Land of the Midnight Sun

Early April, Nondalton 8:00pm

While this is something I have mentioned a few times in blogs past, I wanted to take some time to talk about the phenomenon that is daylight in Alaska. To me, that’s what it is; a beautiful and mind-blowing thing that I am still getting used to. When I came out in August, I was on the "losing daylight" side of things. Sure it was light at 11:00pm and again at 5:00am, but I knew that slowly we would lose that daylight. This still amazes me as much now as it did when I first arrived in Alaska. 

Mid April, Six Mile Lake at 9:30pm 

This semester, however, I am on the opposite end of the spectrum, and I get to experience the gradual increase in daylight. Each and every day since I have moved to Nondalton, I have gotten to see the tiniest increase in light. At first it wasn’t anything too noticeable, but now, it is hard to miss. For example, last night when I went to bed a little past 12:00am, there was still a faint hint of light in the sky. It was dark, but not nearly as dark as I am used to for that time of night. 

Late April, Iliamna Lake at 11:00pm

This morning when I woke up, it was rainy, but it was still light out. Back home on really stormy days, it seems as if it is night-time and there is no daylight to be seen. In Alaska however, even when it looks as if the sky is going to open up any minute with a rainstorm, it remains light out. As one of the other teachers who has lived out here a long time has said “we can guarantee daylight, but not sunshine”. 

As I look out my window, the sun is fighting its way out from behind the clouds, and I hope that it makes an appearance today. Regardless of whether that happens or not, some of the other teachers and I are going to go for a honda ride down the beach. We have been wanting to get out and explore a little bit to soak up the beauty of the village before we head to our respective homes for summer. Today is my last Sunday in Nondalton, and this time on Wednesday I will be heading into Newhalen for a few days before making my way back to the lower 48! I am looking forward to getting home, but I know that I will miss the seemingly endless amount of daylight that is found here.