Day 9- Morning Update- On the Trail to Unalakleet

Pete’s Tracker isn’t working at this point. It last updated over 5 hours ago.

The Kaiser Team left Kaltag at 8:11pm last light closely followed by another musher Thomas Lesatz at 8:12pm. Lesatz GPS is working and shows him at the Old Woman cabin, a BLM public use cabin on the trail about 37 miles from Unalakleet.(I looked up the coordinates and Lesatz location matches exactly)

If Pete is following his rest/run schedule, he could be resting there as well. If he left at 8:12pm and made the run to Old Woman in 5 or 6 hours, he would have gotten into the rest stop at about 2:30 for a 4 or 5 hour rest. So that would put him into Unalakleet by mid morning or lunch time.

Now this is just speculation because the darn GPS isn’t reporting…..

Mike Williams Jr. on the other hand made the trip in just under 12 hours. Mike Jr. has been posting a bit faster times over the course of the race and is his trip to Unalakleet was one of the faster times of all of the mushers on that section.

I will keep you posted.

At the front of the pack, Lance Mackey has widened his lead, so maybe it isn’t going to be as close as I thought, but it is NOT over yet to be sure! The race has been lost more than once far later in the race!!

Old Woman Cabin

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Kaltag to Unalakleet Trail

Current Position

Jeff King (In Unalakeet (adn.com)- 3-14-2010)-..”it was a really crummy trail … It was for me, all the way to Tripod was very punchy, soft trail. I’m really glad I went over it with a team that had four hours rest rather than one that had just run four hours.”

Photos from Don Bowers Website- 2000 Iditarod

Tripod

Old Woman Mountain

BLM Old Woman Cabin 37mi to UNK

Unalakleet

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Go West Young Man! The Team is on the Move!

[Update- Team Kaiser Official Time OUT- 10:11 DOGS- 11]

Pete is out of Kaltag headed for Unalakleet. Unofficially of course, but the GPS tracker has him on the move.

Tonights journey will take him into the hills behind Kaltag for 90 miles to Unalakleet. He will be headed towards the coast so he’ll be right at home with the continuous wind in the area. This is the last of the long runs the team will face. Teams have been taking 11 to 18 hours on this leg, so my expectation is tomorrow morning for a Unalakleet arrival.

Iditarod Description- The trail climbs for 15 miles from Kaltag through mostly wooded country to the summit of the portage, about 800 feet above sea level. Then it descends slowly into the valley of the Unalakleet River, staying mostly in wooded or semi-wooded country with some excursions across taiga and open areas until Old Woman, then running across mostly open tundra on the south side of the river valley. The trail drops back down onto the Unalakleet River about 8 miles out of town, making a couple of short portages across river bends before crossing the frozen lagoon into Unalakleet.

Weather this for this evenings journey:
EASTERN NORTON SOUND AND NULATO HILLS-

INCLUDING...UNALAKLEET...STEBBINS...ST MICHAEL...ELIM...KOYUK...
SHAKTOOLIK
641 PM AKDT SUN MAR 14 2010

UPDATED TO CANCEL ADVISORY

...WIND CHILL ADVISORY IS CANCELLED...

.TONIGHT...MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS 15 BELOW TO 20 BELOW. NORTH WINDS
5 TO 10 MPH...LOCALLY TO 20 MPH WITH WIND CHILL TO 35 BELOW THIS
EVENING.

Kaltag to Unalakleet Trail Photos:

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Mackey Wins Round One

2010 Excitement

[I’m not sure what’s going on, but now the Iditarod website doesn’t have Mackey into Shaktoolik on the Leaderboard, but on Mackey’s page it does show him in and out]

Mackey- Shaktoolik – IN- 16:08 OUT- 19:00 DOGS- 12 Time- 6:20 (From UNK)
King- Shaktoolik- IN- 16:45 DOGS- 13 Time- 6:29 (From UNK)

Like Ali and Frasier, these two mushers at the front of the 2010 Iditarod are duking it out like Boxers in an All or Nothing Match. Mackey arrived in Shaktoolik 37 minutes before King. He gained a whole NINE minutes on the stretch which is a virtual tie. Someone’s got to blink, but both of these guys are locked in an epic battle. This has the makings of one of the great dueling matches of all time. Sure glad I’m here to watch it!

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Pete is into Kaltag

Word has been a bit slow from the trail and the tracker was down, so we were in a bit of a black hole there for a bit!!

Pete was into Kaltag at 2:05pm with 12 dogs.

Pete made excellent time into Kaltag from Nulato. He posted a 4 hours and 9 minute run for the trip. We’ll see whether he heads out, or takes a break and makes the next run to Unalakleet in the afternoon/evening. He’ll say good-bye to the mighty Yukon River and head for Old Woman’s Cabin and the Bering Sea from here. From Moose hunters on one side, to Seal hunters on the other. Go Man GO!

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