Alaska Outdoors

Common Merganser with five chics on Salt Chuck on June 17 in Juneau. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)

Wild Shots

To showcase our readers’ work to the widest possible audience, Wild Shots have been moved in front of the Juneau Empire’s paywall. Don’t have a… Continue reading

Common Merganser with five chics on Salt Chuck on June 17 in Juneau. (Courtesy Photo / Kenneth Gill, gillfoto)
The inflorescences of cow parsnip are sheathed protectively, often with an attendant leaf that may emerge before the inflorescence, as shown here. (Photo by Mary F. Willson)

On the Trails: Lupine and cow parsnip puzzles

From time to time, I venture out on the wetlands. I have to prepare myself to endure the racket from aircraft. In addition to the… Continue reading

The inflorescences of cow parsnip are sheathed protectively, often with an attendant leaf that may emerge before the inflorescence, as shown here. (Photo by Mary F. Willson)
Washboard roads form on dry, unpaved road surfaces, of which there are many in Alaska. (Illustration by Liza McElroy)

Alaska Science Forum: The ups and downs of washboard roads

While driving Alaska’s graveled highways, people sometimes wonder how an unpaved road can turn into a bed of corduroy. Keith Mather had the same question… Continue reading

Washboard roads form on dry, unpaved road surfaces, of which there are many in Alaska. (Illustration by Liza McElroy)
Brendan West, 17, left, and Jack Adams, 15, guide one sailboat while Wesley Torgerson, 16, helps guide another to the dock during a Juneau Youth Sailing course this week. (Therese Pokorney / Juneau Empire)

Juneau Youth Sailing makes waves, inspires young mariners

Participants navigate the waters of growth, confidence and adventure on Gastineau Channel.

Brendan West, 17, left, and Jack Adams, 15, guide one sailboat while Wesley Torgerson, 16, helps guide another to the dock during a Juneau Youth Sailing course this week. (Therese Pokorney / Juneau Empire)
The author’s backyard overlooking a forested ridge. (Photo by Peggy Barnhill)

Gimme a Smile: Welcome to my backyard

KINY is running a photo contest of pictures of your backyard to win a backyard BBQ set. Here’s a word picture of my backyard. After… Continue reading

The author’s backyard overlooking a forested ridge. (Photo by Peggy Barnhill)
The author and his wife stand on a ridge near Denali National Park earlier in June. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: Timing doesn’t always matter

The bobber bobbed and I set. The trashing was immediate as I lifted the fly rod. In this moment, one can get a good idea… Continue reading

The author and his wife stand on a ridge near Denali National Park earlier in June. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
The author’s wife hikes down the ridge of a still snow-covered mountain. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: The summer bod

It’s summer bod time. Not in a show it off at the beach sort of way, but a maximize quality use variety. The last two… Continue reading

The author’s wife hikes down the ridge of a still snow-covered mountain. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
Hazel Sutton, 13, pauses at Creamer’s Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge at the end of her shift monitoring tree swallow nest-boxes. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: A new teenager and her unusual bird

Hazel Sutton was eating lunch on an island at Tanana Lakes Recreation Area in Fairbanks with her family recently when a bird caught her eye.… Continue reading

Hazel Sutton, 13, pauses at Creamer’s Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge at the end of her shift monitoring tree swallow nest-boxes. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

On the Trails: A mallard family, juncos, and tadpoles

One evening in late May, long after most female mallards had gone off to incubate their eggs, a group of three male mallards cruised around… Continue reading

A white butterfly rests upon a fern Saturday at Prince of Wales Island. (Courtesy Photo / Marti Crutcher)

Wild Shots

Reader-submitted photos of Mother Nature in Southeast Alaska.

A white butterfly rests upon a fern Saturday at Prince of Wales Island. (Courtesy Photo / Marti Crutcher)
A polar bear feeds near a pile of whale bones north of Utqiaġvik. (Courtesy Photo /Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: Polar bears of the past survived warmth

In a recent paper, scientists wrote that a small population of polar bears living off Greenland and Arctic Canada increased by 1.6 times when they… Continue reading

A polar bear feeds near a pile of whale bones north of Utqiaġvik. (Courtesy Photo /Ned Rozell)
A newly hatched bald eagle chick is attended to by an adult. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)

On the Trails: Springtime fun and signs of new life

When spring finally came, it came in a rush. Cottonwood and alder leaves fairly leaped from the buds and grew rapidly toward full size. I… Continue reading

A newly hatched bald eagle chick is attended to by an adult. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong)
Feltleaf willow leaves emerge beneath where a moose nipped off buds during winter of 2022-2023 in Fairbanks. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: Feltleaf willows — Alaska’s most abundant tree

Imagine being a moose in late May…

Feltleaf willow leaves emerge beneath where a moose nipped off buds during winter of 2022-2023 in Fairbanks. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)
This photo was taken at Point Bridget State Park. (Courtesy Photo / Nicholette Villarreal)

Wild Shots

Reader-submitted photos of Mother Nature in Southeast Alaska.

This photo was taken at Point Bridget State Park. (Courtesy Photo / Nicholette Villarreal)
Nature often provides an escape from the brutality of modern life, but it can’t always provide the answers we seek. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: Into the maze

“Into the Wild” and “The Grizzly Maze” are complex reads. To reduce Chris McCandless and Timothy Treadwell to naïve, unprepared fools who are led to… Continue reading

Nature often provides an escape from the brutality of modern life, but it can’t always provide the answers we seek. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
A family of orcas swam along the shore (Courtesy Photo / DJ Kyser)
Video

On the Trails: Orcas, sand lance, and a junco

The highlight of our Berners Bay cruise…

A family of orcas swam along the shore (Courtesy Photo / DJ Kyser)
Video
Ryan Becker, a teacher at the Eagle school, takes a photo of his students as part of a continuing Yukon River ice study on May 12, 2023. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)

Alaska Science Forum: When river breakup came to Eagle

the Yukon River’s solid sheets were breaking into smaller pieces.

Ryan Becker, a teacher at the Eagle school, takes a photo of his students as part of a continuing Yukon River ice study on May 12, 2023. (Courtesy Photo / Ned Rozell)
A skunk cabbage inflorescence shows the pointed stigmas of the female phase and the beginning of pollen presentation for the male phase. (Mary F. Willson / For the Juneau Empire)

On the Trails: Spring has sprung

Early avian harbingers have been joined by lots of other species…

A skunk cabbage inflorescence shows the pointed stigmas of the female phase and the beginning of pollen presentation for the male phase. (Mary F. Willson / For the Juneau Empire)
Artist Liza McElroy of Seward, Alaska, recently sketched two moose in their summertime aquatic environment to illustrate this story. (Courtesy Image / Liza McElroy)

Alaska Science Forum: Why is a moose’s nose so big?

The more you nose.

Artist Liza McElroy of Seward, Alaska, recently sketched two moose in their summertime aquatic environment to illustrate this story. (Courtesy Image / Liza McElroy)
The author's wife waits for a steelhead to hit. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

I Went to the Woods: A solid skunking

But learning never stops and often happens best when reflecting upon failure.

The author's wife waits for a steelhead to hit. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)