Tag Archives: Alaska

Road Trip to Alaska

Yesterday (April 13) I began my road trip from North Carolina to Alaska. I’m using the TrackMyTour app that creates a map of my route, with waypoints, comments, and photos. You can follow my trip with this link: Alaska Road Trip.

I’m also posting notes about each day’s adventures on my Stay Curious Facebook page (you don’t have to use a Facebook account to access that page). Once in Alaska, I’ll be using the Stay Curious FB page to post photos all summer long. When I have time, I’ll post some photos over here too.

Here’s the map from today’s route (about 660 miles from Perrysburg, OH to Minneapolis, MN). Tomorrow I’ll drive across North Dakota. I’m hoping to see some interesting things. I’ve never been in North Dakota before!

#AlaskaGuideLife #RoadTrip2AK

Low tide treasures

Today we had a nice low tide and went out to a different area of our coast to explore the intertidal zone. Look what we found!

This is a hairy triton (Fusitriton oregonensis). We saw a few today, but THIS one is brooding its eggs! So cool.

Then we found a frilled dogwinkle (Nucella lamellosa), which we had never seen before!

We also found this little six-armed sea star clutching a piece of mussel shell with a bunch of small eggs on it.

Everything is Awesome

Just re-posting these photos from my Stay Curious Facebook page because they show how awesome every moment of every day looks. Rain, shine, wind, work, hiking, kayaking, cleaning, painting, serving, talking, foraging, whatever… it’s all good. So thankful to be here. #AlaskaGuideLife

Trailside views

At Tutka Bay Lodge we have several trail loops that are adjacent to the property. We hike these loops daily (sometimes more than once in a day). I love seeing the difference a day can make. Or a rainfall.

We have a temperate rain forest here on the coast. Yes, you heard that right–rain forest and Alaska. The key being a “temperate” rain forest (receiving between 60 and 200 inches of rain a year from the Pacific ocean). This is the most northern extent of this type of forest. Further to our north is the boreal forest.

We’re still seeing Spring unfurl. I can’t wait to start seeing the wildflowers burst open! Here’s a few glimpses of what I saw today. Be sure to check out (and “like”) my Stay Curious Facebook page, where I post some quick pics whenever I can!

Exploring Homer, Alaska

I arrived on the Alaska Marine Highway System ferry (the Kennicott) late on Friday night. I am staying with the Carroll family (Colleen is a friend of one of my NC friends, Lori). They have been amazing hosts. I’ll be here for a few more days until I take the water taxi over to Tutka Bay Lodge and begin working!

This is their home, about 9 miles west of downtown Homer. Colleen runs the Homer Theatre (more about that later) and her husband, AlRay, fishes and is also an engineer on a vessel that takes supplies (like lumber, machinery, etc) out to the remote villages in the Northwest. He was home for one day while I was here, then he left for about 8 weeks on one of their delivery trips.

I’m staying in a little RV on their property while I’m here!

The views from their porch never get old.

We have had moose in the yard several times. Woodpeckers, grosbeaks, swallows, and more keep us entertained. Outside my window I can watch some clever long-tailed voles run around in some of AlRay’s fishing nets and old lines that are in the yard.

Saturday we celebrated Cassidy’s birthday (she’s Colleen and AlRay’s 8-year-old). We went down to the Homer Spit and did some tidepooling with some of her friends. We had a great time. Then it was off to Starvin’ Marvin for some pizza.

Sunday morning I went to an Edible Plants of Kachemak Bay walk. It was part of the Kachemak Bay Shorebird festival that has been going on for the last several days. An astonishing amount of migratory birds come through Homer.

Although the person leading the walk has been foraging and learning about edible plants for almost 20 years, she was not a botanist, so most of the information was very general and the best advice we learned was the mnemonic for telling the difference between an edible plant, Angelica, and a poisonous plant, Water Hemlock. First, you observe where the veins of the leaf end… at the tip of the leaf or in between lobes (the “cut”). Then remember this:

Veins to the cut, pain in the gut; veins to the tip, everything’s hip

Colleen’s parents are visiting from Florida. They will be moving here later this year (and living in a cabin right next door). Since it was Mother’s Day, we went in search of a place for brunch. A few of our first choices were full (uh oh, we were supposed to make reservations?), but we found a nice place and I enjoyed a salmon sandwich. Later in the afternoon, Colleen, Cassidy, and I went for a short hike on the Calvin & Coyle trail. We had a lovely time and saw a moose, a very vocal squirrel, and lots of interesting plants. The trail weaves through a forest, a meadow, and a bog (via strategically placed boards).

Monday we went into town and stopped at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies. Such a great place. I hope to get out to their field station on the other side of Kachemak Bay sometime soon.

They have 3 ROVs that they made from NOAA “Bot in a Bucket” plans. I didn’t have the openROV with me, but we shared about equipment, ideas, and experiences with the underwater explorers! I’ll bring the openROV down to show them at some point.

Next stop was the Alaska Islands and Ocean Visitor Center.

I explored the exhibits a bit and then spent some time walking around outdoors on their trails. One trail leads down to Bishop’s Beach (where the Edible Plants walk was). The best part of Bishop’s Beach is that there is a fantastic bakery right on the edge of the road, Two Sisters Bakery. They have the most amazing oven, incredible breads, delicious coffee, and a fantastic view.

The day ended with a hike along the Homer Spit (poor Colleen got a blister on the ball of her foot, ouch!). Cassidy joined us, but she rode her bicycle while we walked. At night, we finished reading the second book of the Harry Potter series, and then watched the movie together. I had forgotten how long that movie is.

There really isn’t a bad view in Homer. No matter where you look you see mountains, glaciers, the Bay, wildlife, or a coffee shop.

As I mentioned, Colleen is the manager for the Homer Theatre. Right now they are showing the Avengers and I plan to go watch that tonight. What is the best thing about the small theatre? They serve popcorn with real butter and they have nutritional yeast to sprinkle on it!

It is nice to have a few days to do laundry, pick up miscellaneous supplies, and explore Homer before heading out to the lodge. But I’m really looking forward to getting started… especially since we have a super low tide coming up early next week!!!

Stay tuned, and Stay Curious!

Whittier to Kodiak Island: Rain and Drills

We arrived in Whittier on Thursday morning at 6am. I walked through the pedestrian underground tunnel over to the Anchor Inn.

They weren’t open yet for breakfast, but I was able to sit and use their wifi until they were ready. Whittier lived up to its reputation of being rather bleak. We had rain and wind to accompany the view of the old Soviet-style buildings. However, the people make up for the surroundings. They were so friendly and helpful. I did have a few minutes to check out the tiny local musuem, which did a great job highlighting some of the local history. Still, I think the prettiest thing in Whittier is the Ferry sign.

We left Whittier around 11am. As we pulled away from the port, you could tell something was different. The ship felt even emptier. Most folks had departed at Whittier for Anchorage. We now have only 33 passengers onboard until Kodiak Island. That means there are more crew on the ferry than passengers!

It was a rainy day (and night) crossing the Gulf over to Kodiak. During the day, the crew practiced some drills. First they did some fire drills… complete with gearing up and using fire hoses.

Then they did some Abandon Ship drills. For these, they lowered the life boats (not quite all the way down to the water, but enough to practice using the hydraulics that lower and raise the boats).

We also made a quick one hour stop in Chenega Bay. This is a tiny (and I mean, TINY) village of folks who were affected by the Exxon Valdez oil spill. You can see the oil spill recovery units on the water and on the docks (put in place for any future spills). They were recipients of settlement money (and they also had someone who invested for the town in the Dot.com days and they cashed out in time to do really well). This means, basically, the people here don’t need to work, other than fish when they want to. There was no cell service in port. The main reason we stop here is for the locals to come aboard and buy some fresh baked pie or a burger or two.

On across the Gulf to Kodiak Island. We had some rolling and pitching as we crossed the open water. Not much to do but get a last night of sleep on the ferry!

I awoke early as we were pulling into Kodiak. At 6am a few of us disembarked and went in search of coffee. One of my fellow passengers is a traveler from Texas, Robert, who is creating his own adventure. He came to Kodiak in search of summer work. At the coffee shop he started making friends with the locals, finding about odd jobs, and putting up his “Available for Hire” sign on the bulletin board. I’m sure he’ll find something and have an amazing summer here. We walked into town together and I enjoyed learning about his life in Texas, his plans to eventually go to grad school to become a licensed dietician, and his thoughts about Alaska.

Found a great coffee shop right on the harbor. A great way to spend the day.

I have a few hours left in Kodiak, so I’ll walk around for a while before heading back to the ferry. Then it will be time to pack up and get ready to arrive at my final port: Homer. This has been an amazing trip on the ferry and a great way to start my summer season here in Alaska.

Greetings from Ketchikan, Alaska

On Saturday (May 2), I boarded the Kennicott, one of the Alaska Marine Highway ferries, to travel from Bellingham, WA, to Homer, AK. It will take me six days. For the first 36 hours of the trip, I was in Canadian waters (as I traversed northward, I waved to the port side of the ship in the direction of Frasier Cain and to the starboard side toward Carin Bondar. I did not have internet while traveling the 36 miles to our first stop in Ketchikan, which allowed me plenty of time to explore the ship, enjoy the views, and meet interesting people. I’m posting this from Ketchikan, on May 4th. Since today is my birthday, I am quickly posting this (at The Landing Restaurant, which has free wifi!) and then will be off to find Sweet Mermaids, a fantastic bakery, where I hope to find some treats to celebrate the day. Although, I won’t be able to truly celebrate until I have some treats from Chef Mandy Dixon at La Baliene on the Homer Spit!

Here are a few travel tidbits from my trip so far:

I woke up at 4:10am to find that the sun had already begun to rise. I’m looking forward to our very long days of summer sunlight! As I travel further north, the length of daylight will increase. As the summer solstice grows nearer, each day will bring more and more sunlight… giving ample daylight for our adventures.

We passed numerous little villages and many, many islands. One village, Alert Bay, was a small fishing and logging village and had beautifully carved Native culture totems that we could see from the ferry.

I saw my first sea otter of the trip. Out on Kachemak Bay we have rafts of them! I am looking forward to seeing all the newborn pups!

I watched 2 documentaries on the ferry. One was about the history of Ketchikan, the other was about the Ketchikan fishery. My IMCC friends would have huge smiles to hear everyone talk about sustainable fisheries. I sat with a couple from Juneau. Sally was a marine biologist (yay!) and used to work with the Alaska Fisheries. They knew some of the people in the documentaries!

Another interesting person I met is the chief pursor for the Kennicott. She lives in Ketchkan with her husband who is a bosun on the Columbia (another Alaska ferry). They work 2 weeks (separately, each on their own ferry) and then have 2 weeks off! She has one daughter and a new granddaughter (who lives in Washington state). You can just imagine all the cute pictures she showed me. She is going to visit them this week, so she was pretty excited.

Eight laps around the ferry is one mile. I wonder why I know that. The kitchen crew recognized me in the dinner line because they had seen me going by their window so many times.

The tidal zones on the coastal rocks are marked by colors of seaweed. I wish I could scramble around and identify them more closely.

A quick shoutout to my extended family for all their encouragement and support and patience while I have this amazing summer job. Thank you for letting me be away for so long, and I promise to post lots of photos.

And with that, it has just started to rain. I feel like I’m really in Alaska now.

Stay tuned for more updates, and Stay Curious!

Where in the World?

Where exactly will I be working this summer in Alaska? That’s a great question. Alaska has several regions and I will be in the Southcentral area. Here are some maps to give you an idea of where I will be located in the state.

Maps created with Google Maps.

Alaska Wetlands

Did you know that Alaska has almost 175 million acres of land classified as wetlands? That’s almost half of Alaska! That’s also nearly two thirds of the wetlands in all of the United States. Muskegs are a specific kind of bog where only sphagnum moss, black spruce, Sitka spruce, dwarf birch and some other shrubs can grow. One way that we can track these vast wetlands is via satellite. The NASA JPL has images and data available about wetlands in Alaska (and the rest of the globe) available online.

Source: The Alaska Almanac: Facts about Alaska, 34th Edition

Underwater photography

Last year I took my GoPro to Tutka Bay and got some underwater video of an octopus that had a den in the intertidal zone. I also used the GoPro for a timelapse of one of the tide changes. This year, I’ll be borrowing an OpenROV (remotely operated vehicle) with a camera to explore more of the underwater flora, fauna, and geology of the Tutka Bay Lodge area.

I can’t wait to see what we’ll find with the OpenROV!