The thoughts and photography of Susan L Stevenson
It’s so good to be home again! Steve and I left on Thursday morning for our trip to Seward (with a stop in Anchorage both coming and going), and came home a day early.
We had a wonderful time with friends, saw whales and sea birds on our whale watch cruise, and then drove into Denali on the way home. I took a lot of photos, and need to go through them before I can make a more detailed entry.
So stay tuned!
(Warning: Photo heavy blog entry!)
JAXON GENE MELTON
On Monday, April 19th, Jaxon Gene Melton came into the world! This makes grandson #2 for Steve and me. Kayla and baby are doing fine. He weighed in at 8lbs even and is 21″ long. Here’s one of the first photos taken of him (sent from Kayla). He’s wide awake and checking out his family:
Congratulations Kayla and Robby, and big brother Colt. We look forward to meeting Jaxon in person!
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CARIBOU MIGRATION
On Sunday, I took a very long roadtrip with my friends Lori and Stella. We drove about 400 miles roundtrip, down to the Denali Hwy (out of Paxson) and then onto the highway about 30 miles, before turning around and coming back to North Pole. We had heard from several people that the caribou were migrating and could be seen in great numbers along the Denali Hwy.
We were on the road toward Delta by 7:30am. The mountains were beautifully lit by the morning sun which necessitated several stops along the way to take photos. I was excited that Stella had come along, as she hadn’t driven the Richardson Hwy. Lori and I both knew she was going to be *WOWED*, just as we always are.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: The Richardson Hwy drive is probably my most favorite in the state. Not only because of the gorgeous mountainous scenery, but because the highway is less traveled than the Parks Hwy, which allows for frequent stops (even in the middle of the road at times!) when a photo op presents itself.
We stopped in Delta to top off my gas tank. By the time we got there (about 100 miles from Fairbanks), the mountains were awash with light and the snow cover on them was a bright and pure white against a blue sky. It was a perfect day for a drive.
We drove up Donnelly Dome road so I could point out the hiking trail that goes to the top of the dome. Stella and Jay are going to hike it someday. A little further down the road, I drove Meadows Road to Bolio Lake. Lori had never been to Bolio Lake, and was as impressed as I always am when we came over the top of the hill and the mountains and lake opened up below.
Last summer, Lisa and I visited Bolio Lake and saw hundreds of swallowtail butterflies. What a treat!
We’ve had several bouts of snow flurries (and even heavier) in the last few days. It accumulated, but then when the sun came out, it melted away again. I have to admit that the snow is quite pretty when it falls, especially when the temperature is in the 30s, but frankly I - and so many others here in Fairbanks - are tired of it! Where is spring? Where are the new buds on the trees? Patience is not my strong suit when we are transitioning from winter to summer.
I stopped at the river behind Pioneer Park the other day while running errands. I had Sedona with me and we parked near the kayak rental place - which also happens to be where the non-migrating mallard ducks hang out all winter. There were only a handful of ducks when we arrived, and the ground was littered with bread and other things that I don’t think ducks are supposed to eat. What a mess.
In the past, I’ve seen folks dumping seed and grain for the ducks, along with hay/straw (for bedding?). But the bread is serving no purpose except to make the snow along the river ugly. Someone even threw bagels down!
I leashed up Sedona, reeling her in tightly in case she decided that duck should be on the lunch menu, but she had no interest whatsoever in the ducks (who were waddling away quickly). She wanted the bagels. That wasn’t going to happen; I dragged her quickly along the path and out of nose reach!
