Another McGizmo Alaskan Adventure

[Sable]

As part of my job, I get sent routinely to some fairly remote places to work on our telecom equipment towers. This also means I have some time to kill while I'm done with the job, but waiting for a helicopter.

Yesterday, I went out to the top of Auke Mountain (2800ft, I think) and out to Sentinel Island, a little island about 10 miles south of town with a lighthouse on it. The light was amazing and I had my camera with me (along with a pair of trusty McGizmos - my new Lunasol 27 and my not-quite-new AlTiN Ti-PD-S) - so here's what I got.

Auke Mountain:

Sentinel Island:

Thanks for building and designing such incredible tools, Don. From the 49th state to the 50th, I can't say enough good things.

 

[McGizmo]

Thanks Sable! I think it might be warmer in the 50th state!

 

[Sable]

The extreme-cold-weather gear that's still in my car says you're right.

 

[Thujone]

Fantastic pics of wonderful lights on a grand trip... I think that justifies a thread Thanks for posting these up!

 

[Sable]

Thanks! I'm glad folk like 'em.

 

[bf1]

Don,

I'm jealous. What a great experience.

 

[Edwood]

Beautiful pics.

Got any pics of your standard extreme weather gear?

 

[Sable]

Thanks!

I don't have any pictures of my cold-weather gear, but I'll try to get some a bit later.

It's nothing super special - just good, heavy, warm long underwear, Columbia thinsulate snowpants, D,anner boots, an LL Bean heavy Thinsulate leather jacket and lots of layers a pair of Costco gloves, a balaclava and my ski helmet/ski goggles or snow goggles. It gets really cold on our mountains in winter, but that outfit's kept me plenty warm in -80+ wind chill - not that I was having a good time in that weather....

 

[craig333]

2800' qualifies as a mountain? Nice shots.

 

[Sable]

Well, round Southeast, it is one of the smaller ones. It's a good height for a telecom tower, though.

 

[jumpstat]

Wow nice pair of lights you have there, and thanks for sharing those beautiful pictures.

 

[Edwood]

Thanks!
-80+ wind chill - not that I was having a good time in that weather....

Negative 80!?!?!?!

 

[Sable]

That particular adventure was an emergency trip in the middle of some truly horrid weather to the top of Kensington Ridge - anotehr 2800-foot ridge in front of Lion's Head Mountain (I don't know the height, but it's very tall), a cathedral mountain that basically catches wind, cools it down, and blasts it over the ridge. It was the middle of December at 2:00pm - ambient air temperature was -20 degrees, and the wind was blowing about 55 miles an hour. Our pilot had to get the biggest, ballsiest helicopter the company had (Aerospatiale AStar dual-engine) to get us up there.

When my buddy and I decided that we'd rather leave the site down than die fixing it, we climbed back into the helicopter and asked him to take us home. The pilot, an ex-Marine helicopter pilot (Cool as a cucumber no matter what - he's a man I trust with my life regularly, and never with a shadow of a doubt) said in his best deadpan voice to us: "Y'know, guys...smart people wouldn't have done that."

When this guy says that...it's really damn true. We haven't been back in that kind of weather since. The video the pilot took of us trying to fix the tower is really kind of terrifying in hindsight - it's a hell of a story, though.

 

[FrogmanM]

Great thread Sable! Sounds like an interesting profession, and your two McGizmo's look ready for the job as well!

Mayo

 

[kaichu dento]

Thanks Sable! I think it might be warmer in the 50th state!

I think you would be right! It's been snowing here all day and is starting to accumulate again.

Put all the sno-go's away Tuesday after having done the last tour of the season last Sunday, but if it keeps coming down I may have to bring a few of them back down!