Caribou Hunt

March 2, 2011

We are having Culture Week March 14 – 18, 2011 at Lewis Angapak Memorial School.  I wanted to get some reindeer so the elders could show us how to butcher them, skin them, cook them, etc. and then serve them as part of a feast.  I was told I could get them for around $200 each.  When I called to order five the price was $700 each, well above my budget.  It looked like we would be relying on ice fishing and bird hunting if we were going to have any type of feast associated with Culture Week.  On February 26, 2011 I received a report that there were caribou about ten miles from Eek, AK.  Eek is about 40 mile from us, an easy snow-machine ride across the frozen tundra, lakes, and rivers.  I spoke with some folks from the village and my maintenance man, Mark, and his brother, Gabe, agreed to show me the way.  I need a guide because there are no road signs, no mileage markers, no rest stops, no nothing except snow and ice.  It is a good idea not to get lost at sub freezing temperatures, closer to zero than freezing.  We made plans to go on March 2, 2011 and hope the caribou had not move into higher ground.

The day of the hunt arrived.  I had packed my rifle, a Springfield 30:06 given to me by my father, water, snacks, and tarps.  I put on my cold weather Carhartt, long johns, wool sweater, head/face mask (2), cap, goggles, gloves, mittens, and my seal skin hat.   I decided to wear my parka also; I do not want to be cold.  I started to get hot while loading the sled so I had to strip down.  After I got loaded I got redressed and almost panicked because it was so claustrophobic.  I had to take the face mask, goggles, and hood off before we started to move because I felt like I could not breath.  Once we were moving I was fine except I started to get hot.  The snow-machine I was driving had a windshield and it protected me very well.  I took the face mask and mittens off as we went along.  I was comfortable then.  Let the ride begin. 

This was the third time I had been on a snow-machine and the first time for any long distance.  We started out across the tundra and then onto the river.  I knew the tundra would be bumpy but I thought I would get some relief on the river.  No, no relief, the river is affected by the tide so it had buckles, bows and cracks.  The snow forms drifts on it so you can be traveling along at 35 mph and all of the sudden hit a three-foot bone jarring drop or a rise that launched you.  You know that commercial; “Mom got air.” well I got air several times.  I would equate the ride to taking a Honda Gold Wing, with poor shocks, and riding over unimproved dirt roads at 30 – 45 mph.  I was just hoping I could hang on. It took about 1.5 hours to get over to Eek and I admit it, my arms and hands were so exhausted I was not sure I could hold on any longer.  Now the search for caribou started.

We rode about ten miles southwest of Eek and spotted two caribou, we decided to pass up on them since there were not enough for all of us, the bag limit is two each.  We went on and as we crested the next little rise there was a herd of around ten caribou.  They were close, but not close enough for a good shot so we moved up on them.  We followed them for a while and then flanked them with the three of us spread out as we came over another rise.  They were within shooting range walking away from us.  I did not even get off my snow-machine, I hit the kill switch, pulled up my rifle and squeezed of a round, Mark and Gabe said I could have the first shot, and I missed.  The herd split, some started coming back towards us while the other continued away from us.  My second shot was on the mark and a nice sized caribou went down.   I heard Gabe fire and saw a caribou fall, I scoped in on another large running caribou and hit the sweet spot, and I had by bag limit.  Gabe caught another one and Mark dropped one.  Five caribou for three hunters, it was a good hunt.

I field dressed mine so we can use them during culture week while Mark and Gabe butchered theirs.  I reloaded the sled and prepared to move out.  As we headed back we kept an eye out for more caribou since Mark still had an open tag.  We did not spot any before we hit the river and then it was off to the races. 

I guess they figured I was experienced enough now that they kicked it up to 40 – 45 mph.  I felt like I was flying across the snow and ice.  The skis would get caught in a rut and I would jerk to the right or left, I would hit a big patch of ice and start sliding left or right, I knew if I leaned into the slide wrong I would flip (I did flip on my first snow-machine ride) and I did not want to hit the ice at 40 mph.  I was holding on for dear life.  My knees were like hinges with my butt bouncing off the seat and then slamming back down.  I knew I was going to be sore tomorrow, and I was not wrong.

We got back to Tunt around 2:30 and we hung my caribous in the garage and I went home.  I was worn out.  I was very happy with the day, and please that I provided two caribous for the Culture Week feast.

The Photo below is graphic - scroll down for a photo of me and my cows

Forgot to post

2/5/2011

Last night we had a potluck at the school.  It was my first opportunity to try some of the traditional Yup’ik foods.  Two of the ladies from the village brought Akutaq, which is also, know as Eskimo Ice Cream.  I had heard of Akutag since arriving in Alaska but had never had the opportunity to see it or taste it.  People told me about the ingredients and to be frank, I was not sure I wanted to try it (see recipe below).  There were two different Akutag served last night.  One looked sort of like cottage cheese with berries in it and the other looked like Crisco with berries in it.  I took a sample of both:  They did not taste as sweet as I thought they would, nor did they taste as greasy/lardy as I thought they would.  Each was sort of bland tasting with red and black berries mixed in.  Some of the berries were sour, really sour but other were sweet.  The biggest difference between the two was the consistency.  They were a good introduction to Akutag, I enjoyed them both and would eat it again.  Another food we had last night was rabbit soup.  The lady that made it told me she had Peter Cotton Tail in the pan over there.  I scooped out a bowl of it and got plenty of rabbit, noodles, and rice.  The taste was great and the rabbit, dark meat, was so tender you could just suck it off the bones.  By the end of the bowl, I was wearing part of it since I was using my fingers to hold the slippery bones and ka-plop, right back into the soup a piece went.  Additional dishes included moose and salmon with pasta along with the Gussak (white man) foods like burritos, curry, beef stroganoff, and lots of good deserts.  

1 cup solid vegetable shortening*
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water, berry juice, or 2 cups loose snow (optional)
4 cups fresh berries, (blueberries, cloudberries, cranberries, salmon berries, or blackberries)

* Crisco solid vegetable shortening is preferred

In a large bowl, cream vegetable shortening and sugar until fluffy. Add water, berry juice, or snow and beat until well combined.

Fold in berries, 1 cup at a time, until blended.

Place in freezer to firm up before serving.reduce the heat so it won’t bo

First snow machine ride.

One Sunday, January 9, 2011 I went my first snow machine ride. I went out for a walk and I stop by the shed where the school’s snow machine is kept. I have never been on a snow machine before so I decided to see if I could crank it up. It started very easily, I read the directions on how to shift, got on and backed out. I followed paths across the lake, the tundra, and between houses. The hardest place to ride was on the boardwalks because they are icy not snowy. I rode out to the airstrip then back across the village to the old airstrip. At the old airstrip I decided see how fast the snow machine would go. When I got up to 55 miles an hour I decided that was fast enough without a helmet. I rode back across the village out onto more tundra and came to a big icy patch. I found out the brake does not work very well on ice. I hit the brakes and the snow machine started spinning to the right, I guess I leaned too far to the left and over I went sliding on my butt. I got the snow machine rolled back onto its track and skis, dusted the snow off and away I went. I had a great time just tooling around the village. I also found out that snow machines, or at least this one, have heated handgrips and foot rest. The handgrips got so hot I could hardly hold on. I sure was glad when I figured out how to turn the heat off. I made it back of the shed, parked the snow machine and went home. I wonder if I'll be sore tomorrow after sliding across the ice. I had a good time today; I will be going back out tomorrow.

Christmas Break

I left the Tuntutuliak on December 23, 2010. I flew to Anchorage where I spent the night and then flew out at 6 AM December 24, 2010. I found it very comfortable couch in the observation deck and actually had a fairly good night sleep. I flew from Anchorage to Minneapolis-St. Paul and then for Minneapolis-St. Paul to Atlanta. The Minneapolis-St. Paul to Atlanta leg was very long and uncomfortable. My tall, fat body is just not made for flying coach.

When I got off the plane in Atlanta and entered the concourse I had the strangest feeling. There were more people waiting at the gate then in my entire village. For six months I had not been in a situation where I was surrounded by people, it was a very strange and unnerving feeling to be in such close proximity with that many people. I thought people were supposed to walk on the right side of the terminal but I must be mistaken, because as I walked down the right side, people coming at me literally ran into me. When I got on the people mover, it was even worse. I did not realize I am claustrophobic. I guess living in the village with only a few hundred people and wide-open spaces has given me a case of claustrophobia. Every place I went, malls, parking lots, restaurants, and on the freeway I couldn't help but think that I was surrounded by more people than in my entire village.

I took silver and king salmon, moose, and dried fish with me to Georgia. I cooked salmon for one dinner and the girls really enjoyed it. I made moose ribs one night but they were not a big hit. The girls enjoyed the moose roast I made better than the ribs; I guess it tasted more like beef. All three of the girls tried dried salmon but they didn't seem to really enjoy it. I guess dried salmon is an acquired taste.

School in Georgia was back in session before I left so I had an opportunity to visit Kristina's fourth grade classroom. It was a great opportunity to share my experiences so far in the village. The kids listened very well and asked lots of good questions. They enjoyed seeing some of the artifacts but I brought with me for show and tell. After I finished talking with them I gave each of them the opportunity to try some dry salmon and/or moose. Kristina had e-mailed parents the night before to let them know that their children would be able to sample dried salmon at school. None of the parents objected to letting their children try it. Some of the students did not try the dried salmon but I think most of them tried the moose. Most of them like the moose, because it is more like food there used to, more than the dried salmon. They were such timid eaters when it came to trying the dried salmon. Three parents e-mailed Kristina and said they would like to sample the salmon. I packed up sample bags of moose and dried salmon and sent it home with several students. I wonder what the dinner conversations were like as a parent sampled the moose and the dried salmon? I am glad the students had the opportunity to try something different.

Time flew by and I had no opportunity the to visit with anyone other than family. One of the things I have learned since coming to the village is how to make bread. I enjoy making bread and have spoken my sister several times about bread making. When we visited her on New Year's Day she conducted a bread making class. She had purchased Kristina, Tiffany, and me a bucket to make dough in. She walked each of us through how to make dough that is good for two weeks and requires no kneading. We used two packets of yeast, 6 ½ cups of flour, kosher salt, and warm water. After I mixed all ingredients together we just let it sit in the bucket for couple of hours. It doubled in size and looked a lot like sourdough starter. We grabbed about a quarter of the dough and rolled the edges under to make a nice loaf. We let the loaves rise for an hour and a half and then baked it. Later that evening we took another small portion of the dough and formed it into a pizza crust. We put sauce and toppings on it and cooked it without allowing the dough to rise. It made a great crust and bread. We all took our buckets and leftover dough home that night. The next day I took small portions of the dough and made flatbread. Again, as with the pizza dough, there was no need to let the flat bread rise, just flatten it out and brush with olive oil and bake. This is going to be a nice bread dough to have around. I can see making hotdog buns, hamburger buns, rolls, bread sticks, and just about any other type of bread out of this dough.