My Beautiful Island

In the past month or so I've been privileged to take a few trips around the island. I've said it plenty of times but I'm going to say it again, I am so blessed to be able to fly and see the many different places on the island with my job. Many people who live in town hardly ever, if at all, get to see the wonderful place they live due to the remoteness. Two of my trips I helped spray areas with invasive plants that are in or near the refuge. The third trip was out to Frazer Lake, a popular bear viewing area, with my amazing crew and boss.

Cape Alitak.



So I didn't make it quite to the Cape Alitak but I was pretty dang close. Nearby is the Alitak Cannery and that's where I went to spray some wicked weeds. This cannery is so amazing. It's been running since 1917 and is in a nice remote location. The cannery runs about 6 months out of the year and the people who work here are incredibly hard workers. There's about 200 people who work there and when we got a tour with the humorous guy who runs it, Woody, he told us that the workers work about 16-19 hours a day, 7 days a week. Absolutely crazy. One of the ladies I talked to has been coming every summer from California since 1996 to work there. It's a pretty nice facility for being so remote and old but they do incredible work out there. Another cool thing is that they purchase some produce from a guy who lives up the bay from the cannery so their employees are served fresh produce. The cannery is 96 miles away from the town of Kodiak therefore if people would need to get to town they would have to go by float plane or take a 2.5 mile skiff ride to Akhiok, a native village, and catch the mail plane back to town. Here are a couple of shots I took on my phone while I was out there.

 The throne of Alitak

 

 

The prayer chapel at the cannery

 

 

 

 

Camp Island.

Camp Island is probably the most popular island on this island. Camp Island is located in the Refuge in the middle of Karluk Lake. There's a few cabins and facilities owned by other organizations but the Wildlife Refuge has some cabins here as well. During the summer this is headquarters for some of the research crews and it has pretty nice living conditions. This was my first time out to Camp Island and it was a great trip. I was killing some more of those wicked weeds of course.

The hawkweed killing crew before takeoff

 

 

"Don't mess with me silly weeds."

 Sunset on Karluk Lake

 

 

 

 

 

Frazer Lake.

Frazer Lake is also out in the Refuge and is a popular bear viewing site in the summer. This is also a site where Alaska Department of Fish & Game has a weir set up and has a small crew out there monitoring it in the summer. Their crew was so nice to us, they had us over for dinner and dessert which was delicious. The Salmon Camp crew went out here for an overnighter and it was an awesome time. We saw nine different bears while we were out there. It really is quite the experience to just watch and observe these marvelous animals. 

 A shot I took from the plane on our way out to Frazer

 

 

 Sleepy bear, she just woke up from her nap

 

 

My crew & I observing the bears

 

 

Ruby, the coolest fox ever.

 These 3 cubs were my absolute favorite, obviously

 

 

 

I'm glad I could get this short blog in and I have many more I need to do when time allows.



I'm so blessed.



Oh Hey Old Harbor

Kodiak Island has six native communities located around the archipelago that are a bit remote. Therefore in order to get to these communities you must travel via boat or plane. (I guess technically you could go by foot but it would take awhile.) The six villages on Kodiak range from 35 to 250 in population and the residents live not that much different than the average person. Yes, they have to online shop and live off the land some but they still have internet & etc. They are all absolutely gorgeous and unique in their own way. With my job I've have the privilege to go to all six over the last couple of years. However, there was only one of the communities that I hadn't been able to spend quality time in. Previously I had only stopped at the runway or harbor for a few minutes but never actually worked or hung out there. Old Harbor was that place and just this past week I finally got to spend two days there.

Old Harbor is the biggest village with about 250 people. I think it is the most scenic one as well. It was an awesome work visit. I went with Matthew & Monica (it was their first village trip & they loved it as well), who were great company. The residents were super friendly and welcoming. It was really neat to see how productive this little community is and all the programs and activities they have available. They had meal programs for seniors and kids as well as an awesome recycling program and Alutiiq dance practice plus even more. We put on Salmon Camp for the children there, they were great kids to work with! We got to explore Old Harbor in the evenings we were there and I got a few pictures I wanted to share...

 Snapped this shot while visiting the Old Harbor cemetery

 

 Buoys

 

Enjoying some homemade ice cream!

 

 We got the privilege of staying in the Senior Center which just happened to have a decent sized collection of VHS tapes. We found a Paula Abdul dance workout video so naturally we had to try it out. The pic above is us in action. B the W, we actually did most of the dance routine. Getting our workout on! We also did a little country line dancing as well... naturally.

 

 

Sitkalidak Strait

 

 Pretty excited about this bald eagle pic.. I finally have a camera that has a good zoom!

 (Thanks Mom)

 

 Life doesn't get better than this.

 

I took this pic on our flight back to Kodiak. We had a fun pilot who gave us quite the flight back. We got to see a bear, mountain goats, wild horses, a waterfall, harbor seals, and he made us "weightless" for a few seconds. It was an Indiana Jones type of flight. Good time & great trip!

 

 

I love this place.

A is for Adventure

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...

 View from North Sister

 The sunny summit

 Feeling accomplished

 Dana trying not to get blown away

 Then this happened...

 Then the shirt came off...

We'll just leave the photo shoot at that. Feeling young, wild, and free.... oh yeah, and adventurous :)







The Summer Season Is Upon Us

I've officially been back in Kodiak for two months now and boy, time is going fast! The awesome Salmon Camp crew has been here for two weeks already & undergone training which means that the summer season is officially upon us. I'm not quite mentally prepared as I would like to be but good enough I guess. ;)  I'm very much looking forward to this year's Salmon Camp because we're using curriculum that I made, it's about the cycles of nature. It's wonderful to see the finished product & can't wait to see it executed this summer! I first started the curriculum at the end of my internship in 2011 just as a base for future development, but I'm glad that I was here to finish it myself. I have to give Shelly some mad props for helping me out with it.

So like I mentioned, the Salmon Camp crew is here! It's a great group & I can already tell that it's going to be an amazing summer. Now that they finished their training, we'll be moving on to prep for camp. However, last Friday we celebrated our last day of training by going out to Pasagshak and what a trip it was....

 This is probably my favorite pic from the day.. a pair of arctic terns sharing an old buoy

 

 

 

Of course we stopped to pet the horses :)

 

 

2013 Salmon Camp Crew in a classic jumping picture

 

Adorable shell cluster

 

 

 

Out at Fossil Beach.. Not a bad view

 

 

 Checking out an old bunker

We spotted this poor buddy.. it's a dead gray whale calf that got washed up

 

 

 Another shot from Fossil Beach. It may have been a bit windy & chilly but I absolutely love how blue the ocean looks on a sunny day. This day the ocean was such a great turquoise color.. so amazing.

 

 

Enjoying the day at Surfer's Beach

 

 

As one can see, it was a very successful day that was enjoyed by all. We got to see some mountain goats along the way and at the bay we spotted some harbor seals. Even though the washed up gray whale calf was sad to see, it was a new experience for me. It was such a great exploring day to share with some great people. Here's to the summer of 2013!

 

 

*Also! Shout out to my friend Heather Barry for getting engaged today!!! Congrats to my amazing & talented best friend!*

 





Third Time's a Charm....

Yep.. I'm back in Kodiak! I've been back for over a month now so I figured it was time to start the rebirth of the blog. It's hard to believe that I started this blog two years ago when I came up to Alaska for my internship as a way to share my pics & experiences with my friends & fam back home. Who would have guessed that I would have such a hard time staying away from here? Not this kid. But no complaints, I wouldn't change it for anything. Looking back at 2011 Kari, when she first arrived to Kodiak, to 2013 Kari is crazy! I feel that I've learned & experienced so many wonderful things and grown significantly.

Enough reflection time though.. it feels great to back on the island again! It was a little stressful when I first came back due to budget cuts at work and minor car problems plus just adjusting to being back but things are finally going smooth now. I'm ecstatic to be back at work and preparing for the summer! I feel so blessed to have my job and such wonderful people in my life here.

Sorry I keep going serious... geez. So being back on Kodiak reminds me of the perks and non-perks of living on the island. Perks: freaking amazing view, sweetly awesome job, solid seafood, great coffee, wonderful friends, casual clothing, intense Zumba classes, & extracurricular activities in the great outdoors. Non-perks: no where to shop except online, always having to wear a jacket/ no "hot" weather, being so far away, and expensive groceries. I'm not complaining though.

Did I mention that one of the perks is the freaking amazing view? Below I shared some pics that I took one day down at the harbor.

Well hey there Kodiak..

This is my "artistic" shot



Scruffy Bald Eagle

 Barometer. I'm looking forward to climbing her this summer.

 

 

Pretty little boats.

 

 

 

 

Huge shout out to my momma for getting me a new fancy camera so I can take these sweet shots. Sorry this was short & sweet.. more to come later :)

Almost Heaven, West Virginia

I recently took a trip to Harpers Ferry, WV where I was a participant in the Natural Leaders Legacy Camp which is put on by the Natural Leaders Network. The Natural Leaders Network is an initiative of the Children & Nature Network. The camp connected 24 participants from all over the nation (plus Canada and Puerto Rico and Australia) who connect people to the outdoors in some way. We went through training that ranged from the Sierra's Club Inner City Outings classwork to community organizing to dealing with work scenarios. We also learned so much just from each other through discussions and from bouncing ideas off of each other. In addition, we got the opportunity to go kayaking down the Shenandoah River, which was fantastically amazing. Our kayak guide, Mr. Mike, was full of wisdom and loved sharing his quotes about life with everyone. All the people involved were truly amazing people with so many talents! I feel privileged that I got to spend time with them and now they feel like family.



Natural Leaders Fam

 

 

 Massage chain?... Yes, please!

 

 

Estrella!

My awesome home group.... Homegirls from the Northwest! Cawwwww cawww

 

With Temily, one very cool Canadian. Let me tell you, she felt like a sister from another mister by the end of the week!

 

 

Cassie! My account-a-bila-buddy! She's awesome & I'm glad we get to stay super connected =)

 

 

If you want to check out the very cool video (by Mr. Alvarado) that summarizies the week of Natural Leaders Legacy Camp check out the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49FLAzEjeXE

 

If you would like more info about the Natural Leaders Network check out their website at http://www.childrenandnature.org/movement/naturalleaders/ or their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/#!/NaturalLeadersNetwork?fref=ts.

 

 

I am a Natural Leader =)