Category: Life in Alaska
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Lingonberries, Week 9 in Healy
These tart berries overwinter! They can be eaten after fall frost, dug from the snow, or – in my case – harvested as the snow melts. They are also known as low bush cranberries, and are related to cranberries and blueberries. All around the cabin we have mats of Lingonberries mixed in with Labrador Tea…
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Steese Highway III
We saw a variety of ducks along the Steese, including some gorgeous ones I had never seen before. I think we saw Scaups, Goldeneyes, and maybe Buffleheads. We finally saw some mammals! We worked our way up in size. Red squirrels, a beaver, then a porcupine. I most wanted to see caribou while C most…
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Steese Highway II, Circle May 13, 2023
We left Eagle Summit mid-morning Saturday and slowly drove the remaining 55 miles to the end of the road at the Yukon River in Circle, Alaska. We were in the village about an hour before I realized that the significant river pictured above was just a small meandering arm of the Yukon River. What I…
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Steese Highway
We spent the weekend traveling the Steese Highway, which brings travelers within 50 miles of the Arctic Circle. Be sure to stop at Chatanika Lodge for a meal (likely a great place to spend the night too). It is a quirky & fascinating Alaskan backwoods “museum” that you can explore while waiting for your delicious…
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Pinecone Middens, Insects: Week 8 in Healy
The melting snow has revealed several pinecone middens assembled by the resident red squirrel. Also insects are coming out. I find it strange but joyous to see butterflies when there is still so much snow around. Not nearly as happy to see other insects!
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Denali Highway
We are constantly experiencing time warps up here! Somehow we traveled 6 hours before realizing that we had better turn around as it was a long way home. So much beauty around each corner. Technically the highway isn’t open yet. Where the snow drifts were high it was sometimes only one lane. No bites fishing.…
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Denali Night, Moon and Moose
It was a full moon last night, so we went into the Park when we would usually be getting ready for bed. We heard more Ptarmigan than we saw. C’s Facebook page has a video posted where you can hear them! Once the moon came up, it stayed close to the horizon, appearing to rise…
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Twilight II, Week 7 in Healy
The days are changing so fast. We are up to 17 hours of daylight and it is never very dark. We have no true night and no astronomical twilight. I was curious what nautical twilight looks like and took some photos when the clouds were mostly covering the moon. In real life there was plenty…
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Moose Sign, Week 7
When we returned from Fairbanks it was clear moose had been visiting. All of the snow melted from our plowed driveway leaving it very soft. Great for seeing lots of moose prints! We followed moose sign back our outhouse path. When he hit the outhouse he went onto the landing & then right beside it.…
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Ptarmigan, Week 7 in Healy
We started our 7th week with a nice visit to Denali. The moose wasn’t in a good place for a photo, but the Ptarmigan were cooperative. I love their feathered “slippers” and the clucking and purring noises they make. Above is a picture I posted earlier, back when the Ptarmigan were all white. Below is…
Me & C 