Changing of the Seasons

Today marks my last day in Sitka.  It also happens to be the first day of Fall, which seems oddly appropriate for the end of my Alaska adventure - for now. 

As I pack up my things and play the biggest game of Tetris trying to load it all in the car, I find myself reflecting on all the things I've learned, the things I've done, and the things I've gained as a person. 

Instead of being all mopey and sad that my time in Sitka is over and that I'm heading south, I figured that it would be nice to share my ten favorite photos from this summer with you.

Creek along Herring Cove Trail

Totem in Sitka National Historic Park

Mt Edgecumbe

View west from Harbor Mountain

View east from Brent's Beach, Krusof Island

Salmonberries

Bear Mountain above Heart Lake

Thank you to everyone who supported me in my endeavor to come to Alaska, who talked me through the rough patches of missing home and my kitten, and to everyone who has helped me become the kind of woman who would feel she could undertake this sort of adventure.  Ok, now I'm getting all sappy. 

End of Season Campout

I find myself routinely opening these posts with an apology for not writing more often, and once again, I'm sorry for the delay in sharing Sitka stories with everyone. 

A few weeks ago (honestly, probably a month by now), my bosses - John and Alison - took the entire crew camping for 2 nights as a way to celebrate the season winding down and also to show us how much we were appreciated.  They're pretty much awesome :)

We boarded the work skiff, packed full to overflowing with gear and kayaks and people and a dog, and set off over perfectly flat water towards the volcano.  We would be camping the the Brent's Beach cabin on Krusof Island. 

Upon our arrival, we set about making camp and getting all settled in.  While overcast, the rain held off, and it was beautiful.  We spent Sunday evening hanging out around the fire, exploring the beach, and watching Willow dig up rock after rock and lick them clean; needless to say, she's a very interesting doggie. 

That rock was covered in mud and ash when she found it

While washing dinner dishes in the falling tide, we found a huge Sunflower Star stranded a bit above the water line.  It was probably about 2 feet in diameter. 

You can get an idea of just how big this thing was from comparing my fingers to the leg I'm holding up at the tip of it.

After sitting up around the fire listening to John tell ghost stories (and I'm pretty sure these actually happened to him :/  ), some of us headed down to the water to see if there was any bioluminescence in the water.  Sure enough, you could see twinkling lights as the waves broke on shore and if you walked in and kicked water with your boots, you would send a shimmering shower of water!  I've gotta say, it was one of the coolest things I've seen this summer!

Monday morning, we all got up and went kayaking through the Magoun Islands for a few hours.  Once again, cloudy but not raining.  We also happened to be paddling at a lower tide and so we got to see so much life in the intertidal zone.  We decided to paddle through a cut between two small islands and discovered hundreds of starfish of about five to ten different varieties.  It was incredible! 

Me.  Photo by Cailen

Photo by Cailen

Willow escaped to land from her usual seat in the front hatch and ended up on Alison's lap for the rest of the paddle.

Photo by Cailen

Photo by Cailen.

Lion's Mane jelly bumping against the top of his world.

Me, with the mountains of Baranof Island in the background.  Photo by Cailen.

My best buddy in Sitka, Cailen.

Monday afternoon we had a tour scheduled for one of the small cruise ships that comes into Sitka.  I volunteered to go back to town and co-guide it with Mitch (who had been unable to come camping because of his second job).  It was a great boat ride back in; getting to critter-watch (we saw a humpback whale and lots of sea otters) and chat with Alison.  The tour went really well, we even saw an additional sea otter and a really huge sea lion tearing up a fish! 

The next morning it was sadly time to break down camp and pack the boat back up.  We got really lucky and the rain started as soon as we reached the dock back in town. 

I had such a wonderful time camping and I wish I had done more of it this summer.  But I guess there's always the possibility of a next summer in Alaska! 

Visitors Welcome

Once again, sorry about the long span between posts!  Life gets busy.

I was blessed enough a few weeks ago that my parents were able to come visit me on my wondrous adventure!  While they were only here for 3 full days, those days were packed full of hikes and sightseeing and paddling and general good fun.

On Friday, I had to work so afterwards we explored town.  After some explorations, we made it out to the Raptor Center, the premier bird of prey rehabilitation center in Alaska.  They treat wounded birds of prey (and many other kinds, if they aren't too full), primarily bald eagles, that have been found in Sitka or any part of Alaska.  Most are released into the wild after they have recovered, though about 15 birds have been given a permanent residence at the center due to injuries that left them unable to survive in the wild.

It was very interesting to get to see some of the birds pretty close up in the their enclosures.  And YES, even I got near them to look!

This is a Great Horned Owl named Gandalf

Saturday was our first full day of exploring and adventures.  That morning we hiked the Herring Cove trail up to and around Beaver Lake.  It was a perfect day for it - 67, mostly sunny, and a light breeze.  Just perfection.  Later that day, I finally got to take Mom and Dad to see Fortress of the Bear.  Sadly, we forgot the long lens for the camera so no close-ups, but Mom did get some cute pictures anyways.

Mom and Dad at Beaver Lake

Sunday was another day full of glorious weather and awesome adventure.  All along I knew that I wanted to take my parents out paddling and we finally got to.  We went on a Half-Day Paddle through my company and it was amazing.  Another family had also booked the same trip so we had some fun getting to know them.  And I got to share my boat with a hilarious 6 year old girl named Sophie who was VERY intent on finding seashells.  Not only was it a sunny day with very little breeze, but we saw sea otters, starfish, and an ORCA!!!!!! It was awesome!  I must say, it's one thing to understand in your head how big they are and that a male orca's dorsal fin stands about 6 to 7 feet tall, and it's completely something else to actually see the fin towering above you and your kayak as you're pretty much sitting IN the water.  It was something I'll never forget.

Cailen, me, and Sophie

Eagle's nest

After our lovely and exciting paddle, we were left with the entire afternoon, so I decided to take them up Harbor Mountain and hike around.  Now, Harbor Mountain is kind of special.  It has the only road in Southeast Alaska that goes all the way into the alpine biome.  And the only reason that we happen to have that road (because it really serves no purpose anymore) is because in World War II, the army built a radar station at the top of the mountain because they were certain that the Japanese would attack towns in Southeast.  So props to the army because that road saves you from having to gain nearly 2800 feet on foot. 

View into the interior of Baranof Island

The view west - Kasian and Middle islands in the relative foreground, Kruzof Island and Mt Edgecumbe in the back

Explorer's Gentian

All in all, I had a wonderful time have my parents come visit and I feel so truly blessed that they were able to come up here!