photo

diomede, other, photography, stories

So there are a few trails on the island. Two head north out of the village, a low one that stays a few hundred feet off the water, and a high one that heads up to the top of the island. The low one, I found the other day, only goes to the north cliffs…where it stops gradually. Well, sort of. The trail starts out incredibly nice, wide and easy, fades to a narrow and sort of tricky little route, and eventually you turn a corner and, wham, cliffs. Big cliffs. Up to that point, it is a gradual fade, though. From the best I could tell, the north cliffs are just shy of the northernmost point of the island.

So the trail is nice at first
The trail is wide and flat!
There are great places to sit down for a spell
There are great places to sit down for a spell
The trail gets narrower (can you see it?) and the going gets steeper. I didn't take any pictures of where the trail stops. I was a little bit preoccupied.
The trail gets narrower (can you see it?) and the going gets steeper. I didn’t take any pictures of where the trail stops. I was a little bit preoccupied.
Looking back where I came from--the trail skirts over that cliff
Looking back where I came from–the trail skirts over that cliff, just above the picture’s frame
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cliffs
northwest corner
northwest corner
and of course the picture of the flower from the lovely walk back
and of course the picture of the flower from the lovely walk back on the upper trail
other, photography

Well, it works like this. See that picture, that funny looking boat? Well, it’s a barge and tug, actually, loaded with a lot of diesel fuel. They come around once a year. The fuel they deliver powers the village power plant and is sold to individuals for home heating–google ‘toyo stove’ to see how the majority of alaskans heat their homes.

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diomede

After a walk–in the beautiful long arctic summer sunset–which got dicey near some cliffs, after a long climb that seemed to never end and get harder and harder, there finally came a corner and around it was the plateau of the top of the island. From there all I needed to do was cross the plateau and find the nice and safe trail back to the island; I had had my fill of brave trailblazing for the day. I breathed a great sigh of relief and started the long walk over boulders as the thick sea fog rolled in. I walked and walked and walked, and finally the sight of a cairn and a well worn footpath brought a smile to my soul.

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photography

Standing next one of these big beautiful wild birds, it kindles odd and hard to understand feelings inside a person. Well, sorta--the exception is the "I want to fly this plane" feeling. That one's clear as a bell.
Standing next one of these big wild birds (T-6), it kindles complex feelings inside a person. Well, sort of. The exception is the “I want to fly this plane” feeling. That feeling is clear like the feeling of running into a wall.