Alaska Outdoors

A wolf's track melts the frosty snow, revealing old evergreen needles on the Crow Hill Trail on Dec. 16.

Wild Shots

The Empire Outdoors page is looking for superb images of Alaska’s wildlife, scenery or plant life. Send your photos via email to outdoors@juneauempire.com. For all… Continue reading

A wolf's track melts the frosty snow, revealing old evergreen needles on the Crow Hill Trail on Dec. 16.

Forecast could mean early fishing for Stikine River kings

PETERSBURG — The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is predicting a return of about 34,000 king salmon to the Stikine River next year in… Continue reading

Chris Hinkley takes advantage of high winds from the north to surf off Lena Beach on Feb. 5.

Outdoors year in review

2015 was another great year to be hiking, boating and in general being in Southeast Alaska (well… aren’t they all?) But as we looked through… Continue reading

Chris Hinkley takes advantage of high winds from the north to surf off Lena Beach on Feb. 5.
A young porcupine sits in an elderberry bush, whose broken twigs indicate the source of recent snacks.

Rambling in winter

The short December days don’t allow for long explorations, but even short ones can be productive for a curious naturalist.I took a little stroll on… Continue reading

A young porcupine sits in an elderberry bush, whose broken twigs indicate the source of recent snacks.

The world’s largest ski and snowboarding lesson coming to Eaglecrest

During Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month in January, Eaglecrest Ski Area will participate in a nationwide Guinness World Record Attempt for the World’s Largest… Continue reading

User conflicts over halibut, salmon on horizon for 2016

The year about to end saw the beginnings of some fisheries regulations and legal battles that will either resolve or present further issues in 2016.Halibut… Continue reading

Mike Erickson, president of Alaska Glacier Seafoods, raised more than $7,000 for Cancer Connection in Juneau on his bike this summer. Twenty-nine fishermen and fishing families, and AGS, pledged money for each mile he biked.

Seafood buyer cycles to help those fighting cancer

Alaska Glacier Seafoods president Mike Erickson fought cancer six years ago. In 2015, he turned his work commute into a way to help other Southeast… Continue reading

Mike Erickson, president of Alaska Glacier Seafoods, raised more than $7,000 for Cancer Connection in Juneau on his bike this summer. Twenty-nine fishermen and fishing families, and AGS, pledged money for each mile he biked.
An adult dipper brings prey to begging chicks. Both male and female busily tend the chicks.

Parental care by males (birds and mammals)

This essay will consider male parental care in birds and mammals. Both birds and mammals evolved from reptiles, and some ancient reptiles did have parental… Continue reading

An adult dipper brings prey to begging chicks. Both male and female busily tend the chicks.

The birches’ last blaze

Walter Harper, one of Alaska’s greatest, is buried in Juneau’s Evergreen Cemetery. His wife, Frances Wells Harper, lies beside him. They’d been married for less… Continue reading

Mackey, Derk, Union lakes northern pike-free

Ice fishermen in East and West Mackey lakes, Derks Lake and Union Lake will be limited to two closely attended lines this winter.The Alaska Department… Continue reading

Environmental assessment for Treadwell Ditch Trail

The Juneau Ranger District is moving forward with planning for the Treadwell Ditch Trail Bridges Construction project.The District proposes to replace 38 bridges, perform some… Continue reading

Eaglecrest to open full mountain

Eaglecrest Ski Area is opening the entire mountain Saturday, Dec. 19 and will remain open daily until Jan. 4 with the exception of Dec. 25.… Continue reading

Council tightens Southcentral charter halibut allocation for 2016

The ratchet keeps tightening on Southcentral halibut charter operations, among other groups, and relief measures are still stuck in development.The level of legally harvestable halibut… Continue reading

Kit Deslauriers, the only person to climb and ski down the tallest mountains on seven continents, ascends the highest peak in the Brooks Range, Mount Isto, in 2014.

Alaska Science Forum: Measuring the highest peaks in the Brooks Ridge

U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps give you a choice on the height of Mount Isto. Depending on what map scale you choose, the mountain in… Continue reading

Kit Deslauriers, the only person to climb and ski down the tallest mountains on seven continents, ascends the highest peak in the Brooks Range, Mount Isto, in 2014.
Pacific marten and American marten. Pacific marten tend to be yellowish-orange in color, and American marten darker brown. The fur is typically marketed as sable.

Marten trapping in Southeast Alaska

I grew up trapping muskrat in western New York state in the small rural community of Bolivar. I learned to trap from school mates, setting… Continue reading

Pacific marten and American marten. Pacific marten tend to be yellowish-orange in color, and American marten darker brown. The fur is typically marketed as sable.
A male stickleback fans his nest, increasing the flow of oxygen to the eggs. The nest is marked by arrows.

Parental care by males (fishes and amphibians)

Editor’s note: This is part one of a two-part series.Some months ago I was captivated by a grunt sculpin at the NOAA lab, and I… Continue reading

A male stickleback fans his nest, increasing the flow of oxygen to the eggs. The nest is marked by arrows.
A brown bear walks up Pack Creek on Admiralty Island.

Off the Beaten Path: An old bear hunter’s love

Late in life, Ralph Young, a bear guide, found himself sitting alone at a bar in Petersburg, well before five o’clock. His wife had left… Continue reading

A brown bear walks up Pack Creek on Admiralty Island.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Karin Bodony at the site of an obsidian tool discovery in the Nogahabara Dunes in 2002.

Mystery of the glass tool kit in the sand

From space, the Nogahabara Dunes are a splotch of blond sand about six miles in diameter surrounded by green boreal forest. Located west of the… Continue reading

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Karin Bodony at the site of an obsidian tool discovery in the Nogahabara Dunes in 2002.
Sonia Nagorski, assistant professor of Geology Arts and Sciences at the University of Alaska Southeast, investigates the undercut bank along the Mendenhall River on Tuesday. The river is nearing the point of cutting through a meander bend just north of the Brotherhood Bridge.

Mendenhall River soon to shorten (then lengthen)

In the not-too-distant future, the Mendenhall River will get about a half mile shorter. The land inside the u-shaped bend in the river that Riverbend… Continue reading

Sonia Nagorski, assistant professor of Geology Arts and Sciences at the University of Alaska Southeast, investigates the undercut bank along the Mendenhall River on Tuesday. The river is nearing the point of cutting through a meander bend just north of the Brotherhood Bridge.
Pollock feeding on young herring: note the bulbous bellies on the pollock, and the hole in the school of herring where the pollock near the surface just attacked.

On the Trails | A wildlife extravaganza in Auke Bay

During late November and early December, Auke Bay harbor put on a wildlife spectacular, drawing photographers, reporters, and just plain gawkers (such as me). Hordes… Continue reading

Pollock feeding on young herring: note the bulbous bellies on the pollock, and the hole in the school of herring where the pollock near the surface just attacked.