Winter is Here!

I start out warm. Emerging from the unit house on bike, I am wearing wool socks, winter boots, long underwear, pants, two jackets, glove liners, mittens, balaclava, neck gaiter, and ear warmer. There are still two hours before the sun rises and the temperature here is hovering around 0 degrees Fahrenheit. As I bike to work, it continues to get colder. Where I work at the Bureau of Land Management is the coldest place in Anchorage (not an exaggeration – the weather station here is consistently the coldest of the 17 stations reporting to NOAA) As a result, by the time I reach work, it is -16 degrees, and what I think is the coldest locale I have ever been in. Though my hands and toes are a little numb, and my legs are tingling and feeling a little uncomfortable, it is exciting to be out in such a temperature. I can feel my breath condensing and then freezing on my eyelashes and my snot begins to freeze a little.

Ice forming form my breath - on my neck gaiter, eyelashes, helmet, etc...

Winter began for me with the first major snow fall a week and a half ago. As the flakes began to come down on a Sunday afternoon, my unit mates and I rushed outside and soon were pelting each other with snowballs. The five inches or so of snow was and still is beautiful, but it also presented issues for transportation and commuting. For these three months here in Anchorage, I have been biking to work each day. After the snow, it took several days for sidewalks to be cleared, and even then, some were filled back in with plowed snow, or made otherwise unride-able by big chunks of ice and snow flung from the road. Unfortunately, the nearest bus stop from my work is over a mile – therefore, my solution has been a combination of biking and busing: I bike to the bus stop, catch a bus that I ride for about 3 miles, and then bike another mile and a half in to work.

just before heading off to work

waiting at the bus stop

The onset of winter has meant a few changes at work. Most outdoor work has ceased, unless very important. Snow plowing is the primary objective on mornings after it snows – this ordeal usually begins at 4:00 am in order to have the BLM facility cleared by the time employees arrive. Luckily, I do not take part in these early-morning festivities, instead enjoying several more hours of sleep! I have had an opportunity to operate the plow truck, however – a fun experience – and I think that I have more responsibilities with plowing in the future.

On the way back from work, the last rays of sun strike the Chugach Mountains. Biking is much easier on when the sidewalks are cleared (as in this image)!

I’ve noticed how relative temperature really is. Sure, -50 will always feel cold no matter who you are, but I’m really starting to build a new frame of reference than what I had back in Kansas. There, it was cold when it was in the 20s. Getting down in the teens was really cold! Fast forward to the current; -16 sets the benchmark for what is cold and later in the afternoon while biking home, 0 degrees feels pretty nice. Anything above 20 degrees would be downright balmy! And I’m sure my frame of reference will be shifted even further yet, as we really move into the cold months and I possibly venture into the interior of Alaska and it’s frigid temperatures.

"Pogies" - insulated overmitts that fit onto the handlebars of a bike. They are hand made in Alaska and all the bike commuters seems to use them. I just got them from work recently and haven't had much time to test them out, but they sure do keep your hands warm!

The amount of darkness has also been a change from the Kansas winters I’m used to. Today in Anchorage, the sun rose at 9:25 am and set at 4:06 pm. And we will continue to lose daylight every day until the winter solstice, a month away. There are flipsides to the short days however; it’s exhilarating to bike home from work with sunset’s colors blossoming across the sky or slowly fading into darkness. Also, with the sun setting so early, I often have much more time in the evening than I think (“Oh, it’s only 5:30? It feels like 8:00!”).

With all that darkness, lights are important. Here are the lights I currently have on my bike, with plans to add more!

There are many things I look forward to doing this winter season. Cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, seeing northern lights, and spending a night or two at a public use cabin are just several things on the list.

It might be cold, dark, and long. But I’m excited for what winter has to hold!

full moon rising