Being sunday the School was closed so we couldn't do our usual presentation to the students at the school. I left LEGEND at Donna's Family to rest and being shipped out to NOME at Chris Home. Thank you Legend for the good job done until today….We left at 2pm towards Shaktoolik. As on arrival, getting out of the village we had to cross a whole lot of overflows. There was very little snow on the trail, lots of rocks and frozen tundra to wait for us. At least I finally got to see in daylight the landscape of this section which I already traveled in the Iditarod '96 during night time and under a severe snow storm. Today there is a strong tail wind, an almost non visible trail if not for those poles and sticks with reflective tape on them.
The Eskimo guy in Old Woman, told us that after 20 miles from Unalakleet we could have turned left at a little lake " Steamboat " on the coast, to run on the sea ice, making so a short cut of about 4 miles on the overland trail. But I ensure you that it has not be so fun to run on that sea ice with a layer of 6 inches of running water from the strong tail wind. We all ended up real wet and with the back of my eye I always checked for cracks on the ice or open waters in a distance, which we actually found once back again on the shore, with all its power and strong noise by the waves, which we could see right before Shaktoolik just upon our arrival after 5 hours of travel .In 1925 the Eskimo Mail carrier MYLES GONANGAN transported the Serum from Unalakleet to here but there are no details of his performance. The School Manager was waiting for us with a big smile! Don't need the sleeping bag tonight for an anonymous floor or cold camp out…I, Gianni, Sven and my dog team, are guest at a teacher's home and yard ( Linda ). I have NO WORDS to describe this sense of hospitality !! Tomorrow morning at 9 we'll perform our usual presentation + live music. After that, once carefully checked the conditions of the ice on the Norton Sound, we'll cross the sea ice for about 30 miles to reach the village of Koyuk.
ARARAD K
