DAY 51 JULY 7 FOREST FIRES

Day 51. The air in Fort Yukon today is thick with smoke. There are two forest fires in the general vacinity, one of which has over 150 fire jumpers working on it. Actually, forest fires in Alaska are a common thing and a major summer employer of native Alaskans. Some are the result of careless use of fire, but the majority are naturally occurring. Alaska is mostly wilderness, and the vast interior of Alaska gets very limited rainfall. For instance, the dust off the roads in Fort Yukon (no roads are paved) is a major problem. One full time job in town is watering the roads twice a day. Today had quite a bit of activity. At the laundry we finally met the televsion cable guy who said he was coming today to hook us up. (After no television for eight weeks this seems almost superfluous.) When we got home we met Rev. Mardo Solomon, the pastor of St. Stephens. He had just returned after an absence of three weeks, during which time he had been attending his terminally ill son-in-law in Houston. Mardo is a fine man and most gracious. He was more than pleased that we were here and invited me to conduct worship one last time this coming Sunday. After Mardo left we got a call from our daughter Abby, who was bringing us up to speed with events back home. Later in the day Laurie Thomas, church administrator, came by to deliver some mail and introduce her father, Dennis, who was visiting from Rapid City, South Dakota. We watched the ten o'clock news for the first time in forever and went to bed. All in all, a full day.