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| Takotna from the air |
Today Barney from Mag Air-his own private service will take us to Takotna. Three seater plane so had another passenger-Doc Seyers! Now here is a character. He knew, somehow, that Hank was also a Doc so they bonded. He told me worst guy to marry is a doctor--ask my last three wives!! It went on from there.
Barney's plane --getting ready for ride into Takotna--check next pic
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| Tibby on snowmobile with Alex--Hank and Doc in sled on back!!! with the bags!!! |
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| Doc and Dick |
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| Takotna post office | |
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| Dog Team pulling in at Takotna |
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| Aliy Zirkle --came into Nome Second |
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| Dog team at checkpoint in Takotna |
Weather great so we had a beautiful flight over, along the Iditarod trail. Saw moose. Got to Takotna, laughing all the way with the Doc--funny man! A snowmobile met us, piled all our bags, plus Hank and Doc, in a sled on the back of the machine. I rode on the machine with Alex, one of the many Norwegian staying in Takotna. Also coming down the run way was a huge CAT machine driven by Dick Newton, the man who arranged for us to stay here. We were introduced to him by Dan Seavey (his friend) last year in Nome. Dick is 81 years old and drives his snowmobile from Takotna to Nome (3 day trip) with Doc Seyers and others. The Doc is 75!! Dick clears all the runways and appears to be quite mayoral in this town of 50! We got to "the dorm" with snow white bags and Hank's ribs feeling all the bumps! This is one of Dick's places where he has many Norwegian kids staying here. They have come for a year to experience Alaska. Next week they are all going on a ski trip, three weeks, around the Brooks Range. They are a hearty bunch. We have a room with futons, no sheets or pillows at the moment but whatever! Also the pipes are frozen so no water--that also means no toilets!! The toilets are up the hill somewhere. Hey, its MINUS 15 degrees--gotta think of an alternative! Oh, forgot to mention no heat but a small propane heater in the hallway. Maybe there was some heat, couldn't really tell but we all kept our doors open to gather a smidgen of that heat if there really was some. Just dressed warmer, that's all!!
Down to the checkpoint--. Lovely spot, surrounded by beautiful mountains and on a lake (frozen now, of course).
VERY busy here. Most of the mushers are taking their 24 hour layover here as they have the best food and everyone treats them so well--they love it.Must have been about 20 teams in. Met the kitchen people--so wonderful to everyone. Misty, Barney the pilots wife (only married few months. I talked to them when they were on their honeymoon in Hawaii) Misty loves to cook so she helped with the meals. I also pitched in and spent the afternoon cutting veggies, making cheeseburgers and steak (only the mushers get the steak--what a hunk of meat!). They can also order ANYTHING they want and with a smile its made for them!! This place is also known for the pies. Jan, Dicks wife used to do most of the cooking but now has alszheimers so only visits. She's some tough bird! The mushers all sit, eat, rest and chat with all of us. They are a great bunch and fun to be around. Learn a lot about their strategies for the race ahead. Stayed till about midnite and then got a snowmobile ride back to the dorm. Got ready for bed, in a hurry as it was cold, and had a great sleep.
Snowing now. They have more snow here than McGrath. The pictures, if I ever get them in, will show you that.
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