Kari's-Yak About Kodiak: June 2013

At the beginning of this season I wrote out professional & personal goals that I wanted to accomplish for the summer. My personal goal was kind of vague but I wrote "be more adventurous." I live in an absolutely beautiful place but it's easy to forget to enjoy my surroundings by getting busy with work & routine. I had a few adventures in mind though when I wrote out my goal; I wanted to kayak more & I wanted to hike these three mountains that are right next to each other called The Three Sisters. I haven't hiked Three Sisters yet (just North Sister so far), but since the island has been giving us some beautiful weather lately I've been taking advantage of the adventures that are presenting themselves.

Dana worked for the Refuge last summer (plus into the fall) and recently got back to Kodiak for another round. On her first weekend back the sun decided to peek through therefore, along with Jason, we decide to hit up one of the best places to eat ever, Java Flats, then head out to Chiniak Lake. We brought Jason's canoe and also a little pack raft for me. It was so nice out on the lake! It was just a touch windy, making it hard for me to paddle in the super light raft. Therefore Jason & Dana towed me in the canoe, making it a really enjoyable time for me.

Getting towed like a boss

After we explored around the lake we went to a restaurant out there called Road's End and I ran into these two kiddos. They come to a lot of the Refuge's programs and wanted to give me rides on their four wheelers. So yes, a got an ATV ride from a 6 yr old and then a 4 yr old. It was only slightly terrifying.

The other weekend was Shelly's birthday and we had a little celebration at work. Then afterwards she was deliberating how she wanted to celebrate and decided to embrace the extremely sunny day and go kayaking. So Lisa, Shelly, & I got our skirts on (of course) and kayaked to one of the nearby islands. It was incredibly gorgeous out & the water was super calm. We were taking pics right and left. It was one of those moments that everything was just so amazing that you never wanted to forget it. Once we landed on the island we enjoyed some sushi & the view. Shelly & I actually ended up setting up a tent & sleeping on the little island. It was such a great day with even better company. :)

Kayaking in our skirts (Photo stolen from Lisa)

Out on the water.

Our view while enjoying our sushi

Then in the same weekend I went camping with Nick. I met Nick when passing through Anchorage on my way to Kodiak. He's roommates to my friend Laura and working in Kodiak for part of the summer. Let's just say he's a character. We went backpacking a little to find a spot to go camping in the mountains. It was so sunny that I got a sunburn, a first for me in Kodiak! It was such a breathtaking view, we could see the ocean on both sides of us plus there was plenty of mountains to surround us.

At about 11 at night

Campsite

Well hey there Kodiak

The last adventure that I wanted to share, but certainly not least, was when Dana & I decided to hike up North Sister one evening after work. We almost didn't bring our jackets with us since it was so warm out but thankfully we did bring them. We were on the shady side of the mountain the whole way up and didn't feel the sunshine until the summit. It was also extremely windy on the top, but the view was extraordinary. Dana & I were taking the usual scenery pictures on the top and then somehow it turned into a photo shoot...