Sunday, July 24, 2011

Dall Sheep and Turnagain Arm

I was talking to a friend of mine earlier about different animals that you can hunt in Alaska and I mentioned dall sheep.  Of course, the idea of tracking and killing these animals reminded me of some pictures I caught of a sheep and her lamb, but neglected to post.

These were taken along the Turnagain Arm area, off the Seward Highway, which as one might figure, connects Seward and Anchorage.  I went to Turnagain to do some biking and stopped on the side of the road when I saw these two.



I hiked up a little bit toward them until it seemed like I was going to scare them off.



This is after taking my bike up a hiking trail.  The trail distinctions are not arbitrarily made to inconvenience me, like I assumed.  As it turns out, some of the hiking trails become very difficult to ride.  This is at the midway point on Bird Ridge.  About five minutes after this, some old hippie b-word came by to lecture me about the trail distinctions - I had pretty much figured things out when I almost killed myself.


Bird Creek.


You really only have to travel about 20 minutes outside Anchorage to get to what everybody considers the real Alaska, which is incredible.  In the summer, a '97 Honda Accord travels fine.  And for that matter, you could ride a bike if you had the energy and time (I don't).

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Golf (Alaskan Style)

Notwithstanding the facts that I've only recently taken up golf and have visited only a select few golf courses, I can say with confidence that golfing in Alaska (for the brief season it's available) is unparalleled.  There are a few things that you just don't get anywhere else.  The mountain views, rivers and streams, and of course, the wildlife are out of this world.  I heard a guy say that "God really rolled up his sleeves when he made Alaska."  Religious beliefs aside, the sentiment captures the atmosphere perfectly.






There are a couple of black bears that live on Moose Run Golf Course.  Here is a mom with her two cubs, the first one is hard to make out, but is right ahead of her.  Considering the luck I've had with animals and golf (both frisbee and club), I feel fortunate not to have hit one of the cubs.  I hit a goose the other week and it led to a very serious confrontation.  One of the guys I was golfing with did give one of them a scare and the little guy climbed straight up a tree.  My friend decided not to play the ball, because the momma bear had noticed us by this point and seemed to be keeping a keen eye on us.  He dropped another ball in the middle of the fairway and shot with some alacrity, though I still felt he should have counted that as a penalty stroke.  Anyway, when we got up to the green, the bears made their crossing.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Seward, Close Encounters of the Moose Kind...

Seward is a small town about two hours south of Anchorage.  The fishing there is world-renowned, though I struck out pretty handedly.  "Snagging" is allowed in salt water in Alaska, but not freshwater, save a few exceptions.  It's a little less sporting, but considering the difficulty I had with it, I have a hard time seeing it as cheating.  The friend I was with picked up three silvers though.  The area here is where the ocean water meets the inland waterways, so once you walk out about a half-mile out it's considered salt-water.


 The eagles have little trouble with the process.



Not really sure.


To overcompensate for the lack of fish I caught in Seward, I went to the store and bought a three and a half pound king salmon fillet - it took the better part of a week to eat.


Frolf is a pretty huge game in Anchorage.  This was the first hole at the Kincaid Park course.  My frisbee landed about three feet from this adolescent bull while he was eating a tree, in a fashion I can only describe as wholesale.  Needless to say, it held up the game for a few minutes.  You can't rush a moose, so the only real move is to hang back until they feel like leaving.


My frisbee is out of the frame - it's close to the bottom-right corner.