Postponed Workshop

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In past years, before the spread of Covid, this morning I’d be packing for my annual trip to Skagway for the North Words Conference. In the day after packing, I’d ride an Alaska State Ferry from Juneau north to the old gold rush town. If rain pounded the ferry deck, I’d hunker down in the ship cafeteria and sip coffee. Many times, I’d share a table there with a friend or two, or work on some writing. Since she hated boat rides, Aki the dog would be home in Juneau.

            Hoping that most of the flames from the Covid pandemic will be out by then, the North Words folks have postponed this year’s conference until Labor Day Weekend. I’ll probably go if I can. A good friend and I need to drink a toast in front of the Onion Bar for another friend and North Words writer who died last Winter.

            To spur thoughts of other things, I take down to the Sheep Creek Delta, now almost totally exposed at low tide. After parking, we skirt a small gang of dog walkers happily chatting with each other near the trailhead. I am always a little jealous of hikers so willing to turn their backs on the natural beauty surrounding them to enjoy each other’s company. Aki starts to head over to the group then turns to follow me onto the exposed beach.

            Normally the place is full of ducks and eagles. But this is early summer when many waterfowl move out to the coast to nest and get fat harvesting food. I only spot crows and ravens on the beach. Just offshore, a bald eagle is perched on a navigation warning light. It doesn’t fly off as I walk to the edge of the exposed beach, close enough to photograph him with the mountain crest of Douglas Island in the background.

Over Wintered Cranberries

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Sunshine warmed our car when we left home for the mountains. The air conditioning unit kicked in for the first time this year. Both of Aki’s people were in the car. We planned on climbing the ski hill to an upper meadows that might still hold snow. Aki the dog loves to roll in the unexpected stuff. When we arrived, we found the ski area still buried with thick, heavy snow, enough to allow people to ski. Wishing to avoid a heavy slog up the snow-buried mountains, we turned around.

            On the way back we parked next to a connection of lower mountain meadows. We started to cross a snowfree one. The sun that had been lighting up the meadow disappeared behind a wall of clouds, making the temperature drop a bit. The colors of meadow and pine trees dropped as well. Wanting to salvage something from the visit, her other human and I lead Aki in a hunt for cranberries. In a few seconds we found a small scattering of them on a circle of red moss.

            Early last Summer, tiny cranberry plants set flowers on the moist surface of the meadow. Tiny insects fertilized the flowers so the plants could produce dark, red berries. Birds ate some that fall. But most just laid on the muskeg meadow until covered with snow. This week, melting snow exposed the tart little berries, which we picked until we had enough to take home for a powerful little dessert.  

Soaked Eagle

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Aki and I had to drive through a rain storm to reach the Fish Creek Delta. It was early morning. I had to wake the little dog when I was ready to leave the house. If we waited too late, the trail would be flooded by the incoming tide.

            Hidden bald eagles chattered at us when we moved down the creek. But we didn’t see one until we reached the north end of a little spruce island where you can see Mendenhall Glacier. There, a very wet bald eagle was hunched on an off shore rock, holding its wings stretched out to dry.  Later we spotted a different eagle with dry, rather than wet wings. We also saw two heron that didn’t drip water as they snatched tiny fish while standing on the creek edge.

So, the first eagle must have miss-timed its attempt to snatch something with its extended talons and crashed into the ocean. Maybe it clamped onto the back of a king salmon that just arrived to spawn in the Fish Creek Pond. We have seen at least one king pull an eagle into the water. If that happened to this soaked guy, he might now wish that he had let his targeted king salmon swim by.

Quiet, but Rainy

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The heavy rain clouds were still an hour away when Aki and I started down a trail into the woods. We had to maneuver around people returning with their dogs to the trail head parking lot. Rain clouds started filling the sky with mist as we escaped the crowd. We saw no birds, and heard no eagles as we worked our way to Sandy Beach. But the now falling rain made the leafed out cottonwood trees sparkle rather than pout. 

            I was hoping to spot a small pod of killer whales swim past the beach, like they often do on rainy May mornings. But on this one, all we see on Gastineau Channel is a commercial troller from Seattle chugging toward one of the downtown fishing docks.

Terns Enjoying Sun

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Tonight the rain returns. Today we can still use the sun to enjoy Mendenhall Lake. Clouds will deaden the sky this evening and heavy rain will keep many folks indoors. That’s why I was surprised at how few people have taken to the glacier trail this morning. The sun still shines, making recently freed glacier ice sparkle. 

            We wanted to take a moraine trail to where it drops you onto a beach on Mendenhall Lake. But several signs said that no dog, not even a poodle who has used her 10 pound body to chase away grumpy bears, could walk the trail we wanted to take.

            Instead we strolled over to a saddle to take another look at this year’s artic terns. They rose off the beach in large clouds when we approached on the last visit. Today we could only spot one or two at a time. Some were collecting food for their nesters. Most kept a close by watch on the new born babes.  

A Few Sweet Rainforest Days

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It’s late morning when Aki and enter the Dredge Lake Forest. Sun lights up the tops of the surrounding trees but keeps our trail in shade. Because the grass stalks are young and soft, Aki grazes on them as we work our way into the troll woods. 

            On gray days, when rain water soaks the woods, I use the quickest path to pass through them. But today, cottonwoods are sending out yellow-green leaves that fill the air with a rich perfume. In a few days, the leaves will expand and thicken. They will turn a dark green. They will not long smell like perfume. But today, while the sun still rises, the temperature reaches 60 degrees, and the forest is full of singing birds, the little dog and I try to get lost on a little used forest trail. 

Crowded but Cozy

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Aki and had this dike trail to ourselves the last time we used it. Rain must have discouraged other folks from getting in an early morning trail hike. I felt rewarded with a close and prolonged view of Greater White Fronted Geese. They must already be at the northern summer range. I know we will not see any geese, exotic like the white fronts or as common as the local Canada geese. There are two many people and dogs walking the trail. But we can still see the exposed front of the local glacier, and a very blue sky. 

Finally, Some Sun

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The sun has shone on Juneau since we woke up this morning. Knowing the temperature would climb into the high 40’s later in the morning. I delayed leaving with Aki for a morning walk. At 11 am I attached a collar around the little poodle-mix’s neck and sat on the steps to pull on my mountain boots. The sun warmed my face and baseball cap. Then, it disappeared behind a wall of clouds. 

            Hoping for the sun’s return we drove over to the Gastineau Meadow trailhead and parked. The sun had relit Mt. Juneau and the other peaks on the mainland side of Gastineau Channel. But all of Douglas Island was clouded over. Aki didn’t care. She liked to scout for scent in sun or shade. I plowed up the hill to the meadow, hoping for the clouds to part. When that didn’t happen, I tried to enjoy the soften beauty of the meadow trees. I was  almost convinced when the clouds drifted off, allowing the dog and I to be warmed by the sun. 

Weighed Down With Rain

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Sometimes rain forest rain keeps you trapped in your house. That’s when Aki refuses to leave our yard. This morning, I wondered how she would react to walking out of the house. Would she whine or happily walk over to the lawn to pee? This morning she peed. 

            After she relieved herself, we drove over to the Treadwell Woods, hoping that the forest trees would provide some protection from the soaking rain. This morning, it didn’t. But Aki took the increased hammering with patience. I tried to let emerging pink salmonberry flowers distract me. Rain gathering on their petals pulled down the flowers and made them sparkle. I quickly snapped a few pictures in case the raising wind would soon shake away the water drops weighing down the flowers.

Returned Terns

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I hadn’t expected arctic terns this summer. Then Aki and I drove out to Mendenhall Lake. Until the Alaska weather rose to speed up the Mendenhall Glacier’s melt rate, the terns had little trouble feeding and raising their families. But now they get flooded out.

They are tough dudes too. I once watch a tern chase an adult bald eagle across the face of the glacier while pulling at the eagle’s tail feathers. Terns are also beautiful, with crisp lines and bright orange and black trim. You have to keep your distance from them when canoeing on any water. They dive toward the heads of humans who paddle too close. 

For the past several summers, glacier melt has roared into the lake and raised the height of the lake water, flooding parts of the human trail and completely covering over the tern nests. It seems to get worse every year. Last summer I just assumed that the terns would never return. But on this damp May day, I am pleasantly surprised by the number of terns that that have once again flown 9000 miles from South America to hatch their eggs on the edge of Mendenhall Lake.