Adak Island - Salvaging Items Left Behind
Alaska Picker Picks Adak
Uncovering items left behind in one of America's most remote outposts, Adak.Story and photos by Kelley Turney
At Alaska Picker we are in the business of stories and junk. People share stories daily, some true, some exaggerations, and some just that, stories. In the past six years we have traveled all over Alaska, chasing junk—Delta Junction to Dutch Harbor, Cordova to Kenai, Northway to Nenana. One thing has always held true, the farther out we go, the better the stuff gets. About three years ago we had two gentlemen come into our store in the same week. They didn't know each other, had different occupations and told a similar story with the same conclusion, “You should go to Adak.” Hmm… Adak … old closed Navy base out in the middle of nowhere, I'm down. One of the gentlemen said, “You see this furniture over here,” pointing to a military style mahogany dresser, “I saw a warehouse full of this kind of furniture on Adak.” I asked him, “Did you take any pictures?” “No,” he replied. I continued my near interrogation of the poor guy and peppered him with questions. “Which warehouse? Where on the island? Who do I contact? Are you going back out there anytime soon?” All my questions were met with nonspecific responses and no clear answers. He had gone out to Adak to do some communications work for a company he no longer worked for, so it ended there … until a few days later. “Hey have you ever been to Adak?” “Why?”
McDonald's Drive Thru - Adak had a McDonald's back in the day. Probably one of their most remote locations ever.
“Oh there is some really cool stuff out there. They left everything. There is a movie theater, swimming pool, church, post office, bowling alley and gym, and warehouses of furniture. There is even and old McDonald’s on the island.”
This guy had a little familiarity with the island and its layout. He said some of the “good stuff” was two to three miles from the docks. He then became the recipient of my next blast of questions. Again, no photos, no plans of going back out there, and no idea of who to contact. So as with most stories we hear at the shop, we relegated it to the back burner.
Adak from Above - When we climbed the rocky hill we could see Adak on one side and the ocean on the other.
THE HISTORY:
At one time Adak was the 6th largest city in Alaska. It housed around 6,000 military personnel and dependents. It held an important strategical location in WW2 for the Army in the retaking of Kiska and Attu Islands from the Japanese. Adak flourished as a Cold War era Navy base. A lot of secret squirrel stuff happened there—nuclear weapons, nuclear submarines, spying on the Russians, etc...
The base was assigned for closure in the early 1990s and at the end of 1997 it was officially closed. There were still some personnel on the island till late 2000. In 2004, the Department of the Interior completed a land swap with the Aleut Corporation for over 47,000 acres of land on Adak. The Aleut Corporation now owns and controls most of the island, base buildings, and their contents.
Bering Chapel, located on Bering Hill, it is one of the oldest remaining structures on Adak.
THE MESSAGE:
In August 2016, I came into the shop early on a Tuesday morning. I looked up and saw a number 1 flashing on the answering machine. A lady’s voice on the message said in a nutshell, “You helped a friend a few years back with an estate in Anchorage. I am trying to help a friend who is attempting to empty warehouses and buildings on Adak.”
I called her back and she began to enthral me with a similar story about the mythical furniture warehouse on Adak, amongst other things. I mentioned to her how we had heard this story before and I had to say that if she didn't have any photos then it would be difficult to commit to anything.
“Send me your email address and I will send you one,” the lady replied.
THE PHOTO:
I am sure you all have heard the adage, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, how about four thousand chairs. With one picture she had our complete and unfettered attention. I quickly called her back and asked, “Do you have anymore photos? I can't go to Adak for just chairs.”
She replied, “Give me a few days and I will send them with a contact person.”
Mythical Furniture Warehouse - This is over an acre of 1950's - 1980's furniture from the old Navy base.
THE WAITING GAME:
Will she actually send me more photos? Was it all a ruse? To good to be true? To keep my mind from obsessing, I started researching Adak. I watched every Adak video on YouTube I could find. Google Earth was no help. I tried to answer the questions: How do we get things off the island? Barge? Plane? How do I get to Adak?
Then the magical email arrived.
THE EMAIL:
Late in the day I heard a ding on my iPhone. I clicked on it with anticipation and boom… I had about a dozen photos of the interiors of two of the warehouses, the Public Works Building and the Furniture Warehouse. As I swiped through the photos my mind began racing. How?, What?, Who???
With that series of photos and a couple more phone calls, we were going to Adak.
THE AUGUST SCOUTING TRIP:
I was packed and ready with extra clothes, food, batteries, flashlights, headlamps. I had heard of people getting stuck in Adak and didn’t want to be caught unprepared. There are only two scheduled flights to Adak a week, Thursday and Sunday.
I met my contact, Ken, at the airport. An amazing, kind and soft spoken man, Ken had been to Adak several times. His job was to attempt to empty some the remaining buildings in good condition for further economic development on Adak. As Ken and I talked on the plane we found out we lived on the same street.
Bering Theater - Located in the Recreation Hall on Bering Hill.
We hit the ground and within 30 minutes were looking through buildings. I took hundreds of photos with my iPhone and hours of video with my GoPro over the next four days and three nights.
We must have looked in over 30 buildings and most had three floors and a basement. There was no power to any of the buildings so I could only see what my flashlight would allow.
The highlight was the Fleet Hospital Warehouse where all the furniture was stored. Over 40,000 square feet of furniture, stacked 8 to 12 feet high. Hundreds of thousands of dressers and chairs. Rows and rows of furniture dating from the 1950s to the 1980s. The sight reminded me of the scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark when they are putting the crated Ark of the Covenant into storage.
Swimming Pool - There are several swimming pools on the island. This one is just down the hall from the Bering Theater.
By the last day it was hard to remember what was where. We spent the last day revisiting the best locations, measuring furniture and other items, tagging them with pink flagging tape in the event we were able to come back.
THE PROPOSAL:
After getting home and decompressing for a day or so, I sat down with my fiancee, Becky, who is the other owner of Alaska Picker. We discussed the cost, not only of money but the time and energy that would be spent on this potential project. It was much larger than anything else we had done in the past. We then sat down and wrote the proposal to the Aleut Corporation Board of Directors. With the proposal submitted, we waited two weeks for word back. Then in mid-September we received notification that our proposal was accepted. Now the work would begin.
THE LOGISTICS:
Logistics took nearly six weeks to get lined out. Let's start with flights. Alaska Airlines flies to Adak two days a week, and the round-trip fare is around $1200. Next, lodging. The Aleut Corporation rents some of the old base housing units out by the night, around $200 a night for two people. Then there was the big one—shipping. The obvious answer was a barge. We went with Samson Tug and Barge. We had used them before on a pick in Unalaska/Dutch Harbor in 2012 and they were great.
I called up Samson’s Seattle office and the gentleman at the end of the phone said, “Where are you shipping from?” and I replied, “Adak.”
He laughed and said, “Oh, Adak, my favorite 4-letter word.” At that point I became a bit concerned. Was this really worth it, was it even feasible? Come to find out there is not a regular barge service to Adak anymore, but they had a barge due out there in October. The last barge of the season.
It was time to pop the question, “How much?” The ballpark figure was around $5000 per 40-ft container from Adak to Seward. Top that off with around $1000 per container to get it trucked from Seward to Wasilla. Lastly, we had to figure out transportation around the island and to move the big stuff. The Aleut Corporation rents vehicles on the island for around $65 a day.
This was a time when it matters who you know, not what you know. I needed pallets to put everything on for shipping. I was given the number of a gentleman named, Dustin. He owns Premier Harvest, a seafood shipping/processing business on Adak. I was able to locate pallets on the island and Dustin was able to finish out the logistics of a flatbed truck, fork lift and short term storage for the pallets till the barge arrived.
We brought all our own food and drinks (beer and wine included). Tools and lighting had to be rechargeable and packed in as well. We found some great LED 1500 Lumen shop lights that were worth their weight in gold on the trip. I even bought a drone to take on the trip with my GoPro. We shot nearly 20 hours of video. The video was converted to 11, 8-10 minute episodes by Nomad Cinematics and is available to watch on YouTube on our channel, TheAlaskaPicker.
THE CREW:
The crew that was going to pull this off, well, that was the best part. My future father-in-law, Bill, was in. He always wanted to go to Adak and figured this was his only shot. I also met Joe and Mike through a mutual friend and they were in as well. So in late October we made the reservations and planned to be there when the barge arrived to pack the pallets and load them into the container.
THE PICKING TRIP:
When we landed in Adak it was eerily calm. Like no wind at all. Adak is known as the “birthplace of the winds” for good reason. We immediately began scouting and playing tourist. We knew the next couple days would be long and hard.
The bad weather eventually came and we battled winds blowing 50 mph and sideways rain. Mold could be found in every form you can think of. Over the next six days we packed over 30 pallets of items from Adak. Furniture, work benches, signs, barrister bookcases, a post office mail sorting table, reclaimed doors and flooring, and whatever else we could find that fit in the parameters of our proposal.
"Adak Carpet" - Nature is slowing reclaiming everything. This is an office inside the Public Works Building on Adak.
People always ask what was my favorite thing we found on Adak. I am partial to our salvage of the center court eagle from the old Bob Reeve High School. The school building is like most on Adak, ravaged. Mother Nature is taking the island back. Wind, rain, sun, rain, snow, wind, rain, repeat for the past 20 years. Paint was literally peeling and dripping off the walls and ceilings. New and old furniture and office equipment was crammed into rooms, sometimes as high as the ceiling. Everything there is wet with 100 percent humidity, 100 percent of the time.
Sea of Chairs - This is the picture that made us go to Adak. We estimated there are 3000 chairs stored in this warehouse.
We explored nearly every floor of every building we had access to in that week. In the old Bering Theater, Joe and I found a catwalk above the theater allowing you to walk from the projection room to the stage without being seen from below.
The creepiest building by far was the abandoned hospital and dental clinic: operating rooms, an X-Ray laboratory, and the morgue. The most beautiful building was the Bering Chapel. Built in the late 1940s, it is one of the oldest remaining structures on Adak. Again, weather has taken a toll on this beauty and I am not sure it will last too many more years with the huge holes in the supporting sidewalls and roof.
THE HICCUPS:
There were really very few hiccups on the trip. We overcame the lack of light issue in the buildings by being able to open some larger bay doors.
We are all Alaskans so we just rolled with whatever the weather handed us for the day. We ran out of beer while we were there and paid $22 for a six pack of Dos Equis. I got addicted to sour gummy worms, thanks to Joe. The barge ended up being nearly three weeks late.
Luckily, some of Dustin's guys loaded the pallets in the containers for us. No Wifi or reliable phone service was a blessing and a curse. It was a week before the general election so not having to deal with all the political ads was a huge plus, but not being able to talk to my loved ones for a couple days when the phones were down was hard.
The best part was we didn't see any rats. We heard stories about huge rats running around the island. All we saw were a few small long-dead ones.
THE REARVIEW MIRROR:
Adak is a special place for many reasons: history, natural beauty and its people, just to name a few. Its remoteness is calming and mesmerizing at the same time.
No stop signs, sirens, traffic, or “noise.” When this adventure first started I didn’t imagine we would spend the better part of four months with just one pick. I hadn’t imagined phone calls, emails and messages on social media from all over the United States, even Brazil—from people who grew up on Adak, had family members serve in the military on Adak, got married, baptized, and had children on Adak.
Who would have thought this place 1200 miles southwest of Anchorage, in a different time zone and nearly at the end of the Aleutian Chain, would be so endearing to so many. It is truly the “birthplace of the winds.”
By Kelley Turney, Alaska Picker | Follow Alaska Picker on Facebook
March, 2017
https://www.thealaskalife.com/blog/adak-island-abandoned-alaska/
178 comments
I served in Adak from 1967-1968 at the Naval communications station. I remember the wind was so strong at times we had to hold onto things while outside, We had a dog which belonged to everyone and his name was Jim Beam. I do not know how he got his name but he was a great companion especially when we took hikes around the island. We got stranded once when a snow storm came up and we had to be rescued by the Seabees in a snowcat . All came out OK.. We used to watch the whales come through the Japanese current and catch salmon in the streams . Great experience for a 19 year old at the time.
I was stationed there from 86-90 and worked at RedShed and Baler bldg.
We loved our time on Adak. I served as President of the Civilian Women’s Club. My son, Nick, started kindergarten there. We have such great memories of the tight knit community, salmon runs, bald eagle and otter sightings, and the enlisted men taking my son on his first sled/toboggan ride down Mt Moffet. Lumpia…lots of lumpia!
I was in the crash&rescue dept across the taxi way, near the crossing of the 2 run ways in 1975&76 18 months tom ocallaghan aviation boatswain mate, crew chief on a crash crew fire truck hatred at first then got a 6 month extension, like to go back, on my bucket list, i was 18&19 back thendoesn’t seem possible to get there thoughlike somebody to contact me if possible
I did three tours on Adak 1959-1976 and loved every minute of every tour! Fishing was always great at Lake Andrews.
My husband, Dennis Ailes, was Captain at the Fire Department on Adak 1982-1985. Several wives, both military and civilian, baked cookies, pies, turkeys, hams, etc. for the men and women serving on this base during the holidays. We literally had buses pull up to our home for the holidays. Also, my Father-In-Law, Morgan L. Ailes, was among the first Marines to help establish the Adak base. He was the honored guest at the Marine Corp Ball while we were there. He never forgot the kindnesses shown him during his visit to Adak. Both Dennis and Morgan have passed away. But the memories they built on Adak live on in my son’s heart and mine.
Over nighted there a couple times, while ferrying Aircraft to Japan we to chose fuel and over night walked the Island in what little time we had. Quite errie, but fascinating, can only imagin the place in it’s hayday. Should we be allowed flight through Russian airspace at our required flight level again, we’ll do it again. Be a great adventure for those who chose something different to stay for a vacation.
Brian
Both of my daughters were baptized in the Bering Pool by then Chaplin Eli Takesian in ’75.
Went to Adak three times during the mid 80’s. I was a member of a separate infantry brigade that was part of the RDF and assigned to the 6th ID.. My unit was given the task of defending two of the islands in the Aleutian chain. Adak and Shemya. Anyone wonder why? I have many memories of Adak. Some of them very good and some humbling. I remember seeing my first American Bald Eagle, up close. He was 10’ away, sitting on what was left of an old telephone pole. I was staring at him and he at me. When I looked in his eyes I almost felt that I could hear him asking, “Boy, what are you doing here?” I remember two things from the first time I hiked the orienteering course that the Marines had set up between Sweeper Cove and Finger Bay. The first was being humbled by the terrain. I was standing on the top of a hill and looking at the next point on the course that I needed to get to. I’m thinking . “God, I can almost reach out and touch that next hill.” Then I looked down at my map and realized that the hill was 2 1/2 K away. Damn, did I feel small. The 2nd was getting to experience what it was like to get caught in a “White Out”, or what I think they called a “Willy Wah.” Have you ever had your “Snow Buddy” stand behind you, holding your poncho up to keep the wind and snow off you, while you strip down to your underwear and put on a dry uniform, socks and boots so you don’t die from hypothermia? That’s an experience you’ll never forget. I also remember the biggest mistake that one could make walking in to the Chiefs Club. I had missed the sign that was outside and made the mistake of walking through the door with my cover on. As I got inside, I heard a bell ring. Then I noticed that everyone was staring at me.. As I walked to the bar, everyone was thanking me. When I got to the bar, the lady said "Welcome to the Chiefs Club master sergeant, what would you like to drink, I told her a beer. When she got back, she handed me the beer and told me that it was $15. I said What? Then she pointed to the sign over the bar that said “If you enter the Chiefs Club with a cover on, you just bought a round for the bar.” Thank God there were only 10 of us in there. Never made that mistake again. All in all, it was a great experience for a guy who had grown up in Ohio.
Really enjoyed the pictures and reading this article about Adak, my husband served in the Navy and was stationed there back in 1980. After our last child was born I always said when we left the island that I would never come back. We realize what we were missing by not being on the rock, that we did return to Adak for another tour. It turned out to be our most memorable tour.
Monique Whitlow (Jarome, Retired USN)
Lower Amulet housing
.??? New Housing behind the commissary
We loved Adak, such a wild and beautiful place. We were there from 80-82. My husband was in Public Works. That might have been his office! And I worked in the school, where our kids attended. We were in Kulak housing and were the very first ones to move into Bayshore.
We were in Adak at NSGA and had anothe Chaplain Brown!??
We loved our time on Adak..definitely unique experience that many didn’t get to have! We have a few Rush Cole prints hanging around our house to remind us of the beautiful scenery!
I moved to Adak in 1975 with my family after my dad got a job in the Navy’s data processing department. I left the island in August 1980 after graduating from Bob Reeve High School that May. I worked all summer with the school maintenance crew and then left Adak to attend college in Oklahoma. My family and I made many wonderful memories on Adak – we loved every minute of it. My dad always said I cried all the way to Adak (because I did not want to leave my friends in Oklahoma) and then I cried all the way back to Oklahoma (because I did not want to leave my friends on Adak). I hope to visit the island in 2018 with a group of BRHS classmates.
Was a Seabee there in 89 and 90. Spent a lot of time picking through ruined encampments from the war on the hillsides. A lot of Adak was built with lend lease lumber from Russia. Wooden pipelines and water tanks still could be found. I remember exploring an old wooden hangar once. I noticed stairs leading up to a door in the back. I went up a jimmied it opened. I walked into a WW 2 time capsule. Oddly enough the lights still worked. It was like somebody walked out and locked the door in 1945. I spent maybe an hour sitting there at an old wooden desk with an old crank field phone, just looking around in amazement. Adak was a special place indeed.
Hi Nanette and Wanda!! Adakians always find each other!
I never hear about the Firehouse. My father worked there from 1966 to 1977. My Aunt and then my mother were the school cooks. The cafeteria was in the basement of the school. I guess it probably isn’t safe to go down there now. I wonder if “Big Bertha” is still there – the giant kitchenaid mixer.
We were there aswoc 88 -94
I was married in the chapel in sept.1968.we had to send away for the license and were told we were the 2nd on the island.I also graduated in may 1968 and my maid of honor graduated in1967 Sandra stock bridge.marriage didn’t make it but good memories of Adak will last forever
LOVED reading about your adventures here! Ahh, it brings back sweet memories of that place and just wish we could go back, but it would be sad, I’m sure. Will definitely look up your videos!
Hi.great reading…I lived on Adak from 1984 – 1985…At the crash fire Dept..Lived in Birchwood housing… Climed my Moffett a few times. Working at crash…We would get off work and always go bowling…I remember her well…. But there was wind / Rain / and Snow All the time…Nice duty station… Gotta love it…
I will be reading this many times. Thank you! I was born on Adak in November of 1948. My father was an Army tugboat captain. My mother told the story of me being the only baby in the Quonset hut hospital nursery and how spoiled I was because everyone wanted to hold me. My father brought an injured harbor seal home to recuperate in the bathtub. We left the island when I was just six months old, but I’ve had a lifetime of answering inquiries when people ask me where I was born.
We were there from ‘87-’89 and my husband, Chaplain Brown, had bought an OLD, small pickup with a cap on it and holes in the floorboards to make the 10 mile drive from Kuluk housing to NSGA. It also had expired Guam plates on it. Wish we had taken the plates when we moved. No one believes we had them on the truck. I think we sold it for what we paid, a mere $50, when we left. It’s probably in that car graveyard! HA!
I have to laugh. I had a housing unit on Adak and part of our Dining Room furniture was 6 of those orange chairs. My wife’s cat decided to sharpen her claws on all six of them so when we left Adak we had to purchase them. I had them for around 10 years before we finaly got rid of them….
I agree with You, Nanette, adak was one of the best places ever. I loved my six years on the rock. The people and the place made it very special. I have fond memories of hiking all over, no matter the weather. We used to put my son in a backpack and we had a Gore-Tex poncho to put over him to keep him dry. I also remember the dumpster stumbling down the street when the winds roared. They almost tore the door off my truck, and they flipped my umbrella inside out. And was a special place and to truly understand it you had to live there.
WOW! Amazing story, loved it! Adak was truly an amazing duty station and I served two tours on adak, 1969 – 1970 and 1975 – 1978. Was stationed with Naval Communications Adak in Special Communications in Building P80, about a mile from the Comm Station, just below I believe it was MT. Adagdat. Just about everyone I knew on adak loved it there, as it was our own military community and everyone just about knew everyone. I have it on my bucket list to revisit adak one day.