Some Sunshine in SE

Coming home wasn't too hard this time. Juneau was beautiful with no rain in sight. Coming back to Hoonah today on the ferry was just as terrific, the water was flat, and you could see for miles. I was really surprised we didn't see any whales though. We're supposed to have sun and warm weather all week. That will make getting the boat cleaned and back in the water so much easier. When we left we had about 3 feet of snow in the yard, now we have a yard, and the driveway that was more of a ski slope is all gone!
This is the light house at Point Retreat. This is where Lynn Canal and Chatham Strait come together. Usually there are whales feeding in this area.
Same location, just facing the opposite direction.

Some Bass Fishing

Frank, Josh, Fulfer and Coach got a little bass fishing in while I was in Long Beach. They just happened to be in the middle of a bass tournament when Fulfer caught this nice one:
The "boys" finally got over their fishing itch and got a sunburn to go with it!

Not Just Sagebrush

So many people pass through Eastern Washington and say, why do you like it there, there is nothing there but sagebrush! I've always loved this area, especially this time of year when everything is turning green and starting to bloom. Frank and I were driving back to Coaches from Richland today, near Rattlesnake Mountain (tallest mountain in the US without trees!) when I noticed these purple flowers blooming. Soon there will be cactus along the ground blooming too. If you look close you see all kinds of small wonders.Close up they are so delicate, but the wind is really hard on them, but they still endure.
You can see how dry the ground is, so they don't need a lot of water, and there is tumble weeds blowing all around and over them.

Brown Bear Fishing

I had been meaning to upload this video for a while now, but haven't had a fast enough internet connection to get it done until now. This was taken last fall while Sven and Frank were fly fishing.

A Taste of Spring

I'm cheating, since spring wouldn't come to us, we had to go to it! It's so nice to see all the cherry trees, daffodils and tulips in bloom. It's nice not having to wear my winter coat and rain boots! I'm hoping while we are here spring will sneak into Alaska and melt all of the snow.

I didn't see any baby chicks yet, but I don't think it will be too much longer. This is the duck pond at Columbia Park in Kennewick, WA
The geese are pretty intimidating when you are only 1 years old, especially in that big group by the pond, but one on one is a totally different story!

March = Spring?

I keep thinking I need to get out and take some pictures, but this is such an ugly time of year. Well, in SE Alaska it is anyway. The snow is trying to melt, and all the piles of snow are dirty with sand and gravel. The stuff left in the yards have craters in it from the rain, or there are huge piles by the edges of houses. Nothing like the white with the first snow in the fall, when everything is so clean and bright. So I've had a hard time finding pictures to post, unless we have a blue bird day and we are near or on the water there isn't much to see. Frank and I are sure looking forward to our trip to Washington in April to finally get some spring weather, and maybe when we get back the snow will be all gone! There is only 1 real type "hotel" in Hoonah. This is the Icy Strait Lodge. I've never stayed there myself so can't comment on the rooms, but I have heard they are in need of an updating. The building is in a great location though, and the dinning room sits right on the water, which at high tide is pretty nice, low tide isn't so pretty, lots of mud. When they have a good cook there, it's actually a nice place to go for dinner. There is also a bar with pool tables, but we aren't much for hanging out in the bars so we haven't spent much time there. You can see we still have plenty of snow piled up along the roads, and as I type this another snow storm is going over.
You'll have to settle for more pictures of our ever entertaining Nooks. She loves her boxes, especially when Frank cuts holes in them for her to look out. This winter she has started to meow at you when she wants to play. She's had a very boring winter.

The Sky is Falling!

It sure sounds like it anyway. We must have gotten about a foot of snow the other day, then it warmed up and rained, then snowed, some sun, etc. The snow started sliding off the roof very fast. That is so loud when it comes crashing down! It doesn't have far to fall anymore though, the piles are up to the bottoms of the windows. When we got a lot of that last snow, we made the mistake of not shoveling the driveway, I kept thinking, oh, it's supposed to warm up it will just melt. HA! Now, it's water heavy snow, and neither one of us wants to shovel it. Cabin fever is starting to set in for sure. You can tell when you notice how loud your spouse chews, and the other small little things are like a fuse being lit inside your head. Yes, I do believe it's time we either get a job (YIKES!), or go visit some friends!This is right outside the front door, domino effect, from the roof, to the yard, to the walkwayThe yard between our house and the neighbors. I think the bbq is under there someplace!Poor Nooks, Frank gave her a kitty toss into the snow. I don't know why she likes him!