The Whale Hunt / by Jonathan Harris / Highlights

May 1, 1:25amInitial letter to the Barrow Whaling Captains Association
May 1, 2:25amMy boarding pass
May 1, 9:40amAlaska Airlines flight #11, Newark to Seattle
May 1, 9:00pmAndrew hits the ground in Barrow, Alaska
May 2, 12:40amJosiah Patkotak demonstrates his father's rifle
May 2, 9:30amA whaling harpoon
May 2, 6:45pmWhale meat left for dogs, outside Crawford Patkotak's house
May 2, 7:15pmBarrow playground
May 2, 8:15pmWhale bones and an abandoned truck in Barrow
May 3, 11:55amFord pickup truck and WW2-era barracks housing, in Barrow
May 4, 8:15amWhaling camp on the frozen Arctic ocean
May 4, 8:45amPaddling madly to chase a nearby Bowhead whale (it got away)
May 4, 8:55amThe Umiaq on the edge of the ice
May 4, 4:20pmRon stands by the Umiaq, watching for whales
May 4, 4:55pmRony squats by the Umiaq, watching for whales
May 4, 5:50pmHoward positions a harpoon
May 4, 7:15pmSimeon watches for whales
May 4, 11:50pmHarpoon station at sunset
May 5, 10:00amMigrating Eider ducks fly past whaling camp
May 5, 11:45amCrawford radios into town for an update
May 5, 12:30pmCrawford stands in front of the snow fence, watching for whales
May 5, 3:20pmWhaling harpoon with explosive dart that detonates on impact
May 5, 6:20pmThe bow of the Umiaq
May 5, 6:30pmWhaling gun, fired at a whale once it's been harpooned
May 5, 7:00pmCrawford Patkotak
May 5, 7:45pmSimeon stretches his arms
May 5, 7:50pmSimeon Patkotak
May 5, 7:55pmSimeon gets some fresh air
May 5, 8:15pmRon laughing hard
May 5, 10:55pmSimeon watching for whales
May 6, 5:15amThe open lead begins to freeze over (bad news for whaling)
May 6, 8:05amHarpoon station and snow fence
May 6, 9:55amCrawford demonstrates his whaling gun
May 6, 1:25pmThe snow fence and the frozen over lead
May 6, 5:45pmAbe looks over the frozen lead
May 6, 6:10pmEider ducks flying over the frozen lead
May 6, 10:20pmWhaling spade
May 6, 10:30pmIce drill
May 6, 10:40pmThreading the block and tackle system to haul up a caught whale
May 6, 10:50pmNeighboring captain Joe Ahkivgaq and his 36 foot whale
May 6, 11:10pmHauling up Joe Ahkivgaq's whale
May 6, 11:10pmJoe Ahkivgaq's whale
May 6, 11:15pmWhale on its back
May 6, 11:15pmBaleen
May 6, 11:15pmWhale's eye
May 6, 11:20pmRony makes the first slice
May 6, 11:25pmFirst blood spills out
May 6, 11:35pmSmeared blood from dragging muktuk across the ice
May 7, 12:40amWhaling knives
May 7, 1:40amJoe Ahkivgaq's whale harvest
May 7, 1:50amJoe Ahkivgaq's whaling camp
May 7, 2:05amMuktuk (blubber) lined up for community distribution
May 7, 2:05amDragging a slab of muktuk into place
May 7, 2:20amBlood and guts
May 7, 2:30amAfter the harvest
May 7, 3:05amOnly the jawbone remains
May 7, 3:20amBack at Patkotak whaling camp, where they have landed a whale
May 7, 4:00amHoward examines the Patkotak's 36 foot Bowhead
May 7, 4:15amRony, bloody and exhausted from butchering Ahkivgaq's whale
May 7, 4:50amHauling up the Patkotak's whale
May 7, 4:55amTug of war: man vs. sea
May 7, 5:05amWhale on ice
May 7, 5:05amThe Patkotak whaling crew celebrates
May 7, 5:10amThe fatal harpoon
May 7, 5:35amRed stripe
May 7, 5:45amMuktuk strips and the Patkotak flag, indicating a whale's been caught
May 7, 7:05amUnalik (boiled skin and muktuk), a delicacy
May 7, 8:15amThe Umiaq fills with snow
May 7, 8:45amRon extracts the intestines
May 7, 10:45amOnly the jawbone remains
May 7, 10:50amDragging off a final piece of muktuk
May 7, 11:00amAn abandoned parka
May 7, 12:05amThe Umiaq and the fully frozen over lead
May 7, 12:20amEider ducks fly over the frozen lead