Day 22 of Lupe’s 2017 Dingo Vacation to the Yukon & Alaska!
5:18 AM, 44°F – Already light out, but dense fog hides everything. A strange noise, possibly electronic, is coming from somewhere every few seconds. SPHP checks the camera. No, it wasn’t left on. Lupe is awake. She hears the noise, too, but seems unconcerned. After a minute or two, the noise stops. Odd. Whatever. Back to sleep.
7:54 AM, 44°F – Wow, stayed conked out a long time! Still foggy, but the silvery Sagavanirktok River is now in view. Loop’s ready to get out and sniff the air. There’s that strange noise again. It’s not electronic. Birds resembling loons afloat on the Sag are the source. Cool!
It’s Monday morning. Deadhorse is awake now and apparently back to work, no longer the ghostly place it was last night. Loop hears loud noises, a variety of banging and clanging coming from across the Dalton Highway. The Carolina Dog hates loud noises! Lupe wants back in the G6, where she curls up to snooze some more.
9:00 AM, 45°F – The trip journal is caught up again now. Lupe’s nap is done. The fog has lifted somewhat. Out of the G6 for another look at the Sagavanirktok River. Then it’s time to scout out breakfast possibilities, and find out more about the Arctic Ocean tour – today’s big event!
In 2016, Lupe had taken the Dalton Highway halfway to Deadhorse. She’d climbed a pair of wonderful peaks in Alaska’s Brooks Range, Sukakpak Mountain and Dillon Mountain, and gone on her 2016 Last Mile North adventure.
While in the Brooks Range, Lupe and SPHP had met several groups of people who had been all the way to Deadhorse at the end of the Dalton Highway. Deadhorse is only 6-8 miles S of Prudhoe Bay. However, for oilfield security purposes, the public is not allowed free access to the Arctic Ocean. The only way to get there is by taking a guided tour.
SPHP asked everyone Lupe met if they had taken the Arctic Ocean tour, but nobody had. Everybody liked Alaska’s North Slope, and most had seen some really cool wildlife along the Dalton Highway – snowy owls, arctic foxes, caribou and even musk ox – but no one liked Deadhorse, an ugly industrial complex. And no one thought the price of the Arctic Ocean tour was worth it. Everyone had seen other oceans elsewhere, and that was good enough for them.
Really? The Arctic Ocean not worth it? Not even once, just to have been there and seen some part of the polar ocean at the top of the world? SPHP already knew that Dingoes weren’t officially allowed on the Arctic Ocean tour, but intended to plead Lupe’s case. If Loop had to buy a ticket, too, so be it. Even cheapskate SPHP would spring for that, if it meant the American Dingo could stand on the shore of the Arctic Ocean!
The Arctic Ocean tour begins at Deadhorse Camp, a long boxy yellow tan building visible on the L side of the Dalton Highway on the way into Deadhorse. Lupe had stopped by Deadhorse Camp late yesterday evening.
Since Deadhorse Camp was already within sight, SPHP drove over there first. Lupe waited in the G6 while SPHP went inside.
Already a little past 9:00 AM, it turns out that the first Arctic Ocean tour of the day has already left. The tour is conducted twice daily. A shuttle bus leaves from Deadhorse Camp at 8:30 AM and 3:30 PM. Each tour typically takes a little under 2 hours. Most of the tour is actually about the Prudhoe Bay oilfield. However, limited access to the Arctic Ocean is provided for 15 to 30 minutes. Cost is $69.00 per person, which includes all taxes and fees.
Fine, fine! It was all fine, except for one thing.
I’m sorry, Loopster! You can’t go. I tried to talk them into it, even offered to buy you a separate ticket, but it all fell on completely deaf ears. They were adamant. No Dingoes allowed.
I won’t ever get to see the Arctic Ocean?
No. I know it isn’t fair, and I’m terribly sorry. Apparently there’s just no way to get them to change their minds.
So, now what?
Well, if you don’t mind, I’d like to go on the tour myself, as the personal representative of the Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood. It’s the best we can do under the circumstances.
And I have to wait here in the G6?
Yes. It’s only a couple of hours. You can take it easy, and have another nap.
I suppose that’s OK, SPHP. As Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood, I suppose I really ought to send you as my representative since I can’t go myself. Are you leaving now?
Oh, good. Glad you see it that way, Loop. No, I’m not leaving yet. The next tour isn’t until later this afternoon. We can go do some other stuff in the meantime.
Like what?
Well, for starters, we should go to the end of the Dalton Highway. The Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood should get her picture taken there for posterity, don’t you think? It’s only a couple of miles from here.
Oh, yeah! That’s true! We didn’t get a picture there last night, did we? Let’s go get that taken care of before we forget.
SPHP congratulated Lupe on reaching the end of the Dalton Highway. Maybe she would like to send her Grandma a postcard from Deadhorse? Loop thought that would be a good idea! Wouldn’t Grandma be surprised to learn she was way up here practically at the Arctic Ocean?
The clerk at the Prudhoe Bay Hotel had given SPHP a simple map of Deadhorse last night. It didn’t show much detail, but all the major roads were on it, and so was Brooks Range Supply. The clerk had said Brooks Range Supply had a gift shop. That might be a good place to look for a postcard.
When Lupe reached Brooks Range Supply, she found a sign welcoming her to Deadhorse, Alaska on the side of the building. SPHP recognized this sign, having seen it online before Lupe ever left home on this Dingo Vacation. Now Lupe was actually here, thousands of miles from home!
SPHP went into Brooks Range Supply while Lupe lounged about in the G6. The main floor was a giant parts store. No doubt it all would have been enormously useful if Loop intended to start up her own oilfield. However, as profitable as that might have been, it wasn’t actually the case.
A little exploring revealed that the Deadhorse post office was located here, too. It was also on the main floor down a hallway. The gift shop turned out to be a much smaller area upstairs. The gift shop had lots of clothing, mugs, and all that sort of stuff for tourists. They had postcards too, but the postcards about Alaska were all generic. SPHP had hoped to find something specific to Deadhorse, Prudhoe Bay, or the Arctic Ocean. No such luck.
SPHP bought an Alaska postcard, anyway. SPHP then returned to Lupe in the G6, to write up her postcard to Grandma before mailing it. Lupe made sure SPHP mentioned she was sending lots of love to Grandma, too.
After mailing the postcard, it was late morning. Still plenty of time left before the afternoon Arctic Ocean tour. On the way to Brooks Range Supply, SPHP had seen a multi-story hotel called the Aurora. Maybe it was possible to get lunch there? It meant another wait for Lupe in the G6, but she didn’t mind as long as she got some Taste of the Wild.
Upon entering the Aurora Hotel, signs indicated blue slip-on boot covers were required to help keep the hotel floors clean. This is apparently standard practice everywhere in Deadhorse. The Prudhoe Bay Hotel had required them last night, too. The disposable boot covers were provided free at the entryway, along with benches to sit on while putting them on. Everyone complies, and so did SPHP.
Coming to the Aurora for lunch proved to be a fantastic idea! SPHP learned that an all you can eat luncheon was about to be served. It was buffet style and being set up right now. $15.00 tax included. A huge, high-ceiling dining area featured tall glass windows overlooking Lake Colleen. When the buffet was ready, the food was delicious! A wide variety of entrees was available. Being the middle of the day, the dining room was mostly empty. The Aurora’s customers are mostly oilfield workers, who were either working or sleeping this time of day.
SPHP tanked up on everything imaginable while watching waterfowl on Lake Colleen. It was 12:34 PM when SPHP waddled out of the Aurora.
Certainly took your sweet time, didn’t you?
Oh, Loopster! Too bad you can’t go in there. The Aurora is fantastic! So good. Better get used to the wait. Found out breakfast is served 4:30 AM to 7:30 AM. Not missing that before we leave Deadhorse in the morning.
Well, at least someone is having a grand time in Deadhorse!
Oh, come on. Here, I’ve smuggled you out some bacon. Besides, you’re going to have some fun now. We have time for a Sagavanirktok River walk. Should be a good time.
Bacon? Now you’re talking, SPHP!
For an hour, Loopster did have fun along the Sagavanirktok River. She explored rock jetties along the riverbank. She sniffed around gullies in the tundra nearby. The Carolina Dog watched geese flying in formation, and barked excitedly each time an airplane roared low overhead.
The Sag looked all silvery from even a short distance, but up close it was more of a greenish silver. The water was neither murky nor particularly clear. It was possible to see quite a few feet down into the water. The river was hundreds of feet wide, but other than the main channel, most of it didn’t appear deep. Though the current looked strong, the river’s surface rippled only slightly.
Deadhorse was a busy place in the middle of the day. Lupe eventually became concerned with all the industrial noises she was hearing, and wanted to return to the G6. (1:57 PM) SPHP had noticed that a small gift shop in the Aurora Hotel did have postcards about Prudhoe Bay. Might as well go back and get one. Time enough to do that before heading over to Deadhorse Camp.
2:45 PM – Loop’s relaxing in the G6. Just arrived at Deadhorse Camp to pay for the Arctic Ocean tour. The guy who takes the money asks for SPHP’s identification, which is duly presented, then mentions there’s a problem. Half an hour ago, BP (formerly British Petroleum, which holds the lease in the tour area) emailed the Deadhorse Camp tour operators that everyone must make reservations at least 24 hours in advance. This is so they have time to run an FBI check.
In recent times, this has always technically been a requirement, but they haven’t been enforcing it. SPHP can’t go on this afternoon’s Arctic Ocean tour, unless the BP people waive the requirement. Will seeing an American passport help? No. It all depends on the shuttle bus driver, who is a long time BP employee. Until he arrives, nothing to do but wait. The Deadhorse Camp guy says he will encourage a waiver, but no promises.
3:30 PM – The shuttle bus has arrived. The driver hadn’t even seen the email yet. The Deadhorse Camp guy says that when he does, the driver checks everyone’s ID information then agrees to simply blow the email off, at least for this afternoon’s tour. The Arctic Ocean tour is a go! SPHP pays the $69.00 in cash, and climbs aboard the shuttle bus along with the 4 other people taking the tour. Minutes later, the tour is underway.
The tour is very informal. The driver gives no prepared talk, but is willing to answer questions. He is an Alaska native born in Kotzebue, a town of 3,500 on the W coast a little N of the Arctic Circle. He has seen herds of several thousand wild reindeer there. Zinc mining is the big employer in Kotzebue.
The driver has been working on the North Slope for 28 years in various capacities, and lives in Anchorage now. Most oilfield workers do. The company pays for flights between the job and Anchorage, on a rotating on/off cycle. While in Deadhorse, everyone works every day. Not much else to do here, anyway.
A brief stop at the East Checkpoint. The tour is authorized to continue on through the Prudhoe Bay oilfields. The driver points out several of the many scattered oilfield facilities seen from the road, and explains their purpose. If requested, he will stop anywhere along the way for photos or a longer look.
What you get out of the shuttle bus part of the tour depends entirely on what you put into it. Ask no questions, and it’s just a taxi ride. You won’t learn much of anything. A man from western Colorado asks a number of questions. SPHP keeps up a near constant Q & A session with the driver, who is a friendly guy. No one else says anything, except a woman with a fancy camera who wants to stop wherever there’s wildlife.
SPHP notices a pile of clean white towels on the seat behind the bus driver, and makes a joke about should have brought a bathing suit, then suddenly realizes that’s exactly what those towels are for. The shuttle bus driver confirms it. Dang! Really should have worn a bathing suit. Never even thought of it until now. A swim in the Arctic Ocean would have been something! Too late now.
Something like half an hour after leaving Deadhorse Camp, the shuttle bus arrives at its destination. This is it, the Arctic Ocean! Everyone piles out. Ahead a gravelly spit of land protrudes a couple hundred yards out into the sea. No one can go anywhere except this one little peninsula. The driver says that Prudhoe Bay is on the L (W) and the Beaufort Sea is on the R (E). Seems unlikely to be strictly true, but we’re going with it. Everyone walks out toward the end of the spit.
Everything is gray. The ocean is gray, the sky is gray, the rocks are gray. The sea is quite calm. SPHP takes off shoes and socks, and wades in. The water is cold, but no worse than the streams Lupe has been fording in Alaska. The water is surprisingly shallow near shore. SPHP wades 30 or 40 feet out into the Beaufort Sea. The ocean is only knee deep.
The personal representative of the Most High Exalted Dingo of the Arctic Sisterhood stands out in the Beaufort Sea experiencing the Arctic Ocean for 5 minutes, then bends down to pluck a stone off the seabed. Except for a narrow white stripe, the stone is a uniform dull gray. Worn smooth by the action of the waves, it’s a little over 2 inches long. A 0.25 inch diameter depression on one side is the only significant feature.
A souvenir. Something real to take home from the Arctic Ocean. Utterly meaningless to the rest of the world, but forever a tangible reminder of this moment a few tens of feet off the N coast of Alaska. Clutching the small stone, SPHP wades back to join the other tour members on shore.
Various energy industry facilities are off in the distance strung out all along the coast in both directions. Nearby a double row of rusty barrels extends out into the sea. Little waves lap the shore line. Too bad Lupe couldn’t be here. It’s a great day. Temps in the 40’s °F. Wonder what this place must be like in winter? Brutal, no doubt.
Other tour members start back to the shuttle bus. Must be time. SPHP lingers at the end of the spit, staring out across the Arctic Ocean. The North Pole is somewhere out there, still roughly 1,200 miles away. This is as close as SPHP will ever get.
The shuttle bus ride back to Deadhorse Camp retraces the original route to the ocean. Three arctic foxes playing together are the highlight of the return trip.
So, how was the Arctic Ocean tour, SPHP? Was it worth it?
Yeah, it was Loop. Really wished you could have been there the whole time, though. I waded right out into the Arctic Ocean!
Wasn’t it frigid?
Not as bad as I expected, but then it’s a balmy day in August. No worse than all the streams and bogs you’ve been traipsing through almost daily on this trip.
What did you like best about it?
Just being there, thinking about where I was on the globe. Zillions of people have been to the ocean, but not that many have ever been to the Arctic Ocean.
Hardly any Dingoes either, I don’t suppose, given the anti-Dingo policies around here.
Probably not, but your cousins have been there!
What?!
We saw three arctic foxes! They were playing together. You would have loved that. And their tails! Magnificent! I like your curly tail, but these foxes had some of the most exquisite tails you’ve ever seen.
Oh, fun! But I think I better stick with the tail I’ve got. I’m rather attached to it, and it to me. So, now what?
Well, how about a tour of Deadhorse? You can at least do that. We’ll just drive around seeing whatever there is to see. We can follow it up with a second Sagavanirktok River walk this evening.
Sounds good. Especially the river walk part. I’m not really so into all this industrial stuff, but we might as well see it while we’re here.
Leaving Deadhorse Camp, Lupe and SPHP drove most of the few major roads in Deadhorse. Several short side roads and a couple of large loops constituted most of the Carolina Dog’s Deadhorse tour.
Nearly everything Lupe saw was directly related to the energy industry. Various industrial installations, a wide variety of oil service companies, drilling rigs, heavy equipment, maintenance and storage facilities, and stacks of supplies were about it. White pickup trucks were all over the place, and semi trucks came and went.
The only businesses open to serving the general public seemed to be the small airport, a couple of unmanned gas stations, various boxy “hotels”, and the gift shop at Brooks Range Supply.
Not a single home was seen anywhere. All the oilfield workers live in the hotels.
8:17 PM – Having had a bite to eat, it was time for Lupe’s evening walk along the Sagavanirktok River. For the first time in many days, most of the sky overhead was completely blue, though clouds existed farther off in every direction. The Sag, as it’s called locally, reflected the sky and was now a beautiful blue itself.
The American Dingo wasn’t the only one out enjoying the lovely evening by the Sagavanirktok River. Several fishermen were trying their luck from the bank. A couple of hardy souls came floating down the river. Even though only a light intermittent breeze was blowing, a man kept trying to launch a green kite. The kite would soar briefly before plunging back to earth.
After a long relaxing stroll, Lupe reached a van parked near the river not far from Deadhorse Camp. The van belonged to a graduate student in theoretical chemistry from Germany. He was watching caribou far beyond the opposite bank of the Sagavanirktok with binoculars. The student let SPHP take a peek.
The theoretical chemist already had reservations to take the Arctic Ocean tour tomorrow. SPHP advised him to wear his swim suit. Lupe enjoyed being petted while the student and SPHP chatted.
This was far enough. The sun was getting low. The moment came to turn around, and begin the walk back to the G6.
Looper had quite a romp among the gullies near the river. She sniffed and explored to her heart’s delight.
The sun took a long time to slide toward the horizon. It was still light out and would be for a while when Lupe reached the G6 again. (9:37 PM) Almost an hour later, SPHP invited Loop to come out and watch the sun go down over the Deadhorse airport. A brilliant sunset seemed like a possibility due to some thin clouds.
The Carolina Dog was done for the day. She wanted to curl up under her blankie instead. SPHP left her to snooze, and walked 5 minutes to the top of a mound of dirt 15 feet higher than the surrounding tundra.
Alone, SPHP stood watching the sun sink. The sunset was pretty, but the hoped for pinks and reds never really developed. It was still a gorgeous evening, a magical moment. An Alaska Airlines plane took off from the airport and curved away overhead. A glistening Sagavanirktok River rippled by near the end of its journey to the Arctic Ocean.
Tomorrow Lupe would leave for other adventures. SPHP was glad she’d come here, though, beyond the Brooks Range and across the North Slope to Deadhorse at the N end of the Dalton Highway near Prudhoe Bay.
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