Ok, especially for those folks not fluent in French, I’ll try to make this post in English, hopefully that will trigger a few more comments from your side...
Do you remember I decided yesterday that the weather will be fine today ? Guess what, it actually was ! The clearest skies in over two months according to the pilot that flew us (me and an Indian couple) around the big mighty McKinley in a small 6 seats airplane. To really describe that view would deserve being a genuine writer or poet, which I am definitely not, even in French... This mountain is awesome. It rises above just everything 50 miles around. No picture will ever render this impression of massiveness. To give you an idea, just imagine looking at the Alps or the Pyrenees. Well that gives you an idea of the forefront of the scenery. Now imagine Mt McKinley behind and above this stretch of peaks and about twice taller. Above there, no living creature survives, it is a purely mineral world of blue ice, eternal snow and rocks. Although we are told grizzly bears hibernate for the winter in a hole just above tree line. For now they are enjoying summer and are berry picking, which kind of makes them dangerous because they like to feed in peace not disturbed by noisy photograph bugs.
Every body was in good mood this morning in the plane. Even the pilot which absolutely wanted me to remind him of the name of this nice little brasserie he went to, in Paris on Place du Trocadero where he had a glass of Bordeaux and a piece of baguette last March... Everybody asks me about how it is to leave in Paris etc, etc... I can’t escape thinking about all those folks I know, who live just a couple of miles away from Paris and actually never enjoy it...
Well, but back to the Last Frontier. I shall male no further attempt describing the views of McKinley and the surrounding tundra, just look at the pictures an scale it by a factor 1000 in your mind.
Somehow I leave Talkeetna with regret, because it is such a lovely place. But I got to go. On the road again !
Initially I intended to drive to Glennallen at the end of the Glenn Hwy. Following the expert advices of my favorite Lonely Planet guide, I went up the Hatcher Pass to see the ruins of Independence Gold Mine. By the time I get there, the whether has become cloudy again, still emphasizing the sad/romantic setting of the place. I try hard to imagine the place bustling with activity from ambitious and eager people. As any other ruin, these carry the same wisdom message, from dust to dust, from ashes to ashes, that’s how everything eventually ends.
On the way I listen once more to the Dan Vegan ultra conservative talk show on the radio. The same obsession come on over and over again. We pay to much tax. The government is a bunch of liars only committed to themselves and not to Alaskans. The there is the anti abortion obsession. There is the anti Al Gore and environmentalist obsession. And the anti-Obama obsession which is bluntly described as a Marxist Leninist leader, etc...
After a while I get sick and tired of all this repetitive and politically oriented talking. Though I must recognize that underneath these conservative propaganda lie some true positive values that certainly made the greatness of this country. Love for self reliance, for independence, for courage and hard work. Million of light years away from the French ideal of “l’état providence” (sorry I don’t know how to properly translate that).
The two main local political issues are concerned with mining industry and with hunting rules. As far as I understand stronger regulations are to be applied on mining companies to prevent mercury pollution of the sea which would also threaten thousands of fisherman jobs. As far as hunting is concerned a new law must be voted to prohibit hunting from airplanes!
Time is getting short and I realize I won’t make it tonight to Glennalen. That’s mainly due to the fact that the Glennallen Hwy is just breathtaking (jaw dropping according to LP) and can’t be reasonable and NOT stop at each and every scenic lookout! The Glenn Hwy is running most of the time above huge flood plains, allowing for fantastic vistas on deep forests, snowy mountains and gigantic glaciers. So I decided to stop at Grand View Lodge, but as fares for a room are prohibitive I decided to pitch my small tent. After all I had comfort yesterday.
Do you remember I decided yesterday that the weather will be fine today ? Guess what, it actually was ! The clearest skies in over two months according to the pilot that flew us (me and an Indian couple) around the big mighty McKinley in a small 6 seats airplane. To really describe that view would deserve being a genuine writer or poet, which I am definitely not, even in French... This mountain is awesome. It rises above just everything 50 miles around. No picture will ever render this impression of massiveness. To give you an idea, just imagine looking at the Alps or the Pyrenees. Well that gives you an idea of the forefront of the scenery. Now imagine Mt McKinley behind and above this stretch of peaks and about twice taller. Above there, no living creature survives, it is a purely mineral world of blue ice, eternal snow and rocks. Although we are told grizzly bears hibernate for the winter in a hole just above tree line. For now they are enjoying summer and are berry picking, which kind of makes them dangerous because they like to feed in peace not disturbed by noisy photograph bugs.
Every body was in good mood this morning in the plane. Even the pilot which absolutely wanted me to remind him of the name of this nice little brasserie he went to, in Paris on Place du Trocadero where he had a glass of Bordeaux and a piece of baguette last March... Everybody asks me about how it is to leave in Paris etc, etc... I can’t escape thinking about all those folks I know, who live just a couple of miles away from Paris and actually never enjoy it...
Well, but back to the Last Frontier. I shall male no further attempt describing the views of McKinley and the surrounding tundra, just look at the pictures an scale it by a factor 1000 in your mind.
Somehow I leave Talkeetna with regret, because it is such a lovely place. But I got to go. On the road again !
Initially I intended to drive to Glennallen at the end of the Glenn Hwy. Following the expert advices of my favorite Lonely Planet guide, I went up the Hatcher Pass to see the ruins of Independence Gold Mine. By the time I get there, the whether has become cloudy again, still emphasizing the sad/romantic setting of the place. I try hard to imagine the place bustling with activity from ambitious and eager people. As any other ruin, these carry the same wisdom message, from dust to dust, from ashes to ashes, that’s how everything eventually ends.
On the way I listen once more to the Dan Vegan ultra conservative talk show on the radio. The same obsession come on over and over again. We pay to much tax. The government is a bunch of liars only committed to themselves and not to Alaskans. The there is the anti abortion obsession. There is the anti Al Gore and environmentalist obsession. And the anti-Obama obsession which is bluntly described as a Marxist Leninist leader, etc...
After a while I get sick and tired of all this repetitive and politically oriented talking. Though I must recognize that underneath these conservative propaganda lie some true positive values that certainly made the greatness of this country. Love for self reliance, for independence, for courage and hard work. Million of light years away from the French ideal of “l’état providence” (sorry I don’t know how to properly translate that).
The two main local political issues are concerned with mining industry and with hunting rules. As far as I understand stronger regulations are to be applied on mining companies to prevent mercury pollution of the sea which would also threaten thousands of fisherman jobs. As far as hunting is concerned a new law must be voted to prohibit hunting from airplanes!
Time is getting short and I realize I won’t make it tonight to Glennalen. That’s mainly due to the fact that the Glennallen Hwy is just breathtaking (jaw dropping according to LP) and can’t be reasonable and NOT stop at each and every scenic lookout! The Glenn Hwy is running most of the time above huge flood plains, allowing for fantastic vistas on deep forests, snowy mountains and gigantic glaciers. So I decided to stop at Grand View Lodge, but as fares for a room are prohibitive I decided to pitch my small tent. After all I had comfort yesterday.
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3 commentaires:
'Etat providence' will translate to 'Welfare state'.
About your previous entry, stating how much faith the Alaskans put into the American economy and science, it reminded me of this observation, made by a French philosopher: in the minds of this century, the faith in scientific progress has pretty much replaced the faith in a God almighty. So there is no real need to worry about the future (environmental issues ...), since science will provide all the answers to our needs, as it has done in the past few decades.
I tend to object, of course, as science only serves the ways that man directs it to ... So, solutions have to be driven by some kind of political/social awareness.
Have fun.
In the case of Alaskan right wing republicans I'm not that sure that they really trust science either because as far as global warming issues are concerned they just pretend such a phenomena does not exist and has been invented by the government to raise more taxes. They simply negate the reality and through a enormous amount of money making anti-environmentalist propaganda.
Now what I say, is that behind those lies and simplistic views there are genuine positive values we certainly could take example from. Courage, fierce desire of individual self reliance and plain freedom. To put it in a (too) simple way, they obviously insist more on being free than being protected. I admire that part.
Fabulous! Gorgeous! Breathtaking! Enormous! Gigantic! Amazing! Awesome!
Arrrgh....
J'en peux plus..., ca a l'air vraiment extraordinaire.
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