Coming To You From Phoenix

After a 12 1/2 hour day of flights and airports I arrived in Phoenix.  My first step out the door of the plane I was ready to go back to King Salmon.  I am not much for heat and it was 102 when we got off the plane.  I sure hope the canyon is cooler.

Flying over Alaska yesterday I got to see how much snow was still in the high country.  Not many of the lakes or rivers in the upper elevations have thawed yet.  I was hoping to see the volcanoes from the air but where they were suppose to be we were flying in clouds.  so not much to report.  The bay in Anchorage is wide open with a lot fewer icebergs than I saw in it two weeks ago.  It won't be long before the cruise ships arrive.  I hear Kodiak has all ready seen the first one.  So it means the Summer season is all most upon us.  Now I am off to the canyon.

Changes in the River

Yesterday I went looking for whales.  The belugas should be arriving soon.  Naknek River is pretty open with icebergs floating off to Bristol Bay.  Hundreds of birds line the shoreline waiting for the ice to open on area ponds and lakes.  I saw tundra swans, white-fronted geese, common goldeneyes, pintails and widgeons.  I saw mew gulls and eagles.  But no whales. 

King Salmon Creek was wide open on Tuesday but yesterday it had closed back up.  Ice chunks froze together making the river look rough and cold.  It was quite unusual.  Ice flows were being pushed up the creek banks.  Not the same as on Tuesday with the water flowing and the look of spring. 

The to add to the thrill of Spring the neighborhood has a female moose and calf yet I have not seen it.    I am not sure what the moose have against me but it is becoming very frustrating.  Last night the neighborhood had a potluck dinner and everyone was asking me if I saw it.  At east I was not the only one with out seeing it.  But really!!!!!!

A Sad State of Affairs

I was in meetings all day yesterday.  I so wanted to be out at Brooks Camp.  I wanted to be anywhere but the meetings.  Not only did the meetings keep me from going to Brooks but from seeing all the wildlife that is out and about. I missed a female moose and calf.  I missed seeing a northern harrier.  I missed trumpeter swans in the river.  There is something wrong with this system when the wildlife biologist isn't seeing the wildlife.

Update from the people who made it out to Brooks.  There was a young adult hanging out down by the river.  No one could tell who it was.  Otherwise the snow was melting around the buildings and the maintenance crew were working on getting everything up and functional for all the visitors.  I have less than a month before my first stay out there. 

Post your guess on when you think I will see my first bear in the comment section.  Winner receives the new Katmai 100th anniversary book.  It is beautiful and the pictures are breath taking.  Remember though I will not be in Alaska from April 23 -May 14.  For the next two weeks reports will be from the Grand Canyon.  Wonder if I will have a chance to see wildlife there.

Just Missed Them

Yesterday was totally frustrating.  I have a lots of work that needs to be done before the end of today as I will be leaving for the grand canyon on Sunday. So I was buried in my office.  I went to go make copies of some papers and I ran into the other biologist just walking in the door.  I was trying to call you he said but I could not remember you extension.  I just saw a female moose with a calf just down the street but they have gone off into the woods.  I thought you would have liked to see them.  Well Duh? But I just missed them. 

An hour later the coastal biologist who takes time off to walk everyday called me to tell me she was on the Eskimo creek bridge and three otters were playing.  So I quickly headed out the door and by the time I walked the half a block the otters were gone.  I had just missed them.

Just before I left for the day I was asked if I wanted to join a group heading out to Brooks Camp today.  Of course I want to go to Brooks Camp.  I was so excited.  Then my boss said you can't go to Brooks you have two meetings tomorrow neither of which you can miss.  Just missed an awesome day.  So instead of going to Brooks I am going to yawn my way through the meetings.  What good is it living in Alaska if you have to spend all your time in the office.  I did ask the members going to ID the bear that was sited two days ago.  Maybe it is 284.  That at least would make me happy.

Don't forget to guess the day I see my first bear of the season and win a copy of the brand new Katmai book.

A Little After Dinner Bird Watching

The days have been in the 50's and the snow and ice are melting fast.  So after dinner my neighbor and I headed down to Lake Camp to do a little birding.  The diversity of birds was not so great but the numbers were awesome.  We saw over a hundred tundra swans, about the same number of white-fronted geese, around 50 common goldeneyes.  Not to mention, a few scaup, a pair of pintails and few common mergansers.  While watching a bald eagle landed in a group of geese and scattered them.  Then he sat on ice staring at us.  I guess we were to blame for his lack of successful hunting.

After Lake Camp we headed to Rapids Camp.  Sadly there were only three hunters and group of decoys.  The ice formations on the sides of the river were amazing. 

From there we went to the city dock.  Where there were a few birds on the ice flows but not a lot.  While we were watching we did see a fox come out of the woods and head out on the ice in hopes of catching dinner.  He was bright red with a long bushy tail.  Must be a pretty smart fox to avoid the trappers.  He walked down the ice for about a quarter of a mile then went back into the woods.  It was a wonderful time after being cooped up in the office all day.

The maintenance people are heading out to Brooks Camp to get everything ready for the season.  When the first group arrived I got a call.  They had to inform me that there was a bear by the lower platform.  Of course they could not tell who it was.  I am getting quite anxious to get there but I have two weeks of training at the Grand Canyon then I am off to MN for a week.  I leave on Sunday.  I fly out to Brooks on the 18th.  I can't wait!!!!!!!  (Oh and by the way I saw tracks of a moose on the road today)

Fight Over Territory

I had a beautiful walk to work yesterday.  The sun was rising over the horizon turning the sky a variety of pinks and blues.  The air was fresh and cool.  The sounds of shrieks and trills resounding in the air.  Two male bald eagles were chasing and attacking each other.  One would land on the top of a tree only to be dive bombed by the other.  They flew in circles calling to each other in their not so threatening voices.  For those of you who have never heard a eagle cry out it is not that great of sound.  That is why in movies the eagle cry is replaced by the sound of red-tailed hawk.  Now that is a call. 

Before long the talons came out and they were trying to grab at each other as they spiraled down.   Then finally a victor was chosen and the one of the eagles left.  The winner perched on his tree and looked down at me as to say I am the king of the world.  What a breakfast show.

No signs of bears yet but don't forget to enter the contest.  Guess what day it will be when I see my first bear and win a beautiful new book about Katmai.

Let the Adventures Begin

I am back from Anchorage and I can tell you that I had little time to explore.  Anchorage received 139 inches of snow this year.  I was expecting to see mountains of it every where but they had a week of 50 degrees before I got there and it was in the 50's while I was there.  What I did like about Anchorage this visit was exploring 4th street.  I wish I had more time to explore all the shops along that road.  Unfortunately the Wildlife Society took up a lot of my time.  That and my food buying trips.  I did learn that if you want to mail food to King Salmon the best post office to mail things from is the one by the airport.  They are helpful and quick.  Not so the post office on third street.  I would also like to give a heads up to the Ramada downtown as they were excellent and a inexpensive place to stay. 

I am home for a week before I head to the Grand Canyon for 12 days of training and then a week in Minnesota to see the family.  It must have been warm here too as I can now see patches of grass in my yard and there are large puddles of water everywhere.  The ice on the Naknek river is now open to our dock area and with the leaving of the ice the birds have arrived.  I say it is time for the adventures to begin.  I plan on doing birding every day until I go as I will miss a lot of the migrants traveling through.  I will keep you up to date this week though. 

Work will be busy as while I was gone the yearly budgets were set.  Now we can really plan our season.  So by the end of the week I will know how many times I will be going to Brooks Camp and if I get to go to the coast or Aniakchak.  I am hoping for both.  You should be hearing from me on a more regular schedule now. 

The bears should be waking up from their long winters nap.  So I thought I would offer up a little contest.  Guess what the date will be of when I will see my first bear and you will win a copy of the new book on Katmai that comes out in June to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the eruption of Novarupta.  Good Luck.

Off to Anchorage

Well we are nine days in to April and still no change.  I work everyday at my computer.  I am planning the new summer schedule but we still have plenty of snow and the ice is still on the river.  I love hiking in the woods but I never see a creature.  I know I have a family of hares living under my back porch but I only know that because I see their tracks going out and back under it.  I did however see a bald eagle fly by my living room windows at window level on Friday night.  That is the coolest thing that has happened here in a week.  I could not even get an owl survey in because of course the weather would not cooperate.

Today I leave for four days in Anchorage?  I am attending the state wildlife society meeting.  Four days of talks and trainings and shopping.  I have a car rented so I might do a little exploring.  Hopefully I will see something cool but I am not holding my breath.  It seems the lure of the moose is leaving me.  I have decided to wait and see what is in store.  But I really need to get back to field work.