One of the many planes grounded for 5 days.
Sapuraanga -- "I am weathered in"
We flew in to Akhiok Tuesday morning battling 30 - 40 knot winds and freezing rain. The dispatcher for the air service said that we should call him as soon as we were ready to leave so that he could arrange for a flight to pick us up. We called at 1:30 and the dispatcher said that his planes were on a weather hold. We called again at 3:30 and got the answering machine -- everyone at the office had gone home for the day. Needless to say we weren't going home until the next day. So we found a spot on the school floor and crawled into our sleeping bags.
The next morning we awoke to howling winds that made the school walls creak and moan. The rain was heavy and the forecast called for 40 knot winds across the island. We started making dinner plans for the night and rescheduling appointments for the day.
On the third day the weather looked promising. During a morning walk through the village we noticed that the clouds seemed to be lifting -- the wind was certainly more calm than days prior. After the walk we called three air services in Kodiak to find out if anyone would pick us up that afternoon. The fog in Kodiak was too low and noone was flying. So we ate lunch and joined in the badmitton unit during PE. After chasing the birdie we learned that a plane had made it to Old Harbor but could not leave due to fog. Again, we began thinking of dinner plans for the third night.
Day four offered much the same as day three. Low clouds in Akhiok and light rain. The dispatcher at the air service said that the Kodiak airport, shrouded in fog, didn't see a plane land or take off all morning. Meghan's birthday present traveling via UPS Second Day Air -- for an extra $16 -- did not make it to Kodiak either. At the Akhiok school we found another book, settled in, and periodically checked the weather cameras. Needless to say, the fog did not lift. In the late afternoon, around 3:30, we took a walk to the end of the road. The end of the road in Akhiok leads to the southern end of Kodiak Island. For a few minutes the sky opened to reveal a brilliant blue sky and a bright 1st Quarter moon. At the water's edge we scattered two large eagles and ravens from an empty deer carcass. Then, as quickly as it opened, the ceiling closed and darkness fell. We noticed bear tracks near the end of the landing strip and hustled back to the school. Bedding down for the fourth night, I was optimistic for a break in the weather. Perhaps Mother Nature and Brother Wind might rest on the weekend.
Without really looking I knew that the weather on day five was not promising. A grey fog sat over Village in Akhiok. On the camera Kodiak's weather, 90 miles to the North, looked just as bleak.
On the morning of the sixth day, the view from the school was spectactular. A bright orange ribbon of sun laced the horizon over the bay south of the village. The sky remained clear throughout the morning and we were picked up at 11:40 ending our extended stay in the village of Akhiok.
The village of Akhiok from the air; The village school in Akhiok
