Starting to Green Up

(Posted by Layne)


One of the trail cams finally caught a visitor the other night.  A young bull - nubs (buttons), but no antlers.


Just a couple of weeks ago, during the full moon, there was still lots of snow on the mountain tops, and no green in the hay flats.


Today, there's green popping out from every direction.


Recent snow melt has swelled the creek to its annual max mass flow rate.  It will stay this full for another few months, then slow back to just more than a trickle by Fall.  When the salmon arrive in July, it's fun to watch 'em jump up these falls.

It might not load for everyone, but here's a video of Dino burying and trying to hide a ham-hock I gave him.  He covers it with dirt, then tries to hide it with grass that he gathers up.  When I walk out and point to where he buried it, he waits until I leave and then digs it up and buries it in another spot to try and hide it from me. He doesn't realize that I can see him from inside the house, so I always know where he buried it. Funniest part is that when I walk up to him he stares right at the spot he last buried it. He would be a terrible poker player.

When the Swallows Return to Wasilla...

(Posted by Layne)


There are a lot of neat birds in Alaska, many of them unique to this part of the world. But the tree swallow, common to most of the continent, is probably the most useful.  I put up 3 birdhouses last month, in hopes of drawing at least one pair of tree swallows to take up residence. The tree swallow spends more of its life on the wing than any other songbird, and to do that they need to consume as many as 2,000 mosquitoes per day, while catching another 6,000 per day for their chicks.  A breeding pair can eliminate 300,000 mosquitoes within a quarter mile radius around their home during the nesting season. I really like these birds.


I've been watching the bird houses, and saw several camp robbers considering setting up a home in the bird boxes (or looking for eggs to steal), but finally today we had a pair of swallows fly in and try out all three houses.  They seemed to like this one the best, right above Dino's doghouse - you can see the female checking out the view from her front door in the above picture, while Dino sleeps.  A pair of swallows can try out hundreds of different potential homes before starting a nest, and they didn't stay long before continuing on to look at other homes, but I'm hoping they come back to make an offer on this one.


Can you find the Ruffed Grouse in the above picture? (Hint:  look right in the middle)


Zoomed in on the center, he's up on a log - a male in gray phase getting ready to 'drum' for a female.  I've heard him drumming most days on the walk I take along the bluff, but finally caught a glimpse of him when the sun was just right yesterday.  Now I'll know what log he uses (they like to use the same log each year to call for a mate, sometimes never venturing farther than a hundred yards from that log their whole life).  He's been drumming for about 3 weeks now, and I guess had no luck so far.  Must be tough to have to sit and wait for a female to happen by your way.


This is a Sandhill Crane.  I grew up seeing these cranes out in our fields during the Fall and Winter in Texas.  What I didn't know back then, is that these same Sandhill Cranes come to Canada and Alaska to breed each Summer.  The Sandhill Crane in this picture might have wintered over right across the road from our farm in Texas (it's possible, at least).


The woods are noisy this time of year.  Even when the birds' chirping is quiet, these woodpeckers are working furiously on the trees.  I wonder if this might be the one that flew into our window a couple weeks back.  He looks no worse for the wear.


This is a strange white birch I pass each day on the walk through the woods.  It's off the trail a little ways, so it wouldn't have been grafted by anyone.  Not 100% sure why the bark looks like this, as if the middle section was a graft from another tree.  My guess is someone stripped the bark off years ago for kindling, and this is how it healed, unless someone has a better explanation.

The Difference 8 Years Makes

(Posted by Layne)



The above picture was Dino, as a < 1 year old pup, almost 8 years ago on a walk with Landon and I to a pond near the house.


Here's Dino today, in the same spot on that same walk, 8 years older and little wiser.


8 years ago, Landon could stand on a mud platform a little beyond the pond's shoreline to point out the ducks floating in the distance.


8 years later, the water has risen in the pond, and the mud platform is now gone.


A boy and his best friend, 8 years ago.


My, how time flies.

A Short Walk in the "Park"

(Posted by Layne)



I've been wondering where the eagles are nesting since I got here in March.  Their old nest is visible from our house, but they definitely aren't using that one this year.  I thought they were nesting in a smaller nest nearby, but decided last month they weren't using that nest either.  Tonight, on a walk along the bluff from our house, I happened to walk by their new nest.  It's a little further away from us than any of their previous nests. This new nest makes the 5th one we've seen them nest in since we first moved here in 2008.  I took this quick picture, and then quietly snuck away so as not to disturb them, but I'm glad to confirm that they are still nesting in the area.



The walk between our house and the new nest is farther than I usually hike from the house, but I had forgotten how nice and peaceful that farther walk is.  Dino especially liked to explore the trails he hadn't seen in 5 years.



We stopped and took a breather at the Boy Scout Observatory, built as an Eagle Scout project right about the time we moved here the first time.  The view is still just as good, even though this isn't our best time of year for scenery.  I still think it's one of the best times to hike, though, as it's still very cool (in temperature), and only a few mosquitoes to swat at (so far).

Preparing the Garden Plots

(Posted by Layne)

One day I'll put in a greenhouse, but for now, we have three small garden plots around the house.



This is the upper plot.  It will be planted in potatoes.  The barriers are meant to keep the moose from walking through the plot.  They tend to be lazy enough to walk around obstacles rather than through them, even if the obstacle is easily pushed over, so we'll see if these work.



This is the middle plot.  It is the only 'raised' bed of the three.  The other two simply have some firewood laid around them to mark the plot.  This plot will be smaller type vegetables like carrots, beets, and I guess I'll try some lettuce and peas in here as well.



This is the lower plot.  We'll put potatoes in here as well.  Still have a couple of weeks before planting time here, and I might play it safe and wait until early June, but the plots are tilled and ready when we are.



Had to wait for an Alaskan jaywalker.



This guy hit our window at full speed.  Thought he was a goner, but.....



He pulled himself together and sat up about 30 minutes later. It was an hour before he flew off. I guess those woodpecker noggins are pretty tough.



This juvenile eagle flew onto a branch above us as I was taking Dino from his doghouse to the garage for the night.  Guess he wanted a closer look to see if Dino (or me) was small enough to eat.  He stuck around until we went inside, then he lost interest and flew back to the hay flats to eat seagull chicks.



Spent a week in Colorado Springs a couple of weeks ago for the Joint Task Force Commander course.  Pikes Peak was staring at me through the class window all week.



Then, on the flight home, Mt Rainier peaked through the plane window at me as we flew into Seattle.



Was glad to be home, though.  Pikes Peak and Mt. Rainier have nothing on the Chugach Mountain range when the sun is setting across the hay flats.



Came upon this sign on the road to Homer last weekend......I guess you could put this sign up on most of our roads.  Not sure if there was supposed to be something especially scary down this road, or we just had an extra sign sitting around, and decided to state the obvious.

Last of the snow

(Posted by Layne)



Late blog entry, these pics are from back in April, when the last of the snow and ice was melting quickly.  Here the warmer air from under the deck was melting the snow and ice on top of the deck into tunnels.





Dino was heartbroken to see the ice disappear, and he spent the last days of the snow laying on top of any patch of snow he could find.  He'll be glad to see a yard full of snow next winter like he had when we moved here this year.







Won't be seeing skis on planes like this for a while.  Now they are changing the skis out for floats.



Had a visit from a great horned owl the other night.  He was very stoic, and a little nosy (staring through the window at me while I read a book.)



Almost forgot, here's a pic of the Iditarod champion's (and his son's) sleds returning home from the airport after arriving from Nome, headed back to their home in Seward in March.  Father (Mitch) and son (Dallas) came in first and second in the 8 day 1,049 mile race.  How could I have forgotten to post this picture?