Busy Day

It’s been a busy day, with phone calls for a call series I’ve been participating, an informal conversation with Coast Alaska reporters and scientists (which I seemed to have qualified as in this case), and finally a talk about hydropower generation and the models used to help anticipate an prepare for situations where hydro capacity … Read more

Signs of Spring

This entry is part 66 of 133 in the series 2011 Photojournal

The Dolly Varden have started to show up near the beaches again. Rowan and Connor have been fishing for them this week, and Rowan managed to catch a 14″ Dolly (her first) this morning. I noticed three Red-breasted Sapsuckers engaged in what I take to be courting behavior. They flew between various trees and utility … Read more

Herring and Rain

This entry is part 59 of 133 in the series 2011 Photojournal

Today was the first opening of the 2011 Sitka Sound Herring Sac Roe Fishery. It was held in the afternoon near Middle Island. I don’t think it was close enough to see from the road, but it did not matter too much for me since I needed to teach class during that time. Total precipitation … Read more

Turning toward Spring

Contrary to forecast, skies over town remained mostly clear through the day. There was a bit of an east wind to make things feel a little cooler, but even so, temperatures warmed up to the low 40s. I was able to find a spot on the south side of a Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis) in … Read more

Return to the 40s

Today was rather spring-like in many respects. Although snow may have falling as forecast in other parts of the area, very little snow fell in town. There was just enough wet snow to stick to the previously wind-polished ice and subsequently refreeze, leaving things much less slippery than before (a fact that was somewhat disappointing to me, as I had been thinking I would spend a little time skating/sliding down the ice hill with Connor and Rowan). As temperatures rose to over 40 by later this morning, the ice started to soften and melt.

Skies were partly to mostly cloudy through much of the day (with a fair amount of sun), and there was still some wind today, but it seemed to be out of a direction that made it much less noticeable in the areas I was walking around. By later this evening it seemed as though skies were mostly clear, and the ice had hardened up again, though air temperatures were still in the mid to upper 30s.

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