I’m on Attu Island in Alaska as I write this. How insane is that? I’m 1,100 miles from mainland Alaska and I can still play poker and blog on the Internet. It is, admittedly, rather choppy Internet . (It's no worse than Maine in similar weather.)
The weather is awful!!!!! This place routinely sees 50-80 mph winds this time of year. At one point their records showed over 170 mph within the last year. I fall asleep each night to the sound of a freight train outside my window. I have not stepped a single foot outside since walking over from the runway last Wednesday. It’s not that it is that incredibly awful, it’s just so very intimidating. I keep waiting for an Imperial Walker to walk around the corner when I look out of the window. Hell, the windows! Half the time they’re plastered with snow from the drifts!
And yet I’m terribly pleased to be on this trip. It’s only a two week stay on the island. Well, IF the C-130 can land, it’s only two weeks. LORAN stations are the first step in the process of cutting the Coast Guard budget. Since I’ve been here they’ve already shut down their major signal. By next year this LORAN station and many (all?) of the other LORAN stations will be shut down permanently. Attu Island will return to Population Zero (as it probably should be considering how inhospitable it is). I’m glad I was given the opportunity to make it out here, even if the only pics I get are on my way back to the C-130 next week. :D
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