To Prudhoe Bay: Free camping south of Deadhorse

July 12, 2007

We all start to stir about 10am, 6 hours of sleep. Soon we are on the road again, we need to get to Deadhorse by 5pm for the Arctic tour. The light on the mountains is not as pretty as 4 in the morning.

We are now getting into the tundra having left the Boreal Forest after crossing the pass. The road starts to follow the Sagavanirktok River and we see the Franklin Bluffs. We have been told of muskoxen being seen near here and we spot a herd. The Basque Spaniards chase one real up close, Patrick and Tani at a little more discreet distance. Tani is only 19 but has taken the Northwest Outdoor Leadership School course (NOLS), the similar group we saw on the Denali Highway.

We are in the North Slope area where the landscape is wide-open, but the animals out there, except for muskoxen, are not to be spotted; wolf, wolverine, grizzly, red fox, caribou. At 3, we arrive in Deadhorse, which is just a collection of oil companies. We find the place where the tour originates. The guidebook says the place looks like a post-apocalyptic town...it's not even a town. No one lives here permanently, they work two weeks on and two weeks off being flown in and out. The Inn and Restaurant is really for the tour groups and where the workers eat. The eating hours are limited and the evening meal is an expensive buffet. We buy our tour tickets and see what we think is a convenience store...turns out to be where the workers come to get anything to eat. When Rachel asks about the carrot and celery sticks they say, "We'll work with you"...so she is able to buy a few for the spaghetti/albacore in white sauce dinner.

We are the only people on the tour along with a couple that arrived just about 5pm and are to go on the tour tomorrow. This same guy offered them a free tour if they'd change to today, he said "I have a deal that benefits me more than you". So at 5 off we go. The driver is "retired" and first shows us a 15min video about the oilfields... that is propaganda. We are driven around with the driver pointing out the oil companies--one is Haliburton sign with a shaped like a "forest" (plywood pine tree) and one pink flamingo.

Once through the checkpoint, we reach the Arctic Ocean. We take our shoes/socks off and wade into the ocean...it is cold! The others became a member of the Polar Bear Club and swim in the water in Prudhoe Bay. The tour didn't last long, we see one caribou with antlers at a distance and some swans. We are soon back in the truck and headed out of Deadhorse.

After about 44 miles, we camp by the Sagavanirktok River

. The mosquitos are very plentiful, so after dinner we all go into our tents. Patrick built a fire from wood collected from the side of the road and in the camp area.

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