a previous trip, and we were thankful for their suggestion to carry reading material and a lot of bug repellent. The small plane shuttled twice from the Refuge to Arctic Village to pick up all the passengers and gear, a process that took around six hours.

Once in the Refuge we were extremely lucky with the weather, and encountered practically no bugs. We saw dramatic scenery, herds of caribou, and millions of wildflowers. We'll let the pictures speak for the experience.

Although we saw few people, we did encounter a reporter, Zack Coile, and a photographer (didn't get her name) from the San Francisco Chronicle doing a story on the Refuge. We're looking forward to reading it.

On departure day we enjoyed our second bush-flight adventure. We waited patiently on the gravel bar for about six hours after the rendezvous time, but no plane appeared. Kevin gave up and used his emergency satellite phone to call the home office. Although the boss was out, the staff told us bad weather in Fairbanks had grounded all the small planes, so we should plan to spend another day in the Refuge. This was definitely a case of deja vu for Cindy and Brian, who had experienced four such "bonus days" on a previous trip with Kevin. But shortly after we had hauled our gear back to camp and started unpacking, a plane landed. It turned out the boss was out of the office because he was engaging a small plane from elsewhere (Kaktovik, we think, but we're not sure) to ferry us over the Brooks Range to Arctic Village. One of the larger planes could make it out of Fairbanks to Arctic Village and take us the rest of the way. There was just one catch: There were six of us, but room in the small plane for only five. So Kevin stayed behind while the rest of us moved on to the next stage of the trip. He made it out two days later, just in time for his next assignment.

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The Inside Passage	Allen at Milepost Circle. Note the last line on the milepost, then compare with this sign. There's been a little editing, but they match! Fairbanks	Michelle and Allen at Milepost Circle Fairbanks


Sled dog plaque at Golden Heart Plaza Fairbanks	Wright Air will take us to the Wildlife Refuge Fairbanks	Kevin (our guide) checking a pallet full of gear before loading a plane Fairbanks


Inside the Caravan The Interior	Crossing the Yukon The Interior	The village proper Arctic Village


Unloading at Arctic Village, where a smaller plane will shuttle a few of us at a time up to the Wildlife Refuge Arctic Village	Michelle and Magnus keeping watch on our gear while waiting by the generator shed Arctic Village	Our plane at last! (A Helio, if I remember correctly) Michelle prepares to load her gear Arctic Village


Flying through the clearing rain The Interior	River ice in the Brooks Range Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Our home for six days - a nice roomy tent in the willows by the Kongakut River Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Mountain Avens Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Toilet with a view Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Kevin making halibut for dinner Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Cindy and Brian Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Tendrils of ice fog moving in from the Arctic Ocean Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Looking roughly west, as fog develops over the Arctic Ocean Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


The Kongakut floodplain and Brooks Range foothills Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	The Kongakut floodplain and Brooks Range foothills Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Lapland Rosebay (Rhododendrum Lapponicum) Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Glacier Avens Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Caribou Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Ptarmigan Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Michelle, Kevin, Brian, Magnus, and Cindy at the high point of the first day's hike Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Looking over the Kongakut toward Demarcation Bay and the Arctic Ocean Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Looking over the Kongakut toward Caribou Pass and the Arctic Ocean Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Allen, Michelle, Brian, Cindy, Kevin, Magnus Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Allen, Magnus, Cindy, and Kevin hiking downstream on the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Shore ice, not yet melted or flushed downriver Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Caribou Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Caribou in motion Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Arctic tern Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Wolf track Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	In the willows near the riverbed Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Arctic Willow Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Kevin, Magnus, Cindy, Brian, and Allen watching caribou Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Time for breakfast Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Arctic Wooly Bear Caterpillar. Over the winter, these caterpillars freeze solid. It can take them up to 14 years to metamorphose into a butterfly Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Magnus with Kevin hauling the raft to the main stream of the Kongakut so we can cross over to visit Caribou Pass Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Kevin sets up the raft while Allen, Magnus, Brian, and Cindy supervise Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Magnus and Kevin preparing to cross the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Magnus and Kevin crossing the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Carrying the raft upstream to the opposite ferry point Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Kevin returning across the Kongakut for more passengers Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


The floodplain of the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Kevin, Brian, Cindy, Magnus, and Michelle at an outcropping on the way to Caribou Pass Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Alpine Azalea Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Alaskan Phlox Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Landsdorf's Lousewort Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Caribou Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Caribou and calf Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Looking toward the eastern Brooks Range Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	The bend in the Kongakut, with camp in the near distance. Note the shin-high tussocks in the foreground, which make walking on the tundra a little challenging Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Caribou Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Caribou preparing to swim across the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Caribou crossing the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Caribou swimming across the Kongakut. Note the leader (top left) shaking himself like a wet dog Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Braided streambed, shore ice, and the route of the Kongakut out to the Arctic Ocean. Camp is barely visible at lower left Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Rock Jasmine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Wooly Lousewort Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Small-Flower Anemone Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Colorful Arctic succulent, type unknown Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Purple Mountain Saxifrage Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Arctic White Heather Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Buttercup Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Arctic Forget-Me-Not Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Blackish Crazyweed Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Lichen Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Unidentified Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Small-Flower Anemone Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Unidentified Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


The coastal plain and part of Demarcation Bay. The remains of an old shipwreck are visible in the bight on the right-hand side of the bay Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Coastal plain, and in the distance the site of Kuluruak on the icy reef that protects Demarcation Bay Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Brian, Kevin, Michelle, and Cindy taking shelter from the wind off the Arctic icepack Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Rafters have come down the Kongakut and are setting up camp Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Young arctic ground squirrels Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Young arctic ground squirrels Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Michelle reading Michener at midnight Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	After a six-hour wait on the gravel, and a satellite phone call informing us that our plane couldn't leave Fairbanks due to weather, we were suprised by a pilot who had been hired to shuttle us to Arctic Village instead. But Kevin had to stay behind! Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Leaving the Refuge Arctic National Wildlife Refuge


Old ice on the Kongakut Arctic National Wildlife Refuge	Over the Brooks Range The Interior	Over the Brooks Range The Interior


The old familiar runway Arctic Village	After a few more hours waiting in Arctic Village, a Caravan arrives to take us back to Fairbanks Arctic Village	Magnus, Michelle, Cindy, Allen, and Brian enjoying a late-night dinner at Pike's Waterfront Fairbanks

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