Gold Mining and Pilgram

There is a gold mining camp just down the road from Nome. Unfortunately, you have to drive on the beach using a 4 wheeler or truck to get there because there are no

roads and you have to cross a river. The camp is by the mouth of the Penny River. GPAA is associated with this camp, which is a big gold mininging organziation. People all over the US come to mine here. It is a cute place in a beautiful location. The camp itself is modeled from the old west. As you can see from the picture, the saloon is a big common area for everyone. There is also a cafeteria, church, and trading post. The camp opens up to the public on Friday nights. They serve free spagetti to anyone who can get to the camp and the night ends with a night of karaokee in the saloon. It is pretty fun. I have been there twice. The campers also divide their gold that was found that week. It is interesting to see all of the gold they have gathered.

Another adventure that I recently had is my first trip to Pilgram Hot Springs. This little town is located about 90 miles away from Nome. It was created in the early 1900s to house children. During this time, many people were getting sick with the flu. They wanted to protect the children so they built an orphanage and a church near these hot springs. No one lives there now but it is a popular tourist destination. Walking into the church, the first floor is an annex and what can be assumed to be a kitchen and dinning area. The worship part of the church is on the second floor. Another house out in this abbandoned village is the old orphanage. This is a sad building to walk into. The building is empty except some small rooms and closets with school desks shoved into it. It is also condemed. The first half of the building is fine to walk into but the other half looks like it fell from the posts that it was standing on to protect it from permafrost. If you leave the little abandoned village, you come across a path that will take you to the springs. There is so much sulfer that it smells like rotten eggs. Apparently someone had the idea that these springs would make a great hot tub. Near the springs, they build large 3-4 foot deep tub and had the springs pour hot water into it. We tried to get in but the water was so hot that your foot would turn red after 5 second of being in the water. I'm sure the water would be wonderful in the fall.

The Little Things

There are a lot of little things about Alaska that I would love to remember. For example, muskox are very typical to see around here. You are not allowed to get close to them but there is a short hunting season for them. They are like the cows of the north. They just wonder around the tundra and eat grass. It is always fun to see them in the most random places you can think of. We've seen them everywhere from near White Alice (the weird radio thing on top of Anvil Mountain) to eating grass near the correctional center. I remember reading somewhere that these animals are the closest animals we have from before the Ice Age. There is a picture of muskox above... clearly I don't have a good zoom function.

Another aspect of Alaska that I love is the ability to walk out to the tundra and pick berries. It sounds silly but it is a lifestyle. Many people pick enough berries for the winter. Typically berries go into Eskimo Icecream, which consists of seal oil, crisco, berries, and maybe some other things. It sounds nasty but it is pretty good! I typically make jam out of the berries. Pancakes are another good use of the berries. Between Leah and I, we have enough to last all winter. There is something very peaceful about picking berries so we always try and find an excuse to pick more berries.

Fireweed is another thing that is big up here. It is a flower that grows just about everywhere. It is so pretty and brings a lot of life to this part of the world. This purple flower is used to make honey, wine, and jam. I haven't made wine but my attempts at the other two are pretty good!