Another wonderful read. Thanks Wilton.
Mike On Mar 3, 2013 5:14 PM, "WILTON" <wilt...@nc.rr.com> wrote: > 'Been a bit slow this afternoon; 'may be time for another Sondy Tale: > > KULUSUK > By Wilton Strickland > > In late August of 1978, while I was Director of Engineering at > Sondrestrom, Air Base, Greenland, I needed to go across Greenland to do a > final inspection of a drainage improvement project at an airfield on the > small island of Kulusuk off the east coast of Greenland. I called the > dispatch office at the local Greenland Air office (a small airline flying a > couple of DC-6's and several helicopters to ferry passengers between many > small villages around Greenland). One of the pilots answered, and I asked > him if they had a DC-6 flight going to Kulusuk any time soon. He asked > when I needed to go. "As soon as possible," I replied. He continued, "How > about tomorrow at 0900 at the Greenland Air hanger? Is that soon enough?" > "That's great; I'll be there," I responded. > > Kulusuk Airfield has a 4,000 feet-long, fine, compacted gravel runway and > was constructed in the late '50's and early '60's by the US Air Force to > support a RADAR site (DYE-4) on top of a mountain 5 miles by curving > mountain road south-southwest of the airfield. (Parts of the road are > visible now in the snow and ice on Google Earth - Kulusuk, Greenland.) > DYE-4 was part of the Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line across northern > Canada, southern Greenland and Iceland to provide early warning of any > attack on North America across the polar area by the Soviet Union. I > visited there in early summer of '78 on an informal facilities inspection > and orientation that a civilian official at HQ in Colorado Springs had > asked me to do; 'wrote a report that I sent to HQ. 'Never heard any more > about the report or the discrepancies I noted and recommendations I made. > The site was closed and abandoned in 1991. > > The runway runs east-west just below the base of a mountain immediately > south of the runway. The mid-point of the runway crosses a natural > drainage swale that drains from the mountain and to the northeast > diagonally beneath the mid-point of the runway. Original culverts beneath > the runway were often inadequate to handle the heavy flow of water from the > mountain in spring. The culverts would often get blocked by ice and cause > water to flood across the runway. (I also did an orientation visit there > in early summer.) My project was to install additional and larger culverts > and enlarge and improve a catch basin on the upslope, south side of the > runway and clear and improve the drainage ditch and natural swale on the > down-slope side to the ocean. > > I arrived at the aircraft the next morning to find it nearly ready with a > significant load of supplies and several Greenlander and Danish passengers. > The flight across Greenland is about 500 miles at this latitude, and was > usually flown at about 2000 feet above the highest part of the ice cap at > this latitude - 10,000 feet MSL. Our flight was in the clear all the way. > I was able to study the many bright, aqua blue (the color of laundry > bluing) rivers and lakes on the ice cap in detail along the entire route. > It is most interesting to see a rushing river completely disappear into a > hole (a Moulin) in the ice. > > The manager of the grading and drainage project met me at the Kulusuk > terminal, and we immediately went out onto the runway and the adjoining > newly graded areas. The contractors had done a beautiful and very > professional job; I found no problem whatsoever and complimented them on > their outstanding work. The work they did that summer is still visible on > Google Earth on each side at about the mid-point of the runway. (Also on > Google Earth, click on the two photo icons at the catch basin on south side > of the runway to view photos of the DC-6 sitting at the Kulusuk terminal. > The mountain on south side of runway also visible behind the DC-6.) > > After walking the area of the project in detail for 30 minutes or more and > taking several photos for record, including some of the fantastic > surrounding scenery, we retired to a snack bar in the terminal. The > Greenland Air DC-6 pilots soon came in and I asked them when they planned > to leave for the return trip to Sondy. The pilot was quick to remind me, > "It's up to you; this is your flight; we came for you; you tell US when > you're ready to go." I replied, "Well, I've been wondering if I might have > time to walk to the nearby village of Kulusuk (then called by its Danish > name, Kap Dan). He said, "By all means; indeed, you should go. It's not > far. Go ahead. Take your time; we're here for you and will not leave > without you." The Danish ticket agent overheard us and joined in, "Just > follow those blue barrels (50-gallon steel drums) out the door and to the > right up the hill. By the time you get to the last barrel you can see, > you'll see another barrel - just follow the blue barrels to the village." > I said with a smile, "Just follow the blue-barrel road, huh?" The agent > responded, "Yes, Dorothy. The Wizard of Oz will meet you there." We were > all still having a good laugh as I rushed out the door and off on the > blue-barrel road - really no road - just a foot path. (On Google Earth, a > vehicle road of sorts from the airport to the village is now clearly > visible, but is more circuitous. The route I walked, also visible on Google > Earth by zooming in a bit, is a little over a mile long and a more direct > route westward from the terminal shop building and straight across the > hills.) > > En route along the path, I passed a Skidoo snowmobile sitting with the > summer's grass grown up around it. On a hill near the village, I passed a > graveyard, obviously, with the bodies laid out on the rock surface with > rows of rocks covering them; each one also marked with a Christian cross. > (The grave yard/cemetery is also visible on Google Earth; 'has been > expanded and now has a rectangular, rock wall around it immediately north > of the vehicle road and just east of a large lake (or inlet) SE of the > village.) > > At the edge of the village, a Greenlander man greeted me in Danish, > "Velkommen," and something else I did not understand but quickly realized > he was directing me on down the "street" toward a group of European > tourists who had arrived via Iceland and were about to enjoy a traditional > Greenlandic Drum Dance at a rocky point (visible on Google Earth at the NE > corner of the village) and overlooking the ocean. (I was tempted to try to > ask the Greenlander man if he were the Wizard, but I let it go.) > > As the Drum Dance was finished, and I was turning to walk back to the > airport, a Dutch or German woman tourist, obviously recognizing my flight > suit and jacket, approached me and asked, "What is an American Air Force > officer doing in Greenland?" I answered, "Just trying to keep the world at > peace, Mam." She quickly replied, "And I thank you, thank you." As she > and I and some others in her group ambled leisurely along the blue-barrel > road back toward the airfield, we chatted about the beauty of the > surroundings and the brilliantly clear sunlight. > > On the flight back to Sondy, there were several Greenlander teenagers. > Soon after takeoff, one of the teenagers, a beautiful (a mix of northern > European and Inuit ancestry and appearing to be European with slight > Inuit/Oriental features), young Greenlander woman of about 16 or 17 years, > stuck her face up close to the upper right corner of my seat and close by > the side of the aircraft and said, "Are you an American?" "Yes," I > replied. She quickly went on to ask, "May I, please, talk English with > you." I turned to the right in the seat to more easily talk to her and > responded, "Well, of course, you may. Where are you going?" "To Kobenhavn > (Copenhagen) for my last year in high school. We've been at home for the > summer," she replied. Are all of you from Cap Dan/Kulusuk? How long have > you been in school in Denmark?" I asked. She answered, "Yes, our homes are > here on Kulusuk. I've been in school in Denmark four years. I want to go > to university next year." "Well, you seem to be doing very well with the > schooling. You speak English beautifully" (with a slight British accent), > I responded. She repeated slowly, "Beau - ti - ful- ly?" "Yes, it means > pretty - like you - beautiful. Beautiful-ly describes how you speak - it's > an adverb. You speak English very well." With a little giggle, "Oh yes, > many adverbs end in l - y. Thank you." She enjoyed discussing the bright > blue streams and small lakes on the ice cap, and as we neared the west > coast and Sondrestrom, we saw a glacier making its way around a hill or > small mountain that was too high for it to flow over. Because the glacier > could not flow over it, it split at the upslope side of the mountain, > flowed tightly around it with the two parts of the glacier re-joining on > the down-slope side of the hill and carrying much of the hill with it in > the form of rocks, dirt, debris, etc., (moraine) that it had broken or worn > away from the hill. This moraine caught between the two re-joined parts of > the glacier forms a line curving down-slope from the hill and, from above, > appears to be a highway on the ice. The Greenlander girl said to me, "See > the way?" It took me a second to realize what she was talking about, then, > "Oh, yes, a HIGHway - a road - it does look like a highway - a road, > doesn't it?" She responded, "Yes, it looks like a highway on the ice." > As we departed the plane at Sondy, I turned to her and said, "Good luck to > you in school. Promise me you'll go on to university." "Oh, I will, I > will, thank you," she said with determination. I never saw her again. I > hope she has done well. > > Wilton > > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________**_________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com > To search list archives > http://www.okiebenz.com/**archive/<http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/> > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/**mailman/listinfo/mercedes_**okiebenz.com<http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com> > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
