New shelter cabin to be constructed between White Mountain and Nome

By RB Smith
Last year, the Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance and White Mountain Native Corporation partnered to replace the existing A-frame shelter cabin between Nome and White Mountain with a new structure. The supplies have been delivered to White Mountain and the cabin was going to be constructed two weeks ago, but construction was delayed due to stormy weather.
The existing cabin at the site, which sits about 20 miles out of White Mountain on the Iditarod Trail towards Nome, has longstanding flooding issues, and is unusable for much of the year. The new cabin is meant to replace it at a slightly different location and provide much needed protection for travelers caught in the area’s notorious storms.
The need for the cabin was underlined just two weeks ago when six Iditarod mushers got caught in a windstorm between White Mountain and Safety and were forced to scratch. Some mushers were able to shelter in the Nome Kennel Club’s Topkok cabin, but those farther east were stranded in the storm. The two mushers closest to White Mountain were injured during rescue efforts.
 “There have been some serious, scary moments on the trail,” said Yorise Yakunin, office manager for White Mountain Native Corp. She has been working closely with the corporation’s land manager Nicole Johnson Morton to organize the project.
 “It’s been a need, considering there have been more serious and frequent search and rescues happening there,” she said. The trail is most commonly used by local residents traveling between White Mountain, Council and Nome.
The grant for the cabin, which was awarded by the Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance, came through during the summer of 2021. They ordered the supplies that fall, which were purchased in Nome. Bering Straits Development Company helped deliver the supplies to Council via truck and trailer, after which they were shipped to White Mountain on six boats and stored in the Public Safety Connex.
Yakunin emphasized that the project has been a team effort, with many organizations, including the Nome Kennel Club and White Mountain Search and Rescue and Volunteer Fire Department, contributing time and equipment. “It was just amazing to witness,” she said.
Later that fall, a Bering Air helicopter flew the foundation materials and six crew members out to the site of the new cabin, which is about three miles from the existing A-frame cabin.
They installed the foundation and planned to travel back by snowmachine on Wednesday, March 16, to construct the exterior. That would have been just two days before the disaster involving the Iditarod mushers. However, the project was delayed due to bad weather. “We’d like to get the majority of it done this spring,” Yakunin said. The plan is to install insulation and a woodstove during subsequent trips this spring and summer.
They may have one more helicopter trip this summer to bring in an outhouse, but the goal is to have the cabin fully functional by next winter. The cabin will sit right next to the trail. Yakunin is also in the process of making a prominent sign to mark its location and recognize the many organizations that have contributed to the project.
She said the close cooperation between the Iditarod Historic Trail Alliance and local residents was especially good to see. “What’s nice is that the IHTA really wanted to work with the locals in White Mountain, and wanted community members to be involved.”
 “Volunteers from White Mountain, they’re the ones who go out on search and rescue missions,” she said. “I appreciate that the people we’re working on this grant with honor that and see the value in the people here.”