Day 2

So far, I seem pretty lucky. Not sure if that’s since I’m the oldest of the volunteers, or if it’s because I was the first to get here, but I’m staying in the Visitor Center (The Big House). This was the former residence of the mine manager. Upstairs there is a small apartment, with a kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. The other volunteers stay in a portion of the bunk house no. 2, a large three story building which used to house the miners. With the exception of four rooms, this structure has not been restored. The bunk house does have electricity and a gas heater, but no running water. I don’t feel too guilty about my preferential accommodations…the last time I was in Alaska (at the 33 mile compound in the Chena River State Rec. Area outside Fairbanks), I was the last to arrive and got stuck with the worst cabin. Previous volunteers there had nicknamed it “the Ghetto,” no heat, electricity, water, etc.

Day 2—Monday, June 6: Although when around 7am it was 33 degrees here, today was a beautiful day. Sunny and warm, down in the valley in got in the low 60s, and up here at ISMHP it got to about 56. Now this does not sound to warm, especially when you factor in the constant breeze coming off the mountains, but it was sunny and clear—great views. Yesterday, Sunday, was extremely wet, cold, and cloudy. At ISMHP it didn’t get above the 30s, and we had a constant mixture of snow and rain. Glad I brought my winter jacket and gloves. Tanveer (anther volunteer) and I had tried to go hiking on the Gold Cord Trail, but there was so much snow on the ground, it was hard to tell where the trail actually was. After a half hour or so of hiking through snow and tundra, cold and wet, we called it quits and turned back. But today, Monday—much nicer, a good deal of the snow melted, spent the day training.