Driving has never had a powerful appeal to me. Traveling always has, but I’ve never owned a car or arranged an extensive road trip, preferring planes and trains whenever I make plans.
But now that I’m in Alaska, four-wheelers have got me excited to drive. I finally understand why country singers write odes to their pick-up trucks and why most 16-year olds await their days at the DMV with endless longing.
It’s about the freedom to explore and the flexibility to do it on your own terms. Back home, that was easier done on foot or by train car. But in Nome, traffic is nonexistent, and the landscape just opens up when you leave the roads.
You can coast down West Beach forever seemingly, watching as the sun starts to set over Sledge Island. You can scale Anvil Mountain with careful steering, and it’s an entirely different adventure than when you hike. And you can motor through the muddy trails next to Icy View, waiting for the monolith that is Dredge 5 to emerge on the tundra.
Through the generosity of Bob Froehle, KNOM board member and gracious owner of two four-wheelers, I’ve had the opportunity to do all of these things. And with each excursion, the volunteers and I have gotten so much better acquainted with the beautiful land around us.
While the weather won’t be four-wheeler friendly deep into winter, I hope we’ll have the chance to get off the road and explore a bit more this fall — especially now that I’ve got the drive to do so.
