Alaska: Day 6

It is, of course, really Day 6 of NaBloPoMo, not of our trip to Alaska. So far, all of the photos are of just the first two days. Time moves slowly in Alaska. 

I can't really show pictures of Katmai without showing pictures of at least one bear, so here's your bear. The salmon runs are all dying out and spawned-out salmon are just hanging around in the water waiting to die. They are easy pickings for the fat, happy September bears. If you want to see what I mean by fat, happy September bears, check out Katmai National Park's Facebook "Fat Bear Week". So fat. So happy.

But let's move on, shall we?

Flying back from Brooks Camp, we got a great view of King Salmon before landing on the Naknek River. I couldn't quite get the "supermarket" in the frame, but otherwise, this is pretty much all of downtown King Salmon. We lived in the large building in the top center of the picture, just to the left of the weather dome. Convenient to the airport and downtown!

Alaska: Day 5

So it's my last day as Food Projects Director for the Community Food Council for Del Norte and the Adjacent Tribal Lands. That makes me sad, even though I am truly excited for my new job. Part of my motivation for doing the work at the Food Council is that I understand from lived experience what it's like to live without a real grocery store and have out-of-control food prices eat every pay check. 

We visited both of our "supermarkets" in Bristol Bay and I couldn't resist snapping some of the food prices. This is part of what made us leave Alaska -- we just couldn't afford to eat!

Alaska: Day 4

This might not look all that exciting. But it's for my mom. The light bits floating on top of the water are all pumice -- that is, of course, floating rocks courtesy of the eruption that created the Valley of 10,000 Smokes, the original reason for the creation of Katmai National Park. We have video, too, of Michael and Darcy throwing armloads of pumice into the lake and having them bob back up to the surface. Mom/Kathy/Grandma loves the floating rocks!

Alaska: Day 3

(There may be some time travel involved in the next two posts. I am transitioning from one job to another AND I'm sick, so I'm allowing myself the gift of procrastination of pre-dating posts.)

Katmai Lodge is a true icon of old-fashioned park lodges. There's a big 360-degree fire place with ancient arm chairs around it. Old-school benches and tables in the dining room. And a permanent hot drink corner.

Darcy missed school for this trip, so we signed her up for independent study to avoid having her listed as absent for 10 days right at the beginning of the school year. She was ready to take a break from the rain and we were bear-jammed on the lodge side of the river anyway. Here she is doing her math homework with the Katmai poster behind her and a cup of cocoa in hand. About 15 minutes later, we rushed out to watch a mama and two cubs walking down the beach.

Alaska, Day 2

Day 2: Still flying!

So after four flights to get us from Medford, OR, to King Salmon, AK, we got to sleep one night in King Salmon before taking a float plane to Brooks Camp to see the bears. Darcy got to be co-pilot and had a blast! Rain, which would follow us for most of our trip, didn't stop us from seeing the tundra on the flight. These float planes saw service in World War II, so they don't fly high or fast.

NaBloPoMo

Ah, November. The air gets cooler (and wetter, here). The days get shorter. And National Blog Posting Month once again rears its head. I had only the vaguest thought about doing this because, um, I'm starting a new job on Friday. "But," I thought to myself, "we DID just go to Alaska. If I posted a photo a day with a brief description, it wouldn't be THAT much work."

And then a friend asked me on Facebook and reminded me that I got her involved last year. 

So here I am. And here you are. Let's just do it, shall we?

Picture #1: One very happy Alaskan-born chicklet very, very early in the morning, waiting to board the first of four flights to get us from Medford, OR, to King Salmon, AK, on the first day of our Alaska adventure. As you can see, she is sporting an Alaska shirt for the journey.

Happy Birthday, Darcy Jo!

In honor of the end of Darcy's eighth trip around the sun, here are some pictures of Darcy for you to enjoy. Vaguely chronological, but fairly otherwise fairly random.

Ok. Now the computer made me do non-chronological, so you'll have to deal with it. Sorry. I've apparently broken it because it's being weird about letting me add even more photos of Darcy's first eight years. You might have to be satisfied with her first 3.5 years for tonight.