dj.tigersprout's photoblog
A Moment Before Takeoff, Anaktuvuk, Alaska
Posted by dj.tigersprout (New York City, United States) on 16 August 2008 in Transportation.
the final moments before my departure from this surreal world of ice had come. hanging about on the frozen grounds near the landed plane, i tried to stay out of the way of the workers who first had to unload all the delivered supplies. once that finished, i had climbed boarded the cargo plane only to quickly learn that i was to be the only passenger... this surprised me for a moment before i realized again that i was the foreigner, i was the visitor in this wondrous ice desert of native peoples... everyone else lived here, and had little cause to leave.
eventually, the pilot returned, the door was closed and after a few moments to warm up the engine, we began a slow taxi to the edge of the runway... i smiled in slight guilty pleasure as i recalled my cheeky excursion out onto this same runway, 18 hours before. but, however beautiful the setting twilight had been at that time -- the soft light gently fading -- it was much more magnificent now with even more subtle light beginning to ebb back into the sky: the headlights from the plane threw soft yellowish tones on the surrounding ice, and the magnificently blue runway lights just sizzled in volatile fury against the cold darkness. it was simply wondrous!
wishing i could hop out again and continue taking pictures, i was touched w/ a pang of sadness and loss as the propeller kicked into full gear and we began to speed down the long strip of ice ahead of us. i looked out my window at the seemingly sleepy town. i knew most of the residents were already awake and up -- their day had officially started a good number of hours ago. but due to the heavy darkness of the air, the town appeared deep in slumber -- nothing moved; the orange and white glows from the street lamps still bathing the town in dreamy hues. out the front window, i could see that the sky was marginally lighter, a deep cobalt blue, which contrasted wonderfully with the reddish - orange glow of the town that began to blur magnificently as it streaked quickly by the cargo bay windows.
here is a shot through my passenger side window just seconds before lift off. the blue trails of light are runway lights, the bright white 'star' an indicator of the approximate beginning / end of the landing strip. to the right in the distance, the southern most part of town, where i had stayed is just visible -- and just above, the gentle beginnings of a new deep arctic twilight.
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Canon EOS REBEL XT
4/5 seconds
F/3.5
ISO 400
18 mm