On a recent, one-day visit to Ketchikan, we made the rounds of a few things downtown, and then—to escape the crowds disgorged from four monster cruise ships — we explored some short local trails. In gardens on the way out of town, we noted a peculiar shrub and some unusual purple flowers — things that will require a little research to identify, because we don’t see them around Juneau and even the gardeners among us did not know them. A mini-coup for me was sighting a red-shafted flicker, a big woodpecker not often seen here at home.

Every year, exciting things happen in Berners Bay. Eulachon (a.k.a. hooligan) run into the rivers to spawn. Herring come in great shoals and often spawn on the rocky shoreline there. And, of course, hordes of their predators come to feast. Every year, also, a little group of kayaking friends tries to be there when all that show is going on. It’s a bit of a lottery: Sometimes we find an almost empty bay; sometimes we hit it big-time. This year was a good one!

Ever so slowly, spring is creeping up on us. Although my terraced rock “gardens” are still well-buried in snow (but less so, since I shoveled off a foot or two), the ice on my pond is perceptibly thinner. The seemingly endless sunny days (in Juneau?!?) are helping, but the night-time temperatures, at least at my house, are still freezing. The ice on Mendenhall Lake is quite thick — in the middle, but near the edge it is not reliable. There was much consternation on a recent Parks and Recreation hike, when a new hiker ventured out on the ice and fell in.

The woolly mammoths are long gone, but woolly bears are still with us. They are common up north and have been seen in Juneau too. They are so interesting, I just wanted to share with readers just some of the amazing things they do.