House Moving Day

Today we moved a little house from one end of town to the other. The house measured 20x24 and we used the same skid that we used to move the Otter around with. I used a D5 Cat to pull it and everything went smoothly. The house is in it's new home and we can use the skid to pull the Otter out of the water tomorrow.

Rainy Day

Today the weather is bad and we are not able to do much flying.  It seems like the days that are the busiest coincide with bad weather.  We have lots of people  waiting around to go out.  So far everybody seems to be in good spirits about waiting.  The weather will get better though.  Fall doesn't seem to be to far away any more, the days are a little cooler and it is getting dark at night.  The leaves will be changing color soon too.  

Nelson wanted to go for a helicopter ride.

 

Engine Change in the Bush

The setup to take off the old engine at Circle Lake.

Working on unhooking things.

Old engine is off, now to get it out of the way.

Getting ready to sling the new engine.

Hooked up

Headed to Circle Lake

New engine delivered right where we wanted it.

Staying dry.

New engine hanging on the firewall.

DC-6 delivering fuel in Bettles

C-46

We got a load of fuel the other day and it came in a C-46.  What a neat old airplane.  It is great to see it still flying, let alone working and hauling fuel and freight all over Alaska. 

Triathlon

Laura and I competed in the second annual Bettles Triathlon on the 4th of July.   We were teamed up with Marty,who is doing some work in Bettles this summer. We called ourselves the B.R.A.  Bombers.  The triathlon consisted of paddling, bicycling and running.  Marty started off with the paddling, I did the biking, and Laura finished with the run.  Marty got the lead in the canoe race and was the first to tag off to a cyclist.  I was able to maintain that lead to the end of the bike ride.  I tagged off to Laura and she started the run. She led until the last 100 yards of the race.  She was actually passed by the only person to do the whole race as an individual.  For the overall race we got second, but we got first against 9 other teams.   It was a lot of fun and by getting first we got a free dinner at the Bettles Lodge.   Congrats to Beau who got first place overall.  Thanks to Fran for the triathlon photos.

BRA Bombers before the race

The canoe race

Laura at the finish

Bettles triathlon participants

and of course Nelson

 

Warm Again

Today was very warm again, mid 80's.   Laura and I went down to the river and waded around .  The river is fairly low and not all that cold, but very refreshing today.   Nelson also enjoyed himself. Another Kodiak came through too.  This one is on amphibs and is owned by the Department of the Interior. 

Nelson and Laura wading the Koyukuk

Kodiak owned by the Department of the Interior

Greenhouse

Here are some pictures of the greenhouse and the things growing in there. 

Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Zucchini

Green Beans

How warm it is in an arctic greenhouse at 9pm

We also launched the second beaver today.

Nelson upset that Vancouver lost the Stanley Cup

Random Aircraft and Bugs

   There have been quite few different planes and helicopters come through town lately.  I have only managed to get pictures of a few of them though.  Last night I fueled a Kodiak that came through.  There has also been an R-44 helicopter doing some work out of Bettles.  Among other planes, there has been a Beaver with a turbine conversion that is on amphibs, a Shorts Skyvan, which in my opinion is an ugly airplane. 
   On another note the mosquitoes are out in full force.  They are thick and they are mean.  It makes being outside without some sort of protection not very fun.  Laura has to wear a head net to water her garden.

Quest Kodiak

Robinson R-44

Token Nelson Picture

Green Up

Things have really gotten green the last few days. It seemed like it almost happened overnight.  The warm weather we have been having probably helps with that.  It hit 83 degrees here in Bettles today and is 78 right now at 9:15 pm.   Laura planted last night in the greenhouse and the plants seem to be loving it.  At one point I looked in there this afternoon and it was 103 degrees and the humidity was really high.    We also put the first Beaver in the float pond today. All went smoothly and it is now ready to go. 

Nelson enjoying greenup

Main drag, downtown Bettles

Higher water on the Koyukuk

Runway 01 Bettles

Snow's Gone

I guess I can say that the snow is all gone now.  The only exception is the giant snow pile out on the ramp where it was plowed up last winter.   I think we got close to 70 degrees today and then had a good thunderstorm brush by us this evening, which dropped the temperature about 15 degrees.   We pulled the Otter outside today so we can get to the Beaver behind it. 

Nelson enjoying the lack of snow

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dark clouds with thunderstorm

Nelson playing fetch in a thundershower

The Otter outside after the rain washed it off

Bettles

Nelson and I got to Bettles yesterday and Laura joined  us this morning.  There is still plenty of snow but it is melting.  It is good to be back and things don't seem to have changed much.  Here are a few pictures I took this evening. 

Skid Row

BRA Office

Greenhouse

Nelson attacking a moose

Road Trip North

The day after Easter Laura, Nelson and I headed north to Alaska.  The first day we drove just north of Fort Saint John B.C.  We had nice weather and good roads.

Stone Sheep near Toad River

 We also saw some elk and bighorn sheep in Jasper National Park, and quite a few deer everywhere else along the road.  The second day we drove to just past Whitehorse, YT.   This day we saw moose, caribou, stone sheep, and of course deer.

Caribou near Muncho Lake

 We woke up on the third day to a very frosty morning, about 19 degrees.  We were in Fairbanks, AK by 2 pm on the third day.

 

Laura and Nelson "enjoying" the drive.

 All in all the trip went well with no problems or bad weather and went by fairly fast.  The only complaint was the price of gas, close to $6.00 a gallon in Canada.