Madderblue's Kappa no He blog provided a few threads that I can tie into here with the last post of Absolute Write Blog Chain No. 5. I wonder with the weather here, if we don't have a Kappa lurking in Port Valdez somewhere causing trouble. Things have been strange this year. My work spins around the waterfront, our Alaskan part of the Pacific Ocean. Pinpointing and describing my muse is easy, it is what prompts my inspiration. It's the Great Land, Alaska. My writing and profession relate to the water and the waterfront, which provides plenty to talk about on paper. Right now, I can't seem to get past the weather. With all the talk of global warming, we have had heating bills this summer. I'll wager the daily average high temperature has been less than 50°F. Suri, "Trapped in Topical Heat", may want to trade places for a couple of days.
It has been an incredibly wet and cool summer. In the last week, parts of Alaska have received more than 8 inches of rain and Talkeetna received 3.7 inches on Friday alone. The Lowe River threatens our road into Valdez, the Richardson Highway. Tourists and residents alike have been cutoff between Fairbanks and Anchorage. The Alaska Railroad and Parks Highway suffered washouts and bridge damage. Travel between Denali and Anchorage on the railroad is a major tourist activity.
The Anchorage Daily News mentioned two kayaks getting in trouble while paddling the flooded Susitna River. It makes me wonder if Darwin theory may be in play. Paddling is a great activity, but there is no point risking your life or that of your rescuer for a temporary thrill. I always encourage boaters of all types to carry and practice using a throw bag. Throw bags are small nylon stuff sacks filled with up to 200 feet of line. A rescuer holds the free end of the line and tosses the bag at the person in the water. With a little practice, users can put the bag and attached line right on top of someone's head. Our fire department has a swift water rescue team that relies on these bags as a primary means of rescue.
The wet, cool summer delayed our Pink and Coho Salmon runs. Silver (Coho) fishing is just now taking off, which makes it a couple weeks later than last year. Fishermen making the trek to the harbor have been fighting the elements, wind, rain, and fog. Port Valdez is the closest saltwater for most residents of interior Alaska like Delta Junction, North Pole and Fairbanks. A lot of them look like drown rats coming back in to the marina. Combined with high fuels costs, it has been a much slower year for visitors in the harbor.
Our boating season will only last another two weeks, with the start of moose season and school, boating slows down dramatically. I'm looking forward spending some time in a drier clime this fall. September will have some opportunities with a conference on fishing communities in Anchorage and a program evaluation I'm involved with on Alaska Sea Grant in Fairbanks.
Now it's on to Cath at blog.cathsmith.com
Labels: Absolute Write
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