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July 5, 2009 – Nome, Alaska
by Mark Schrader and Herb McCormick
(July 5): The Fourth of July parade in Nome, Alaska, is something everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. The parade itself is fleeting-a police car, various kids marching, a couple of makeshift “floats,” everyone throwing candy at the spectators, volunteer firemen bringing up the rear-but the overall spectacle is a slice of Americana you won’t find anywhere else.
After the parade, a mayoral address, and the singing of the National Anthem and the Alaska State Song, Front St. remains closed to traffic while games of all description, for young and old alike, take place on the main drag. It’s like the Olympics, except exactly the opposite. The gunnysack races, the three-legged races, the pie-eating contest, the tug-of-war, and on and on: It was fun and festive and there were endless smiles.
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| Bryan Reeves, seen here with Nome schoolkids, will join the crew of Ocean Watch for the Nome-to-Barrow leg of the journey. |
Three members of the Ocean Watch crew did us proud on the 13-mile race out of town, up a small mountain, and back to the finish line. Bryan Reeves, the master of organization and logistics who’s onboard for the Nome-to-Barrow leg, led our trio home and finished sixth in the field of about twenty. Tyler Osberg, grandson of expedition supporters John and Gloria Osberg, who’s coming aboard for the next journey to Barrow, was next home. David Thoreson represented his fellow geriatrics in fine fashion. It was a mighty effort from all involved.
Following the games, the crowd adjourned to the firehouse for free ice-cream, and then to the town square across the way for a big barbecue of hot dogs and hamburgers that doubled as an anniversary celebration commemorating Alaska’s fifty years of statehood.
We’ve enjoyed Nome very much, and have received a hearty welcome. We’ve liked it so much, in fact, that we’ve decided to stay.
Well: Not exactly. We were planning on setting forth again today, but have delayed our departure. Skipper Mark Schrader’s personal log explains why:
“The revised schedule posted when we left Dutch Harbor suggested we would arrive Nome on the 1st and leave on the 5th for Barrow. Our route to Barrow is approximately 450-nautical miles north/northeast of Nome via the Bering Strait into the Chukchi Sea. With favorable wind and sea conditions a 3-day sail.
“The passage from Nome to Barrow is now ice-free. However, just beyond Barrow some 20 miles the passage is still closed by a narrow tongue of ‘fast’ ice-so-called first-year thick ice stuck fast to the shore. A noted Arctic bird researcher named George Divoky is on Cooper Island, 20 miles east of Point Barrow, and he just sent a note to Herb confirming the fast ice situation. (Divoky is a fascinating story…Google his name for a link to the 12,000-word NY Times magazine piece on him from a few years back.)
“The issues this condition creates for Ocean Watch and crew are three-fold: there is no safe harbor for a boat with this draft (almost – feet) anywhere close to the town; the lagoon, Prokofyev (Elson) Lagoon, east of Point Barrow has just enough depth at its opening for us to safely enter in normal tides and anchor mid-lagoon in 11-fett of water (winds can raise or lower the water in this lagoon as much as 3-feet); once in Elson Lagoon, Barrow is a 5-mile dinghy ride to shore plus a 3-mile adventure hike from shore to ‘town.’
“When we arrive at Barrow-if wind and sea conditions permit-we’ll plan to anchor on the ‘ocean’ side of town in a very exposed position, dinghy into shore, make the crew exchange (we’ll drop off John Osberg’s grandson Tyler, who’s onboard for the trip from Nome, and pick up our first on-board educator, Zeta Strickland), load supplies and fuel, and then if necessary sail around Point Barrow to the Lagoon for shelter. Next stop, Cooper Island for a meeting with George Divoky.
“Back to the schedule. The fast ice is expected to breakup within the next 7-10 days. Once the fast ice breaks the danger becomes heavy pack ice being forced into this open lead by northerly winds-predicted conditions for the next couple of weeks. If the northerly winds don’t develop, the lead through this short “bottle neck” open and we’ll make a fast track east to the open water. So where do we go while waiting for this happen? Nome. We’ll stay in Nome for an extra two days, leaving on the 7th and then plan to sail slowly with a stop or two along the way for a look at some small, older coastal communities. ETA Barrow: July 11.
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| Captain Mark Schrader takes part in a show-and-tell about Ocean Watch at the Nome library. |
“Interesting times here in Nome. The local librarian organized an event to introduce the OW crew to a group of super-inquisitive children (a terrific 90-minute show-and-tell); Bryan Reeves organized the OW open house, a steady group of all ages/sizes climbing up/down a vertical ladder on the pier, for a tour; an evening slideshow by David Thoreson with recent images; three OW crew entering (and finishing!!) the annual Nome up-and-down the mountain 17K run; followed by several radio and local paper interviews before/during/after these events.
“Although we’ve no shortage of boat and media related projects to keep us busy while we’re here it’s fair to say this group of sailors are anxious to leave the dock and sail north for a close look at the Bering Strait and the Chukchi Sea.”
- Mark Schrader and Herb McCormick with photographs by David Thoreson
This crew log submitted by Iridium OpenPort and Stratos
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