Showing posts with label Aialik Bay.. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aialik Bay.. Show all posts

Sunday, May 21, 2017

catch up from last summer still...haha

 most of these are from Hallo Bay with a few left over from Holgate as well.  what can i say summers are busy picture wise.  these are scenery mostly as this evening walk was not bear filled.  we did have a great opportunity to listen to the call of the wolves which was pretty amazing.  what a sound!
 light rain right now.  i'll don rain gear soon enough and head out with the puppies.  makes for a lazy start of a day when it's raining i find. once i'm out there, i quite enjoy it. yesterday started out like that as well but soon the sun came out and in the end it was pretty sweet out there.
 ran a few errands and did some touch ups on the little free library.  hopefully i can get that base built soon and get it out there.
 met with friends to hit the bear tooth and the movie, "zookeepers wife".  wildly depressing but still well done...except the last bit where it's a year later and the baby they had suddenly looked about 4 years old. that was kind of odd.  could have done without seeing all the animals blown up at the zoo and shot.  it's based on a true story though.  these things do happen.
 it's rarely a mention though with all the human bloodshed.  the animal losses are morphed by the human losses.  the animal losses are always there though.  i'm sure many of the Jews killed had pets that were left to their own devices or killed outright.  Zoo's that fall in to war zones are rarely left untouched. even if they are the animals are often left to starve to death.  keepers are forced away and food is scarce.
 had debated an outing this stretch off.  so far that hasn't happened.  lots to do around the house to though.  this break up/spring time is a great time to get some of that stuff done.
 the mosquito's are coming out.  especially in the evening. after the movie i went moose spotting, only saw one, but there were quite a few mosquito's.
 we did a loop around Little Campbell Lake yesterday.  no moose spotted there.
 these lenticular clouds were the ones that kept the plane from coming to pick us up for a few days.  the plane lands on a beach with an up slope so a cross wind could be very problematic.
 iitoo is out of the country.  snippets from his speech to the males of the middle east (it was a vast sea of males in the audience as is common in modern middle east), he seemed to stay on the message given to him.  thank God.  he does not do well with ad lib.  so the speech was not bad really.  sadly, i don't really think his actions match the speeches he tends to make.  but a nice speech can keep some peace for another day.  fear was he'd piss people off.  i'm sure he loved his greeting in Saudi.  he was treated like a king, which is exactly how he believes he should be treated...oh that he wasn't born in America and he could have risen to the level of king.  so they wisely stroked his ego to get what they wanted.  more arms and in return they have made a donation apparently to Ivanka's non-profit i believe.
 it is amazing that everything that he does that is totally like the crap they screamed about that HRC did is suddenly just fine.  as long as it's their person, all the corruption is totally fine.
 the GOP still wants to gut medicare and social security.  still want to make it easier to drill in monuments and national parks, still want to take away insurance...their core values or lack of values still remain.  we, the people, matter very little to those in office at this moment.  sadly, so many who still are on team Drumpf still don't seem to see that he is not fighting for them as much as they believed he would.
 they that watch faux news get the usual crap...if it's negative about iitoo it must be fake, or but obama or but hillary still, yes still.  they seem to push the victim role.  poor conservatives they have no power, they have no media, they have no influence.  once a martyr always a martyr it seems.  we all take on roles in our lives and it can be tough to reverse course.  truth is they have gained all of those things but still act like they are the victims.  being a victim does make success more difficult and fleeting so i'm ok with that. just think it's become so self destructive.
 this attitude seems to have also lost the conservatives their moral/ethical high ground.  since they have sunk to even lower depths than those that they call their enemies they no longer have any moral stand.  this administration is a source of constant lies.  they blame everyone else for all of their errors and take absolutely no responsibility.  the secrecy is extremely detrimental.  they blame leaks and leakers, but the leaks are only really a sign of how dire things have become in the administration.  he demands loyalty but, when those around him see mayhem and live in fear, their only recourse is to leak and hope that some how this mess will be discovered and dealt with.
 they like to think the leaks are from Obama holdovers but i suspect the bulk of them are just those in the know who are scared of what is happening.  the GOP knows it but they have an agenda that they would desperately like to push through before the crap storm takes away all power and respect.  before their base figures out that faux news has fed them a line of crap for years.
 below our guide is calling back to the wolves...they responded.  we had some fun out there.
 walking along a remote beach like this is always a treat.  it's amazing what you might find out there.
 we were a fairly early group as the bears were just collecting waiting for the big salmon rush.
 looks like a pretty big bear to me.
 i wear a size 6.5-7 for some perspective.
 remnants of the Japan Tsunami.
 these pups are overall pretty chill. they are currently just laying around waiting for me to finish doing this so we can head out walking.  they are never demanding.  not for walks or food.  they don't rush me for meals and often i just fill the bowls and set them down without dog presence.  Tusker still tends to pick up the bowls and move them to a preferred eating spot.  usually scattered across the main room floor.
 love beautiful big clouds and big skies.

 below you can see a wolf.  a nice sighting
 checking out the crossings.
 we chilled and waiting on the sides.  i think he was just curious how deep it was out there for potential crossings with later groups.
 they will move camp. in the old days they had an established camp but the rules changed and now they have to switch locations every few weeks i think.  more of a pain but the powers that be feel it's better for the land.
 family of some sort of bird.
 and of course, eagles.  can't be around salmon without eagles.
 this one is a juvenile bald eagle.

 coming in for a landing.
 adult
 fox prints
 bears down the beach as we head back to base camp for night.
 it was the mom and three cubs
 love these little cotton flowers.  the purple is monks hood.
 the rest are scenery from Holgate.  that is actually Peterson glacier i think. these are from the ride back to Seward.

 all seemed pretty calm out there, but it did become a more exciting ride as we turned into the bigger water.  had reminders of my trek out in Bristol Bay.  not excited to repeat that, but i just rode it out at the front of the boat.  we weren't really in any danger and we arrived back safely, but it was a bit sketchy in a few spots
 tough to take pictures once the slop began, but for this section it was flat and calm.  on the way out we had big sways.  those were fun. it's when the sways come from all different directions that it gets more dicey out there.

 i guess i have wasted enough time for the morning...now afternoon.
 ice from the glaciers can be seen pretty far out depending on the tides.

 off we go...below is more whale action though seeing them and taking pictures in the slop proved pretty tough at times.  we still stopped and attempted to watch. our best views of whales had been on the way in.
grateful for:  A.  folded chips. man those are good..it's the little things B. snuggle time with puppies. i'm sure they don't enjoy it as much as i do, but they oblige.  C.  the company of my pets. it would surely be a lonely home without them.

Monday, August 15, 2016

stepping back in time to Holgate...figure i'll try and mix old and new and get it out there.

 we had originally thought we'd stop for a bit but then the tide moves very rapidly here in Alaska and our long stop turned to a short stop as the tide rose much quicker than anticipated.
 i had lunched at the same spot many years before and played on the terminus ice of the glacier there. it is now back so far this was not an option and wouldn't have been an option even if we'd had a long lunch.
 i'm killing some time at the moment.  allowing Tusker some peace before he arrives home and must deal with Ivy Rose who i'm sure will be less than sympathetic to his fresh surgical wounds.  he was neutered today.  i'll have to get her all set up to go soon as well.
 did get them both weighed in.  so for pups of 5.5 months...nearly 6 months they are both now over 50 pounds.  Ivy at 54 pounds and Tusker at 53 pounds.  he is for sure taller than her though.  he's on a stretch i guess at the moment
 did a loop again today with a different friend out in North Bivouac.  yesterday i ended up doing a longer stretch.  both dogs of course.  we did run into one moose. Ivy and Tusker along with Leo must have gotten fairly close. i looked up to see the moose running across the trail and the pups running to me.  so it's good that they will not go on the chase.  Ivy did turn and begin to bark a bit after getting back safely to me....this tactic of running back to owner at the sight of something large is not always optimal when it comes to the bear population.  could be trouble one day.
 my friends dog is not altered and i'm thinking Ivy may be starting into a heal cycle??  he got a bit frisky with her and eventually my friend opted to take a side trail out rather than risk an unwanted pregnancy with my puppy.  makes me happy that Tusker is getting fixed today.
 the walrus cam is out for the season at least.  it must be a good sign that explore opted to leave the cliff cam up for now.  hopefully, this means they are planning to return and therefore, help fund staffing on Round Island.
 they were able to pan back and watch the rangers pack up, load the boat and head off to Togiak.  so sad...but fun to be able to see that i think, especially for the viewers.  they generally take the stairs out as well, so i'm not sure if that happened or not.  i'll have to look closer at the pictures.

 we had this cute marmot follow us along shore as we paddled by.  love any and all wildlife sightings.

 well, perhaps not the moose so near the puppies i guess.
 enjoying watching the olympics when i can.  been a slacker as far as the gym.  i shall re-commit after the olympics ends.
 Ivy is signed up for her class, i'll have to watch closely so i can get Tusker signed up as well...hit the pool and the classes this fall.  between the classes and the walks the pups get pretty tired out.
 after 36 hours straight of rain out there it was amazing how fast the water was flowing under the glacier and all the little waterfalls were full as well.  this slowed pretty fast.  drainage happens very efficiently out there it seems
 started a fungi group on facebook for those who were in class. i suppose it could be for anyone interested in fungi though.  just what i need another group to monitor. haha.
 our bags for WARIS came in.  i have already gotten a check and have that first bag ready to send off.  they are really nice bags.
 will hopefully get a bunch out to Speedy so she can do the shipping...always a great help.
 olympics have been a great distraction from the madness of politics.  nothing has changed.

 thought some of these black and whites turned out nice.  some may make this years calendar.

 did finish looking at the pictures from the mushrooms.  now i'll load up with fall pictures..it will slow a bit after fall is passed and winter is working towards us. there seems to be a period where not much is happening.  of course there is the swans that will come back through along with other migrating birds..
 and the moose rut happens in the fall...so really it's rare that there is nothing to really photograph.  haha.

 we had that one last beautiful day out there at Holgate.
 the birds were surely enjoying it

 here we are pulling in for a break..
 more black and white

 my friend had clammered up this hill to the right when we were there over 13 years before.

 on this day there was a rather large chunk of ice which i thought might make for some fun photo ops

 not sure why i posed this way...so many other options.  haha
 oh well.  i was busy watching kayaks as well.  can't take your eyes off them in rapid tides like this lest you find yourself on a remote beach without a boat.
 maybe a bit better pose.
 Libs did it better.
 they have their fun on the iceberg.

 so sad to see summer ending but do love fall.  it's amazing how fast it goes up here. i try to cram as much in as i can. i know i did less than usual due to puppy raising but still many fun trips and the usual great memories.

 i better get myself over to the vet clinic.  have been very happy with Cornerstone so far.  super nice...handled the cats illness and euthanasia kindly...the vet that assisted on that last day even sent a personally written note which was super nice.
 the vet called to let me know how things were going with Tusker and that he was ready to go into surgery and then a follow up call to let me know how all had gone.
 now...i just have to keep him quiet for 2 weeks..haha...the vet even laughed at the instructions they are told to give every pet owner...knowing keeping a puppy quiet for 2 weeks is nearly impossible.
thankful for:  A.  another summer of adventures  B. friends to laugh with C.  pets to snuggle with and hang with...so entertaining