ARIZONA TO ALASKA

Last Updated: 12:06 AM GMT on June 16, 2013 — Last Comment: 6:44 PM GMT on June 18, 2013

	MID JUNE AND MOUNTAIN ROADS STILL BLOCKED

Posted by: joealaska, 7:45 AM GMT on June 16, 2012

Last night we had 45-50 mile hour winds. Blowing but not snowing. I cannot remember the last day we have had rain. Suddenly we go from PRECIPITATION headquarters to BARREN SEA. The wind whips up the dust. The city is applying water to the roadways edge, and my work neighbor who shares the freight yard with us is dropping water on the dust to keep the issue minimal. When we left work last night it was almost a brownout.

Watching the WALLENDA KID walking the wire across Niagra Falls as I type. Never been there, but it is now on my list. Will definitely stay on the USA side.

GNU GUY and I took a ride a couple nights ago to check out the status of opening the Overland Trail. It was better than last time we checked by about a mile, but there was a real impediment. A deep drift just as you head up the switchbacks (from the VALLEY side). It was about 18 feet deep, and the plow guys had attacked it but had stopped as it was too deep. It even made sense to me, TOO DEEP. Got pictures.

Then we went out to look for the horses. Instead of heading to Morris Cove we hung a roscoe at Summer Bay Lake. I had no idea how far the road would be open, but there was a guess. Normally I would have guessed it was open to the base of the switchbacks, just where you head up. But there was a smaller drift that blocked the road, just a few feet deep, but there would be more after that. Obviously there was no effort at plowing from that end. It really does not matter, the whole road has to be open. We are talking JULY.

But we found the horses. There are 10 total, but we only saw 4. We saw people going out to feed them. It was a rough winter, but they were able to survive. Now they are getting fed by most of the residents in town. GNU and I will be looking for apples and carrots to help keep them fat.

I tried the road up Ballyhoo a few days ago, and it was still closed off with the gate. A little effort at plowing would open that up. The tribe just does not care.

There was a fatal accident this week. A guy was working on a truck tire with a split rim, and it exploded in his face. I was off that day and saw the 3 vehicles with sirens wailing heading for the clinic. I knew it was bad as they were really flying. I knew it was worse later that evening at the airport, when the med-evac plane was on the tarmac with the ambulance and nobody was in any hurry to load up the passenger.

The RAT BOAT is still in Dutch at Magone Marine, a salvage company. It may take a couple months, but the plan is to chop it up in the Magone dry dock into three big pieces. Then it will be barged across the bay to the shore near the landfill where it will be further chopped up into manageable pieces for salvage.

The rats will not be chopped up.

Happy early Fathers Day JoeKY. I heard he was golfing again and playing great. Played 18 holes and shot 91 on a tough course. YOU DA MAN.

Permalink | A A A

: Top of Page :

	Reader Comments

Display: 0, 50, 100, 200

Sort: Newest First - Order Posted

1. insideuk 10:42 AM GMT on June 16, 2012
You realise WHY the snow plow guys keep having to turn around their machines and head back into town don’t you? They go to clear up those last few blockages and every time there’s this damn nuisance white Tahoe parked in their way… And all because GNU wants to get up there to check where the salmon berries might be most prolific this year. Always trying to gain the upper hand in the Dutch Harbor annual jam making competition. He’s really not willing to hand his hard fought trophy back yet is he? The chap wandering across the falls made the news here, the part of the story that caught my ear was that it wasn’t him that was insisting on wearing a safety harness – it was the TV network producers. It seems we can’t be allowed to see people die on live television all in the name of entertainment. Have they not heard of Youtube? These days you can jump into a barrel, drop yourself into the water and be sending the live footage of your antics direct to the world wide web before you even splinter into a thousand pieces at the foot of the falls. If that were your wont. Not that I’m giving Joseph ideas for his future road trip, YOU stay on USA terra firma Pud – there are easier ways to gain infamy. Try jam making if you think you can stand the competition. I heard THE TRIBE are thinking of entering… I read that a ‘middle aged man’ was TWICE reported to police in Dutch Harbor for the ‘crime’ of having stood in the street offering free drinks and cookies to passers by recently. The freebies were left unwanted after a meeting was cancelled – so the chap offered it around the community. The police investigated this deeply suspicious act of kindness. Perhaps his safety harness was loose… A very happy Fathers Day to PapaJoe, keep up the golfing – got to show the kids how it’s done! And a very happy BIG birthday wish to our dearest HAUPTY for tomorrow. I hope the sun shines down on your special day long enough to spark all those candles, and that you find enough wind to make a wish before the firefighters arrive to tell you off for all the false smoke alarm callouts…x Member Since: February 28, 2009 Posts: 0 Comments: 1207

2. dotmom 12:53 PM GMT on June 16, 2012
Thanks to UK's up-to-date calendar, I too want to jump on the band wagon and wish Haupty a very Happy Birthday and the very best of wishes for many, many more! Thank you UK for the Father's Day wishes for JoeKY - I will be passing them on to him. And a Happy Father's Day to all those reading this blog - if the greeting is appropriate!!! Member Since: April 3, 2008 Posts: 0 Comments: 994

3. osdianna 3:09 PM GMT on June 16, 2012
I'll join the parade of well-wishers for both JoeKy...a very Happy Father's Day on the golf course..or watching the Open...and to all the Fathers out there....and a great big Happy Birthday to Haupty...and many more! Member Since: March 5, 2009 Posts: 10 Comments: 284

4. DHaupt 6:12 AM GMT on June 17, 2012
Thanks for the birthday wishes. I will be 70 in just a few hours. It is 10:30 at night and the temperature is still 82.7F. The afternoon high was at around 4:00PM at 108 (official), just one degree short of the all-time record. We were over 100 for probably in excess of 7 hours. Here's the graph: Even with solar power, we used a lot of energy from the grid today. For one thing, solar panels lose their efficiency when it is really hot. I've been making close to 30 kwH each day, but today we only made about 27. I will admit to having the AC set at 76F which is admittedly a little low. I also used the stove top for a few hours and we dried a couple of loads of clothes. We should live in a dark cave and run around in our underwear this time of year. "Tomorrow is forecast to be much cooler" according to the WU shamans. By which they mean 97F. I am headed for the porch soon to continue reading Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I've been at it for two weeks and am nearly 40% of the way through it. It is probably the greatest bargain I've downloaded from Kindle yet! The Fourth Century is an awful place -- don't go there. Sad about the Romans, but I'm rooting for the Barbarians. England seems to have been a lovely place as long as you didn't live anywhere near the Scots, or worse, the Picts. And, the Druids were simply beyond the pale! They had a bad habit of eating people. Even the Picts, running around naked with war-painted bodies (an early inspiration of KISS?) couldn't abide the Druids. Derbyshire seemed pretty decent for those days. The Romans weren't all that much better, just better dressed. They had a very simple policy for dealing with trouble makers: If you were too stupid, or otherwise unable, to flee, they chopped you into large bits. Member Since: March 28, 2006 Posts: 0 Comments: 908

5. dotmom 10:16 AM GMT on June 17, 2012
Dave: I thought all that heat was from the birthday candles. So glad it came clearer as your missive went on. :) It is hot here too, but you have us beat! Member Since: April 3, 2008 Posts: 0 Comments: 994

6. insideuk 11:38 AM GMT on June 17, 2012
Haupty shares his 70th birthday celebrations this week with both Brian Wilson and Paul McCartney. They may have more gold discs but I doubt they could match your pressure cooker collection... In 108f I'd be cooked medium rare in about 3 minutes and blowing my gasket. Wouldn't be a pretty sight. I'm off out today for a cruise – in honour of Hauptys book I shall show Betti the Yeti the local Roman roads. Find a ruler straight length of road in England and you can guarantee it was built by the Romans. Once they left we didn't really bother with creating any further new ones until the 18th Century, and by then we'd got much more stuff to curve around. In fact the roads are now so winding they must have bypassed every last sheep and cow. The Romans also built forts along the river Derwent in Derbyshire – British schooling concentrates quite heavily on Roman occupation, and school field trips in my day used to involve long hours of trudging along muddy banks plotting out the Roman earthworks that can only really be appreciated from aerial photos. Certainly, when you are an 8 year girl up to your knees in mud and rain soaked through to the skin with only curled up sandwiches and a packet of crisps to look forward to all day you struggle to appreciate the rich legacy of the Roman Empire. After the Romans left the Danes came along with lovely pale butter and tasty slabs of bacon and founded a fortified settlement in Derby (around 873AD) which then became a decent sized town with trading links far and wide. All it took for this young girl to sit up and pay attention in class was a half decent BLT... Member Since: February 28, 2009 Posts: 0 Comments: 1207

7. bearpaints 3:14 PM GMT on June 17, 2012
Happy Father's Day to all the "Guys" on WU! Also Happy Wonderful "70" Birthday to Haupty! It's going to be 108 here. Got up and got the animals all taken care of, cleaned water buckets so everyone will drink and gave out electrolites to the horses. Helped my mother in law with her computer yesterday, she really has a hard time understanding how to use it. But I got her on facebook so she can try to stay connected with all her kids and grandkids. Even if she never posts anything she loves to read and look at all their pictures. Hope everyone has a much cooler day, off to the store before it melts me. I don't mind the shopping its carrying all those groceries by myself into the house. Member Since: January 15, 2010 Posts: 0 Comments: 233

8. Dodabear 4:17 PM GMT on June 20, 2012
BUMP Member Since: July 28, 2001 Posts: 0 Comments: 2235

9. dotmom 3:07 AM GMT on June 21, 2012
JoeAlaska, we are going to miss you at the reunion this weekend here in Louisville. Looking forward to a call from you on Friday night. xo Member Since: April 3, 2008 Posts: 0 Comments: 994

Viewing: 1 - 9

Page: 1 — Blog Index

: Top of Page :

	New Comment

Post Your Comments

Create a username. (Required) Not only will you be able to leave comments on this blog, but you'll also have the ability to upload and share your photos in our Wunder Photos section.

About joealaska:

Just Photos. Dutch Harbor, Alaska.

My Local Weather:

Dutch Harbor, Alaska

46 °F

Overcast

Recent Photos:

joealaska's Wunder Photos

Previous Entries for 2013: