Travelers

There are many people who float down the Noatak River starting from high up in the Brooks Range and then ending up some 600 kilometers later in our village of Noatak. This week I talked with a man from Switzerland who had made this float along with 9 others who were mostly from germany. He said that they had started up in the Brooks Range and had floated about 550 kilometers before they had ended up in Noatak. He told me they saw sheep, moose, caribou, grizzly bears, and caught arctic char, grayling, whitefish, salmon, northern pike, and lake trout. I actually didn't visit with this man for very long. His English wasn't very good and he seemed content to just watch me fish.
This same afternoon I also visited with an Australian man who was much more talkative. He was asking me about the village and also inquired as to how I had ended up in Noatak. I told him that I lived here, he thought that was pretty cool. There were a few little native kids running around quizzing him about everything and trying to get rides in the inflatable canoe that he was using. He showed a lot of patience until one of the kids almost stepped on his fly rod when they were hopping into the canoe. He pulled the kid out of the canoe and said something along the lines of, "you bloody little brat! If you touch the canoe again I'm going to paddle you out to the middle of the big river and drop you off!" I realize this is not a funny statement in itself but when said with an Australian accent it was pretty humorous. It was hilarious to watch him debate back and forth with the kids that were trying to get a ride in the canoe.
Btw, I caught my first arctic char on this day too. I expected it to be a lot more colorful, but this fish was very silvery. I could barely see the spots on its sides. Hopefully we will still be here when these fish change to their more vibrant spawning colors.