DODGING SNOW MACHINES AND STAYING WARM

It continues to be very cold here, especially on days like today when the wind blows relentlessly and is accompanied by low temperatures.  I may take the bus to work or back if it gets colder, but so far am keeping toasty warm in my layers of down, fleece and Gortex, Baffin boots and several layers of gloves and mittens, neck warmer, hat and scarf.  

 I was slightly disoriented after leaving the post office today, missing the opening in the fence where I usually begin my return walk home.  The daylight makes things look different...I feel sure that I wouldn't have missed my route if it were still dark.      

 An Inupiat woman saw me looking puzzled and asked where I was going.  She gave me directions and offered to have her son or husband give me a ride home.  I was impressed that the entire time we were talking, she wasn’t wearing gloves and she was waving her arms in the direction of my street, not seeming cold at all.  

 I was grateful for the offer, but really do enjoy the fresh air and because it is light here during the day, I love seeing everything covered in varying thicknesses of snow.  It really is beautiful.  I was much colder walking home, going into the wind, so turning around and walking backwards for a while allowed time for my face to warm up and for me to catch my breath before turning around and to go forwards again. 

Current Barrow Observation
 
6:53 PM AKST Saturday February 2
 
-11°F  
   BlowingSnow 

 Pressure:  

30.11" steady (1019.6 mb)
 RelHum:  
78%
 Skies:  
Partly cloudy
 Winds:  
NE at 24 mph
 Wind Chill:  
-38°F

When walking across the lagoon in the darkness of the morning or after work in the evening, at least once a week, I share my route with a person riding a snow machine, either going the same direction or the opposite.  Our encounters are always a bit uncomfortable and I’ve learned that the trick to not getting run over is to hold my ground until the last moment and then jump out of their path if they don’t seem to be going to deviate.  I’ve tried moving to the far right or left long before they reach me, but I don’t seem to be good at anticipating where they’ll go on the broad lagoon with no set trails, and invariably feel too close when we cross paths. So much of the time I feel very relaxed and happy here.  I imagine that having my sympathetic nervous system kick into high gear once in a while has at least long term benefits.  

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