Long Days

Well nothing of real interest. Been working four straight fourteen hour days in the field. Three hours of that time each day driving to and from camp to the Milne Point site

Soon to Be Ice Road

Above is part of the drive. We pass all sorts of Oil sites on the drive. Have seen several Caribou with giant racks. The closest about a hundred yards away. Will post some pictures when I have better shots. Seen several foxes. Eight Musk Ox way out in the field. Nothing too striking yet. Did get my first glimpse of the Arctic Ocean on Tuesday. It was the same day I took the above photo. While working up high within one of the rigs, I stepped out side to take a peak. With the clear visibility and flat tundra I could see for hundreds of miles. I have always been within 5 to 15 miles of the Arctic, but never seen it till today when I got some elevation. Where I was working was only 1 1/2 miles from Arctic and I was up about 5 stories. The Arctic was very bright blue and past that you could see the Ice Cap, which will very soon close up the blue. The contrast of the pure white snow against the bright blue Sea was awesome. On all sites cameras are not allowed. For security, but mostly for safety. Due to the nature of the process, under an undesired condition, the operation of the camera could become an ignition point that could instantly level and eliminate the entire facility. Ooops!!  Another thing they take very seriously. Hence I have no pictures. It is a tremendous site to behold though. Looking South I was also able to see the Brooks Range 150 miles away. This is a Range that compares to the Rockies. Alaska’s Huge.

On the drive back to camp on Sunday it took us 3 hours one way to get home due to bad road conditions. Even at 5 mph it was a back killer. This is a clip from that ride. Go full screen to get actual feel for the ride. I was riding in back and took this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4MIG4MkSrQ . That I am not kidding was not even the worst of it. Three hours of bouncing like that is a back killer. Still hurts today. The roads they tell me are horrible every Spring and Autumn. They said this though was some of the worst they have seen. Once it ices over it is smooth as glass. For eight months!!

Another interesting thing are the Sunsets. From my tropical experiences I am used to watching the Sun dip into the Ocean and disappear in about a minute and a half. The other day though I was working out. Our gym faces Southwest and the sun when I started was slightly above the horizon and about to set. Or so I thought. Fiftteen minutes go by and it finally begins to breach the horizon. Ten minutes later its about quarterway. By now I am going blind, because something I thought would only take 2 minutes has been going on for the entire 30 minutes I was on an eliptical machine. Finish my workout and casually go down to my room to get camera and take this picture.

If you have not already, you can click on the thumbnails of the pictures and actually see a much better one than the thumbnails on posts. Stayed around another 10 minutes and it was still hanging on the horizon. Wanted to wait around to see some orange and purple hazes but dont think I could have stayed awake that long. Had to get some rest. I will get my chances soon. Also will get the chance to see the Aurora Borealis show the Arctic puts on in the winter afternoons.

See you in seven sleeps sweetheart!!