Illumination from the Constellations

I went out for a ski tonight and it turned out to be pretty amazing. I decided to try out the groomed trails on the UAF campus where parts of the trail system are illuminated. I set out, and after no more than 20 feet or so, realized that the groomed trails are slightly different from the open field that I had been used to for skiing. For those of you who are not familiar with xc skiing, some trails are "plowed and packed" in a way that makes the trail pretty smooth. If you classic/Nordic ski, then there are two runners for a track on the side of the trail, with the middle open for skate skiing. So with my fresh kick wax and groomed trails, I set off - and pretty fast!! It was great, I got up to some pretty good speeds in a few of the hills. But then I started to get a little too comfortable and at the bottom of one hill, the trail curved off to the right, and down I went. No biggie though: got up, brushed off the snow, and went on my way.

So the first part of the trails are illuminated just off campus, and then some of the trails extend into the Boreal Forest. Smith Lake is frozen over, and the trail passes that park with some trails passing over the thick ice but then the lighted trails end. I turned on my headlamp and started up the hill through the thick spuce and birch trees. The condensation from my breath was freezing quickly and just creating a white cloud in front of my face, so I turned off the headlamp to see if I could still see the tracks in front of me. To my suprise, it wasn't too bad. At first I was a little nervous and then regretted not bringing along my bear spray - I imagined a bear or moose coming out of the trees ahead of me. I'm 24 years old and sometimes the dark still plays tricks on me! Anyway, at the top of the hill, the trees clear and the trail opens up to a large field. I stopped abruptly in my ski tracks to take it all in. Tonight there were the clearest skies I have seen in a long time, and constellations glittered the sky. Over the tree line the pink glow of the city lights peaked above the taller trees, but really the only light was coming from the stars and reflecting off the open field of untouched snow. I really wish I could have captured it on camera for all of you, but my camera is just not cut out for that. I skied around the field, twice, in a big loop (still groomed tracks). There were also some trails extending off even further, but decided to attempt them later - with more daylight. So yet again I have been amazed at the beauty of this place. It is going to be so hard to leave...

So as I skied back to the lighted trails, and passed through some of the shorter loops at the main area of trails. Seeing the signs for "Midnight Express" and "Big Whizzy", I declined to adventure there as I really wasn't sure how these trails got their names.... :/

So we've had some abnormally warm weather (sometimes getting into the teens!). And also some humidity - which apparently is VERY strange for the Interior this time of year. A couple weeks ago at skiing in -30' weather created some ice formation on my face, and even with higher temps now, the humidity blessed my eyelashes with more of the white stuff. My self portrait with the thermometer didn't get all of my hand in the picture, but that's a thumbs-up for above 0' temperatures!

I continued along the trail and decided that I should head back, after all I'd been out for over an hour and a half, and even with layered clothes and hot-hands in my boots, I knew I shouldn't be out much more than that. I had been skiing with my iPod, but after seeing all the stars and bright snow, I had turned it off to not distract me. I got going at a pretty good pace but soon froze in my tracks when I hear this loud, grumbling engine rev up to the left of me. A take a look and it is a GIANT satellite that is turning directions for whatever reason. I'm sure it is part of the Geophysical Institute at UAF, but it scarred the crap out of me. I was not expecting that at all, but after I got my bearings, I started off again. Not 100 ft from my last startle, all of the sudden the trail lights go out. I froze for a moment, not seeing a thing, then remembered that I had the headlamp on. Phew! So now I know they shut the trail lights off at 9 pm.... good to know.

So it turned out to be a great night out with the skis, and I'm pretty bummed I won't be shipping the skis back to Omaha. I inquired about shipping them home, and it costs a bit more than I expected. Not sure it's worth it. But maybe I'll buy a new pair later, even though these used, heavy skis from Play It Again Sports turned out to be a great investment!

As my time comes to a close...

Choosing Fairbanks, AK for my 20 week clinical rotation was one of the best decisions I have made in my life. It has been such a great adventure. I have been able to see and do so many things, meet some very interesting people, see some of the most beautiful views on Earth, and taken a new appreciation to life.


I have 2 weeks left here, and my departure is going to be bittersweet. I am very much excited to come home and be with my family and see friends, but Alaska has become a second home. A small piece of my heart will stay here when I leave. I have come to really enjoy working with the staff here in the Rehab department, and I have been offered to come back and work here. Justin and I have discussed the situation, and would both love to live here, we'll just have to see how things go in the next couple months with Justin's work at the lab, my graduation, and the wedding. :D




I've been trying to decide how I would describe my time here in Alaska, and I just can't find the right words to give it justice. The land is beautiful, the people are wonderful - often bizarre! and it definitely has it's extremes! A couple weeks ago I went cross country skiing at -38' F. If you would have told me a year ago that I'd be enjoying outdoor activities at such extreme temperatures, I would have laughed - hard. The weather really isn't that far off from an elongated cold, windy winter in the Midwest, but the hours of daylight sure gets to ya. Today, we had less than 5 hours of daylight. We are only about 2 weeks from the solstice, so the days shouldn't get much shorter. I was able to see a bit of the sun today outside of one my patient's windows. I actually thanked them for having their blinds open. Although I don't see much of the sun on days that I work (sunrise after 10 and sets just after 3), it sure does create some beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I have seen the Aurora once while I've been here, and hope to get a colorful show before I leave - we'll have to see. And just for reference if you ever spend time in the winter at this latitude, you need to have about 5x the amount of vitamin D in your diet. I learned the hard way, increased my dosage, and have learned to appreciate the darkness. You can have quite a bit of fun with a headlamp and a full moon reflecting off all the snow!

On the work side of things - the culture and society of Alaska has made the job as a physical therapist slightly different from what it would be "outside" (what everyone up here calls the lower 48). I have worked with a patient who was riding his bike to work and hit a moose - needless to say, he was pretty banged up. I have written a goal for a 65 year old woman to be able to walk a mile over uneven ground while carrying her heavy rifle so she could hunt for her food for winter. Patients who are healing from shoulder surgery often have to chop wood to heat their cabins. A young man we saw in the hospital was hit by a snow machine (snow mobile) and broke his leg (some of the craziest x-rays I have ever seen) and after the bones didn't heal - had to have his leg amputated. This wouldn't be such a big deal, but he lives in an Arctic village, and we had to make sure he could walk the 50 feet with crutches and ice grips to get to his out-house. On that note, I learned what a "honey bucket" is. Although it sounds nice initially, it is not. Think of a make-shift commode in your house that you use when it's -60' and you can't even go outside to the outhouse!!


Just as a few more randoms about Alaska... Alaskan Amber is one of the best beers I've had in my life. You have to plug in your car for 4-5 months out of the year so that you can start it in the morning. The roads aren't plowed for the most part - just drive over the snow until it is packed then throw down some gravel into the intersections. Getting dressed to go outside is quite the task. The most beautiful drive (picture above) I have ever taken is between Los Anchorage (big city!) and Fairbanks along Denali Park and through Bison Gulch - glacier blue streams and rivers wind along the highway with beautiful mountain slopes on either side. Puffins are the funniest birds to watch - they eat so much food that they can't fly and just paddle over the water really fast to escape getting run over by boats! And the glaciers are really melting, and I'm glad that I was lucky enough to play on a few of them, because at this rate they won't be around much longer.


So as I start packing and preparing for my departure, I think back to the last 5 months and the time when Justin was able to be here with me. It has been such a wonderful experience, and I can't wait for the next chance that I have to come back.

More Picture Links

Here are some more links to albums on Facebook for those of you who don't have the world's largest social network.... ;)

www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2162206&id=38201797%l=b2089e892e

www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2164540&id=38201797&l=d0160a6f01

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