Yellow Waves

Killer Whale Face

Kasaan Totem Park, Kasaan, Alaska...

Vandalism

The ugly face of vandalism shows itself at Kasaan Totem Park, Kasaan, Alaska.

Unity Pole

Not to bore you but here's another look at the Unity Pole in Kasaan, Alaska. With the return of nice weather, you can see the change in color from when the pole got wet.

Anyway, "unity" is an underrated concept.

Kasaan Heron

Drake Jumps

I caught a cousin, Drake (5 years old), in mid jump during the lowest low tide of the year (-4.4 feet, tied with one of the same in June). The distance from dock to beach measured a little over 3 feet at Kasaan, Alaska.

FYi: This makes 1,500 posts for New York Nitty-Gritty. Thank you for visiting!

Flyin' Outta Karta

In Southeast Alaska, we have lots of islands and no roads between them. Gee, that would involve "bridges to nowhere", right?

Here we leave the mouth of the Karta River at high speed, en route to our next destination, aboard a 22 foot Boston Whaler®. You can see the outboard motor's power with your own eyes. Trust me, it goes even faster than it looks.

Big And Little

Another unusually low tide in Kasaan, Alaska lets us see some critters we might not otherwise. Here, a tiny star fish rests on the beach near a much larger one.

Log-ger

Minus Tide

The first of several progressively bigger minus tides (especially low tide) happened this morning at 5:08 AM. You can see only a little space between the moored boats and the nearby beach at Kasaan Boat Harbor.

This morning's low tide was -0.9 feet. Thursday will have the biggest minus tide of -4.4 feet at 8:20 AM Alaska Time.

Rainy Unity Pole

It rained during the night and the morning yesterday, making unpainted totems change color due to water saturation. Here we see the Unity Pole in Kasaan, Alaska, from a similar angle to a previous post but with its new look.

UPDATE: Today, the Unity Pole got even wetter (below)



And, below, we see the Unity Pole after the rain stopped for a while, with one side dryer, due to wind direction:

Don Shoots

A good friend, Don Wunsch, my Sophomore roommate at Seattle University, came out to Kasaan so we could brainstorm and begin our collaboration on a possible language project. Here we see Don as he takes a photo of one of the totems in the Kasaan Totem Park.

By the way, Don stands 6 feet 5 inches tall.

Hoop Dreams

Celebrating two passions of Southeast Alaska--basketball and totem poles. (same pole, different day in Kasaan, Alaska)

Unity Watchmen

Watchmen and an eagle at the top of the Unity Pole in Kasaan, Alaska...

Totems From Trail

This would be one of your first glimpses of the totems, as you walk the trail leading to Kasaan Totem Park (Alaska). Those of you who have visited the park before might recognize the pole on the right as containing the figure seen in yesterday's post.

You may also see how the weather has changed from blue sky to cloudy.

Watchman Peek

A figure on a totem pole peeks through the trees at Kasaan Totem Park, Kasaan, Alaska, on Prince of Wales Island.

Dappled House Post

Morning light dapples one of the house posts inside Chief Son-i-Hat's Whale House, Kasaan, Alaska. The light came through the smoke hole in the center of the roof.

Runway, Schmunway

We don't need no stinking runways!

[A float plane begins its takeoff, with the main building of the Ketchikan International Airport and Gravina Island in the background.]

Alaska's 50th

One of several banners around downtown Juneau celebrating Alaska's 50th Anniversary as a U.S. state, this one on South Franklin Street...

SOB Peek

Here's a peek through some trees at part of the State Office Building in Juneau, Alaska. It's the yellowish one.

As I walked along taking photos, I had part of the Springsteen song going through my head:

Son take a good look around, this is your hometown
This is your hometown

[all apologies to Bruce Springsteen, MY HOMETOWN]

Plane Tour

Plane mobile in a window at Ward Air, Juneau, Alaska...




A fellow classmate and friend from High School, Ed Kiesel, owns Ward Air and took a bunch of us on an Ice Cap Tour in a float plane. Of course, having lived here for so long, I had never done it before. It was great!

In the above photo, you see us flying over the famous Mendenhall Glacier. That's another classmate, Frank Cox, on the right.

Next time you're in Juneau, do yourself a favor and book a tour with Ward Air. Ed and the rest of his pilots will make you glad you did.

Miro Shadows

These shadows reminded me of Joan Miro. I hope you enjoy them, all the way from our rain forest up here in Southeast Alaska.

"Freedom is a road seldom travelled by the multitude."
Happy Birthday, USA!! Please, enjoy your 4th of July, where ever you are.

Senator Mark Begich

Senator Mark Begich (D, Alaska) speaks in Juneau, Alaska, at the ANB Hall during the Native Issues Forum, co-sponsored by ANB (Alaska Native Brotherhood) Camp #2 and Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska Central Council. Before he spoke, I got a chance to meet Senator Begich and talked with him for a few minutes. I hope he does well.
(and, yes, I did shake his hand a couple of times.)

Low Tide

Ward Cove, Alaska