Elim, by the sea

Sunrise from the school looking East.

To get to Elim from Fairbanks in one day, you need to take the 5 am flight to Anchorage, hang out in the airport for 4 hours, then board for Nome.  In Nome, you jostle your way to the overly small baggage claim and hope that the giant totes don't squash the food in your bag.   The totes are full of food bought in Anchorage and leave empty to come back full of the month's fresh stuff.   

Then you scamper across the parking lot in Nome to Bering Air to drop your bags for the 2 hour+ wait.  If you don't have at least 3 hungry, tired kids, including the requisite toddler trying to make a run for it, you won't fit in.  Amazingly, everyone was helpful and friendly and no guns were spotted.

  

I have a pretty glamorous job.  Here you see me eating out in Nome, pb&j by the river, sitting on a log.

On our way to Elim, we stopped at White Mountain, then Golovin, then finally Elim, a small village clinging to the Bering Sea.  It was not as badly damaged in the storm of Sept 18, 2022, but there is still evidence of repairs being done due to a washed out road and bridge along the coast.

   

The school is up high on a bluff with sweeping views of the ocean and village.  

  

Having kids put their stuff in bags reduces the amount of spread of any little vermin- bedbugs, lice, and other school-spread ickiness.  I don't know the reason for these particular bags.   The kids don't seem to mind.  The school has about 75 kids and is well staffed.  

  

Here's some sights you don't see everyday in a village...an ambulance and a Boys and Girls Club building.  The B&G Club has a steady presence in villages, but they don't all have a dedicated building.  The store had a great selection and prices were very reasonable considering the expense of shipping. 

                                      

Most communities use their school library for the whole community.  I loved spotting this library and was told that it is not currently open but has a great selection of books.  No National Guard presence now either, unlike Golovin.  The last view is Main St. Elim.

                                        

Sadly, this is a regular sighting in villages:  rusty barrels.  Once freight comes into a village, it rarely leaves, hence Connex trailers, old equipment, outdated communication dishes and barrels.  Hopefully these didn't contain toxic chemicals.

My brief survey of locals didn't yield any definitive results; it was evenly split whether Elim is pronounced E-lum or El-um.  So, I'm guessing it doesn't matter to anyone.

I was treated with curiosity and friendliness.  Shout-out to Louis who gave me rides to and from the airport and liked to joke.  Also, he gave me moose meat to take home- more precious than gold, food.

                                

Early thirty in Elim.