Being goofy trying on Dad’s extreme cold weather gear.
Coffee is our drink. Without it we cannot think.
We brew a pot in the morning & drink it up. Stop on the way to work for another cup.
We drink it blended, hot or cold. The flavor never grows old.
Thermos, travel cup or disposable, we drink it wherever we go.
At home, the cabin or on the beach, There’s no place brewing is out of reach.
Coffee machine, french press, brew bags, or jet boil, build a fire do the work, it’s worth the toil.
When fishing buddies need a treat, it’s Irish Cream in their cup you sneak.
At work when tempers flair, a coffee break always clears the air.
Every corner here a coffee stand, we have the most in the land.
There’s Allen Sisters, Kaladi’s, & True Blue,
Amore Mocha, Ammo Can & Brew 602.
Coffee snobs, café queens, call us anything you please.
We drink it black or dress it up, it’s always coffee in our cups!
#coffee #drinkofalaska #gojuice #cupofjoe #caffienenation #coffeesnob #cafequeen
Just a little gift from Jake this morning. His friend grew it and left it on his deck, a “little” cabbage. So he sends it to me and asks for a jar of sauerkraut. Okay!
I forgot to weigh it before I started cutting but the best guess is it weighed about 20 lbs. It wasn’t a very tight head so not as much there as you might think.
Then I sliced it all up and started mixing salt and beating the daylights out of it. It’s a great way to work out aggression! I also used some whey to jumpstart the lacto-fermentation process (WAP method, adapted from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon).
BTW, to get the whey I strain out some plain organic yogurt in cheesecloth. The resulting cheese will be used like cream cheese, it’s delicious. It also makes the BEST cheesecake.
After it was all said and done I got about a gallon of kraut. Jake gets the little jar. 😜
#aklife #preservingtheharvest #healthyfoods #lactoferment
This past week has been a whirlwind of activity. I’m not sure if I’m coming or going but it’s been great. The tail end of the previous week I spent time out hunting for moose, with no luck yet. Saturday we headed into town, the kids and I that is, to see Niki who’s home for a quick visit. And Sukkot is happening too.
We have enjoyed the time with our dear friends and have tried to do most all of the things we used to do when she lived here full time: foraging, bonfires on the beach (it’s not fish camp but it’s close!), Solstice Sisters Dinner, MNO, and just visiting while the kids all play.
True friends are never apart, maybe in distance but never in heart.
Author Unknown
All in all it’s been great for us. I know Niki has been going non-stop and these kind of trips aren’t really relaxing! But it’s been wonderful having her back, even for a short while. And having my Solstice Sisters all together again has been magical.
She’s been out on the road for two years. That separation has taught me to be thankful for all of our times together and share the gratitude I feel with others. Life is too short to do otherwise. Tell someone special in your life that you appreciate them today and why. You never know what your impact your words can have for good!
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.
Melody Beattie
She heads out to Wasilla today, we said our goodbyes last night. Until next time!!! 💕❤️💕
#thankfulforfriends #blessed #solsticesisters #grateful
Spruce bark beetles are ravaging our trees, everywhere. At home we have dozens dead but at the cabin they are more noticeable. Three lovely big spruce by the cabin have died and either us or the wind have taken them down. Cutting these trees was certainly bittersweet. I love these big ole trees. But they were no longer safe and had to go. Definitely a down.
It opened up the yard tremendously and let in more sunlight. Also less privacy, win some, lose some I guess.
Jake came out with his mini excavator to help take down the trees closest to the cabin as well as pull some stumps for us. While there I had him dig a test hole in a consistently wet spot of the driveway. After about half an hour we had a pretty good seep of clear water so it looks like I’ll be developing a spring house for fresh water!! I’m so excited! Up for sure!
We still have several downed trees to turn into cord wood. And a deck to finish. And another coat of sealer to get on the cabin before snow flies. Our last two weeks of moose season will be filled with chores during the “not hunting” hours. Here’s to having a successful and productive moose camp! Hoping for a big ole up!!
#aklife #drycabin #beetlespruce #beetlespruce #bettlespruce
We spent Sunday morning foraging. Niki, Mo, Thing 1 & I. City Hall has some crab apple trees and an abundance of rosehips that we harvested for jelly making.
While there we enjoyed each other’s company and solved all the world’s problems. We also enjoyed the flower beds and various different trees planted around the premises.
We found a large patch of wild roses and harvested a nice amount of rosehips. Thing 1 had a good time practicing plant identification for her Botany class.
We harvested enough crab apples for jelly, cider, sauce… You get the idea
Also enough to share with others. Part of the joy of wildcrafting is sharing with others.
We also had to harvest our own plants. Lil Bit planted several herbs for her Botany class last year. They did very well and we’ve enjoyed fresh basil, cilantro and parsley this summer.
Alas, Old Man Winter is knocking at the door. Time to harvest as much as we can. Hoping for another cranberry picking soon. And a moose.
And afterwards we went for coffee.
#aklife #foraging #wildcrafting #bounty
To pick berries, with my Solstice Sisters.
Sunshine, a little wind. Glorious big low bush cranberries. A few blueberries left and a good batch of crow berries too.
Children running amuck. Playing with their friends like they just saw each other yesterday.
Also a great day for a campfire on the beach. Roasting hotdogs and marshmallows, drinking a little homemade rhubarb wine. Enjoying the beach with my buddies.
Friends make every day a great day.
#aklife #solsticesistersak #beachplease
Friday was our ninth day and, except for cleanup and hauling off the tool trailer, we’re finished. Insulated, vapor barrier, accoustical sealant, and installed door and lock set. Short day and now we’re off to the cabin.
Riding the Alaska Railroad is a dream come true for many a tourist and resident alike. It stays a dream for countless others who only venture to Alaska with their mind’s eye. We get to live that dream on a daily basis. And some days are more dreamy than others.
This was just such a day.
Portage Train Depot is right on the highway, near the Placer river, at sea level. We loaded up onto car A, the double decker with full glass viewing panels. We had quite the vantage point. We also had a Chugach USFS ranger as our guide for the trip. He had interesting local lore, history and flora & fauna information for us.
Sitting on the train while they off-load rafts on the Placer River, watching my kids unaware. Talking to their friends, sharing snacks, playing games. There may or may not have been some musical chairs with these assigned seats. They are in their element. The simple pleasures of life.
…what thrills me about trains is not their size or their equipment but the fact that they are moving, that they embody a connection between unseen places.
Marianne Wiggins
We rode from Portage to Grandview past Spencer, Bartlet and Trail glaciers. From the train station we traveled through marsh and flat lands, into cottonwood forests and gained more elevation until we were in hemlock and spruce forests. It’s cloudy with a little rain every now and then. Once in a while the sun pokes it’s rays through the fog and illuminates a mountainside. Glorious.
Just a little past Grandview Whistle Stop we topped out at 1061′ elevation where we stopped to gaze at Trail glacier. We stopped to see Snow White falls, named for its seven drops, the source of the Placer River.
We had a short stop at Grandview so we could hike up to a couple if vantage points. One to see the train and another to see a waterfall. We enjoyed the remaining flowers and berries and mushrooms growing along the trail.
We rode through 5 tunnels and over one trestle 104′ above the raging river below.
We saw snow drops, rock slides and a lake full of ice floes.
We passed over sheer rock walls, roaring rapids and glacial erratic in kettle ponds.
We learned about T-Bone Clark and Alaska Nellie and back country road houses.
The kids were amazed that the telegraph and telephone poles were still standing with some insulators in place.
Trains tap into some deep American collective memory.
Dana Frank
Best of all we got to experience some of Alaska’s rugged beauty with our friends. Memories for a lifetime.
#akadventure #homeschool #experience #akrr #learningisfun
Alaska on my mind... 