Possibly on the Move

Pete was out of Kaltag right before Musher Lesatz. Pete’s GPS was problematic last evening, so I don’t trust it.

Lesatz is on the move and I have a feeling so is Pete. I am just speculating, but I have a feeling he is about 10-15 miles from 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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Day 8- Onward to the Bering Sea

As the competition heats up between Jeff King and Lance Mackey as well as the other front runners in Unalakleet, the weather is about to do the same.
Predictions for Tuesday are a dramatic warming trend. From the looks for the surface chart, it could happen a bit sooner than that if the High Pressure that has been producing this perfect mushing weather dissipates.

Pete and the team have a 42 mile run into Kaltag, and then one of the longest runs of the race, 90 miles into Unalakleet. He will leave the mighty Yukon and head for the hills as he heads for Unalakleet. By late tonight or early tomorrow morning, the team will be able feeling the winds of the Bering Sea.

At Nulato, he is 351 miles from the finish line and 646 miles from the restart in Willow. So he is 2/3 done with the race, with one of the more difficult stretches below if the weather doesn’t cooperate.

A quick play with statistics shows this:
He left Takotna on 3/11 at Noon. He got into Nulato, 317 miles down the trail at 01:59am and 62 hours later. This gives him an average speed including layovers of a bit over 5mph. (The Ruby mandatory 8 layover would pretty much have matched his run/rest schedule) Now that doesn’t include the Nulato rest period which will make his average a bit slower.

My prediction for his finish is Wednesday late or Thursday early. (Hopefully without storm)

The day ahead:
LOWER KOYUKUK AND MIDDLE YUKON VALLEYS-
INCLUDING…GALENA…NULATO…HUSLIA…KALTAG…RUBY…KOYUKUK
316 AM AKDT SUN MAR 14 2010

.TODAY…MOSTLY SUNNY. HIGHS 5 BELOW TO 5 ABOVE.
NORTHWEST WINDS TO 10 MPH.

EASTERN NORTON SOUND AND NULATO HILLS-
INCLUDING…UNALAKLEET…STEBBINS…ST MICHAEL…ELIM…KOYUK…
SHAKTOOLIK
316 AM AKDT SUN MAR 14 2010

.TODAY…SUNNY. HIGHS 5 BELOW TO 10 BELOW. NORTH WINDS TO 10 MPH.
.TONIGHT…MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS 15 BELOW TO 25 BELOW.
NORTH WINDS TO 10 MPH.

Nulato to Kaltag

Kaltag Trail

Kaltag 3-14-2010 am

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Out of Galena for Nulato

Pete was out of Galena at 7:45pm. He is sticking to is run/rest schedule. He rested for 6 hours and is off to Nulato with 12 dogs. Teams have been averaging 6 hours from Galena to Nulato, so I would expect the team in to Nulato by 1:30- 2:00am.

He is currently showing 1/2 way from Galena to Nulato. Current weather conditions are pretty cold at -19 with a 5 mph headwind for Pete and his team. Wind chills are going to be pretty cold tonight. I anticipate a 5-6 hour rest in Nulato for Pete and his team.

Nulato Trail

Nulato Trail

Nulato Village

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