Featured Stories
The Percy John Blatchford Story
An Alaskan Legend and Hero It’s said that some of the strongest people on earth are the quietest. This holds true for men and women alike where physical and mental strength is concerned. Many such folks walk amongst us totally unnoticed. They do not seek special...
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Climbing Denali in January
“… when it’s snowing horizontally at 50 miles per hour, you can’t see your hand in front of your face.”
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100 Days in Denali
Eventually the wolf circled around the kill, inching closer and closer to the bear and caribou carcass.
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Eureka Lodge
Even with an established trail, the route was difficult, and few followed it except prospectors. In the early 1900s some of those prospectors discovered gold…
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Fishing With Mike
Mother went on to inform me she overheard Uncle Noel complaining. Not everything could be heard but she understood this much, “Fishin’ with Mike was a total waste of time!”
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Fishing and Exploring Wood-Tikchik
The eagle beats its massive wings, almost catches the osprey, but this time the osprey dives and evades the eagle. The eagle tires and gives up the chase while the osprey stalls in flight to get a better grip on the now lifeless trout.
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On the Edge of Life
Her eyes met mine, and she was as startled to see me as I her. I spoke soothingly to her and offered my hand out to allow her to smell me, but she jumped backward a few feet.
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The Alaskan – Summertime
Alaskan kids are also transformed into grubby little maniacs, strung out on popsicles and toasted marshmallows, who mostly inhabit the wild margins where emerald woodlands meet overgrown lawns.
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Alaskan Wild Berries
An Introduction to Making Jams & Jellies “Where’s that extra sugar?!” I asked my husband this question after putting 4 ½ cups of the 6 cups of sugar the recipe called for in a pot of berry juice at a full rolling boil. If you are a jelly maker you know what I’m...
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The Alaska Railroad
It isn’t until you reach the mouth of Turnagain Arm that the scenery really comes alive. Turnagain Arm offers incredible views of both the Chugach and Kenai Mountains.
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“It’s Not a Quick Trip to Paradise”
Sitting before the woodstove that evening, I felt the tiredness of my body. It is not a quick trip to paradise, but there I was, off the grid.
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Kenai Fjords National Park Wildlife Tour
The idyllic port town of Seward quickly disappeared behind us as we sped across the water to more pristine coastal wildlife habitat. The sky became mostly cloudy with patches of blue by the time we reached Agnes Cove where we were fortunate enough to view an orca (killer) whale with a calf swimming by her side.
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The Passage
"The Passage" A Story of Fathers and Sons Traveling Alaska's Inside Passage About "The Passage" In 1974, Nathan Dappen's 20-year-old parents and uncle, Andy, built their own canoes, launched them into the Pacific, and became some the first people in modern history to...
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Without a Trace – An Alaska Tragedy
On the east side of Anchorage in the Wonderpark area of town sits a decaying gas station. Time and elements have chiseled away at paint and trim. Vandals have destroyed the showroom windows plus a good portion of the interior. Someone lit a tire on fire in one of the garage stalls blackening the walls. In a few more years I have the nagging suspicion Yeager’s Service Station will be gone without a trace.
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Hatcher Pass Explorations
The desire to see Mint Hut for ourselves grew during our busy summer, and finally, on the second to last day of August last year, the weather and our schedules came together. Again, we set off early. The temperature at the parking lot near where Mother Lode Lodge used to be, was about 22 degrees. All the foliage was in full fall colors and covered with frost, the sky was clear and we were determined.
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A Quick Bite of Alaska
The fishing was great! We averaged one to two fish per drift, including two fish over 25 inches. The time flew by, and after countless fish, it was finally time to head back to camp. At day’s end, I thought about an old Will Rogers quote: “If all politicians fished instead of speaking publicly, we’d be at peace in the world.” Mr. Rogers hit the nail on the head with that one.
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The Master Pilot
Troy yelled for me to open the door and jump. Everything was blinding white outside. It was like leaping into a freezer. Wind instantly froze tears in my eyes. Smoke or steam rose from the propeller area and I thought the plane was on fire. Snow quickly came up to my waist and the real possibility of sinking further petrified me. All was quiet except for the wind and popping of our aircraft strobe.
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The Trading Post
The Trading Post, as it was known from 1935 to the beginning of WWII, bustled with activity when the commissary/grocery store opened in 1936. In that first year only, instead of U.S. dollars the government issued scrip, called bingles, monthly to the new colonists. The amount distributed was based on the size of their family.
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WWII Brings the Military to Anchorage
“…after the outbreak of the war, a blackout went into effect. Cars drove with parking lights only, and on the base all windows were painted black with only a small slit in the center for daylight. In the face of a shortage of black paint, residents improvised and dissolved phonograph records in acetone and used the result as a paint substitute.”
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A Nod to the Queen of Sourdough
Her accomplishments are impressive, but there remains within the pages of “Alaskan Sourdough” a simple, lovely, crackling humor—sunshine and sweetness sprinkled in among the hardness that was her pioneering life.
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Alex Papasavas & Turkey Red
Palmer restaurant owner’s commitment to quality and community Sometimes you visit a certain place and it just feels right. Maybe it is the atmosphere, maybe the service, maybe the food. Whatever it is, it is just right. Such is the description that comes to mind when...
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Smallest Aurora Chaser
“This girl has a passion for the northern lights” It was thirty below zero and the lights were out. Zaira was putting on her gear to get ready for the chase. Aurora blasted the sky with multiple colors and Zaira couldn’t resist anymore. She ran outside, right into the...
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Swedish Black Currants
The daughters of Heinie and Alice Snider may not have agreed on much, but they were all thrilled when my husband and I bought their parents’ dream home, built in the mid-1950s on a portion of the homestead land they grew up on.
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“Goodbye, Little Cabin”
All good things must come to an end After living in Alaska as a young man in the military, my dream was to return someday. That dream became a reality when I moved my family to Alaska in September 1971, to accept a job about 20 miles east of Fairbanks at Eielson Air...
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Taking A Drive
She kind of shrieked and started doing sloppy, slow-motion, suction-dance maneuvers.
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The Alaskan – Unfriendly
We know the wildness of our home. A simple grocery run turns into a life and death situation at -40 if your vehicle breaks down.
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The Jewel of the Pacific
Watching the graceful and athletic performances of these 20-plus ton beautiful creatures served to remind and motivate us all of the need for conservation, education, and research to help protect the precious marine environment.
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Driftwood Bay
“Doesn’t it just make you hate them,” said Madelyn, “Ninety percent of what we are finding is plastic water bottles. Can’t we recycle these?”
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Our Survival Story – Part I
Standed, alone, and fighting for survival on Monahan Flats My Name is Vivian (Cotter) Mayo, and with my husband, Scott, I reside in Cantwell, Alaska, where we’ve lived, loved, and nearly frozen to death—this is our survival story. First, I should lay some groundwork...
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Appalachia, North Korea and Alaska
North Korea was in the middle of their coldest winter in 45 years. Temperatures dipped as the UN forces led by the United States pursued the North Koreans up to the Chosin Reservoir…
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