Full-force winter

NOVEMBER 17, 2009 - 3:50 PM

We spotted this happy snowman in an Anchorage neighborhood last weekend. He seems ready to welcome winter.

We finally have some snow on the ground -- not much but a little.

And the temperatures around Anchorage are downright chilly ... minus 7 this morning on my way to work. My boss mentioned it was about minus 21 near her home in Eagle River yesterday morning.

There is no question that winter has settled in. Autumn was so long and wonderful there was a little lag in getting winter up and running, but now we're there.

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Changing seasons

OCTOBER 30, 2009 - 2:08 PM

Snow covers the last remaining blooming flower in our yard. Yes, the seasons are changing.

It's been an awesome autumn.

But if anybody still questions whether winter will eventually get here, this week should have ended those thoughts. While we still don't have any snow in town, I did put the studded tires on the bike this week -- and I was glad I did Wednesday morning. I rode through an inch or so of snow for the first mile down the hill.

Since then, the weather has turned cold. This morning, it was 25 degrees on my way into work. And the snow is sticking to the ground at our house.

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Celebrate Alaska Day at the Museum

OCTOBER 16, 2009 - 3:21 PM

The Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center will be hosting a special event from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday in the Alaska Gallery in honor of Alaska Day. There will be live music, dance and theater.

Below is a press release from the museum.

-- Steve

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The roster of live performances by Alaska artists includes Ingringmiut (People of the Mountains) Drummers and Dancers; the Russian dance group Sudarushka; and the Russian-American Colony Singers. Festivities culminate with “The Wheelman” and “The Gilded Tusk,” two historical one-act plays written by Alaskans, commissioned by the Anchorage Museum earlier this year. Educators will lead children in hands-on activities with a Russian theme.

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Perfect fall camping

SEPTEMBER 27, 2009 - 7:07 PM

Eklutna Lake is a 7-mile long lake that provides drinking water to Anchorage. It's also a great playground within a quick drive of town.Our visitors from New York couldn't have dialed up a better week to spend in Alaska. And they took advantage of it:

* Train ride to Seward.

* Glacier cruise from Whittier.

* Bike ride on the Hillside.

* Walking around downtown.

* Camping trip to Eklutna Lake.

We set up camp alongside Eklutna Lake. It was a perfect location for a late-summer camping trip.

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First day of fall

SEPTEMBER 23, 2009 - 4:11 PM

Flattop Mountain with a fresh coating of termination dust on Tuesday morning.
I love winter, so seeing snow on the mountains around Anchorage is not a shock nor depressing. But I did find it interesting that on the first day of fall, the clouds lifted and the mountains were covered in snow.

Some would call this "termination dust" -- as in the termination of summer -- others would simply call it "snow." I'll admit it doesn't look very dusty up there. The snow looks pretty thick ... and it was 36 on my bike ride this morning, so who knows?

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Almost fall (officially)

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009 - 12:06 PM

What's better on a September hike than a glass of homemade wine from an excellent view overlooking Turnagain Arm? Let me know if you've got a suggestion.
Gina and I spent most of last week showing off Alaska to a couple friends visiting from New York. And it was a glorious week to be in Alaska -- sunshine, warm temperatures and such. (More about our activities later in the week.)

Sadly, the last day of "summer" (autumn officially arrives tomorrow morning) has been rainy, chilly and decidedly unpleasant. That has me thinking back to some of this summer’s great trips that haven’t made it on to the blog.

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Autumn's beauty

SEPTEMBER 11, 2009 - 11:36 AM

Raspberries shine in the morning light.

I love fall. It is my favorite season. Sadly in Alaska it's also the shortest season.

I generally refer to the "two weeks of fall" that we usually get. That's probably selling it a little short, but it certainly doesn't last anywhere close to three months, and it's nothing like autumn in the Lower 48.

Here, fall is short but sensational. By early September, the unending rain of August is but a memory. Sure the days or shorter, but the sunshine is beautiful, the leaves turn a beautiful golden and there are raspberries.

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Autumn in the air

SEPTEMBER 4, 2009 - 1:48 PM

Fall is here.

This morning’s bike commute included temperatures in the mid-40s, maybe a little cooler. There is a definite bite in the air … the wonderful bite of autumn.

I did pass a woman driving a convertible with the top down this morning. I guess she’s not quite ready to say goodbye to summertime. It’s OK to hang on, it’s just now Labor Day weekend, but cooler days are here and I’ve seen a little snow on some of the higher peaks in the Chugach Mountains.

If you’re in Southcentral this weekend, enjoy some of the many events going on (the Fungus Fair in Girdwood, the State Fair in Palmer and First Friday in Anchorage) are some of the highlights. But most of all enjoy saying goodbye to a nice summer, hello to a brief autumn and prepare for winter.

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Fun at the new musuem

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009 - 2:57 PM

Juror's Choice Award: Margo Klass, Fairbanks, body of work titled "Book of Good Intentions," porcelain, pochair, coptic binding. (Photo courtesy the artist.)

While most of the tourists have already cleared out -- and any still around will be gone shortly -- there are some great things going on at the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center.

One of the most popular events at the museum is the biennial craft exhibition "Earth Fire and Fibre," which opens on Friday. The exhibit is open through Jan. 3. Below is a press release from the museum about the event. If you haven't made it to the new musuem, this is a good reason to get there.

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State Fair = rain?

AUGUST 27, 2009 - 4:23 PM

It's that time of year again. The Alaska State Fair is kicking off today.

Generally, the fair means rain, although today was quite nice in Anchorage. The forecast for tomorrow and the weekend is more traditional for the fair -- cloudy and possible rain. Here's hoping that we have a change of pace for the fair this year.

Some of the musical performers heading to Palmer include Seether, Creedence Clearwater Revisited, the Beach Boys, Bucky Covington and David Archuleta.

Other events include the giant vegetables, a lumberjack show, racing pigs, a demolition derby and food -- lots and lots of food ... turkey legs, deep-fried halibut (heck, deep-fried just about anything), roasted corn, peach pies, reindeer sausage, kettle corn, seafood gumbo, gyros, soft pretzels, oysters and plenty of espresso.

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Too much play, too little blogging

AUGUST 4, 2009 - 9:50 AM

Mount McKinley from Public Use Cabin #2 at Byers Lake in Denali State Park. The mountain was out in all its glory Monday.

Despite what has been reported here on the blog -- basically nothing -- Gina and I have been enjoying some amazing adventures the past few weeks.

We spent last weekend at Denali State Park camping, canoeing, kayaking, hiking, picking berries and having an excellent time. Check back later this week for updates on what's been going on here.

-- Steve

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Rain troubles train travelers

JULY 29, 2009 - 12:30 PM

This photo provided by the Alaska Railroad shows a small rockslide just north of Seward that is keeping some trains from heading out on the tracks.

After a beautiful couple months of summer, July is going out as a soggy mess. There has been plenty of rain the past few days and that has resulted in some problems, particularly on the Kenai Peninsula.

Some of the rivers and streams on the Kenai are running high, so anglers should be careful. Additionally, a rock slide closed a portion of the Alaska Railroad. Below is a press release that details what’s being done.

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Going to Portage Glacier? Call ahead

JULY 10, 2009 - 3:41 PM

If you’re planning on taking the Portage Glacier Cruise offered by Gray Line of Alaska this weekend, make sure you call before you go.

Gina just drove her mom and a friend down to Portage for the 3 p.m. sailing only to find out the boat had a mechanical problem and all the cruises were canceled for the rest of the day. Who knows if they’ll fix the m/v Ptarmigan by tomorrow?

Be smart, call ahead. Gray Line’s phone number is 1-888-312-5581 or (907) 277-5581.

Hopefully you’ll have better success than my wife.

-- Steve

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Back in Alaska, back to blogging

JULY 8, 2009 - 3:06 PM

I have been missing in action for a few weeks.

I had to make a couple unexpected trips back to the Midwest as my mother was suffering some complications from cancer treatment. Sadly, things did not go well and I eventually had to return for a funeral.

Obviously, the circumstances surrounding my travels weren’t very enjoyable, but I did notice some things on those trips –- Alaska is even more beautiful than I thought.

Generally, Gina and I don’t leave the state during the summer months; we simply enjoy the Alaska summer more than we would enjoy vacationing elsewhere. These trips were not a vacation, and they took us out of the state at a time we haven’t left before revealing scenery we hadn’t seen previously. When we usually leave Alaska, the mountains are all covered in snow, but this time some of that snow had melted off.

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Sunshine, glaciers and art

JUNE 24, 2009 - 7:53 AM

Portage Glacier from the MV Ptarmigan on a cruise around Portage Lake.

It looks like a beautiful day in Southcentral Alaska, the perfect kind of day to get out and enjoy some of what makes our state so wonderful. And the artists at the Girdwood Center for Visual Arts have put together a special event that brings together some of the best things about Alaska –- art and the outdoors.

The GCVA is hosting its inaugural “Art on the Lake” cruise tonight aboard the mv Ptarmigan at Portage Lake. Daily the Ptarmigan takes visitors and locals on a one-hour tour of Portage Lake and close to Portage Glacier. A tour is one of the best ways to see a glacier in Southcentral.

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Solstice: The good and bad

JUNE 23, 2009 - 4:45 PM

We stopped by the first G Street art market, which was a lot of fun. We didn't get away from this booth without dropping some cash.It was an odd summer solstice weekend.

The weather was kind of ehhh, so-so. It wasn’t really nice enough to enjoy all the outdoor fun that solstice invites, but it wasn’t bad enough to hole up inside.

So we did some outdoor stuff that wasn’t too weather dependant. We visited a couple farmers’ markets and also stopped by the opening weekend of a new downtown art show – a two-block, outdoor art party on G Street.

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Quakes, bears and more

JUNE 23, 2009 - 8:29 AM

My wife was talking to a friend in New York yesterday afternoon. One of the first things he said was, “I hear you guys had an earthquake.”

News travels fast. He saw the report about our 5.4 quake on CNN.

I was at work when the quake hit, and it was a pretty good one. One of my co-workers had her cellphone and coat in hand and was headed for the stairs to leave the building when it finally started to slow down.

Earthquakes are one of things that makes Alaska is a unique place. But not the only thing. On the front page of the Daily News today is a photo story about brown bears showing up along the mudflats near Bird Point on Monday. I missed that, but I’m not surprised -- bears are everywhere, we don't always see them.

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Moose sweat

JUNE 10, 2009 - 3:59 PM

A mother moose and her young calf visited the house yesterday.

Summer is here, and there are two ways to know:

1) It’s hot. When it the sun shines and it hits 70 degrees in Anchorage, it’s plenty warm. Today, the thermometer says at least 75 degrees. That’s downright sweltering in Southcentral Alaska. Of course, you’ll still see plenty of visitors with jackets on, but the locals are ready to head for a small lake a dip to cool off.

2) Moose … and plenty of them. The cow moose have dropped their calves. The last two days we’ve had three sightings at the house. A mother and her twins were in my neighbor’s yard Tuesday morning when I left for work. Gina saw a cow and a single calf munching on leaves at the end of the driveway yesterday. This morning the cow and calf were back, this time in my neighbor’s yard.

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Flattop, May 29: Blizzard

MAY 31, 2009 - 10:36 PM

Snow moves across the Chugach Mountains in this view from the Flattop summit on Friday.Noah had this great idea about midday Friday as rain clouds gathered over Flattop Mountain. He called saying, "Let's hike Flattop in the rain."

But by late afternoon, it was sunny and looking pretty nice over the mountain. We made the hike anyway, enjoying the exercise going up. We had hot chocolate atop the mountain. (Sadly the person responsible for bringing the Bailey's Irish Creme forgot.)

When we started down it looked like Noah's wished-for rain was about to soak us. Only it wasn't rain, it was snow ... blowing, stinging snow ... a May blizzard atop Flattop.

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A pizza picnic

MAY 26, 2009 - 5:02 PM

Moose irony -- a Moose's Tooth pizza box alongside a Kincaid Park trail frequented by moose. Monday's dinner was perfect -- a pesto supreme pizza, sunshine and the trails at Kincaid Park.I love the Moose’s Tooth.

Well, I suppose it’s more proper to say I love Moose’s Tooth pizza. (And Gina loves the beer.)

But I’ve given up on the restaurant itself. I don’t know if I’ll ever sit at one of the booths inside the always-popular Anchorage pizza and microbrew joint again. It’s simply too crowded to be enjoyable.

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