Run With the Reindeer

Spain has the running of the bulls.  Anchorage has the running of the reindeer -- an annual race that is part of the Fur Rondy and Iditarod festivities...it is man, or woman, vs reindeer.  I kid you not.

This event was started 8 years ago by the local rock station KWHAL.  I saw this ad for it and decided I would have to go and check it out.

photo taken from the Fur Rondy website

The crowds were thick at the Reindeer Run, as hundreds of people signed up to race against the reindeer...just to keep it interesting, most people wore costumes.  I did indeed see a fur bikini go by, and it wasn't on the reindeer.  Even Left Shark made an appearance.

My first observation was that  the Reindeer are a lot shorter than I was expecting.  Even with go-pro attached, they were shorter than me.

The second thing I noticed is that the event is a bit like a stand up comedy skit.  The dialogue from the DJ's was priceless...taking jabs at everything from the look of this year's "extra mean, freshly sharpened" reindeer to the even easier target of the runners, telling them to be cautious, there were injuries every year, usually from people being trampled by the people in mad panic about the reindeer behind THEM.  They also cautioned that the poor reindeer didn't have the benefit of having consumed a whole bottle of Jager before the event, unlike most of the human runners.

I usually think about the animal's welfare first and foremost, and was happy to see the reindeer being lovingly walked along the street, and being petted by children in the crowd.  When I tried to find out where they get the reindeer from, the best lead I got was that they are from the Running Reindeer Ranch...a family farm/tourist attraction, and it seems they are treated like a family pet.  The owner is quoted as saying he isn't worried about the reindeer getting hurt, he is more worried that they won't run, and be more interested in snuffling at pockets for treats.

Nonetheless, after some wait in the jostling crowd, the countdown began and the runners were off.  They would get a few seconds headstart before they released the reindeer.  It seemed like a fair amount of time, but in a matter of seconds the Reindeer were released as well, behind their human opponents.  Maybe it was the costumes...maybe there really was a lot of Jager consumed, but it sure took a long time to traverse those 4 blocks.  I got a photo of the first place runner coming in!

2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th were all in close standing!

6th and 7th had clearly become distracted along the way but were picking up speed in the home stretch.

And this little guy in 8th was running his heart out to beat 9th place, the fastest human in the ladies heat.

The rest of the herd (and by herd I am referring to the humans) shuffled by in various stages of ridiculousness, followed by the last reindeer, who ambled along with the people, no doubt sniffing pockets for snacks as predicted.

Wonderful wacky Alaska, I am happy to call you home.

The Iditarod!!!

 The Iditarod...known as "The Last Great Race on Earth."  The toughest race on earth.  As you have probably figured out from all the Balto references the last few blogs...I was soooooo excited that I would be in Anchorage for the ceremonial start of the 2015 Iditarod.  The Iditarod trail has been in use for hundreds of years by the Athabaskan and Inupiak peoples, and in the 1800's by Russian trappers (which makes sense since Alaska was Russian territory until 1867), and then in the 1880's -1920's by gold miners from all over.  The serum run from to Nome in 1925, starring Balto and Togo as aforementioned, is the most famous event in the trail's history.  The story garnered worldwide media attention as people followed the crisis live through daily newspapers. 

 

It Iditarod began as a competition in 1973.  The original route was Anchorage to Gnome, but over the years the official start has pushed further north, but the ceremonial start remains in Anchorage.  The ceremonial start is one of the few parts of the 1,100+ mile route sees crowds, so it can be an exciting day for the dogs and the mushers.  I can confirm that the dogs did indeed seem excited -- not agitated excited, but hey look at all the people that love me excited.  Here is photographic proof of a few dogs that seem to be enjoying their little trek through town.

 

pretty happy looking Iditarod dogs

 The best race time on record is 8 days, 13 hours, 14 minutes, and 9 seconds, set last year by Dallas Seavey (lead dogs Beetle and Reef).  The second best time of record was last year's second place holder.  When the race started in the 70's, 20 days was the average.  I asked what the difference is.  It may be the dog breeding, but I wonder if the "eco-challenge" style approach adds to it.  In the 8 days, the musher (the musher is the human component of the team) is only required to stop for one 24 hour break, and 2 8 hour breaks in set portions of the trail.  So a determined racer and go for days. 

 

 

That said, there are 26 checkpoints the racers must stop at.  The mushers can pick up their "drop bags" at these points -- those are their pre-selected supplies of food, flashlights, even sled changes, and of course, replacement dog booties...yes the dogs wear shoes these days.  Prior to racing, all of the dogs are checked, like their human elite athlete counterparts, for any drugs, but also to be sure there is no sign of illness, strain, inflammation, or condition which could make them sick on the long road ahead.  They even get doggie ECG's.  In the event of an injury, or even exhaustion, the affected dog can be carried in the sled to designated doggie drop off points, where they are cared by Iditarod volunteers until the musher or a family member can pick them up.

 

The conditions can be extreme...blizzards, whiteouts, ridiculously cold temperatures.  I sort of expected shaggier, bulkier dogs...but sled dogs are actually smaller than I expected.  I was glad they have booties and sometime coats, although it was way too warm in Anchorage to require more than their own fur on Ceremonial Start day.

 

Here is Mitch Seavey, winner of the 2004 and 2013 Iditarod's!  9 days and 7 hours and 39 minutes was his time!  His lead dogs in 2013 were Tanner and Taurus...I suspect they are still leading this pack below!

 

Another team of happy looking dogs mushing through the slush.  This is Liner Fielding's team, a Vermont native who moved to Alaska for the love of the Iditarod.

Deedee Jonrowe's team stood out in their pink booties and pink harnesses.  Deedee's family moved here from Germany when her father was stationed at the nearby base...this is her 33rd Iditarod and she describes her dogs as her life's passion and the ability to travel with them through God's most beautiful country a privilege.  I think we have another set of happy Iditarod dogs here.

 

In the all red booties, we have Kristy Berington's team.  Kirsty and her twin sister Anna are both mushing a team to Nome for their fourth race.

 



The teams seemed mostly well co-ordinated, but in 150 dogs, there is bound to be at least one "left shark."  The fourth outside dog shown in the picture below is marching to his own little doggie drum and loving it.

There was just something about this teams eyes that made me laugh...I lovingly call them the crazy dog team...the eyes and floppy tongues say it all!

"I heard there was BACON in Gnome."  "That's 1000 miles away right?"

"Who cares, it's BACON."  "Right!  Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!  Let's go!!!"

Many years ago, a special 8 year old sent me this in the mail...Balto under the northern lights on the Iditarod trail.  I wish Jaycena could have been here today.



Around Town At Fur Rondy

When I first updated to Facebook status to say I was starting the long drive to Alaska, one of my California friends who used to live in Anchorage, Selena, replied "You will be there for Fur Rondy!"  The next comment was from Sharon who currently lives here.  "Bring your fur bikini!" she wrote.  What???  And....What???  What is Fur Rondy and why would one have a fur bikini??  My inquiry was met with an unusual silence.  I guess it was just going to be one of those things I had to figure out when I arrived.

 

So here I am and Fur Rondy is in full swing.  I still think is sounds funny, but Fur Rondy is not as bizarre or dubious as it may sound, its just short for Fur Rendezvous.  Historically this was the time when all the fur trappers came to town to display their wares.  Nowadays, there are more fur stores than you can shake a stick at, not that I will be purchasing any fur, but thinking the fur exchange may be a smaller part of it.  There is a winter carnival complete with a ferris wheel, snow sculptures, plays and gatherings (probably where the fur bikinis would be en vogue), caribou races (more on that when I confirm exactly what that entails), and the ceremonial start of the Iditarod! 

After a delicious lunch at the Brown Bag Sandwich Company and a nice catch up with Selena and her family, Stan showed me his favorite downtown coffee spot.  Being successfully caffeinated, we wandered around downtown so I could see a bit more and get a bit more "lay of the land."  I found a storefront bear and had to get a photo.  When I sent it to a friend I was asked if it was a real bear...it's just a big "stuffy" not a taxidermy bear.

There is a little tourist area called Bear Square.  It has another stuffed bear flying an airplane by the Bear Paw mine...there's an ice cream parlour and some Alaska experience based short films in a theatre downstairs.

Out front is another statue paying homage to 2 local residents and mythology....the Raven and the Bear.

I had to cross the street to get this picture -- a statue in tribute to the 150 sled dogs who braved darkness, blizzards, and temperatures below -60 Celcius to deliver life saving Diptheria anti-toxin to the remote village in Nome in January of 1925.  If you aren't familiar with this, the first thing you should do is rent the cartoon movie Balto -- it was a favorite of my niece's and therefore I love all things Balto (which is what made me run across the street to get this photo).  This is a story that any of you who are 'anti-vaccers' might want to hear.  Chances are you might not be overly familiar with Diptheria, as you were vaccinated for it as a child and neither you nor your friends ever got sick with it.  In the 1930's, Diptheria was the 3rd greatest cause of childhood morbidity, but it affected adults too.  In 1921, 15,321 people died from Diptheria in the US.  It's not a pleasant illness...those cases that are fatal are due to a toxin, and the affected person suffers breathing obstruction, coma, and death.  15,321...that's more than the H1N1 pandemic of 2009 in the US.  And recall that Diptheria was not a viral pandemic, but a bacterial illness that popped up pretty routinely.  In the winter of 1925, the sole local doctor in Nome, Alaska started seeing deaths from Diptheria.  The anti-toxin he had ordered did not arrive on the last supply run of the fall, and he was faced with dealing with a potentially lethal epidemic in the community and having nothing to combat it with.  The seas were frozen over, the trains did not go that far, and the only plane was frozen solid and unable to fly.  The only option left was the Iditarod trail, used by dogsled teams.  With little time and lives hanging in their paws, over 150 sled dogs participated in the critical relay of antitoxin to Nome.  The trains got it as far an Nenesa, AK....the dogs needed to run it the last 674 miles.  Blizzard conditions, temperatures as low as -60C, winter darkness, and difficult trails provided extreme challenges.  One dog, Togo, led his team over 350 miles of that terrain.  It was Balto and his team that ran through a blizzard and entirely in the dark on the final leg into Nome.  The time it took for them to travel those 674 frozen stormy dark terrible miles?  127 hours.  That's still amazing to me.  Oh, and for all of you who like "6 Degrees of Separation," Kevin Bacon IS the voice of Balto in the cartoon.

A local artist in town has spruced up the downtown core with some murals.  Here is one showing the current Iditarod route, as well as the traditional one that Balto and Togo would have take in 1925.

That's it for today...I have to mush if I want to see the ceremonial start of the 2015 Iditarod, although the pouring rain and lack of snow this year might make it unusual!

Pretty...and Tasty Alaska

 

Back to Anchorage I went for the evening.  I stopped at a few roadside turnouts along the way.  This is Bird Creek, which looks like a popular hiking trail.

 

 

This is still Turnagain Arm, but I was amazed at the difference 2 or 3 days could make.  The ice floes were gone, and since it was low tide you can see the heavy black silt.  Much to my amazement, I also saw a group of kite surfers.  That water had to be soooo cold...but they were still out there.  Apparently people will surf the incoming tides here as well.  That makes me a bit nervous because I remember a news report from years back of some newlyweds on an ATV on similar silt in this area.  When the ATV got stuck, the wife got off to push and got stuck in the mud.  As the tides slowly came in, she drowned.  I might just avoid the muck in general.  I asked Stan-Alaska-wiki and he confirmed it was a true story.

 
 



I passed a turnout and saw a man with a ginormous telescopic lens on his camera.  I couldn't pull over in time with the traffic, but a glance up the cliff and I finally saw a glimpse of the elusive Mountain Sheep...or are they goats?...I don't know but white and shaggy they were.  Another neat thing I saw was vehicles pulled off onto the side of the road with blue water cooler size jugs.  Coming from the rock is a hose, and they were filling their jugs with fresh water which is ultra filtered by the rocks.  I definitely want to get my water there.

Once back in town I decided to get myself a pizza for the night.  I had heard good things about a nearby restaurant called "The Moose's Tooth."  I figured it wouldn't hurt to have some pizza leftovers, so I ordered the large, which I figured couldn't really be that big for $20.  I stand corrected.  The large pizza from the Moose's Tooth is a car tire sized orb of deliciousness.  It took me 4 days to get through the whole thing (not continuously obviously).  The crust was fabulous!  They also brew their own beer and gave me some free samples which were pretty tasty.  I would definitely go back.



the giant size pizza box from Moose's Tooth

Jumping a bit ahead in the blog, the food in Alaska so far is great!  I would go back to everywhere I have been...in fact, I have already hit a few places twice.  Club Paris downtown, which is Stan's family restaurant, has incredible steak, and key lime pie!  I still have to try the crème brulee.  Club Paris is definitely going to be on my frequent flyer list.  Sushi Sushi also currently holds the title for "best sushi ever," in my books, so all of you Bermuda sushi hounds are going to have to taste test this.  Chair 5 in Girdwood was great!  And today I met with the infamous Selena Jones and Stan at the Brown Bag Sandwich place -- delicious, AND creative...it was tough choosing between my old faithful ham and cheese and the alluring "Spicy Yeti" sandwich.  Plus they had juices like "the Happy Hippy," or my choice, "the Treehugger" which was very kaley but a good way to trick the body into eating kale.  There is no doubt I will be well fed in Alaska.

Portage Glacier

Just west of Whittier was another spot Sharon and Dave pulled over to show me...Portage.  Portage is sort of a place that was but is no more.  The town of Portage was basically destroyed and abandoned after the 9.2 earthquake in 1964.  People around here still refer to the area as Portage, but there is no town...just a park area.  From this site in 1958 you could walk to the base of the Portage Glacier.  The park where I stand in the photo below was set up by the parks service in 1968 to view the glacier.  But you can no longer see the glacier from here.  Today the glacier has receded so far that it can't be seen from the park designed to access it.  In the summer, you can take a boat trip to see it.  I think I will do that this summer while the opportunity still exists.

 

Less than 50 years ago, the Portage glacier would have filled much of this view

From the parking area, this area actually looked like solid but cracked ice.  Up close it was mostly ice...but the blocks were not continuous and had obviously moving against each other, over and under other ice blocks, with moving water in between.  I found it really pretty.  It was also a reminder of how strong nature is as well, as the pavement at the level of the ice had also been heaved around by freeze and thaw cycles and was cracked torn away from the plane it was originally built on.  It also felt very cold...the wind coming off the icy water was chilling.  I took a few quick snapshots and bolted back to the car.

yup...big ice cubes

Spring here is called breakup...referring to the ice.

After looking out at all the ice towards where a glacier hides, it was neat to turn 180 degrees and see a forest waiting for spring just a few feet away.  Yup.  I think I am going to like this place.

Our next stop was back to Girdwood.  Girdwood is where the local ski resort is and it's a town with a neat feel.  We went for a yummy lunch at Chair 5 (where I learned you can buy a beer called Moose Drool), a very cozy, log cabin ski chalet cross that I would definitely like to visit again.  Sharon and Dave made a few quips that have me thinking the town is full of happy hippies and ski bums, so it may well be one of America's happiest places.  After Chair 5, we headed over to Grinds coffee shop, where I saw this guy...

And after that we stopped by the local radio station where Sharon volunteers as a DJ, 88.9 KEUL.  I joked that I could head up their heavy metal hour, and she said I most certainly could.  I always wanted my own radio show...I might have a new hobby! 

It was an afternoon well spent!  I am very thankful to have some old friends in my new hometown.  Even though it has been several years since our paths crossed, Stan, Sharon, and Dave laid out the welcome mat when I arrived...and one thing I am learning about Alaskans, is they like to be first...so that welcome mat is HUGE!  Thank you guys for helping me feel at home!

I got Whittier...but not wittier

 

Since it was a weekend and there was no government paperwork to do, I took up Sharon and Dave's offer to go and see the town of Whitter.  This came about because Sharon sent me the link for a casting call for extras in a movie set to film in the town in April.  I was interested in checking out what a casting call looked like, but I didn't want to actually stand around and attempt to be a movie extra.  Sharon felt the same way so we decided to just go out to Whittier where the movie would film.  So this is Whittier.

 

It's a neat little place to get through.  It in not technically accessible by a 24/7 road.  To get to Whittier, you can take the marine highway aka ferry, your own private boat, a passenger train, or you can do what we did...drive through the tunnel on the train tracks.  Fear not, it is set up this way and for timed intervals on the half hour, vehicles can drive one way through the 2 mile long tunnel, and entry is controlled by gates and staff, so you won't meet a yahoo half way through coming the wrong way.  Or a train.  For future visitors, the toll at this gate is $12 per car.

Once on the other side it's a good idea to keep track of time, because you can only pass though the tunnel in a 15 min interval every 30 or 60 minutes, if you miss your interval you will have to wait it out.  Dave said that years ago if you wanted to go to Whittier, the cars were loaded onto the train itself you rode through the tunnel in your car on the train.  That would have been neat too!

On the day we went, it was very grey, drizzling rain, and kind of chilly.  Perfect photograph weather!  The docks were full, even in February, and there are a lot of local fishing boats ready for summer!

There were a couple of souvenir shops and restaurants, but most was closed up in the off season.  The town used to be a military base, and the old abandoned barracks will be good for the movie, especially if it's a horror flick!  It is a very small town -- 19 square miles and 177 people.  Recall that little Bermuda was 21 square miles and more than 60,000 people.  Alaska definitely has room to breathe!

On the way out of Whittier, I snapped a shot through the side window of a little Alaska train...I presume this is what I will be spending a weekend touring on in the not so distant future.

Bye Copilot

After doing the drive through Turnagain Arm, and going to Girdwood and seeing the local ski hill, Aleeksa, it was time to head back to Anchorage and ship my faithful co-pilot Monique back to Alberta.  It had been a good adventure, and her perpetual calm and due attention go windshield washer fluid levels, tire pressure, and chocolate:blood ratio was certainly going to be missed.  It was a good adventure, good company, and a good drive (even if we smelled like tuna and gasoline from Fort Nelson on) -- so thank you Monique!

 

 

After missing the turnoff to the airport, we found this great viewpoint of downtown Anchorage.  Navigational assistance was also immediately added to the list of things that would be missing without Monique.  I would however, be stocked with M&M's and peanut butter cups for weeks to come!

 

 

I always find it strange when guests, or in this case a co-pilot, leaves...the house feels a little too quiet, there is a noticeable decrease in energy.  No matter what the schedule or plan, it is always good to be in the company of friends.  And so after dropping Monique off and returning to the hotel, the world felt a little bigger and the silence a little louder.  The distance between family and many friends sunk with the setting sun.  But, we made it, 5 days through Canada and Alaska in the winter, and arrived with a car and both cats.  I had to enjoy the success of that and enjoy the release of those stresses off the list.  There would be a whole new list to start on come Monday morning.