Keeping an Eye on You

Dear Mom: I'm not sure Santa got your annual report on my behavior this year, so I wanted to give you a summary so you can be sure to send an ammendment and have a new truck appear in my driveway shortly. The year in summary: I am alive, the cat thrives. The end.

She's 17 and being the queen. She was most dissapointed in the lack of live mice for Christmas as she knows the season well by now, but she understands the challenges of shipping to Alaska and how cold it has been outside lately.

She bribed the big white cat to get on the counter and distribute the catnip trapped in the package when she deemed the amount left for her to play with while I took the dogs skating was insufficient. He is not stupid and so complied.

She was satisfied with his offering and thus was content to play with last year's fake mouse.

At which point he was allowed to play with all the other toys and the smaller amount of catnip previously deployed. Now that photographic evidence has been submitted, complete with date stamps, please tell Santa how good I have been. Also, feel free to tell him about your birthday present.

Love,

your wonderful northern living daughter

Skating into Christmas

I got an early Christmas present this year: hockey skates. And I have been wearing myself out learning how to use them. Niwt has been showing me around town getting me acquainted with the local hockey rinks (outside in our freezing and below freezing temps) and the local frozen ponds I had no knowledge of. We were all quite sick of being cooped up inside with cold air and no new snow, so we headed out several times to my new favorite winter location: Westchester Lagoon. We drug along my girl, Fitz, and part of her dog herd. Above is the superstar of every day, KC. So far Fitz has been afraid to introduce us to her lab who sounds like Percy on PCP. KC is a darling border collie (be still my heart) with three legs. 5 dogs, 2 balls, 3 humans : KC maintained control of one ball at all times!

Fitz and Niwt were left with one ball and four dogs while I took pictures. You might think hitting that big squishy ball with a hockey stick would be easier than hitting a little hockey puck...but you would be wrong. The darn thing is so squishy you get no purchase on it unless you swing so hard your chest muscles hurt for the next three weeks.

Added bonus: it doesn't seem to matter what time of day we head out there, the dogs are great off leash. Yay for the influence of a three legged border collie and a big golden retriever. We will continue to enjoy the sunshine since we can't enjoy the temperatures. Hope you all had a super merry Christmas and plans for a splendiferous new year.

Take Me to the Moon

A few weeks ago I noticed Niwt had a telescope in his back room. And I asked him why he never took it out and played with it. Sounds like a simple enough question, but life is not simple.

If you haven't been following the weather in my fair city of late, here's an update: it's been freaking cold. Not as cold as when I lived in Fairbanks, but cold. Too cold to ride my bike to work while I contemplate what to do about my frozen truck sitting in the driveway. Anyone who might still be shopping for me, here's a hint - all I want for Christmas is a heated shop.

Where I'm going with this is that I have seen a lot of the night sky lately. Pretty much the telescope lives in Niwt's yard. Which is super fun when you have two big black dogs who are tired of being cooped up in the house all day and one who demands constant fetch with his huge ball in the yard and the only way to get him enough of a run to make the slightest dent is to kick the ball from your front porch over the fence to the far corner of the yard with the gate between yards open. A little more challenging when taking into account the telescope.

When you ask someone a seemingly innocent question it may turn into something like this. Now that I have Niwt looking at the night sky, I have Niwt telling me about the night sky and demanding I come out and see it. And can I say anything about how darn cold it is outside and that I'm nice and toasty in here with my book/tea/elfing? Nope, not a good idea. Now I just have warm clothes staged at the front door and I'm pretty quick at layering the hat, scarf, two coats, mittens, and boots on to go spend 13 seconds outside looking at something cool I have always wanted to see, just not at this temperature.

Last night was one of those things. We went outside approximately 400 times to watch the moon dissapear. It was really cool. And I mean that literally. I eventually got all my presents wrapped and ready to mail, but it took a few hours.

New Digs - 6 Months Delayed

As a study break between finals and final papers and final presentations I would like to take this opportunity to catch up on blog posts that should have occurred six months (or more) ago. I don't even have a clue where most of my pictures are at the moment, but I found these on the camera. As you can see, I have a very light living room that plants thrive in. No furniture, so plenty of bike parking. The dogs love the low windows. And the queen approves of her throne.

I do have one folding butterfly style chair in the living room and Frog totally digs it. Someday I will have a second chair so I can sit without fear of fur.

The new digs are a duplex, which is a nice halfway house between Heaven and Hell, my last two places. This one comes with Niwt, my neighbor/landlord/dog sitter/friend. He sometimes likes to borrow my dog for errands, and now I ask a lot more questions when he does. Last time, he also took Tatonka's harness and together they drug this spool home. Niwt has painted it neon green to stave off the winter blues.

I have the street side unit, but from my front door I can see the park across the creek. There is a major trail along the creek; 4 miles to school by foot, bike, or skis.

Tofurkey Day

After three days of ice, cancelled classes and falling on my but in the driveway, I woke up yesterday morning to this. The rain turned to snow overnight and there was a moose across the street. It was originally bedded down under the tree, but by the time I found the camera and charged the battery it was up and having breakfast. I was too slow to catch more than the butt of the baby's Mom passing next to the front fence. REAL OBSERVANT, I am. Filling in the gaps here for you, this means the Mom was about 10 feet from me when I took this.

This morning I was all about getting to school and tackling my mound of homework. I was a little delayed in reaching the school though. First: shovel the driveway. Next: find the lock de-icer in the toolbox in the house (locking the front door behind me for the second time). Then: bang on door to try to dislodge ice. Next: boil water and call Mom to see how her Thanksgiving went. Poor boiling water along door frame. Return kettle to kitchen (locking door behind me again). Pry open door. Start truck. Shovel snow off truck. Help Niwt's mom carry Thanksgiving leftovers to her car. Stand bewildered and look at hand with windshield wiper blade in it after clearing snow from windshield. Examine other blade to see how to reattach this one. Return to kitchen and boil more water. Pour water over blades to clear out ice. Return kettle to kitchen (locking front door again....). Spend next 15 minutes trying to reattach blade. Seriously consider having hissy fit. Remember that grad school program director lives on next block over and frequents the outside street on his way to the park. Finally get blade on. Return to house to go pee because the coffee I drank two hours ago is done being in my body now (lock front door again). Hope truck does not run out of gas on the way to the gas station.

Other fun activities this week: helping Niwt stack wood. Green wood...... though not as difficult to burn as the newspaper in my house (in OR) last weekend, still no real winner. But it was free.

The winter wonderland that is the yard and park beyond. I pre-paid for my Thanksgiving overeating by going for a run with the dogs yesterday before eating. No tofurkey this year. I saw one in the store last week, but the town was sold out by the time I got around to trying to buy one. So I ate extra pie to make up for the calorie deficit.

Howlloween

Sorry folks, but I refuse to tell you how Thanksgiving went without first telling you about Halloween. Or as I call it around these beasts: Howloween. I know, not original or anything, but it makes me smile, so it stays. Guess what was in the bag.....family tradition with a twist...aka donuts! True to our family tradition, I had donuts and tree top apple juice. But this year I got donuts with frosting and sprinkles, not just powdered sugar ones, but fresh ones! And I warmed up and spiced the apple juice. Also, Smokey and I were treated to 9 trick-or-treaters. I know, huge. I bet they come back next year and bring all their friends though. We gave out full size kit kat bars Smokey had left over from a hunting trip.

The beasts celebrated after glacier ice worm hunting and before trick or treaters arrived. They got locked in the back room with their toys and had to entertain themselves.

Judging by how quickly Tatonka absconded with both the pumpkin head and the purple people eater, Percy's joy may have been short lived.

....Percy is really good at tug of war though, so don't feel too sorry for her.

Milk Glacier

Meet Milk Glacier. Every time I got to a glacier this summer it was with mixed feelings. Usually it had taken longer than expected, the weather had been less than desirable, the snow line was further away, and the dogs were overdue to be let out of the house because my dogsitter was doubling as my field assistant. That being all that it is (namely, life), the first view never ceased to take my breath away.

In this instance it was particularly great. The hike had been steep, the day overcast, the bugs bad, the summit false, and we had used the last of our water (thinking we were just below the summit) to wash a rock out of my eye. Most of the glaciers up here have a substantial lateral moraine from the last glacial maximum 20,000 years ago and often from the little ice age 150 years ago as well that must be crossed to actually set foot on ice. In this case the moraine was not inconsequential. What looks like a pile of loose debris is actually a cemented steeply sloped conglomerate of super sharp rocks. Hence the smile and heightened appreciation of walking on ice.

The really fun part of the challenge of getting onto the ice here was the song stuck in my head while descending the moraine. Goin' up to the Spirit in the Sky is not what you want stuck in your head. Especially if it makes you laugh and teeter on the edge of loosing your balance.

The other major challenge we had this summer was weather. Nice view? Sure, until that damn cloud rolls up the valley again and your gut start to seize up because now you are in the middle of a field of white and your visibility may be about to decrease substantially.

In the end the effort paid off. Here we have the scientist at work. Mostly noting boring details like the weather and time of datalogger launching, but also a lot of details on how I got here, where in the world I left the datalogger and whether or not the route I took was one that should be repeated or avoided for the return next summer.

'What? Yes, I know about the clouds. I'm hurrying. Did you want to take the notes or are you going to shut up now?' I'm so kind to my field assistants. I can't imagine why finding an unpaid field assistant is so hard.

Okay, let's see, where was I? Oh, yes, datalogger installed on a 50 foot tiny little string tied to a big rock at the edge of the glacier. I'm sure I'll be able to find this again next year. Yes sireee, no problemo.

I always feel like I'm seeing the glacier naked in the summer. Or maybe in a bikini? Either way, May and September are my favorite months for glacier travel. In May all the crevasses are covered up with strong snow bridges and in September they are all exposed. What I don't like are moraines.

Flute Glacier

So in-between the biking to work and boating on the lake I've spent a lot of time planning trips to glaciers this summer. Of late these plans have actually been successfully implemented and I finally installed my first datalogger on Flute Glacier August 14th. Of course I intended to install 3 loggers that weekend, but that was just another rock in a bolder field of reality checks.



I don't have many pictures from the two night trip, mostly because my friend Baho was my field assistant and he is really into photography. Plus, his camera was way better. Someday he will have enough time to process the photos and send me copies. Until then, I'll just have to relive the hell, I mean fun, in my mind. Hopefully they outlast my blistered feet.



Major learning points from this trip? Where to start....how about with some physics? Like, carrying a heavy pack will indeed lead you to hike slower. And friction in boots is greater if your feet are wet. Which they will be if the creek you cross is deeper than your boots. Also, glaciers flow downhill. Which means there is a hill there and you have to climb up to it. And a map is not always your friend. Specifically one drawn in the 1950s with 100 foot contour lines. Do you have any idea how tall a 100 foot cliff is? I do. I do. I do. That is how many waterfalls we climbed up next to that plunged over cliffs that did not appear on the map, you know, cliffs - the places where the contour lines meet on the map. It's hard to find a guide book that tells you these things. It seems people aren't really into walking up to and on glaciers. There's a pretty good reason for this. Overall though, we had good weather and I got to do some reconnisance for the other two glaciers I didn't visit. Now if only my helicopter permit would come through.....probably as soon as I'm done hiking and installing the last datalogger.

Sunshine

I think you can officially say we might be having an Indian Summer here. In August I could refer to the one day of sun in July and people could recall exactly where there were like it was the day an important event happened. I for one was boating on Eklutna Lake, but have no photos because the camera was stolen.

Since then we have had several sunny days or at least afternoons and I took to storing my boat with NIWTs at his dad's house on a lake in town. It's sunny this afternoon just like last Friday when we last paddled. I even finally got Percy a life jacket that fits and she is slowly getting used to swimming longer and longer.



The goal is to ultimately get them to both be able to swim along while I paddle. So far she can handle about 15 minutes, so this might be a really long process.

Like many of my friends and fellow bloggers, I've got lots of pictures and adventures to tell you all about, but as my Dad says, "you have to make hay while the sun shines" and it is sunny here today. But I'll give you one little hint about the next post: one of the dogs above is an official SAR dog as of today!

View From Bird

I was thwarted again this weekend in my attempts to hunt ice worms on glaciers. So instead I hunted glaciers. Smokey followed me up Bird Ridge on Saturday for my second attempt at viewing the hypothetical Bird Glacier. We got a break in the clouds long enough to look up the valley. But the valley curves, so I can't truly see the area where the glacier would be if it still exists.

See how close we are to the ocean? Notice how far down it is? It feels like this ridge climbs straight up, like I've been up stairs that had less slope.

This is my high-tech ice worm hunting clothes. Also what I have lived in almost all summer. No bikinis here; stretchy waterproof layers. And this weekend I have been sporting whatever shoes don't kill my road rashed ankle that had a close encounter with the pavement on my bike last Thursday. You don't even want to know what my thigh looks like. I didn't know bruises could come in those colors. Don't worry Mom, I'm too sore to ride to work for a few days and I think I'll wait until the insurance card shows up in the mail first.

Smokey has awesome new binoculars, but they still aren't good enough to see ice worms from here. Never mind that I'm looking at the glaciers across the inlet..... I think I've successfully begged an airplane ride to check out my potential remote glaciers for access (and existence!). And the permit application for the Forest Service work has been altered to include the possibility of being dropped off by helicopter. What? Everything is close to a heli ski base and they aren't exactly super busy right now. Plus, I bet I can get field assistants that way.

Sunday was nearly as exciting, but maybe not as glorious. Tatonka and I went to cheer on a fellow canine SAR teamate who was going through her final test for certification. We start our series tonight and worked a three hour problem yesterday while we waited for her. We started in the only sun we have seen in weeks. But that soon ended and the rain held off until we finished working, so I guess that is a success around here. Tatonka was very good at keeping my feet warm while I studied last night, except for his snoring.

Birfday

I have a rule about my birfday and it goes something like this: it's MY birthday and I'll do as I please thank you very much, and it does not involve going to work. This year it did involve going for a hike for thesis research purposes. I went to see if a glacier on my list for research this summer was still in existence. I found out there was a trail up a ridge that would put me in direct view of it across the valley and I went to get something done. Of course I also thought I would go for a bike ride and paddle my boat, but by the time I got home from this I was tired of being really wet. So I changed my plans. Because I'm allowed to. Because it's my day to do with as I please.

It was quite a little jaunt up the hill and we were all happy to stop for a photo shoot. Everyone had their tongues hanging out. When we popped out on the ridge above treeline both Percy and I staggered a couple steps from the wind blast. Percy wasn't sure if there was more uphill to come or if we were calling it quits. Since we couldn't see across the valley to the potential glacier location and we were soaked through we decided to go home and get some cocoa and spend some quality time with our yarn, cats, and books.

And this is for my sister. Remember how growing up you were always so mad because my birfday was in the summer and I always got fun summer presents like wading pools and buckets for playing in the sand and you got sweaters because your's is in the fall? Well guess what. I have no need for a wading pool or swim suit in this weather. But a sweater would have been just dandy. Instead I got a glacier travel rope, ice screws, and a bike computer. Perfectly acceptable.

More Fun From the Fourth

My dependency on others for photos must come to an end soon. It's driving me crazy and keeping me from posting here. I did a post a few weeks ago about my 4th of July and this is evidence from funness elluded to there. No evidence of the rocky bike ride from hell wherin I launched myself off my bike repeatedly into the rocky ditch and was assured that no, this is totally a biking trail. Turns out Niwt maybe exagerates things a little. We eventually stashed the bikes in the bushes next to the trail when it became obvious to me we were on a descent I didn't want to carry my bike back up.

And we hit the beach. In the rain and wind and it was fabulous. The dogs had a great time. I had a great time. We all got outside and got to play.

And then we got to retire to the porch of the cabin for fun with wine, knitting and another stick. All the elements I treasure in a weekend, except for cats and food.

Holiday Weekend

I know it was three weekends ago, but I've been hiding inside doing repairs and pretending like it isn't summer. While most of you were out trying not to get sunburned or overdose on lemonade, I was drinking coffee. Welcome to a typical 4th of July in Alaska. I finally got down to Seward with my boat to my friend's cabin on the beach. While an overcast day will not keep me from much anymore (neither will rain) a strong steady wind will keep me from putting my boat in the ocean.

I did get my toes and my dogs wet by walking on the beach and riding my mountain bike to another beach. The clouds also lifted on our way out of town to try our luck in Homer. Wait, what's that in the water there?

Oh look, the local wildlife came out to say good bye. Too bad I'm taking his picture from the road instead of my boat. Homer wasn't any better, but for a different reason. I went to help my girlfriend with some renovation work on her cabin. Turns out it was opening weekend for her parent's cafe, so we ended up helping out there instead. While the weather was acceptable for boating, the dogs were not. I discovered that Percy really does not like fireworks. I didn't even think people would set them off since it's totally daylight and you can't seem them. Silly me. Last weekend we got out to Eklutna with boats and I really like my new paddle. It was super sunny and I actually needed sunscreen and not bug dope. Very strange. Unfortunately, pictures from last weekend were on my friend's camera which was stolen out of his truck Sunday night. I know, don't bring a camera if you come hang out with me.

Tour of the Twice Named Town

Last week I went on a business trip, my first with the new company. Originally my boss was to travel with me, but he had to cancel at the last minute so I got to go alone. The purpose of the trip was a day trip to a remote project site. This took three days due to flight schedules. Helicopter flight schedules. I love helicopters. There is never a bad view from a helicopter.

I finally asked one of the kind people entrusted with chauffering me between the airport and the hotel about the two names. He said the obvious, Deadhorse (or Deadpony as J-Bomb calls it) is the name of the town, and Prudhoe Bay is the oil field lease area name. It was so intuitive I felt silly. Even sillier for a momentary panic after boarding the plane in Anchorage with a destination of Deadhorse and hearing my bag had been goldstreaked to Prudhoe Bay.

Nothing like a town with an oil well on a main street to make me wonder if I'm in Texas or Alaska. What does it tell you about your life that a three day trip to a remote drilling pad on the North Slope is like a vacation for you? I got enough sleep, I had no chores or cleaning to do, I made liberal use of the on site gym, my food was prepared, my room made up, people appeared out of nowhere to transport me to where I needed to go, and I didn't spend more than $2 (on postcards). All from filling out the correct form for the big company's travel department. They even put me up in the 'nice, new hotel'. It's got nothing on the Ritz, but it was clean and safe and had a gym. It's only a year old and they are adding another 100 rooms on this summer because they are always at capacity. Saying 'it's a whole different world up there' doesn't even come close to cutting it. The icing on the cake? From the drilling pad I could see the ice pack on the Arctic Ocean. No polar bears though, so I have to find a way to need to go back.