up up up and away...

Yesterday I was is in my favorite place in the world kayaking, watching Orca pods pass, okay so no Orca pods, but I saw a bunch of sea stars, mussels, anemones, and beds of coral which is almost as exciting. Today I am in Anchorage inhaling car exhaust, again lies, no car exhaust but it is WEIRD being in Anywhere City, USA. Although I went to a fabulous glacier and drove on one of the most beautiful roads I have ever experienced. Tomorrow I head for remote rural Alaska, Unalakleet, my first bush community for 2 weeks of summer camp.

Goodbye cell phones and high speed internet access,
hello rivers, bushes, bugs, and camp fires...
Good bye Sitka and the warm weather warning (it may hit 70 and the news is issuing a heat warning for all Sitka area residents)
Hello native kids,
hello being a minority for the first time since my junior high basketball days.

Ahh... leisure

Not all of my leisure is spent climbing mountains. Sometimes (actually more often than not) I can be found in my home, just dinking around with my roommates. They are fabulous and fun. Here is one picture I feels captures the essence of us. Here is to summer, friendship, and all that is ahead...

Cross Mnt. 5-23-09

Emily Buck and I had a brilliant plan about 2 weeks ago. Lets climb 5 mountains in 5 days. We would leave for the summit of Cross Mnt. Friday afternoon, summit Saturday, head to 5390 (the highest Mnt. on the island 5390 is it's elevation) and summit it on Sunday, head down make it out of the woods Monday morning and then summit Verstovia on Monday afternoon on our way home. Tuesday afterwork, since is doesn't get dark until 10pm now, we would summit something smaller, Gavan, which isn't small. Then Wednesday Starrigavan, completing our goal.

Instead all we accomplished was Cross Mnt., we had a bear incident and decided it best to abort our orginal plan. Here are the pictures minus the bear. We are all glad to be here to share.

Totem Pole

A Legend of Long Ago
(but Not Far Away)

Once there stood a totem atop Verstovia, but just for a short while (the totem can be found on the bottom pic). It told a story of Orca who was feeding in the Sitka sound when Squirrel saw the fin and thought the Orca might want to give her a ride, so she dropped her nuts, salty almonds, that she happened to be nibbling on and jumped in after Orca. Crazy Llama, not the brightest and never wanting to miss an opportunity for adventurizing, thought that he too might enjoy a nice dip and jumped in after Squirrel and Orca. Thankfully strong muscular, will be able to do 8 pull ups eventually, Eagle seized Llama and Squirrel just before Orca, who is always ravenous, noticed them and made them his dinner. She swooped down with her great strength, picked them up in her beak, and dropped them atop Verstovia, out of harms way. Llama and Squirrel have sense become good friends and can often be found there frolicking with their new friend, Eagle protector. Sometimes too, when feed enough food and when uninjured, it is a dangerous life being an Orca, Orca will find his way up the mountain for sled rides with his now buddy Squirrel (top pic).

Medveji Lake Run

There is so much to say. First off 2009 has been fabulous. I know we are only 4 months and 1 week into it, but Jan., Feb., March, April, have all been sunny months, and May well on its way. A sunny month here is one where there is more sunny days than rainy ones. And out of those 5 months 4 of them have been super sunny. I haven't defined super sunny month until today, it is new term. It means that you really don't remember it raining much at all the entire month.

Let me put this into perspective for you, last year we only had 1 month out of the year that was a sunny month, it was actually a super sunny month, but only 1. So 5:5 so far this year isn't bad by rain forest standards. Yesterday was another day where I took advantage of one of those sunny days. E. Buck and I ran out to Medeviji Lake! Then we jumped in, twice. Medveji Lake is a glacier feed sub alpine lake. It is favorite spot. It was still frozen, everywhere minus the little break in the ice we found to jump in. Why we did it? It was on the E. Buck summer 2009 adventure list. Why did we do it twice, because our first video of the event failed so we had to repeat it to attain video coverage. I am still trying to thaw.

Above are some pictures that Ben took of us post swim. Conventently for him he didn't catch up with us until after we had already gone for our swim.

It is official...

I love MAY! Here is the view from Megan and my campsite last night. This picture was taken around 8:30 pm.