Well I'm back in Kiana for another year of school! I had a great summer driving tour busses all around Alaska, I didn't make as much money as i had hoped but do you ever? Coming back to the village really felt like coming home! I was welcomed by many old friends and before long I was already out in the country enjoying the scenery. I was able to go seining with the Westlake and Reich families up at their camp about 12 miles up river call sunaotuk "place of bones". We caught whitefish in the seine net and brought them back to camp to scale and cut them. Once they were scaled and cut and soaked in a brine we hung them on poles to dry. The white and blue totes in the boat were full of fish! When we were done we had 6 poles of fish. (Which is a lot)
The next outing Brad took myself and his family up to Westlake camp which is about 45 miles upstream from Kiana. It was an awesome boat ride with Brad.I always learn a lot when traveling with Brad. I learned about the bad spots in the river and well as how to read the river when traveling upstream. Once at the camp we had to haul all the tools up the stair system(very similar to my parents stairs in Idaho) to the camp. We were not there for a visit, we were there to work. We built a look out that was made out of heavy 4 inch steel posts 20ft tall. It was tough work! The reason for lookout was to be able to harvest caribou from land. We had a small generator for power, cut pipe with an infomercial saw, welded in the rain, measurements were "close enough", it took two trips but we finally got the lookout done. On the second trip we were looking for moose so we camped about 15 miles upriver of the camp. It was about 25 degrees that night, good thing I had my cables guide bag that's rated to -20. We didn't find any moose that trip but I was able to catch a few pike!
I have been running in a time deficit since school has started. It has just been in the last week that I am finally getting into a schedule and routine. We have many new staff members including a new principal. Things are finally smoothing out in Kiana. In the last week I have been able to go moose hunting a lot. I was not able to get a moose but was able to work on 2! It was a fun time but a lot of work! The first was Brads moose shot about a mile from Kiana. We took a boat up the squirrel river to get as close as we could. We quartered it there and used the 4 wheeler to haul the meat to the boat. We then hung the meat for 3 days then butchered it all. The second moose was shot by my good friend and trapping partner Glenn. He called the moose from over 2 miles aways and directed him to the perfect spot. He shot the bull on dry land but with its dying breath made it into 1 1/2 feet of water! What a mess! Luckily my roommate Phil and I were there with Glenn so we were able to cut the moose up in the water. What a job!
The caribou are on their way. I am excited to get some! It has been a great start to the school year! Hopefully my next post will be full of adventures! Thanksfor reading and supporting me during my Greater Northern Adventures!
The next outing Brad took myself and his family up to Westlake camp which is about 45 miles upstream from Kiana. It was an awesome boat ride with Brad.I always learn a lot when traveling with Brad. I learned about the bad spots in the river and well as how to read the river when traveling upstream. Once at the camp we had to haul all the tools up the stair system(very similar to my parents stairs in Idaho) to the camp. We were not there for a visit, we were there to work. We built a look out that was made out of heavy 4 inch steel posts 20ft tall. It was tough work! The reason for lookout was to be able to harvest caribou from land. We had a small generator for power, cut pipe with an infomercial saw, welded in the rain, measurements were "close enough", it took two trips but we finally got the lookout done. On the second trip we were looking for moose so we camped about 15 miles upriver of the camp. It was about 25 degrees that night, good thing I had my cables guide bag that's rated to -20. We didn't find any moose that trip but I was able to catch a few pike!
I have been running in a time deficit since school has started. It has just been in the last week that I am finally getting into a schedule and routine. We have many new staff members including a new principal. Things are finally smoothing out in Kiana. In the last week I have been able to go moose hunting a lot. I was not able to get a moose but was able to work on 2! It was a fun time but a lot of work! The first was Brads moose shot about a mile from Kiana. We took a boat up the squirrel river to get as close as we could. We quartered it there and used the 4 wheeler to haul the meat to the boat. We then hung the meat for 3 days then butchered it all. The second moose was shot by my good friend and trapping partner Glenn. He called the moose from over 2 miles aways and directed him to the perfect spot. He shot the bull on dry land but with its dying breath made it into 1 1/2 feet of water! What a mess! Luckily my roommate Phil and I were there with Glenn so we were able to cut the moose up in the water. What a job!
The caribou are on their way. I am excited to get some! It has been a great start to the school year! Hopefully my next post will be full of adventures! Thanksfor reading and supporting me during my Greater Northern Adventures!
You are SO adventurous. You took some amazing pictures. The sunset is beautiful and you look good!! See you soon. So enjoy reading and seeing what you are doing. Keep up the good work. Love you
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