Night Glows & UFO's, Anaktuvuk, Alaska

Posted by dj.tigersprout (New York City, United States) on 11 August 2008 in Lifestyle & Culture and Portfolio.

the light of day was gone and total darkness had come. i remained indoors and for the first time since i arrived in the Arctic Circle, savored a beautiful warmth, the complete warmth of my whole body. when i had first checked into the bunker, the heat had been on 'minimal' as there were no other contractors / guests. simply freezing, i had run around turning up all of the heaters in every room trying to insulate my experience... and the 2 hours spent waiting for the temperature within the bunker to get up to a comfortable atmosphere was almost unbearable -- it was during those first few hours that i had almost broken down and cried out of frustration. but now some 4 hours later it was actually comfortable -- well, almost. lets just say that i still had to wear most of the various under layers -- however, the large and bulky winter coat i needed to wear outdoors was no longer necessary and i was happily able to hang it on a hook in my small room.

as the darkness was static, i no longer felt an urgent need to go outside every 20 minutes or so as i had during daylight. i was hoping, however, to catch a glimpse and also some shots of the glorious and multi colored Aurora Borealis, but this i could watch for from the many windows. it also most likely wouldn't be visible until well after midnight -- some 7 plus hours away! but just for good measure (and because i had nothing else to do to really pass the time), i made regular forays into the northern and eastern facing rooms just to peer though the worn and scratched, plastic windows. in fact, it was these large and quite durable windows that were purging much of the precious heat i needed to stay warm. eventually i closed all of the rooms off, leaving the heat blasting in each. that way the main, windowless corridor stayed the warmest as it was insulated on all sides -- warmer even than my own room, which i kept open to the corridor, after i pinned a giant felt blanket over the window to conserve whatever heat i could.

18 hours of night is a long time, and 18 hours spent completely alone in total darkness in a strange and desolate place even longer. i will gladly admit the mind can begin to play awful and menacing tricks...

at first i started by watching some TV, something i never do at home. but after an hour of watching a quite unsettling program on gruesome warfare in ancient Rome i had to switch to a nature program. however, the nature program itself was rather dark and anxious -- predators and their prey -- and after 20 minutes i no longer felt like watching it. i flipped around and realized there were only 7 available channels... wasn't there anything light and humorous on? i flipped again only to be sucked into a movie trailer for a horror film -- someone was pleading desperately for their life, bound and blindfolded in a chair in a large, dark and isolated room. that was it, i immediately shut the TV off... but i was already spooked! and i began to feel rather vulnerable when i thought of my situation. did anyone know i was here? who? i began to pace up and down the hallway, but the pacing soon made me feel like i was trapped. i tried to think of a plan of how to spend my time... it wasn't even midnight yet and there was no one to talk to. the bunker was completely quiet except for the constant hum of the heaters.

i tried waiting it out, telling myself not to get worked up, hoping the slight panic i felt would pass... but it didn't. i began to feel completely closed in and claustrophobic which was an alienating and quite foreign experience for me. i thought about trying to sleep to pass the time, but then didn't, afraid again of being vulnerable and all alone. the bunker was so quiet -- too quiet, and it was beginning to get to me... i was finally warm, but almost too warm and i felt as if my senses had gone completely numb. i wasn't sure what to do. i kept looking at the entrance, sure some terrifying figure would come walking through it at any moment. at a point near the physical 'fight or flight' response, i realized there was only one thing i could do -- i needed to go outside. i threw on my heavy layers anxiously, making my way down to the large steel door and paused -- is this really what i wanted to do? over the past few hours i had quickly developed a fear of being out in the total darkness and cold. but my creeping paranoia was now too much to handle, i checked for my keys and turned the heavy latch.

a great gust of freezing wind hit me in the face... i took a deep breath and waited -- anxious, still, watching. not a thing moved outside... the eerie orange lights glowed benevolently from their posts, bathing Anaktuvuk in strange shadows. i stepped out cautiously, still timid, but there was no one around -- no one watching me, no menacing person hidden in the nearby shadows. i kept breathing, and i was feeling better and better as the freezing air quickly cleared my mind... my heart stopped racing, my hands slowly unclenched... it was amazing, the arctic cold had sudden become a welcome and refreshing rejuvenation -- no longer the oppressive physical and mental force i had experienced during the short daylight hours. instantly gone was the feeling of claustrophobia -- i had plenty of room to move out here... gone were the dark thoughts and the intangible fears -- the hard, icy grounds here were well lit. i looked around and found myself in a peaceful and silent town glowing in orange and white lights, the sky a large black hole suspended above.

i exhaled, watching my breath turn white and whip around my face. i was OK, i was going to be fine. i looked around... it was like i was on the moon, all the surfaces seemingly lunar... i felt the crunch of ice under my boots and imagined myself one of the first men on the moon. feeling somewhat inspired, i took out my camera and tripod and set about looking for interesting compositions. glad and physically relieved to no longer be dwelling on sinister thoughts, i quickly lost track of time and suddenly found myself getting cold -- but at least i was enjoying myself and glad to be outdoors. i hopped around keeping my hands and legs warm and straying as far as the lit up power station, knowing that people were working there 24 hours a day. that thought was very comforting and allowed me to continue photographing unperturbed. i actually got so caught up, i didn't notice the truck that was coming around the bend until i saw the bright lights and heard the steady slow crunch of ice. my heart skipped a beat, but i calmed myself trying to stay rational. the truck was headed straight for me.

here is a pic of one of the neighboring houses that i chose to shoot because of the warm and friendly light emanating from the front window -- a peaceful sign of life. it was actually this photo that i was composing when the local truck approached me. my interactions with the 2 thirty-something guys in the truck was amiable and brief, even though at first i was a bit suspicious of them. and because i had been outside for already about 30 minutes it had been hard for me to stand still while talking and i shivered to keep my strength. the guys had thought i was an FBI agent who was taking pictures of the sky. this intrigued me quite a bit and i jokingly enquired as to why. completely straight faced yet quite enthusiastic, here's what they told me: last night the entire village had witnessed 3 giant silver orbs flying silently, one by one over the village at just about midnight. although there was no apparent noise from the orbs themselves, the ground, walls and widows shook with strong vibrations. it had caused quite a commotion -- dogs barking, people yelling and screaming -- kids crying...

there had been an official report to the FBI early the next morning... the same day i had arrived! as there had never been any visitors to the town beside oil pipe line workers and specialist engineers (and that was mostly during the warmer months), everyone who had seen me arrive had assumed that i was an FBI agent seeing as i had arrived ironically the very next afternoon and in the dead of winter!! as they drove off i grabbed my equipment and hastily ran inside -- no longer in fear of the dark, cold unknown that lay outside the bunker. before i stepped in i took another look at the vast and surreal pitch-black sky... was it true? did those types of crazy things happen way up here? up here, in such a surreal landscape, so isolated and distant from the normal urban society i was used to, i found i could readily believe almost anything. i figured i would keep watch safely from inside -- not only for the Aurora but for something else... whatever that might turn out to be. (!)

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