Our mission is now complete - we made it back to the bridge!

What a fantastic trip full of adventure, laughs, challenges, mosquitos, beautiful scenery, amazing people, and lots of learning for all involved. Overall the trip was a HUGE success, reaching eight villages, 252 kids, more than 70 adults, and covering 860 miles of the Yukon River.

We sign off today with appreciation and respect for the people living and working on the Yukon River. Thank you to all the amazing folks and new friends we met in Stevens Village, Tanana, Galena, Nulatto, Kaltag, Koyukuk, Ruby, and Rampart - fair weather and great fishing!

Our last village of the trip, Rampart met us with a great surprise. Because fishing season had not begun and most of the village was out of town working a spill at Pump Station 9, we only expected a few children to participate in Coastie's visit. However, we were excited to find that 12 children were, in fact, in the village on Sunday!

Thanks to Elaine Evans, the Tribal Administrator, for making it back from the working the spill to be there for our visit.

Special thanks to Henry Wheel (pictured), one of the last descendants of the original settlers of Rampart for accepting the Yukon Coastie certificate on behalf of Elaine, when she had to return to the spill site prior to our presentation being complete.

Welcome to Ruby! Our boats were met at the river bank by a large group of adults and children waiting for Coastie's arrival.

Among those in the reception party, was Emmitt Peters (pictured), also known as the "Yukon Fox", champion of the 1975 Iditarod and one of the mushers who helped shape the race into what it is today. In 1975, he cut six days from the prior race time, turned the Iditarod into a high speed race, and set a record that stood for the next five years. Emmitt has run the 1,100 mile Iditarod race 13 times, consistently finishing in the top 10, and was the last rookie to win the race. In the year 2000, at the age of 59, Emmitt returned to the Iditarod after a 10 year absence.

Joe Wright then kindly drove Coastie, Dean, Nanci, and Allie up to the hall and returned to the river bank to help Chuck, Ray, and Tom fuel the boats and get water.

The children bubbled over with excitement to meet Coastie. You could feel the energy in the room, as they gave Coastie hugs and learned about river safety. Ruby was one of our biggest crowds yet!

Thanks to Joe Wright, Agnes Bergman, and Pat Statesir (Tribal Administrator, pictured being presented certificate) for their assistance and support while the team visited Ruby.

Very excited to see state sponsored "Kids Don't Float" stations set up in every village we visited. The program allows children, who may not otherwise have a life jacket, to borrow one from the board.

As we left Kaltag, the clouds in the sky darkened and the rain began. Luckily, by the time we arrived in camp, it cleared long enough for us to eat our meal of pulled pork, rice, and corn on the cob around the campfire. When the rain began again, everyone decided it was about time to hit the hay and get a good nights rest.

Waking to a damp drizzle in the morning, we donned our rain gear, broke down camp, and hit the road. Headed back upriver, we stopped by Nulatto where Paul from the Tribal Council and Larry, the old village VPSO, was gracious enough to lend their trucks to help us refuel the boats.

On the river again, the rain parted enough for us to get a glimpse of the sun as we arrived in Koyukuk to Cynthia Pilot, Tribal Administrator, and a group of children waiting for us on the bank of the river. Cynthia was kind enough to bring us the city's truck to transport Coastie up to the Hall where the boys and girls learned lots about wearing life jackets, hypothermia, and ice safety on the river. You could hear the kids all over the village tooting their Coastie whistles!

After our presentation, Cynthia Pilot allowed us to use the Internet in the Tribal Office. Thanks Cynthia!

Barbara Fleming, the Koyukuk city manager, graciously supplied our group with showers and laundry facilities, drove us back and forth from the boats to the facilities, and even took us by the store! Thanks Barbara!

Headed upriver....Next stop, Ruby!!

What a wonderfully smart group of children in Kaltag! We learned alot today about boating safety in not only the river, but the lake up the way as well. All of the children that came to visit Coastie own their own life jackets and wear them every time they swim and boat. Coastie was very excited to hear this news. The children enjoyed playing tag with Coastie, learned about cold water survival, and even taught him a thing or two about what they had learned about CPR! A special thank you to Anne Esmailka for allowing us to use a truck and internet in the tribal council office. We appreciate you Anne!

A few miles down the river from Nulato, we noticed a pretty severe storm starting to appear in the sky. After the first clap of thunder and flash of lighting, we pulled over to make camp in the rain.

After a morning delay for engine trouble, we arrived in Nulato to a huge welcome. Children from the village waited on the banks of the river waving, excited to see us arrive. Almost 30 children and 15 adults followed us to the school gymnasium where Coastie spoke about water safety. Ed, one of the village elders well into his 90's, came to watch the presentation and was honored by Coastie (pictured). Special thanks to Mickey (Nulato Chief, pictured) and Robyn (Tribal Administrator) for their help and support with transportation, rubbish pickup, and some great tips for great fishing spots!

Flexibility, perserverance, teamwork, positive attitudes, and the ability to be MacGyver - the traits we have learned while underway on the Yukon River.

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 11:07 AM 0 comments

Labels: Yukon Coastie

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 10:50 AM 0 comments

Labels: Yukon Coastie

Chuck Gewin

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 10:41 AM 0 comments

Labels: Yukon Coastie

Jo-Ann Grimaldi, a member of the Fairbanks Flotilla and an Athabascan Indian born in Galena, has been instrumental in gathering information and making vital contacts with each village involved in the Yukon Coastie project. Ensuring we would have a smooth voyage, Jo-Ann spent countless hours informing each of the villages about the details of our visit and providing the team with crucial local knowledge. On Friday night, Jo-Ann led a discussion concerning protocol for visitors on the Yukon.

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 10:28 AM 0 comments

Labels: Yukon Coastie

Tom Kane

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 9:33 PM 0 comments

Labels: Yukon Coastie

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 7:17 AM

Labels: Yukon Coastie

In final preparation for the trip, Auxiliary and active duty team members gathered at Big Lake over Memorial Day weekend to do a mock pack out of the three jet boats headed to the Yukon. Coastie and all team gear were loaded onto the boats and basic stability testing was conducted. Auxiliary Division Three hosted an amazing BBQ, featuring halibut and ribs after the event.

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 7:13 AM

Labels: Yukon Coastie

Yukon Coastie Team Members complete First Aid & CPR Training Spring 2010 in Anchorage. Pictured: LTJG Allie Ferko, AUX Tom Kane, AUX Nanci Terencio, AUX Dean Terencio

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 6:46 AM

Labels: Yukon Coastie

The Alaskan Coast Guard Auxiliary, with the support of D17 and Sector Anchorage, has made substantial strides in developing rural community outreach programs focused on boating safety.

On December 9, 2008, while participating in a static display for the Alaska Tribal and Military Leaders meeting at Elmendorf Air Force Base, the Auxiliary demonstrated the use of "Coastie - The Safety Boat". Coastie is a remote controlled robot boat used by the Auxiliary for youth education and boating safety programs.

Following the demonstration, several community leaders inquired if the Auxiliary could bring Coastie to villages along the Yukon River. Operation Yukon Coastie team members and the D17 Auxiliary Commodore again met with tribal leaders during the 2010annual Tanana Chiefs' Conference in Fairbanks to review goals for Coastie's Yukon River visit.

Yukon villages rely heavily on the river for transportation, using outboard powered boats to travel to fish camps, hunt, fish, gather firewood, and a host of other activities most would do by automobile.

On June 6, 2010, five Auxiliarists and one active duty representative from Sector Anchorage will embark on a ten day, 920 mile boating safety outreach mission named "Operation Yukon Coastie", visiting eight villages Yukon River.

Operation Yukon Coastie is the first of its kind for both the USCG and the Auxiliary. It is an ambitous, logistically challenging initiative designed to share boater safety information within rural Alaska and encourage cooperation and understanding between all involved.

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Posted by Coast Guard Sector Anchorage at 2:34 PM

Labels: Yukon Coastie