There are some absolutely necessary preparations in opening a checkpoint and there are preparations that aren’t crucial except to give the checkpoint a homey feeling. Putting one of the Iditarod Education Traveling Quilts on the wall of the checkpoint falls into that category.
Since 2005, educators around the world have contributed scores of hand decorated handkerchiefs to be included on a quilt that travels it’s own trail during the school year from classroom to classroom. Currently there are 17 quilts that circulate.
Teacher on the Trail, Jane Blaile created a quilts to the trail program in 2008. Jane invited people to create quilts to be sent to schools located in Iditarod checkpoints. The project became so popular and so many quilts were produced, quilts were sent to schools all over the state of Alaska.
Currently at the checkpoint, the temperature is rising from an overnight low of minus twenty some degrees. The vets are organizing their station at the checkpoint and the dropped dog team is organizing their dropped dog area up near the airport.
The Iditarod Air Force is in the air delivering volunteers and essential race personnel to Shaktoolik, Koyuk and Elim. The twenty volunteers that spent the night in Unalakleet are moving out to open their assigned checkpoints. Before leaving though, pilots and travelers are handed a lunch packed by the culinary team at the UNK Bunk.
