Alaska Life and Adventures

November 11, 2008 ~~ Northern "Aurora Borealis" Lights ~~ One of the things that I find fascinatingly beautiful in Alaska's winter darkness is the awesome display of the Northern Lights! They are officially called Aurora Borealis , which means luminous arches or streams of lights. Every time they show up they are admired by all, even the "sourdoughs" (long time Alaskans) of the land. They usually start by just a small streak of pale light in the dark sky that may sometimes resemble a small cloud reflecting light. They gradually grow larger and longer, and develop a massive curtain like effect that gently and ... Read Full Story

December 5, 2008 ~~ Car... Moose... Calamity... ~~ Seems strange that I am writing about this now after several posts about the dangers of driving at night in Alaska with very large wildlife like Moose, Buffalo, Caribou, and Bear on the roads at any given time. Last night my hubby and dad were on their way home from Anchorage, they were about 90 miles away from home, when they came around a blind curve and there were two moose in the road. My hubby who was driving at the time thinks he hit both of them, one of them slid onto the hood of ... Read Full Story

Everyone knows that Alaska is famous for it's eagle population. They're thick up here. People come from all over just to see the eagles. There is a couple of spots that people swarm to to get a glimpse of these magnificant birds. The Eagle Lady - Jean Keene One place to go see them is in Homer. Located on the coast, the abundant fish supply the eagles with plenty of food. There is also a woman in Homer that tends to the needs of the eagles and provides them with a safe sanctuary. She is called the Eagle Lady. Her correct name is Jean ... Read Full Story

Somewhere the bears around here got the idea that it's open season on humans. There has been 5 or 6 bear maulings just since I've moved up here. August 5th, a teenager in Eagle River was walking home along a creek when he heard splashing sounds in the creek along side the road. He didn't think much of the splashing, figuring it must of just been salmon. A second later he heard the brush snapping and cracking next to him. When he looked he saw a full grown brown bear coming out of the brush in a full out run towards him. Devon showing ... Read Full Story

Today I put a time countdown clicker for the Nanana River Ice Classic on this blog. Every year the residents of Alaska buy a ticket making a guess at what day and time the Nenana River breaks up and flows down river. Tripod set up on the ice waiting for breakup Alaskans wager thousands of dollars yearly on the day and time of the break up of the Tanana River. The prize is worth it - over $300,000 this year, and that is only the main contest - minute pools abound, too. Large grooves are cut into the frozen Tanana River ice about 300 ... Read Full Story