Columns

A very young oystercatcher chick waits for a parent.  (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Oystercatchers, pinesap and spittlebugs

At the mouth of Cowee Creek, sometime in mid-June, we’d found a vigilant pair of black oystercatchers, presumably with a nest nearby. A couple of… Continue reading

A very young oystercatcher chick waits for a parent.  (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)
The author’s wife with her first keeper king salmon of the 2022 season. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: King size problem

We didn’t find the fish. We found a fish. A fish that was too small.

The author’s wife with her first keeper king salmon of the 2022 season. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Ben Gaglioti, an ecologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, stands next to a mountain hemlock tree damaged in winter on the outer coast of Glacier Bay National Park in Southeast Alaska. (Courtesy Photos / Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: Bonsai trees tell of winters long past

By Ned Rozell A GREEN PLATEAU NORTH OF LITUYA BAY — “These are museum-class bonsais,” Ben Gaglioti says as we walk through an elfin forest.… Continue reading

Ben Gaglioti, an ecologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, stands next to a mountain hemlock tree damaged in winter on the outer coast of Glacier Bay National Park in Southeast Alaska. (Courtesy Photos / Ned Rozell)
The author's wife seasons a fresh chunk of king salmon for dinner at the Point Amargura forest service cabin near Craig. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: The cabin life

What says love like a Forest Service cabin?

The author's wife seasons a fresh chunk of king salmon for dinner at the Point Amargura forest service cabin near Craig. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
A male cloudberry flower resembles a female flower but has no visible ovaries. (Courtesy Photo / Kerry Howard)

On the Trails: Blooms, birds and bears in June

Notes from June.

A male cloudberry flower resembles a female flower but has no visible ovaries. (Courtesy Photo / Kerry Howard)
Katey Walter Anthony and Peter Anthony in Cherskii, Russia. (Courtesy Photo / Katey Walter Anthony)

Alaska Science Forum: Scientist’s memoir is revealing and brave

“Chasing Lakes: Love, Science, and the Secrets of the Arctic.”

Katey Walter Anthony and Peter Anthony in Cherskii, Russia. (Courtesy Photo / Katey Walter Anthony)
Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)

It Is Germane. Part 1

What does my recent sojourn in Florida have to do with my coming out? Reader, it is germane.

Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)
If warm weather and blue skies aren't enough to tell it's summer in Juneau, Slack Tide offers up 36 other sure signs of the season. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)

Slack Tide: 36 Signs Summer is Back in Juneau

The return of whales, salmon and tourists… and, of course, closeout deals on steer manure.

If warm weather and blue skies aren't enough to tell it's summer in Juneau, Slack Tide offers up 36 other sure signs of the season. (Ben Hohenstatt / Juneau Empire)
The author takes a few shots of the sun and lantern-lit tent after sunset on a bear hunt earlier this spring. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: At the speed of sound

Being reflective is not about high ground. It’s not about your place compared to others…

The author takes a few shots of the sun and lantern-lit tent after sunset on a bear hunt earlier this spring. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Mary Goddard holds salmon filets wrapped in deer heart leaves. (Courtesy Photo / Bethany Sonsini Goodrich)

Planet Alaska: The gift of deer heart

Deer heart is one of the early and most abundant greens in Tlingit Aaní.

Mary Goddard holds salmon filets wrapped in deer heart leaves. (Courtesy Photo / Bethany Sonsini Goodrich)
t

Gimme a Smile: Living in a time of greatness

We are living in a time of greatness.

t
Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)

Coming Out: A living name

Names that live and breathe like we do, and that sometimes change like we do.

Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)
The author’s appreciation for steelhead has turned into something like reverence considering what’s happening to populations in the Lower 48 and Canada. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: Silent steel

“You forget most of what ends up in the freezer, but those steelhead, they stick with you.”

The author’s appreciation for steelhead has turned into something like reverence considering what’s happening to populations in the Lower 48 and Canada. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Hoonah’s Alaska Youth Stewards helped make improvements to Moby and water the plants in summer 2021. (Courtesy Photo / Jillian Schuyler)

Resilient Peoples & Place: Moby the Mobile Greenhouse cultivates community

It presents opportunities to grow food knowledge and skills.

Hoonah’s Alaska Youth Stewards helped make improvements to Moby and water the plants in summer 2021. (Courtesy Photo / Jillian Schuyler)
A male red-winged blackbird displays his showy red patches and calls to a rival male (Gina Vose photo)

On the Trails: Birds and beetles at Kingfisher Pond

Something is almost always happening at Kingfisher Pond.

A male red-winged blackbird displays his showy red patches and calls to a rival male (Gina Vose photo)
teaser

Slack Tide: Good day, sunshine

Good morning, good morning, here comes the sun king.

teaser
A golden-crowned sparrow nibbled on elderberry flower buds. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Enjoying birds, blooms and more near the Mendenhall Glacier

The trail to Nugget Falls was a lively place in early May.

A golden-crowned sparrow nibbled on elderberry flower buds. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)
Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)

Coming Out: My second skin

I’m sloughing off those old pernicious ideas and wearing a second skin.

Jane Hale (Courtesy Photo)
A white-winged scoter handles a prickly sea urchin. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: An April scrapbook of little observations

Spring wings and other things.

A white-winged scoter handles a prickly sea urchin. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)