The "Nomad"
The Nomad, Being one of the best known and photographed abandoned boats in Southern Alaska; Most Alaskans know about it but no one can tell you exactly how to find it.
While on my photo-safari through the Southern part of Alaska I was told there was an abandoned boat out on the S Knik/ Goosebay Rd. south of Wasilla. I was also told that it was one of the most photographed boats in Southern Alaska. After hearing about this boat from many sources I became intrigued and wanted to photograph and find out more about its history, its exact location and why it was abandoned.
To my chagrin, no one seemed to know anything about it other than its approximate location on the Knik Arm. I decided to do a day trip and see if we could locate this mystery boat that few people knew about so we started out from Eagle River on a warm, rainy overcast day to find this elusive boat. My driver and navigator for the trip was Dionna and Karla whom I often refer to as Thelma & Louise because neither one of them seem to have a care in the world and its hard to tell where we might end up. After reaching Wasilla, we turned south on S Knik/ Goosebay Rd. and traveled for what seemed hours with without so much as a glimpse of of anything resembling an old boat. We finally ran out of road ending on an airstrip so we decided to backtrack and try again.
Before we ending up at the airstrip we had an encounter with a moose that sauntered out of the woods and on to the highway right in front of us. Fortunately we had time stop before it wandered back into the woods taking a hiding position behind a small tree and looking at us. This is the first time I seen a moose in the wild so I definitely wanted to photograph it. I got off a few shots with out leaving the safety of the car. I have read what these animals can do if they are frightened or challenged.
After backtracking for over an hour, the sun finally came out for a while giving me the opportunity to catch a glimpse of something that looked like a boat protruding out of a sea of grass over a thousand yards away from the highway. I think we finally found what we were looking for. The weather co-operated long enough to allow me to photograph the boat from different locations and angles. Some of the shots were right on the waters edge and I knew not to venture out on the mudflats due to the ensuing dangers they present. A few people have lost their lives thinking they could walk out there.
After arriving back in the lower 48 I continued my search for more information about the boat. I was told about a person who lives in Alaska and was a well known photographer so I contacted him telling him about the boat. He said he also photographed it but didn't know the history but would research it and let me me know what he found.
This is what he shared with me.
The Nomad was built in the
early 1950’s by Bob Matheson and his brother. It was built specially for the
Turnagain Arm because of the rough waters. Bob and his brother used it for
several years before selling it to Joe and Violet Redington Sr. Joe is the father of the Iditarod sled dog race. Joe needed a
fishing boat and the Nomad originally came with a cabin, so Joe remodeled it by
tearing off the cabin which contained cots and a galley, and built a hold for
fish. Joe and Violet used it for commercial fishing and hauling supplies from Anchorage to their homestead at Flathorn Lake.
They would anchor it on the Knik Flats because it was a convenient place to
anchor while they were in Knik. In 1967 they brought it to the pond at high
tide and dry docked it and it has set there ever since. It has become a popular
landmark for Knik, not to mention one of the most photographed places in South
Central Alaska.
Nomad information by John Schandel, visit his face book page at NorthernVues
Nomad information by John Schandel, visit his face book page at NorthernVues
Goose Bay on the Knik Arm
Knik Arm Mudflats
The Peekabo Moose
This is an interesting post because it's the account of a tourist. As an Alaskan born in the Territory, once an Alaskan, always an Alaskan, I found the two stories that the photographer was told are the common bogeyman stories told to young children so that they will have them in their heads when they're old enough to go out on their own, or have their own children. The encounter with moose is told because moose are wild animals protective of their own, and while frequently encountered in their grazing, they are not as used to humans as tamed horses; they have hooves and/or horns on the top of their heads, and we're told as children they are not afraid to use what they have, so don't 'mess' with a moose. Often, in the dark afternoons in winter when moose have descended from the hills in search of plants, I would rush home from my paper route delivery to avoid contact with the moose in the neighborhood. Our home had an enclosed porchway for the freezer, winter gear, and items used outdoors such as snow shovels, and even though I knew the moose would have to climb the steps to the porch, unlock the door, walk through the porch and unlock the heavy wooden front door, I'd was afraid one in the yard might come after me. Wolverines are really more cunning and devious, but they weren't sighted in my area, so it was the moose that I was afraid of. Bears usually could be scared away with loud noises, I knew. Whenever we were hiking in bear country, we made a lot of rattling noise, rocks in cans or other annoying sounds, and of course made a habit not to be hiking in an area where bears were located, but moose were everywhere and we had to STAY AWAY from moose.
ReplyDeleteThe other issue was the quicksand of the mudflats near the ocean. With fine glacier silt mixed with a muddy clayey sediment, we were warned time and again not to walk out on the flats even though they seemed like a flat walking surface when the surf was out, because the tidal bore was extremely fast, and if one was stuck in the 'quicksand' say, in a car, or even on foot, there was hardly time enough to return to safety before the ocean tide came in. People have drowned stuck in the quicksand-like mud, as the cold Pacific water bore tide barrels up the inlet.