ARIZONA TO ALASKA 

Yah about the weather this winter! All of California's ration seems to have staid at home and landed on you. We haven't had measurable precipitation since December 15th, and that was only 0.02". The last real rain was back on November 20th. There is nothing in the forecast through January 15th. The only good thing is that all this bright sunshine is making me about 8.5 kWh every day. Can't wait for Spring and Summer to get here.

I agree with you about the foxes. They aren't harming anyone and contribute a little beauty and charm to an otherwise harsh world. Those bald eagles are a much worse pestilence. Maybe the foxes could get declared as the official animal for the eastern Aleutians and given protected status. All critters deserve a break. That's why we feed coons, possums, squirrels and any birds that aren't too fussy.

Where are you posting your photos? Your map is pretty impressive too.

I have a feeling that meeting about the foxes is going to be a lively one...

It would be good to see a bit of democracy in action if, as I believe will prove to be the case, there are far more fox supporters than fox killers around town. Though possibly there will be attempts to shout them down.

The very idea that the troopers are there (paid for by tax payers) to help the trappers set their traps more efficiently whilst handing out fines to any and all caught feeding the creatures is BEYOND RIDICULOUS.

It seems the entire reasoning for this is that the fox is considered vermin, and therefore not welcome around town (around people). But contrast and compare with the local eagle population – that which is heavily protected by law and eulogised as an iconic symbol of a free America.

If foxes were chasing people through the post office car park, attacking, scratching and drawing blood there would doubtless be vigilantes with guns exacting revenge within minutes. Because they are vermin.

The eagles have acted this way many times – attacking people simply going about their business. The reaction was to put signs up telling people to beware the birds nesting nearby as they could attack. They couldn't move the nests out of HUMAN HARMS WAY, that would be illegal.

No, much better all humans avoid using the post office during the months of the year when chicks are being raised....

This same logic is seeing the feckless trapper who hasn't bothered staking his traps securely GET HELP AND ADVICE from the troopers, when ideally he should be having his foot quite literally snapped into irons and left to drag himself piteously through the streets for several days without food/ shelter/ pain relief to show him exactly how that feels.

It is twisted logic. It is irresponsible behaviour. It is outdated thinking.



I wonder if those who were tasked with deciding on the front cover photo choice for the 2012 Unalaska visitor guide had before them stunning pictures of majestic eagles and beautiful foxes?

I wonder if they were ALLOWED equal consideration?


Personally I'd have voted for the photo of the frightened trapper dragging himself and his broken bones across the post office car park, getting attacked by eagles as he desperately cries out for help whilst all around ignore him...

If that image doesn't represent how the community wishes to promote itself beyond its shoreline then maybe the town meeting can MAKE A CHANGE FOR THE GOOD.



Meantime.

Joe dug his grill out of a 4 foot snow drift at temperatures settling at 24f just to cook his sausage.


One can only assume he has gone wholly unhinged in the circumstances.

Joe hasn't become unhinged, UK, he's just an American Male, and we take our grilling seriously! I myself have dug my own grill out of a three foot snowdrift in 15 degree weather on Christmas Day in order to cook ribeye steaks for the family! No stinking blizzard is going to slow me down, nosiree!

Granted, Unalaska is an isolated ecosystem, but that shouldn't make the fox a target for extermination. Is there a certain species they are trying to protect? I doubt it.

American males.....it was 8th of January.

He was alone.

It was just a bloody sausage.


Maybe it was just a lazy way to clear the snow off the porch? I know he can be quite liberal with the lighter fluid at times. He finds it easier than trimming his nasal hair with scissors.


Did you ever turn round and catch the looks on the faces of your family on that Christmas Day Ylee?

Maybe it was the look of pride or of love.

Probably it was just concern....

It was hunger, UK, it was hunger, lol!

I'm getting tired of WU "eating" my posts... first on my blog, now here too.

As for the foxes, I hope that some good will come out. Joe, I hope you can go and make a positive change for the vulpines. In Memoriam of Hoppy if nothing else.

Never understood why some (women) feel that wearing a dead animal is an improvement of any sorts. And in today's world, fake fur keeps one just as (if not more) warm than taking animals' lives. NO, I'm not pro-PETA, but I don't like those who think that they have to kill an animal just for fur. Heck, around here, coons, possums and the likes are rehomed if they are destructive. And I could legally just shoot them - even while in humane cage trap.

Weather: Weird here too. Got fence done, except the last 15 feet - ran out of fencing. Shucks! But, I made due w/ what I had cut off and it works for now. Beautiful, warm (26C) day. Then, out of the blue sky, heaven's gates open, 90 second DUMP of rain so hard, I couldn't see 50 feet. And just as it started, kaboom... gone! All that was left was a beautiful rainbow. Just strange. The -9C night is just a distant memory now...

Grilling: you go Ylee! And Joe. Even if it's just a pretense to clear the snow drifts the easy way...

Wow, I better not mention that growing up I tried - I say tried - fairly unsuccessfully to trap a muskrat or two to sell for a couple of bucks. Had to get up early to follow the trap line to see if I got one. Don't forget - we were poor! and it was just a way I might get a couple of dollars. I know, this hole is getting deeper -- on my wedding photo, my mother has a couple of DEAD fox hanging around her neck. Fifty-eight years ago, we thought it looked fashionable for a farmer's wife to wear them. Oh my gawd - I can see I am getting no place fast! Today, I would never trap a muskrat and I don't know of anyone who does that. It is NOT fashionable!!!

Dotmom: back then there also wasn't fake fur. I'm talking about TODAY where so many different fabrics can replace real fur. Why kill an animal solely for its fur (i.e. not making any use of the rest of the animal) just for a fashion statement? Seems just wrong TODAY. In the days when winters were harsher and people didn't have that much (and wildlife was also far more abundant), I see where it would have served a purpose beyond the fashion statement (although the wedding may have been just that - a fashion occasion lol).

Hey,

Shiptracker has CGC Healy about 100 miles SSW of Nome.

Yes, Joe, let us know where you have your pictures for sale posted, so we can check them out, please. :)

I hope Joe makes it to the meeting on the foxes and has his say. Although I'm guessing, if he has to work, there will be others. I'm with UK--I would think it will be a lively meeting.

I imagine people still get money for fox pelts, as fur coats are still being sold. There are always people who hunt simply for sport. There are always paranoid people afraid of disease spreading. There are always the obsessive types who want to get rid of anything that seems like it doesn't belong.

It is interesting that much of the tourist info talks mostly about birds and sea life in the Aleutian Islands. They seem to be put at the forefront anyway.

Then there is the native American issue. The foxes were brought to the islands for them. I checked, and they don't eat them. So, if they were to trap them, it would be to make money from the fur or to use the fur themselves. There is something called the Federal Subsistence Board that regulates native Americans and their hunting/trapping/fishing. Apparently they have rules to follow if they want to live subsistence style.

Anyway...

So, 100 miles or so to go for Renda. I wonder how long it will take them? What a journey!

Sounds like the Renda is having a very difficult time getting the much needed fuel to Nome. I sure hope she makes it!

Hi,

Healy and Renda are in heavy ice and the going is slow, only 2 MPH. The original plan was to start pumping on Monday, however it now looks like it will be the end of the week.... fingers crossed for Nome!

Hi, At 1100 this morning, the oil convoy was 64 miles from Nome.

We have been under a biizzard cond all nigt & still this morning . We woke up to 1-2 feet of snow & drifts everywhere. Snow cacked all over the windows it is a wet snow so it's a mess they are saying the blizzard cond will be lifted at noon & then we are to get rain. also blowing winds about 40 knots or more it is just total white out conditions They shut everything down in town & told everyone to stay home today. Hope the Renda makes it.

Quoting ladyhomer:
We have been under a biizzard cond all nigt & still this morning . We woke up to 1-2 feet of snow & drifts everywhere. Snow cacked all over the windows it is a wet snow so it's a mess they are saying the blizzard cond will be lifted at noon & then we are to get rain. also blowing winds about 40 knots or more it is just total white out conditions They shut everything down in town & told everyone to stay home today. Hope the Renda makes it.

Afternoon Lady H,
Cordova and it's snow is all over the national news... be safe!

Kodiak is getting rain now. Main road is closed, flooding and large chunks of ice going down the road. 3 boats capsized in the harbor. All in all a real mess!

Update on Renda and Healy



Coast Guard spokesman David Mosley said the tanker Renda and the icebreaker Healy were less than 100 miles from Nome at around noon Tuesday, having made it through 53 miles of ice-covered waters Monday.

The icebreaker is creating a path for the tanker through ice that is between 2 and 3 feet thick, Mosley said. The progress the vessels are making -- compared with earlier reports that they were slowed and sometimes stopped with ice pinching the sides of the tanker -- has to do with day-to-day changes in the ice, he said.

Shifting ice, described as dynamic ice, has slowed the progress of the paired vessels. The ice tends to close in, cutting off the path between the two ships. When that happens, the icebreaker doubles back and makes a relief cut to take pressure off the tanker and open a pathway.

Good grief. Came over to check on the fuel situation for Nome - didn't have a clue about Cordova and Kodiak. Time to go explore a bit. We got so excited yesterday over rain for Texas everything else got put on hold.

Ladyhomer - are you in Homer? or somewhere else? I should know, but I can't remember.

Calpoppy is your family ok? Sounds like Kodiak is really a mess. Why is the water so high? Is it from the ice and wind? I just saw someone one on FB posted the white-out conditions around the Turnigan Arm outside Anchorage. Unbelievable. Oh and Homer is really under lots of snow too. I wonder if you can even see the Spit.

Hi Ladyhomer. Is hubby out on the snowmobile??

Linda Ladyhomer is in Homer.

Not much time to read... I need to catch up.
But being Foxless is bad! : (

Yes I live in Homer !!! Usually when Kodiak gets a storm it comes up to us. We was supposed to get there rain today but I hope that got canceled. I live quite a ways from Cordova & Valdez. They are usually known to get alot of snow but they also gort rain on top of their snow so that is really bad. OGAL hubby plowed this am here at the house & the neighbors then had to go to his work place & plow there. Actually the sun is out here now , stopped snowing & blowing & has cleared up nicely I don't know if it is a lull or it is all over quess we will know in the morning!!!! Everyone be safe!!

wow, massive snow in AK, we got about 1.25 inches of rain. Pastures are showing large puddles. At least it's warm.

Glad to hear the convoy is making its way to Nome, even if slow. I bet at -36F heating oil is starting to run extremely low by now.

Evening
Things aren't going well for the fuel convoy. They have lost ground and at 9 tonight were 90 miles from Nome. The ice must be pushing them south.

Healy is not a true icebreaker, but an arctic research ship and can only handle about 4 feet of ice. As they go North and get close to Nome,
the ice may be too much to handle !

Wow, what went wrong on the Baranoff? I used to watch it a lot when I could still get live updates from the Coastal Dock cams. I hope they weren't under power when they hit the rocks.