So Long, AK!

My alarm rang at 5:45 this morning, to wake me up for my long journey home, which began with a 3/4 mile walk to the airport. Luckily, I go to ride in a (slightly) larger plane this time and we had semi-clear skies.
Glacier just south of Haines, AK.
Between the clouds just enough to see the Chilkat Mountains.
Approaching Juneau, AK.
Nearing the Juneau airport.

Although I am not officially home yet (I am currently sitting in the Anchorage airport on a 7 hour layover), I can confidently say that it has certainly been a summer to remember. It was truly inspiring to wake up and see glacier-topped mountains from my front porch, to drive along ancient fjords on my commute to work, and to see authentic, untouched wilderness. I witnessed the annual salmon runs and listened to my heart pound as I watched grizzly bears feed. I slightly improved my cooking, learned to ride a bike balancing a week's worth of groceries on the handle bars, and mastered the art of sleeping with constant daylight. I learned that I am proactive in my work to meet deadlines independently and creative enough to problem-solve in the field. I learned that I can do anything I set out to- including all the unforeseen challenges and unexpected bonuses.

As amazing as it was to live in Alaska- even if only for a summer- it wasn't always as easy or glamorous as it sounds. One of the most difficult things was having to do so much alone- pictures can't capture what your eyes can, verbal descriptions and blog posts could never satisfy the senses as experiencing Alaska in person can. This trip has made me value my family and friends so much more (in case I didn't enough already!) and has helped me understand the value of having loved ones to share life with. I am so excited to return home, so share stories and laughter, and finally enjoy the company of you all again!

And who knows, the lab does need someone out here again next summer...

Skagway City Museum

As my trip nears its end, I have been scrambling to visit all of the places I haven't seen yet. Sunday I visited the Skagway City Museum, which featured a great mosaic of gold-rush era artifacts, Tlingit art and artifacts, WWII exhibits, and a collection of contemporary art from Alaskan artists.

What caught my eye most was this stuffed grizzly. The placard under this beast read "When brown bears stand on their hind legs, they are often in a curious mood." Why then, is this bear positioned to give children nightmares, if it's just being playful?!

Denver Glacier

When Iraise invited me to join her on her final trek to complete the Skagway Trail Challenge, I couldn't say no. We set out to conquer the Denver Glacier Trial, which involved a 3 mile mountain bike ride out to the "trail head" (which begins when you begin to wonder when you're going to hurl over your handle bars and decide to ditch your bike and begin walking).

We hiked in lush rain forest, in which I was more worried about seeing a dinosaur than a black bear. After 5 wet, overcast miles, we finally reached a clearing where the trail simply stopped. We stood there, listening to cascading waterfalls, wondering where the glacier was. Suddenly, the clouds parted and our jaws dropped as we gained sight of a massive, clear-blue hanging glacier. I was speechless. Iraise was so excited, she began jumping up and down and put a hand on my shoulder. I of course thought she was a bear, and screamed at the top of her lungs, which made her scream in surprise. We then concluded that we were safe, as we probably scared off all of the wildlife within earshot.
Denver Glacier.
Denver Glacier.
Trekking back home, trying to remember where we left our bikes...

After the hike, we gathered together with 5 of our friends to celebrate the end of the season with a Thanksgiving Dinner. Although it sounded a little off-season, it was a nice was to reflect on the end of the summer. We all had a lot to be thankful for; for staying safe out here, for the beautiful vistas we saw, and for the great friends we have made. Although we all said our good-byes, I left with a strong feeling that I would cross path with some of them again.

Brown Bear vs. Grizzly Bear

During my lunch break, my co-worker Stephanie and I decided to eat out on the tidal flats to enjoy the last of the "summer" weather (50s, overcast..). As we drove out onto the flats, we noticed a few people who were standing next to their cars taking photos of something by the river. Excited, we pulled over our car and scanned the banks, and surely enough we saw a grizzly bear fishing for pink salmon.
We watched for about half an hour before we had to return to work. Just as we were leaving, he decided to head out to. I was so glad we were in a car!
Also, I would like to take this time to clarify a point of confusion for most people (including myself, until today). Although many people use the name brown bear and grizzly bear interchangeably, there is a difference between the two. Grizzly bears live within the interior of Alaska and are known for being slightly smaller. Brown bears, meanwhile, inhabit the coastal region of Alaska, and are known for reaching larger sizes due to their diet of fatty fish. Glad I'm living on the coast.

Laughton Glacier

My friend Iraise is on a mission to complete the Skagway Trail Challenge, which involves hiking all of the local trails in Skagway and Dyea. The trails range from an easy 1-mile jaunt to Yukatanea Point to a 33-mile trek on the Chilkoot Trail. I joined her on her second-to-last hike (and my third-to-last) to the Laughton Glacier.

We took a 14.5 mile train ride over the boarder to British Columbia, before being dropped off with seven other hikers hoping to see a retreating glacier at work. We hurridly hiked the 3.5 miles to the glacier, flowing frigid, silt-choked streams until we finally arrived at a massive boulder field. It took us a few minutes of staring at the wall ahead of us before we could begin to decipher ice from rock, but we slowly realized the glacier filled the whole valley we were in. It wasn't the picturesque blue glacier we had anticipated, but the more we explored the "young" valley and massive ice, we were awe-struck at the power of nature. The force of nature is still at work in Alaska and today we were able to see evidence of where the landscape is still being created.
And of course, no hike is complete without a little treat from the Lemon Rose bakery after!

Fjord Ecosystems

Yesterday was a quiet, damp day out in Dyea which provided me a day to explore a bit more than usual. I drove out to the tidal flats were the salt water harbor meets the glacial-fed Tiaya River in what is termed a fjord. This creates a diverse, dynamic ecosystem characterized by a mosaic of flora adapted to the different types of soil on the tidal flats. At this point in the summer, the fauna is particularly varied as well, as many birds and mammals make their way out for an easy meal.

Two bald eagles sitting side by side, watching the salmon fight upstream.

A group of funny birds- I wish I could identify them, but I'm not too great with ornithology- that flew in a manner that reminded me of a school of fish. They were completely synchornized as they flew up, dove down, and rolled to show their white bellies.
Fresh grizzly bear tracks lined the river, likely from an early morning breakfast.
I came across this print later in the afternoon, but I think it's only a dog. Either way, I made me look over one shoulder as I bent down to take a photo!

Halloween 2010

There is a Sarah Palin fan club here in Skagway, which seems to get a decent amount of business. After laughing about it on the phone with my mom, she suggested that I take advantage of it and try to find a Halloween costume. Well, the store did not yeild any success, but I did manage to find some wildlife hats!
In the mean time, I'll have to resort to taking advantage of the Sarah Palin store for some early Christmas shopping...

Parrotheads

Jimmy Buffet even has a presence in Skagway, AK.

Aurora Borealis II

Unfortunately my first attempt to view the aurora borealis on Tuesday night was unsuccessful. I set my alarm for 1 am and sat with 2 of my roommates outside, staring at the northern sky for 45 mintues. The next morning we learned that we had missed the spectacular light show by only an hour.

Determined to see them, my friend Iraise spent the following day tracking the solar storm intensity and the cloud cover in a 200 mile radius of Skagway. She tracked me down later in the day to invite me to drive up to Carcross, British Columbia with her, where she was confident we would find clear skies and dancing lights. When she said she could be ready to leave at 8:15 pm, I told her that might be taking it too far- the sun wasn't even due to set until 10:45 there.

We hit the road around 11:30 and began driving north. We crossed the boarder and found a parking lot where we set up a tarp and some blankets, prepared to wait as long as it would take to see the northern lights. At 1:45, we were beginning to suspect that the bright crescent moon was casting too much light, and we decided to drive south to where we could find darker skies.

As we drove south, we noticed the cloud cover was increasing, so we turned around, crossed through customs again, and began driving back north to where we had eaten oreos and told stories to stay awake earlier. As I was riding co-pilot, I looked up to the north and saw a beautiful ribbon of milky-blue light and immediately began yelling for Iraise to pull the car over. As soon as we were safetly out of the avalanche zone, we pulled over to the shoulder and scrambled to see the ethereal aurora. Just minutes after we pulled over, the clouds descended on us and we lost sight of the lights. But that one glimpse was all Iraise needed; we got back into the car and she bagn driving north, laughing that she felt like a storm chaser.

I don't know how far north we drove, but we never got a clear view of the aurora borealis again. We turned around and I tried to stay awake as we drove back through the lonely mountains. I woke up once we stopped outside my apartment at 4 am, and trudged inside to sleep for only 3 and half hours before waking up to go to work the next morning.

We may not have seen as much of the aurora borealis as we had hoped, but we sure gave it our best effort. Sometimes the journey alone is enough.

VT Plates... in Skagway?

I was running in Skagway the other day and did a double-take as I passed this Subaru. It had Vermont plates and a Mad River Glen bumper sticker. I've been keeping an eye out around town, wondering who it could possibly be.
The mystery was finally solved today, when I met a woman who works as a horseback tourguide out in Dyea. As we chatted, I learned she graduated from the Rubenstein School in 2007 and had some of the same professors I have had at UVM. Funny how the further you travel from home, the sooner you learn just how small the world is.

Bear Snacks

As I was stepping near the bank of the Tiaya River to try an snap a photo of this humpback (pink) salmon...
I nearly stepped on the remains of this one!

Looks like someone didn't clean up after their snack...

Aurora Borealis

For the past few days, we have been enjoying unsually clear, sunny weather, which has brought a smile to everyone in Skagway. Meanwhile, there have been a high number of solar storms lately. The two together mean one thing... great chances of seeing the Aurora Borealis, or, the Northern Lights! Of course, we all have to wait until after the sunsets at 11 pm, but everyone is getting their blankets and midnight snacks ready!

The Annual Salmon Derby

Every July, Skagway hosts an international Salmon derby, in which people fish for 3 days straight to see who can bring home the largest salmon. I went down to the docks to check it out, but quickly can to the conclusion that fishing is not a spectator sport.

One of my friends was working as the officiator of the derby, and scored a few discarded salmon that some competitors couldn't take home on their boats. We celebrated their poor luck by grilling the 17 lb. salmon ourselves!