Autumn has always been my favorite season, so it’s bizarre to watch the transition from summer to winter in double-time. The signs on every highway proclaim “roads not maintained October through June” due to snow — and now I understand why. Last week there was snow on the Kuzitrin peaks, this week the Snake and Nome Rivers began to freeze.
Before long, the roads themselves will be frozen, too. In a place where plane travel is the only (and very expensive) way to get to Anchorage, the Nome highways have come to symbolize more than just transportation. For me, the roads are freedom — my little piece of sanity after a long week.
So as freeze-up becomes more and more of a reality, I find myself taking advantage of the highway system while I still can. Last weekend, Caitlin and I made another attempt at Dorothea Falls. While no ankles were harmed in the second foray, we did both succeed in soaking our boots in the river. (Again.) Still, it was worth the soggy toes and snow flurries to see icicles cascading down the canyon walls.
Continuing the theme of cold-weather water adventures, a group of us took a day trip out to Pilgrim Hot Springs on Saturday. Thankfully, the water there was a toasty 102 degrees — and the snow-covered peaks proved the perfect backdrop for an autumn soak. (The abandoned orphanage definitely helped the creepy Halloween vibe along, too.)
I’ve been scrambling to cram in as much travel as I can before winter sets in, driving the length of the Teller and Council highways and combing the beaches for sea glass every chance I get. But the colder weather also pushes into relief the most important aspect of life in Nome: The people. As the world outside shuts down, the value of friendship and community only grows — here more than any other place I’ve lived.
So while the prospect of surrendering those dirt roads still scares me, the trade-off seems more and more appealing every day. Slowly hikes and car rides are being replaced by potlucks and pumpkin carving with friends. And you know what? I’m kind of okay with that.
