25 July: Days-47, Total-49; Miles-34, Total-1682 – Chuck

There were a few showers in the morning but they stopped by 11am. We used this opportunity to dry gear, wash clothes, bathe and cook some great chow. Down by our canoes, Bill found four bottles of "Alaska" beer and a note scratched in the sand. The large letters said, "From the MN-ANS". Obviously, Ron & Dave had paid us a visit earlier in the morning. They knew we were paddling on a night schedule and let us sleep while leaving their calling cards. We must have passed their camp last night without knowing it; quite possibly they were on the opposite side of an island.

For days, Bill has been promising a surprise the first morning we had time to cook breakfast. He whipped up a large raisin bran cake in a Teflon skillet. He keeps turning the dough just before it starts to burn, then dishes it up in a big crumbly pile while it is still a bit doughy. It was absolutely wonderful. It is a full size cake mix by Sun Maid and there was plenty for the two of us.

We were paddling by 2:30pm. It was cloudy, but no rain. Soon we were in the main current and moving along at 5mph. The Ilikat Mountains were on our right, they are probably less than two thousand feet high. The obvious tree line is about midway up their slope. A clear mountain stream provided water to top off our drinking water containers, fill my solar shower bag, and chill two jumbo Snickers bars. Wearing sandals and wading in the ice cold water makes for fast work. As we paddled off it took 30 minutes for our feet to rewarm; it was invigorating.

Apparently, Dog Fish Landing consists of only a couple houses. We weren't sure when we passed it. Russian Mission is a large village. It is the first Eskimo community we have reached. They use a different type boat than used by the Athabaskan Indians. The Eskimos use large open boats with "V" or "semi-V" hulls made of either aluminum or fiberglass. They are powered by large outboard motors, 50-200 horsepower. The Indians were using somewhat smaller flat bottom boats with a small cab/hut attached to protect the driver and passengers. The Eskimo boats appear to be more sea worthy.

It was about 7pm as we passed Russian Mission without stopping. Some young boys sat on top of a large metal shipping container and watched as we paddled downstream. The village was scattered over a hillside. Roof tops and large satellite antennas stood out with the setting sun in the background. We are now in Eskimo country!

A large sandy island presented itself at about 11pm. It was our home for the night. Not more than a half-hour after we were in our tents, it started sprinkling rain. Later, it was pouring. I did not realize that a fine mist was blowing through the mesh at the foot of the tent. All items at that end of my little house got wet, including the foot of my sleeping bag. I zipped the door closed, dried things off the best I could and went back to sleep.