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A pair of rough-skinned newts beginning the process of mating in a local pond this spring.  (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Rough-skinned newts

Breaking new(t)s.

A pair of rough-skinned newts beginning the process of mating in a local pond this spring.  (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)
This photo shows Spam Musubi with Southeast Alaskan Furikake and Highbush Cranberry dipping sauce. (Vivian Faith Prescott / For the Capital City Weekly)

Planet Alaska: Furikake — A sprinkle of summer

Pronounced FOO-ree-kaw-kay, meaning “to sprinkle.”

This photo shows Spam Musubi with Southeast Alaskan Furikake and Highbush Cranberry dipping sauce. (Vivian Faith Prescott / For the Capital City Weekly)
Blueberry flowers provide early-season food for bumblebees. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Setting the seasonal clocks

Our spring is slow in coming.

Blueberry flowers provide early-season food for bumblebees. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)
The tide was out at Eagle Beach with three snow geese feeding on seaweed. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)

Wild Shots

Reader-submitted photos of Mother Nature in Southeast Alaska.

The tide was out at Eagle Beach with three snow geese feeding on seaweed. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)
Kristen Rozell skis past grizzly bear tracks pressed into a snowmachine trail near Fairbanks on April 23, 2023. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: Bear tracks on snow a sign of the season

Melt season is a sad time for people who enjoy the magic of snow crystals bonding so well to one another, resulting in a web… Continue reading

Kristen Rozell skis past grizzly bear tracks pressed into a snowmachine trail near Fairbanks on April 23, 2023. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)
This photo shows an Aleutian tern. Intentionally scheduled during the “slow season” to help boost the economy between the steelhead and sockeye runs, the Yakutat Tern Festival is a celebration of Yakutat’s natural and cultural resources, highlighted by the area’s Aleutian terns. The Yakutat Nature Society will host the 12th Annual Yakutat Tern Festival in Yakutat, from June 1 through June 4 — with a more robust schedule of events compared to recent years. (Courtesy Photo / Nate Catterson)

12th Annual Yakutat Tern Festival is not just for the birds

Southeast Alaska Birding Trail & Guide offers regenerative ways to see state, boost rural economies.

This photo shows an Aleutian tern. Intentionally scheduled during the “slow season” to help boost the economy between the steelhead and sockeye runs, the Yakutat Tern Festival is a celebration of Yakutat’s natural and cultural resources, highlighted by the area’s Aleutian terns. The Yakutat Nature Society will host the 12th Annual Yakutat Tern Festival in Yakutat, from June 1 through June 4 — with a more robust schedule of events compared to recent years. (Courtesy Photo / Nate Catterson)
The author's steelhead was not in the mood for pictures. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: One good fish

Often it’s the thinking that supplies the proper amount of weight and gratitude.

The author's steelhead was not in the mood for pictures. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
The students and instructors of the University of Alaska Southeast’s Policy & Procedure Practicum course in the lobby of Anchorage’s Egan Center while attending the Federal Subsistence Board Meeting during the first week of February. (Lee House / Sitka Conservation Society)

Resilient Peoples & Place: Bringing the next generation’s voices to the table

“Getting engaged starts at the kitchen table with what you’re feeding your family.”

The students and instructors of the University of Alaska Southeast’s Policy & Procedure Practicum course in the lobby of Anchorage’s Egan Center while attending the Federal Subsistence Board Meeting during the first week of February. (Lee House / Sitka Conservation Society)
This December 2013 photo available under a Creative Commons license shows holly berries and leaves. A study of European holly in Spain showed that leaf browsing by mammals induces an increase of prickliness of the leaves. (Dendroica Cerulea / Flickr)

On the Trails: Inheritance of genetic and acquired traits

Fun with phenotype phenomenon.

This December 2013 photo available under a Creative Commons license shows holly berries and leaves. A study of European holly in Spain showed that leaf browsing by mammals induces an increase of prickliness of the leaves. (Dendroica Cerulea / Flickr)
Leeann Thomas, third-generation owner of the Triangle Club, stands before the business her grandfather started in 1947. The location has a long history of Juneau businesses. (Laurie Craig / For the Downtown Business Association)

Rooted in Community: The Triangle Club and 76 years of the Thomas family

Historical photos hang in the building that once housed the famous Winter and Pond photo studio.

Leeann Thomas, third-generation owner of the Triangle Club, stands before the business her grandfather started in 1947. The location has a long history of Juneau businesses. (Laurie Craig / For the Downtown Business Association)
Courtesy Photo / Sunny Pittman 
Artwork by Skate Board member Jordan Kendall can be seen behind a skater at the Pipeline.

The Pipeline timeline, and where the Juneau skate park is wheeling off to next

The story starts with a group of teens in the mid-’90s. Now, the park is heading toward a new era.

Courtesy Photo / Sunny Pittman 
Artwork by Skate Board member Jordan Kendall can be seen behind a skater at the Pipeline.
The final cruise ship, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Encore, sailed out of Juneau in late October, 2022. The first ship to arrive for the 2023 season will be the Norwegian Bliss. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)

Ships in Port for the week of April 16

Here’s what to expect the first week of the season.

  • Apr 12, 2023
The final cruise ship, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Encore, sailed out of Juneau in late October, 2022. The first ship to arrive for the 2023 season will be the Norwegian Bliss. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
Iditarod checkpoint volunteers turned a light on in the ghost town of Ophir during the 2023 race. (Courtesy Photo / Jay Cable)

Alaska Science Forum: Biking 1,000 miles of Iditarod trail

During a human-powered journey of that length, things will not go as planned.

Iditarod checkpoint volunteers turned a light on in the ghost town of Ophir during the 2023 race. (Courtesy Photo / Jay Cable)
The series “Credible, Idiot Strings” features cotton fabric, nylon thread and steel wire to draw attention to the high rates of suicide in Alaska Native and Indigenous communities. The series is a part of the new exhibition “Visceral: Verity” on display at the Alaska State Museum and featured during the April First Friday. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
The series “Credible, Idiot Strings” features cotton fabric, nylon thread and steel wire to draw attention to the high rates of suicide in Alaska Native and Indigenous communities. The series is a part of the new exhibition “Visceral: Verity” on display at the Alaska State Museum and featured during the April First Friday. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire File)
Angie Flickinger harvests spruce tips in Wrangell. (Courtesy Photo / Asia Dore Photography)

Planet Alaska: Waterbody — Celebrating place

Wrangell is not a place you might imagine there’d be a skin care company…

Angie Flickinger harvests spruce tips in Wrangell. (Courtesy Photo / Asia Dore Photography)
This photo taken along the Rainforest Trail shows adventitious shoots on a red alder. (Mary F. Willson / For the Juneau Empire)

On the Trails: Roots, shoots, tumors and bone spurs

Adventitious adventures.

This photo taken along the Rainforest Trail shows adventitious shoots on a red alder. (Mary F. Willson / For the Juneau Empire)
A raven scans the horizon. Ravens are one of several animals known to gather together when resting at night. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

Raven roosts shrouded in mystery

As the sun set and the sky dimmed, the birds kept coming.

A raven scans the horizon. Ravens are one of several animals known to gather together when resting at night. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)
Not all steelhead are photogenic. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Not all steelhead are photogenic. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Moby the Mobile Greenhouse is a traveling greenhouse project of the Sustainable Southeast Partnership. Since 2016, Moby has helped jumpstart communities of growers in communities from Kake and Hoonah, to Pelican–where Moby is currently being utilized. (Courtesy Photo / Lione Clare)

Resilient Peoples & Place: Traditional food fair and farmers summit represent breadth of Southeast Alaska’s food system

Southeast is energized for a new season of cultivating and harvesting a bounty of fresh local food.

Moby the Mobile Greenhouse is a traveling greenhouse project of the Sustainable Southeast Partnership. Since 2016, Moby has helped jumpstart communities of growers in communities from Kake and Hoonah, to Pelican–where Moby is currently being utilized. (Courtesy Photo / Lione Clare)
An otter sleeps on the ice near an open channel (Courtesy Photo / Jos Bakker)

On the Trails: Spring comes slowly

As I await more and bigger signs of spring, there have been good things to see along the trails.

An otter sleeps on the ice near an open channel (Courtesy Photo / Jos Bakker)