Alaska for real
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact

Signal Failures: Bush Internet Service In The Winter

1/26/2016

4 Comments

 
Picture

     I've mentioned before that sometimes I can't post on my blog due to signal failures. I thought I'd go into more detail, plus a couple pictures can say more than words. Especially since, for the last week, I've been having signal outages and haven't been able to post on here. And may not be able to for the next week, either.
     My internet signal comes from a tower on a mountain on Prince of Wales Island, which is across a major waterway from where I live, called Clarence Strait. When it snows on the mountain the tower and support structures are covered in snow and ice and our signal disappears. The phone company has to helicopter a crew up to the mountain to carve the snow and ice away in order for those of out in the bush to receive a signal again.
     When it storms, as it frequently does at this time of the year--as I write this we're having hurricane force winds--the helicopter can't get to the tower. They have to wait until the winds moderate before they can get to chipping that ice off and freeing up our signal.
     I hope the pictures give some idea of the frankly astounding fact that we get an Internet signal at all during the winter!

Picture







4 Comments
Susan Bernhardt link
1/28/2016 02:35:37 pm

This is just amazing! I can't even imagine your lifestyle. I plan to go through all of your posts so that I can see and learn. Thank you.

Susan

Reply
ADOW
1/28/2016 02:49:23 pm

Thanks, Susan! It's amazing to me someone would climb up there and clear the snow and ice so a few people out in the bush have Internet and phones. Alaska is incredible. :-)

Reply
David
1/29/2016 11:06:07 am

Strong emotional response from unexpectedness for sure. Id est: Astounding. Am able to relate. We make plans with best of intentions, though follow intuition and heart as we're shown otherwise. Such is this reaching out. Thank you, cousin. Will catch up if and when able to, deeply engaged in battle the events here of the prior 4 weeks. My love to you and your parents. Hold our Sheriff, State Police, the FBI and citizens as our work is continuing to fight darkness that is threatening us all. Hold fast...

Reply
ADOW
1/29/2016 11:17:05 am

David, it's good to hear from you. We wondered how you were doing. I'll pass on your thoughts to my parents--today is their 49th anniversary! Keep holding fast, I'm wishing you the best. And if our signal keeps up from keeping up in our correspondence like we'd like, now you know why! Tara

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner


    Author

    Tara Neilson (ADOW)

    Picture
    Click on the photo to purchase my memoir

    Archives

    June 2021
    May 2021
    August 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015

    Categories

    All
    Alaska
    Alaskan Movie Review
    Animals
    Art
    Authors
    Birds
    Books
    Building Projects
    Chores
    Communications
    Entertainment
    Family
    Fish
    Foodie
    From The Dairy Crate
    Guest Blogs
    Health
    History
    Hobbies & Crafts
    Interviews
    Jobs
    Legendary Alaskans
    Library
    Logging
    Megans Art
    Monster Busting
    My Book
    My Column
    Myths
    Nostalgia
    Odds N Ends
    Odds-N-Ends
    Phenomena
    Photo Journal
    Raised In Ruins
    Re Purposing
    Re-purposing
    RTV
    Seasons
    Shipwreck Salvage
    Travel
    Videos
    Weather
    White Knuckles
    Wilderness Life Hack
    Writing

    RSS Feed

Tara Neilson©


  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact