High in the Arctic !! Eskimo....

[Majik Imaje]

Polar Bears
Are now a protected species, recentlly added to the endangered list. According to a recent article I read, Alaska has 4,500 and I forget the # used for the rest of them. Eskimo's are now, KNOT ALLOWED to huint the Polar Bear, for the first time ever. This has been taken away from them.
More and more bears are drowning, because they can't make the huge long distance swims between ice packs due to "????
Global Warming.

ONLY IN LIFE OR DEATH SITUATIONS. can an Eskimo shoot & kill a polar bear now.. Three entered the village two days ago (Jan13th 07)... @ $15,000 per skin.. what do you think these people did when those three bears showed up right in the middle of town. There are no jobs here, very few..... A few hunters.. carefully escorted those bears back out on to the ocean ice!!!

Imagine this: (1990) I am driving home from Ada boat back to the village, I have 5 people! ha ha ha on my ATV.
my four sons, and my Eskimo wife. We are traveling along the beach. I have water on one side of me, and 20 feet away,
a cliff of land. In other words I am on land only 20 feet wide. Beach sand, this honda 4 wheeler loaded up like this
can only go 25 mph. A bear can run @ 40 mph!!! It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who is gonna win
that RACE!!.. I am traveling.. and I notice..... I am FOLOWING fresh bear tracks, in the sand. OMG am I scared out
of my wits.!! I have no weapon, (cept God's word) (whew, that's all I need) but a AUTOMATIC GATTLING GUN of
prayers of desperation flew up to the Throne of Grace. What am I going to do ??? there is absolutely no where to go!!!
Me and this bear are gonna have to duke it out!! Unless, the Lord of Creation, intervenes!.. OMG am I scared !!!
We have four types of bears up here. Polar bear, Grizzly bear, Brown Bear and Black bear. I know this isn't a Polar Bear
or is it. There is no ice.. so chance are. it isn't a polar bear. Hey I am a city boy from Boston! what do I know about fighting
a bear!!! ha ha ha.. where do you kick him. ha ha ha ha.. I got only one choice if we meet.. hold up my hand and scream
In the Name of Jesus.. shoo!!! ha haha. but my humor level was submerged deep within the chilling fear that was coming
over me, whew..Praying non stop, trying not to show concern to the kids, etc. whew.. Oh Lord... then I notice the tracks, disappear.. to the left us. the Bear is now on our left UP.ON THE LAND . I am almost to the airport runway.. if I can just make it to there. I know I can pick up SPEED on the hard land instead of this soft sand.

Here are a few "maps" to show you were this is all happening. Looking at a regular map, just doesn't do justice. you gotta see.. we are almost an island. Erosion is a major problem. The village has already been moved once. in the 70's due to flooding. One wave is all it is gonna take.. and we are all phish phood!!!

Google Earth v4.. sure helps a lot.!! The "Point" disappeared in 1989 along with the crude wooden light beacon. Erosion is eating up the land.

Our back yard is bigger than most states !!! Animals, caribou, wolverine, musk ox, 4 types of bears, squirrels (size of dogs) Siglipaks.. wolves, Moose,
Too many differents type of fish to name & remember, Salmon, she fish, grayling (eaten raw & frozen), Birds, I don't know the names of all them critters
Puffin, loon, ducks of a zillion types, Cape Thompson photos coming shortly. Cape Thompson (google) project chariot . Well the Eskimo's have recently
been told. Stay out of Cape Thompson, you can't hunt there any more. Cape Thompson is a major bird sanctuary. more on that later.

Polar Bears look so nice/ gentle, they are not. they are vicous, they will stalk you, they can smell blood for
many many miles, their main diet is seals. Often a polar bear will sit on the ocean ice ..where there is a hole in the ice,
for any seal to come and breathe, the bear will sit with his "paws" over his nose and parts of his eyes to "hide" himself.

The seal pops his head up.. .. .. looks around,.. and it is over that quick. .. .. .. .. burp !!

Dec. 1990 My close friend in Point Lay (North of Point Hope) Culi on some maps, pop. ? 125

Charles Stalker Jr. III.. .. .. .. was my apprentice electican. A polar bear was going after his pregnant girl friend, Charles was armed with only a knife, he distracted the bear away from his girl-friend, but the ending was tragic. One swipe with the left paw cut him in half, and he was eaten. Of course that bear was quickly killed, BLASTED.. but sob.. he was gone.
At that time.. in Point Lay school 7th grade - 12th grade.. contained 5 girls.. !!!

All 5.. .. .. .. were carrying his baby !!!!!

Jan 1950 Allan Rock Point Hope was attacked by a huge polar bear, he was armed only with a knife.. The bear died !!!

March 1967.. Billy Weber was out on the ice hunting, he was hunting and he had one bullet left, a polar bear is coming after him, His friends are all watching this.. but they are too far away to get a decent shot to the EAR.. ONLY.. Billy sees the bear charging him.. he turns and runs for his life.. while running.. he merly pointed the rifle back, kept running and shot that bear in the ear and killed him with a 22 !!!

 

[Majik Imaje]

Whaling Festival is a 3 day event in June, to celebrate the successful whaling season. Visitors come up here from all over the state and from all parts of the world.

Blanket Toss, Food, Games, Dance & Celebrations. It is a busy 3 days virtually around the clock.

The successfull Captains, and the Umiaq is honored.

The elders are honored at the main umiaq, as the day

begins. The flippers will be cut up and passed out to

all the family names!

A young mother displays her handi work, as all members of the entire family have new clothing for this event! All parky's and mukluk's are hand made, hand sewn, and the "contest" begins for best Kupak's (fancy trim) on the parky's.

Coming up.. "Blanket Toss" "Nalaukataq"

 

[Majik Imaje]

Sometimes.. .. "Gravity" takes over .. Oopps!

 

[Majik Imaje]

Handing out of the flippers is a BIG DEAL.. this is the "cherry" on top of the huge blubber sundae. The best part.. "or so they say" .. I got a slice of two day old pizza in my pocket.. ! I can't eat Eskimo food! some of it is ok for me. but I am a "junkfood" junkie. Where's the "cheeseburgers" sniff. sniff.

This was a difficult day, the light is constantly changing, fog is rolling in, wind is shifting all throughout the entire day. wierd lighting conditions exist here in the Arctic.
The sky was constantly changing first grey, clear, blue, washed out, I went up to Ernie Frankson and mentioned how wierd the weather was today, the wind, constantly shifting from North (prevelant wind) to East, then West, North, then South , then East etc.. all day long. Ernie looked at me with a big smile and said. This is the weather of my ancestors! I have no idea what that meant, so I smiled -=click=- and moved on.

The gentleman in the brown fur parky is not from Point Hope, John Goodwin, From Kotzebue, is a regular up here evey whaling season and during whaling festival also. Cutting the flippers takes hours of work. When that whale is caught in April-May. then the flippers are put into the "siglauk".. deep root cellar into the perma-frost, as deep as 30 feet down. Climbing down into a "siglauk" is extremely DANGEROUS. The fermentation of the blubber and other animals releases gases that will kill you. A siglauk must be aired out, for hours, before someone may climb down into that deep hole via a make shift ladder, Everyone that dares to go down into one, always puts a safety line around them, just in case, they pass out!

When the whale is caught, The tail is put into the Captains siglauk that caught the whale. In the fall / winter, the first snowfall that blankets the entire village is a time for celebration again. The tail is brought out and every one has a share, THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS FOOD. it is a "downer" big time. you will fall asleep. BUT.. if you have had ANY SUGAR THAT DAY, I.E. fruit, pop, candy, etc.. this FOOD ... WILL KILL YOU. This food is still "fermenting" . which means that when you eat it, it is STILL fermenting, bubbling, etc releasing gases, if you have had any sugar, that food that is bubbling will "harden" over and prevent the escape of the gas(es) and you will die from Botulisim! Heny Attanguanna died in this manner back in 1989. he forgot! he had sugar earlier!

Suddenly this two day old pizza slice in my pocket sounds delicous! crunch!

Patrick Attanguanna is showiing Ernie Frankson which way to divide the flippers, There are 1000 people to feed today, and in the remaining two days! That is a lot of FOOD!

 

[MrMatthieu]

Is this thread a "personnal Blog " or is it open to comments ??? :mrgreen:

Majik Image , you have some interesting shot, but I have to ask you something. What you put these ugly border on your picture ??? :er:

It has to my opinon no one interest to put this on your old pictures .

Mat

 

[Majik Imaje]

.. .. entitled to YOUR OPINION.. ! I appreciate your kind remarks, and your input about my work.

However.. I hate seeing a flat photo with no borders. I am sorry if my sense of color or addition to the image offends you so much. I sort of like how they do look with a border around them. Sort of like a "frame" when you have a print matted perhaps. I guess I am a poor judge of what "looks" good!

We learn every day.. from many sources. what to do.. and what not to do. We learn from everyone we meet.. "even if it is what not to do" we learn something new every day!

In all my years.. of showing my images and displaing them. you sir are the only person.. that has told me how they feel about them concerning, my "ugly frames"

THANKS FOR STANDNG UP. and voicing your opinion. I respect that 100%

 

[Majik Imaje]

This is one of the events that is a lot of fun to watch and enjoy, because there is a lot more to this than just taking a "high ride" being tossed into the air.

In the olden days. blanket toss was used down at the edge of the ice, to throw a hunter high into the air. to see if whales are coming North through the lead opening in the ice.