Day 17, June 22, 2010 (Monday)
Kotzebue -- Bettles --- Fairbanks
a Charter pilot -- Andy, gave me a few tips for flying around locally. His wife runs a "Bed & Breakfast" Hotel in the town, has 17 units. Andy said, there are many sandbars I can land along Noatak river, but pick the lighter color to land, completely the opposite of the Anchorage pilot who told me. I flew over Noatak river and look at the foot print from birds on the sandbar, it is true that need to pick the dryer sand bar or gravel sandbar for landing, but in Anchorage, you pick darker color beach and closer to the water to land, because the sand is punding by the waves, making it harder and firmer to land. The river landing and beach landing can be entirely different.
I followed Noatak river up stream, visit Noatak village (population of 500), went to the tribe office, chatted with staffs, learned about their culture for a good two hours. the supplies are so expensive here, I probmise to bring them some cigarettes on my next visit, then they will feed me a good meal. They love Marboro light, great people, great local water source, I drank a couple cups of water, very tasty.
Every town I went, I tasted their drinking water, I didn't drink anything else but water, every where is better than Los Angeles.
Noatak village by Noatak river, the tribe office staff, friendly people, I didn't feel any barrier by talking to them, feel like I'm one of them.
Some of them went to the College in Fairbanks and Anchorage and still come back to serve their own people. They said, this is their home.
Older generation (50 and older) are trying hard to keep their own language and tradition and pass on to new borns.
Kids are wondering around my plane, curious about this yellow bird, they are shy compare to girls I met at Kotzebue bay.
Red Dog mine, one of the largest Zinc mine in the world, 10% of Noatak village people work here
Salmon will arrive in August, Caribou will migrate through the village in Octomber, don't fly too low duing the Caribou migration season, don't scare them away. Advised by the folks at the village. caribou meat is an important food source for them.
They hunt caribou for survival, they don't sell the meat, they give extra meat to elderly people in the village.
When ever there is people pass away in the village, they shut down the whole activity to grieve the passing, everything closed in the village, including the grocery store.
Noatak river is truely a beautiful place, different than the southern Alaska. Trees are hard to grow in this area due to the permafrost.
After I return to Kotzebue, I decide to move on, fill the tank up and take off to the east, I curved around a little to the south to keep the mountains on my left wing, I pass through these twin lakes, tranquel and beautiful, picture still couldn't reveal the true beauty of this place, you need to be there to see it. These are huge mountains and big lakes.
Narvak Lake (north) and Lake Selby (south), 120 NM west of Bettles
Great Kobuk sand dunes, 90 nautical miles east of Kotzebue, 25 square miles of sand dunes, I was on my way to Bettles, heading east.
I actually flew down there and played for a while, the joy of flying is really down there, I always keep the speed high when flying low.
