There's No Place Like Nome.....So They Say!

Seriously, "There's No Place Like Nome" is the slogan used by the residents of Nome, Alaska. 

I loved Nome!  How do I describe it?  My sister, Jackie, and my daughter, Kim, and I have had several conversations about what I should write in this post about Nome.  Indescribable? No words to describe Nome?  No.  Because I am supposed to be an articulate and educated person, I will find the words to describe Nome and I promise not to be boring with the overused word 'awesome'.  We flew from Anchorage to Nome which is approximately 525 miles north which took 1 hour and 20 minutes.


We were a long way from home!

When we arrived in Nome at 1:35 p.m., the sun was shining brightly, the sky was crystal clear, and we literally could see forever. 

Nome is located on the most westerly point of Alaska on the coast of the Bering Sea. The city's population is approximately 3,000 residents and the geography is flat with distant mountains looming north and east of this small city.  The mountains have been referred to as the Sawtooth mountains but our snowmobile tour guide as well as the helicopter pilot informed us that these mountains do not have a name.

As our plane landed at the Nome airport, we could see nothing but snow-covered terrain and glistening sea ice with a rather small clustering of wooden structures.  We departed the airplane onto the tarmac and walked across the icy surface that had approximately 4" of ice on the blacktop.  My first impressions were,  No. 1:  Don't fall; and No. 2:  We aren't in Kansas anymore!  The temperature was approximately 11 degrees with the sun shining from perfectly blue cloudless skies and there was little to no wind.  When the wind blows in Nome, conditions change drastically to such a degree that skin must be covered and clothing must be suitable to avoid freezing.  The views were beautiful! 

Snow cleared from the Nome runway.

The airport is small and consists of various one-level buildings with each airline having a separate building.  We arrived on Alaskan Airlines.  Can you say:  Frequent flier miles?  The terminal has a small waiting area which seats perhaps 20 people.  For flights transporting more than this number of people, as ours did, the other passengers must stand.  There are three terminals with ticket agents and two electronic check-in stations.  There is one baggage claim that is 20 feet long and located against one wall with no conveyor belt. 

We walked into the small terminal room and the luggage was brought from the plane and shoved - or thrown is a better word - through the rubber flaps and then there was a free-for-all for retrieval.  There were more huge plastic tubs being delivered than luggage.  I later discovered that these large tubs contained staples from stores such as Costco in Anchorage.  More on this later.

Within the state of Alaska, air travelers can check up to four bags, tubs, boxes or other containers without baggage fees.  The reason for this is that the remote villagers must travel to or order all goods from Anchorage or the 'lower 48'.  Jackie and I took advantage of this perk by checking two bags each.  We prepared ahead by purchasing food, snacks, cut fruit, water, diet coke, coffee, and paper products in Anchorage. We packed these items and checked the bags.  This was certainly a great idea that we did not regret.  My only fear after watching the luggage being pitched through those rubber flaps was that my Cheetos would be crushed! 

After retrieving our luggage, the room was thinning out and we exited the door to hail a cab.  That is a term we have perfected from our years going to nearby Chicago or other large cities.  Here, you don't 'hail'.  I returned to a ticket agent and asked for the telephone number for a cab.  She simply said, "Oh, just stand outside.  Someone will show up."  I went back outside where Jackie was waiting with our luggage and, hopefully intact Cheetos, and I could not see the forest for the trees.  Vehicles were parked everywhere.  There were no signs for designated parking, or taxi stands, or buses.  The reason is that parking is wherever a vehicle fits, there are no buses, and the taxis appear one by one. The driver will load as many riders and luggage as he can fit into his van.  All we had to do was climb in, hold on and let the driver know our destination.  The taxis operate more like 'shuttles' which take multiple riders to different destinations.  The ride to our apartment was $5 per person. 

 As a side note, taxis are used by the residents of Nome as frequently as by visitors.  The fare is $3.00 per person other than back and forth from the airport.  On one of our trips, the driver picked up a young woman and when she climbed in, the driver asked:  "Do you want to go to your grandpa's?"  On another trip, the driver took a call and the caller said:  "Hi, this is Esther and I need you to pick me up at the grocer's."  He never asked:  "Which grocer?"  Apparently, everyone knows everyone else!

In one of my previous posts, I stated that we had reservations at a bed and breakfast for our first three nights but no reservations for the remaining nights.  After we arrived in Anchorage at the beginning of this adventure, Kim and Jackie were increasingly concerned, as was I, that we should probably find a place to stay for all of the trip to Nome.  So I made another call to the Nome Visitor Center and was given names of people who might be willing to let us stay in their homes since the three hotels and Bed and Breakfasts were full.  Scary!!!!  But, as my guardian angel was on full alert, I was given the name of a person who not only owns a B&B outside of Nome, but she also owns a three-unit apartment in town which happened to be vacant for the month of March. 

We reserved the bedroom with the queen bed with access to the kitchen, washer and dryer, and, of course, a bathroom.  Plus she furnished it for us!  The other two twin bedrooms were booked by two other 'elderly gentlemen' so she said, who were also volunteers.  (They never arrived as it turned out because one of the men's wife suffered a stroke.  We have them in our prayers.)

This photograph is the back door of our apartment.  Thank goodness we had a key to the front door. 

This trailer on the left is parked right behind the yellow apartment unit where we stayed.  The sled and the snowmobile must be evidence of a multi-vehicle family!

Since Jackie and I arrived in Nome on Thursday, we were not committed to any volunteering until the coordinators and other Iditarod officials arrived on Saturday or Sunday.  We settled in and headed for town - on foot. 

Our initial exploration of Nome included a visit to the visitors center.  It was nice to put a face to the name of Rachel who helped with securing accommodations.  She was helpful again by providing us with the Iditarod Schedule of Events, brochures for things to do, and she answered every question we had.  Rachel was 21 and born and raised in Nome so she was very informative.  She attended and graduated from a university in Las Vegas with a degree in physical therapy.  She plans to pursue her Master's degree and has worked in the visitors center during high school and college breaks.

The visitor's center is located on the main street in Nome which is called Front Street. Directly behind this street lined with ancient buildings is the Bering Sea.  We then walked behind the center to take in the views and take videos when I stepped off one of the huge sea wall stones and sunk to my left hip in soft snow.  I did not hit anything solid.  These rocks were stacked perhaps 12 to 15 feet high and were covered with snow.  I was later told that I could have easily broken my leg - it happens all the time!  (Thank you, Guardian Angel.) 

You can see the devious rock I stood on just under the right side of the sign.  Very dangerous!

Apparently a ferocious storm two weeks prior blew enough snow and ice off the sea to form a 10-15' high wall of snow and ice.  This was extremely unusual in that the shore is normally snowy and frozen flat.  Despite the storm's damage to the ice, the weather was so cold that the shore was frozen enough for snowmobilers to travel on it.  I just happened to step into a 'shelf ice' type of spot.

Normally the view of the sea is visible but this is the natural formed wall of sea ice and snow that blew up onto shore during the recent storm.

The view in the photograph below is the sea on the other side of the above ice wall.



There are two grocery stores in Nome and one smaller store that is referred to as a 'convenience' store.  This store sells staples as well non-essentials which are very expensive. A small jar of peanut butter was $5.49.

We're walking.  We're walking.  While Nome is very small, our walks were time consuming because we were dressed in full arctic regalia.  Our first commitment was to visit every gift shop, craft shop and museum in Nome.  There were three gifts shops and one museum. 

Some businesses were abandoned.,,,obviously for quite awhile.  Notice the price of beer!

Gas was expensive at the only gas station


A native craft show was scheduled at the Methodist Church for Saturday and Sunday.  I was anxious to see the ivory crafts - and they are exquisite.  We eventually found our way to Airport Pizza to study our brochures.  Everyone, let me repeat - everyone - recommended Airport Pizza. 

Kim would be arriving on Saturday.  So until Kim arrived, we walked, we shopped, we walked, we ate, we walked, we took pictures, we walked, we met great people, we walked, and we had long conversations with whomever we met.....enjoying the sights, the sea views and all that is white!  We were loving every minute of this trip so far. 

This is a Native Alaskan, Russell, who was on vacation from Tok.  His 'shin guards' and slippers are made of Polar Bear fur.  Earlier in the day, I saw him walking past our apartment in a fur coat and hat, also made by his mother of polar bear.  He was good natured and agreed to a photo shoot!  He shed his coat and hat because the temperature was rising - nearly 20 by this time of day - and much too warm for such heavy clothing.  Such fun!

The atmosphere in Nome, however, was fairly quiet.  Even though the end of the most celebrated event in the state was expected to occur soon, the place did not give any hint that the Iditarod was even in progress.  There were no signs, no memorabilia such as items for sale about the race, and there was no detectable excitement.  The first musher was not expected to arrive until late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning. This sent me into a tailspin because our ultimate goal on this trip was to see the winner of the dog sled race arrive under the burled arch.  Looks like we will miss it.

The homes and buildings in Nome are bare-faced.  There are no shutters, no awnings, and we saw only three signs hanging perpendicular to the buildings. The harsh winter storms and ferocious winds do not allow for such aesthetics.  Because of this starkness, many places look abandoned when they are not.  Sometimes we did not know we had reached a specific destination until we were standing right in front of it! 

The building on the left is on Front Street and named Igloo 1.

Notice the hides draped across the porch railing. 

Just a little home decor.

Apparently solar heating is used in some homes!



Some homes also house the business, such as Nome Outfitters.  Can you guess what kind of business this is?



....some homes are for sale.

Most of the buildings are constructed with wood and they are built up off the ground.  Because the ground is actually permafrost, the buildings must be able to move and shift so every building is constructed on railings or pilings.  It looks impossible that the new hospital which is currently under construction will be sound on its foundation, but it will be.  So there is daylight shining through under every building except the buildings at the airport.  They are ground level.

The is one gorgeous lady - a full blooded Shepard.  Notice her beautiful, thick coat.  Nobly standing guard and enjoying the sun.

This homebody was snoozing and not disturbed in the least by the passersby.

And some lucky pooches went to work every day with mom and dad.  This is me and Matilda.  Matilda is the one on the left.

The building on your left faces the sea and was a former inn.  It is now a permanent residence.  Great sunset!

Electricity is very, very expensive so the residents do no leave on lights or use electricity unnecessarily.

The photograph on the right is the Nome Nugget Inn, one of three hotels. It is old, quaint and still operating.  It has a restaurant in the back that looks out over the Bering Sea, except for right now, the only thing visible is mounds of ice and snow!
Notice the sled, musher and dog on the roof.  No, they are not frozen!  They are carved wood.

Nome was settled when miners arrived around 1899-1902 to mine for gold on the beach.  Nome's name originated from an effort to locate and name the location on the map.  Since there was no name, apparently the word 'name?" was hand written on the map and it was mistaken for the word 'nome'.  Hence, the place was believed to be Nome and the name stuck!

On the left is the Nome Methodist Church.  Note the simple but

adequate construction.  The mushers actually look for the lighted

cross on the steeple when they are arriving during the night. 

There is a great deal of Russian influence in the northern part of

Alaska.

The small white mounds in the front of the church are snow

sculptures.  Below is one of the entries in the contest.

The University of Alaska even has a campus in Nome.

Most of the vehicles driven in Nome are pickup trucks, SUV's and snowmobiles.  We saw one sedan.  There are probably more snowmobiles in the city than vehicles.  People from other villages travel back and forth by snowmobile in winter. 

We also saw a variety of other snow machines in Nome.  They are functional as well as recreational. 

The machine on the right looks like a four-wheeler on tracks.



This one is a four -wheeler!

 

  How cute is this?



This is the Iditarider which transports riders out to Safety, as well as for other utility purposes!

What I could not get over, though, is the number of abandoned vehicles of every type!  In vacant lots, in yards, in front of the houses - they were everywhere.  One such vehicle was an antique, completely rusted yet in-tact ambulance from 80 years ago - just sitting in front of some one's home with snow up to the bumpers! Many of the snow-covered vehicles looked as if the driver just exited the car, walked away and a snow storm came because some of the vehicle doors were wide open and windows were half down.    Except one.  This sedan was parked right in front of the home with the windows partially down, and in the back seat was a huge black husky-type dog.  This must have been his dog house.  Kim took this picture.

A pickup truck passed us with Velvet, the tamed reindeer riding in the bed of the truck.  Apparently, Velvet was a town nuisance until his owner started taking him for rides!  Everyone knows Velvet!  Sorry, no picture of velvet since we were in a taxi and had no time to set the camera.

But the shocker was in the red pickup truck parked in front of a home.  In the bed of the truck was the in-tact, frozen head of a musk ox!  This head was approximately two feet in diameter and he was staring straight up into the perfect Arctic sky.  Of course, we took a picture of this fellow and here it is!

Kim arrived on Saturday so we did more sightseeing around Nome.  She made her individual explorations of Nome on her own - camera in hand on Sunday when Jackie and I were scheduled to be at the Iditarod Headquarters at 9:00 a.m. to begin our duties.  The volunteers literally set up the headquarters - computers, sign-ups for volunteer duties, folding items for sale and setting up the display.  The duties of the volunteers  were determined by a core group of veteran volunteers who know the routine and requirements to get ready for the end of the race.  Our duties included sales, guarding the dog lot when the mushers arrived, assisting the mushers as handlers for taking the dogs from the burled arch after they arrived in Nome to the dog lots, cooking and serving snacks at the snack bar in the headquarters. 

We served our sentence by folding and displaying what seemed to be a million T-shirts and sweatshirts emblazoned with the Iditarod logo.  The Iditarod headquarters is the only place one can purchase Iditarod items other than online through the official website.  We worked with some really interesting people who had wonderful stories of past races.  We completed our tasks after four hours.  And we're done!! 

I did not mind these duties because we were not missing out on seeing the arrival of our four-legged heroes.  They had not yet arrived from the trail.  The place was finally buzzing, however, with talk about what was going on along the Iditarod trail; how many dogs various mushers had to drop, who had scratched, who had been withdrawn from the race, and general chit-chat about the race itself.  It was fun to get caught up in the fever of the race again.  This time, however, it was more of a 'finally!' type moment.  It was apparent who the first musher would be at this stage of the race but everyone has learned from the past races not to make any guesses about who would win because it was still any one's race.  Everyone always referred to the winner as 'the team' because the dogs are the athletes who will bring the winning musher across the finish line.  Everyone loves and respects these wonderful dogs.  Last year's champion, Lance Mackey, was quoted along this year's trail as correcting a reporter that even though he was down to nine dogs, he has a team of 10 - he included himself.

Another set of volunteers, along with city employees, were readying Front Street by moving the Burled Arch from its permanent resting spot to the middle of Front Street at the north end of the city.  The city was also hauling in tons of snow to cover the street for the dogs to run on when they arrived off the trail. 

Front Street was being transformed to a snow packed 'trail' for the dogs to run on as they approached the finish line.

Overnight, Nome was taking on the aura of excitement as the end of the race was nearing.  I was impressed with the coordination, experience and smooth transition of the sleepy city with cleared streets to a monumental sight - preparing for the first arrival of the mushers.  The town was beginning to fill up with visitors from other villages, more volunteers, tourists and the media.

ESPN set up the news station on the awning above this business on Front Street.

The children have ten days off from school for "Iditarod". 

We arrived under the Burled Arch the easy way.  Notice the lantern hanging in the upper right-hand corner of the wooden arch.



This is the lantern which will burn until the last musher arrives.  That musher will receive the Red Lantern Award!  The award is actually on display in the Wells Fargo Bank until it is presented to the last musher at the Musher's Banquet at the end of the race.



This is the path that has been cleared from the Bering Sea.  The mushers and dogs will be arriving from the left along the shoreline, which is not visible in this photo, run up this plowed path, on onto Front Street past the crowds, and on to the finish line.

The path has been plowed and firmly packed and connects the trail which runs along the sea for awhile to the downtown Front Street.  The next picture shows the continuation of the plowed path past the movie theatre (which has no signs) onto Front Street.  Then, those wonderful dogs will wind their way left and on down the street for approximately six city blocks to the Burled Arch.


Now you can see the direction from which the mushers and dogs will be running. 

This is Kim running the Mini Muk-luk Marathon with the Bering Sea in the background.

Activities were planned, such as a 200-mile Serum Run snowmobile race which began at 12 o'clock noon and the winner returned at 2:00 p.m.  Then on Monday there was the Mini Muk-luk Marathon, a 5K race along the Bering Sea out of Nome and back.  Kim and Jackie ran the race while I walked halfway.  When she reached the finish line, Jackie was interviewed by the Nome Nugget reporter and her comments were published in the Nugget's edition dated March 17, 2011.  The paper is published once a week on Wednesdays.  So she is a local celebrity!

There were approximately 30 participants.  Most of them were residents running, walking their dogs or pulling small children in sleds or strolling babies.  (I have a video of Jackie and will include it in this post when I figure out how to do it!)  The residents participate in all of the extracurricular offerings due to the few offerings at this time of the year!



The little girl on the right was pulled on her sled by her parents who participated in the mini marathon while she slept.  Notice the fur laying across her.  She is truly snug as a bug in a rug!

This photo shows the vast Bering Sea in the background and the number of walkers who are walking from the starting point at the high school on the north side of the city.  The runners had already passed.  Nome is behind these walkers.

This Nome couple are walking their little Eskimo!  What a great day this was to be outside!!!




After the race, we walked back to town and ate at our new favorite restaurant.

We were forced to go back to the shops with Kim.  Again, a rotten job but someone had to do it!


On Monday, we booked a snowmobile trip with Zack outside of Nome to see the musk ox.  The ride was fun, bright and exhilarating.  We loved every minute of it and, of course, Kim took great pictures of the animals.  They are wild and were grazing on the open tundra located between the rolling hills.  There were approximately ten adults and a few young.  They are referred to as 'cows' and 'bulls'. We were able to get off the snowmobiles and walk a safe distance closer to the musk ox to capture the Kodak moment.  The snow was over a foot deep and covered with other snowmobile and occasional fox tracks.  While the sun was again bright, there was no sound except the occasional snort of the ox and their digging for roots.  You can see the herd in back of Jackie's head. 

Kim is on the left, Jackie is somewhere in the middle, and Zack is on the right.  He was raised in Nome and only recently returned after living in Colorado for awhile.  He also works as a heave equipment operator.  His mother is native Alaskan and his father is white.

These are the wild must ox we saw on our snowmobile trip.

They have long soft hair that is woven into yarn and knitted into scarves, hats, gloves and other items for warmth.  The hair of the musk ox who are raised for this purpose is removed from the animal and spun into yarn.  There is a co-op in Alaska that hires women of various tribes to make these items.  Each village has a different pattern.  Last January, I bought a neck muffler.  It was expensive but is so delicate that I am afraid to wear it.  The color of the finished product is a light heathery brown.  They do not die the musk ox yarn.  The hair is so soft that it is nearly weightless.  The musk ox are protected but they can be hunted under controlled conditions.  Here are pictures of musk ox from an artist's depiction as well as a professional photo that are posted in the Quivet shop in Anchorage.  I borrowed these for a closer look at the musk ox.

On one of our taxi trips in town, we saw a snowmobiler pulling a sled through town with a musk ox he hunted.  This was a very unusual sight for us but a very normal sight by residents.  Since the natives have a subsistence existence, they use the hide, the fur, the meat and the antlers of all the animals that they kill.

When we returned to town, we were informed by the officials at headquarters that the first musher would probably not be into Nome until late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.  If this was the case, we had a slim chance of witnessing the winner of the 39th Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race arrive in Nome.. This was disheartening.  So we decided to take a helicopter ride out to Safety Roadhouse in Safety, Alaska.  This is the last checkpoint on the trail and 22 miles away.  Depending on the musher's speed, it could take up to three hours to reach Nome from Safety.  If we were not able to see a musher, we would be leaving Nome on Tuesday without having fully realized one of the goals of our trip.  We made our helicopter reservations for 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday.  We were scheduled to depart Nome at 9:00 p.m. for the 1 hour and 20 minute flight back to Anchorage.

We made a point to walk out onto the ice again to take more pictures.

A snowmobiler pulling his sled after visiting his lobster pots.

Kim on the sea ice.  Behind her......the frozen Bering Sea.

This is a view of some of the buildings of Nome that sit on the coast of the Bering Sea.

A view of the Bering Sea looking south of Nome at mid-day.

In the meantime, our last entertainment for this day was visit to the museum again with Kim.  As mentioned in the previous post, it housed the historical memorabilia of Nome but something different had been added.  Howard Farley was giving informal talks on the very first Iditarod.  He actually ran it.  He reminisced about the race and showed the actual letter he received from Joe Reddington who was the founder of the Iditarod Committee, asking Mr. Farley to help organize the race. Joe Reddington's grandson is running this year's race.  We pulled up a chair and got as comfortable as possible, considering our layered wardrobes and heavy Sorrell boots with toe liners inside.  We were quite entertained by Mr. Farley because when we asked him questions, such as 'how did he prepare for the race' and 'how did he know the amount of food to pack for his dogs and for himslef', he would get side tracked and after a third gentle interrogation by me, he managed to answer the question.  He was a treat!  We then headed 'home' for the night.

Kim decided since it was our last night in Nome to take pictures of the beautiful sunset over the Bering Sea.

A view of the ice-scape looking west on the Bering Sea at sunset.

A view of the frozen Bering Sea looking south of Nome.

An evening dog walk on the Bering Sea.

Things were just not looking good at this point for seeing the winner of the race.  On Tuesday, our last day in Nome, we arose early, checked the status of the mushers from the Iditarod Insider's official website, and were thrilled to learn that John Baker, a Native Alaskan from the nearby village of Kotzebue was still in the lead and nearing the last checkpoint, Safety.  His expected arrival was between 8:00 and 10:00!  Dallas Seavey was not far behind him.  Folks, it looks like Jenny, Jackie and Kim would be seeing the winners arrive under the Burled Arch after all!!!!  Now, we needed to eat, dress and head to town to reserve for our spot along the fenced area on Front Street.

When we arrived at the Arch, we noticed that the winner's new truck was parked and ready to be presented.

I was giddy with excitement, nervous for the musher and his dogs, worried and hoping that they would not suffer any trouble coming in along the icy coast and up onto Front Street, and overjoyed - just because!

The city of Nome has come alive!

 The sights of the natives (as well as visitors) in their traditional parkeys, fur hats, jackets with gorgeous fur ruffs, fur and skin mukluks was unparalleled. 



The native girl on the left is wearing a traditional Native Parka (referred to as a parkey).  These parkeys are typically made of wolf, wolverine, muskrat, beaver, fox, rabbit, polar bear, sheepskin, reindeer hide, buffalo, elk, and caribou.  These coats are extremely warm, somewhat heavy but not that thick.  I did try on several in Anchorage.  My favorite:  wolverine and wolf.  Polar bear is favored for staying dry in case the wearer is subjected to water because that hair repels water.

The other furs will freeze when wet.  Seal fur is short and gorgeous with its white-to-grey background and spots that vary from gray, black and brown.  I saw hats, gloves, mukluks and vests made by natives for sale at the craft show being held at the Methodist Church.  While PETA screams in opposition, one must respect the culture and traditions of the Native Alaskan.  They have been depending on animals for food, clothing and shelter for centuries.  They use what they need.  The Natives now sell items made from the skins of animals in order to make money to buy the things that they cannot make.  When the white man first came to Alaska, the natives traded furs, pelts and skins of animals for items brought into this region that were not available to the Natives. 

The trio on the right are part of a native dance group who have arrived to welcome the first musher to Nome by performing a native song and dance. 

In this picture, you can see the same native girl as above along with a girl on the right wearing a tradition parka that is made and sold in the stores in Anchorage.  Yes, I tried one on like this one and.........

The round items are fan drums.  They are made of animal skin and tightly wrapped around the round wooden hoop.  They then are held with one hand and fanned or tapped with the other hand - quite a nice sound!

The trailbreakers have arrived.  These men are the dedicated volunteers who literally break the trail by snowmobiles for the mushers to travel.  They have ridden these machines from Willow, Alaska the entire 1,049 miles to Nome.  They each hold a celebrity status in his own right!

The volunteers, race officials, family members, the media including newspaper reporters, news anchors from ESPN and Channel 2 from Anchorage, and friends were all there waiting to welcome John Baker and his team. 

I could not WAIT to see what was about to happen........