Meat Hunt

Lisa and the meat tent

The main purpose of our fly out trip to Kodiak's alpine was to bring back deer meat.  We like to harvest our deer in August because it tastes so much better than it does later in the year.  In the late August the deer are at their fattest and are still eating wildflowers.  How can something that eats pretty yellow arnica flowers not taste great?

The problem with hunting in August is meat care issues - meat does not like heat.  For this reason we keep our trips short, and bring along a shelter for the meat.  The shelter keeps the meat dry and we've found that the ground keeps the meat cool.  Also by late August it is getting cold at night - a couple of nights it dropped down close to freezing. So the meat stayed remarkably cool.

We also brought lots of clean cotton game bags and kept the meat in the bags during the heat of the day to protect it against flies.  At night the meat came out of the bags.  Lisa was in charge of meat care and kept on top of it - constantly monitoring its condition.

In the end we came back with the meat of 4 deer.  That's a lot of meat!  And it was all in primo condition.  Tasty meat for winter.

First day buck

Lisa and Gregg putting on a stalk

Lisa buck number 1

Lisa buck number 2 - note deer medallion

Lisa heads up the slope towards home with a full pack of meat

A deer harvested close to camp and packed out with an unconventional pack job

Back home - time to cut up the meat

In search of deer

Dawn Patrol

On our alpine deer hunt last weekend we did a lot of glassing for deer.  There were also deer everywhere.  So it wasn't very hard to find deer.  But the number of bucks did allow us to be very choosy.  We only harvested deer that met our criteria: 1) the deer needed to be big, 2) we preferred deer with convenient access back to camp, and 3) the timing of harvest needed to fit our schedule (no deer just before dark).

Knowing that we would get another chance if we passed on a deer is a comfortable feeling, and it allowed us to relax and simply watch deer.  We observed a fawn suckling a doe, numerous masticating  bucks in their beds, and lots of sparring bucks butting heads and antlers.  Some of the views through the scope were like a dramatic wildlife painting.  I remember one particular view seen from camp of 3 big bucks - one huge buck watching while the other 2 locked antlers. All blown up larger than life.

After a few days we started to 'pattern' particular groups of deer, and even came up with names for particularly distinctive bucks.  We learned where particular deer liked to graze in the morning and bed down in the evening.  Patrick

Glassing hillsides for deer

Out comes the scope when we wanted to check on a particular group of deer

I was scoping a BIG guy in this picture but he was a REALLY steep slope away from camp

Carrying meat back to camp - once back at camp we'd glass for deer in the afternoon

Living large in the Teepee

Glowing woodstove and Lucy Light makes for happy campers

Another great aspect about fly out camping is that you can bring along a bit more camp than you would if you had to hike up to the alpine.  We tried to keep it somewhat light because the floatplane rates are based on weight - if you can get under 800 pounds total weight there is a significant cost savings.  But 800 pounds is a lot of gear (even with people weight included) and we managed to carry 100 pounds of firewood, an extra 'meat shelter' tent, an electric fence, and even a cooler of beer and still 'make weight'.  It helped that both tents, woodstove, and fence all together weighed under 15 pounds total.

Living in a teepee with a woodstove is living large.  We did most of our cooking on the woodstove, and heated water on Gregg's MSR Reactor.  A 'Lucy Lantern' gas mantle that fits onto a propane can provided both light and extra heat.  Every morning at 5 AM Lisa's barking dog iphone alarm would go off and I'd ignite the Lucy Lantern and light up the woodstove.  And then, as Gregg put it, he'd get up when he felt the 'heat of the woodstove' on his face.

Our general routine was to hunt from first light until around noon (when we'd arrive back at camp loaded down with deer meat), eat lunch, and then siesta time until dinner and 'hang out by the stove time'.  The teepee would get a little too warm from the sun in the afternoon, and yet it would still be a little too cool if you napped outside, and so we moved about quite a bit.  We'd glass for deer on the hillsides, Lisa would do her art, and we'd read books.  Lisa remarked, 'it's rare that you get to nap by a lake and not feel guilty'. Evening was all about cooking the big meal.  And then after an all too brief sleep the barking dog signaled the beginning of another day.  Patrick

Quesadillas on the woodstove

Teepee Kitchen

Glassing from camp - Afternoon down time

Scary pre-sunrise ritual

Waiting for pick up with all our gear and meat

Alpine Hunt Scenics

Dawn a half hour or so out of camp

This past weekend Lisa, Gregg and I flew up to an alpine lake and camped out.  Deer hunting was the purpose of the trip, but the camping and gorgeous views were certainly worthwhile. And best of all, since we flew to the alpine we did not need to climb through a 1000 feet of Hellawe brush to get there.

Every day we got up well before dawn and were already high on the mountain sides when the sun came up.  This meant that every day we caught a glorious sunrise.  If it had been just a camping and hiking trip we probably would have slept in and missed the best part of each day.

Another good thing about hunting as opposed to hiking is that everyone is so much more alert and focused on the landscape.  Everyone is actively scanning for deer and other animals, and as you hike you interpret the landscape.  You ask yourself where will the deer want to be?  Where is the food and shelter?  What are they eating and where is the best browse?  Where are the does and fawns as opposed to the bucks hanging out?  While hunting you see much more deeply into the landscape - it is not the passive enjoyment of a hiking trip.
Patrick

Blue bells on the mountain

Arnica - a flower favored by big bucks

Sunrise colors

Kodiak Military History Museum with Scouts

On Sunday  my scout troop went to the Military History Museum in Fort Abercrombie. The museum in a WWII bunker and full of so many amazing military relics. 

The bulk of the troop had never been to the museum.  My co-leader and I  had the girls do a scavenger hunt where they wrote down in their books an item that starts with each letter of the alphabet. If they couldn't find an item, then something in the shape of the letter would work. It was fun to see what the girls noticed and used on their lists. 

A highlight was the military uniform dress up! The museum has a great rack of clothes which people can put on and THEN a jeep to get into! One by one, the girls took turns in the drivers seat. 

The trip counts towards completion of an Alaska Council girl scout patch we are working towards. Our troop decided to be a museum sponsor to help support it. I'm so glad the museum is part of our community. 

Zoya

Playing dress up in the jeep

Barb Chase showing the troop the Miller Point Display

Nora in the drivers seat

Blueberry Pies

Before Nora's 10th birthday, she asked "Mom, can you make me a blueberry pie for my birthday?" Of course, I would love it. My crust making abilities have been slowly improving and the process seemed less daunting. 

On her birthday, we went down to the road to secret berry spot, where the berries were amazingly plentiful and huge. It was the best berry picking I've done in years. The spot is on a neighbors yard and we called her that morning and asked if we could pick there. She said yes.

As we were picking these huge berries, I suddenly remembered Nora's first blueberry pie. It was the day after Nora was born, I had just brought her home from the hospital. We were home only a matter of hours when our friend Hans showed up with a blue berry pie. It tasted so delicious and the "NS" he drew on it with whipped cream was so thoughtful. 

Now, 10 years later, I pick berries in the peaceful woods with Nora. 

Mostly silent, doing our own berry picking and then occasionally striking conversation with one another. But very much there-with eachother. 

Berry picking and blueberry pies-a fall kodiak tradition which continues to unite. 

Zoya

Stuey had a good week

Team 'Jamaica' hoists the World Cup Trophy at the end of British Soccer Camp

Stuey had a good week.  His team at 'British Soccer Camp' won the World Cup, for the first time in his life he got to shoot a rifle, and today he caught 3 pink salmon - Not bad at all!

Last week Nora and Stuey attended soccer camp every morning, and their coach Josh stayed at our house.  To make Josh feel at home, every night we tried cooking up some sort of 'British' food - fish and chips, Yorkshire pudding and gravy (twice), and Josh taught us about dipping chips into a yellow curry sauce (click here for link).  The British 'curry chip sauce' was a winner and we will be whipping that one up a bunch as a dipping sauce in the future.

Josh, a Yorkshire man, serves himself some Yorkshire pudding

At soccer camp Josh divided the kids up into teams associated with various countries.  The kids had to learn particulars about their countries and draw the national flags.  Stuey was on team Jamaica while Nora was on team England.  Only Nora told me she was on team Italy, and so, with my help she reported to Josh that 'England' was 'once Rome'.  I guess that's sort of technically true.

Shooting the 'Hornet' is something that Stuey has wanted to do all summer.  But every time it was about to happen Stuey would have a 'not listening' episode, and you just can't let a kid shoot a rifle if he's not listening.  But, finally, on Thursday afternoon he got to go out to the rifle range and shoot the Hornet.  He was a good listener too.  That evening during dinner he stopped conversation to report, 'Everyone, I got to shoot the hornet'.

Stuey has caught pink salmon before (click here), but, in the past, he has always had problems reeling them in, and de-weeding, untangling his line.  Not so this time, he reeled them in on his own.  And while I did have to stop and untangle his line a few times, he mostly did it on his own.  Wow! he is well on his way to becoming a self-sufficient fisher dude.

Patrick

Fish on!

Pink salmon - albiet with a watermark

Stuey shoots the Hornet

Not bad - he hit the target every time

10th Birthday!

White daisies in glass jars around the room.
Candles lit on the mantle piece.
Purple and pink balloons in the air.
A more grown up feel than other kid parties.
Today Nora celebrated her 10th birthday with her friends.

In so many ways, its surreal. 10 years of parenthood. Of motherhood. Wow.
Where has the time gone?

I was happy with  how Nora planned her birthday. No Justin Bieber. No commercialized this or that. She just wanted blue berry pie, which I agreed to make. And a few friends. And maybe one activity.

This afternoon I made blueberry pie, cupcakes and pizza dough for mini pizzas. At 4 PM 8 girlfriends came over and they played, dance, sang, raced outside. My girlfriend Marias came and made paper puppies with the girls while I preppped pizza's in the kitchen.

Doubledigits-tween years ahead of us. But I know that the foundation work has been done. THe foundation has been laid for the rest of the growth that will occur. I can breath a little sigh of relief that we're this far and doin' ok.

Zoya

Blue Moon Mania

MOUNTAIN VIEWS
Published in Kodiak Daily Mirror on August 5th, 2015
By Zoya

Last Friday night was all sorts of blue moon crazy.

July started with a full moon and ended with a second full moon, which is called the blue moon. There were national headlines in newspapers all about the blue moon and astrology blogs were buzzing with excitement over it. Some astrologists say that the blue moon brings out angst, anxiety or tension in people. Others argue the opposite, that it has no affect on people.

It seems that Kodiak was definitely struck with a case of blue moon fever. Several friends spoke of conflict and misunderstanding with others. Another friend spoke of deep reflection on recent losses, prompted by seeing the moon. I went to an art opening that evening only to discover out I had the date wrong. All dressed up and nowhere to go with the blue moon rising.

Who knows — it could be coincidence, but it sure did seem that people felt out of sorts.

Also on Friday night was a gathering of people to watch Sandor Katz speak.

Mr. Katz is a fermentation expert and author who wrote “The Art of Fermentation.” (In full disclosure, I didn’t go. I was in a state of disappointment after discovering I had the date wrong on the art opening. But several friends went to the presentation, so I got the details.)

Mr. Katz spoke to a full house at the library on his experience working the fermentation process. He gave a presentation on his experience with the process of making fermented food — the birth and life of micro biomes; a process with a huge list of health benefits for the much talked about intestinal flora. He talked about the fermentation process that people have utilized for thousands of years, in so many cultures all over the world. Not only is fermenting food a health benefit, but also it helps preserve food for months without refrigeration.

In this world of social media and being electronically plugged in, people are starved for re-connection to the Earth. Electronics and instant everything does nothing for truly recharging our zest for life. I’d argue it does the opposite. It pulls us farther away from our true organic selfs and can leave us feeling drained and alone.

The appreciation of these greater Earth forces can take form in so many ways. It can be in the form of making homemade sauerkraut or kimchi or beer; the microbiomes are born and work their magic to create food. Or in the form of fascination and appreciation of moon cycles; recognizing the potential power of their forces on people, farming, tides, etc. Or gardening, digging into the soil and watching life grow. Or picking berries; the process of harvesting and then using them in yummy creations. The list is endless.

Or, it could be in simply appreciating the slower pulse on which Mother Nature functions. Where the Earth changes oh so slowly. Her pulse is slow and to appreciate it, we must in turn slow down.

My kids and I went berry picking for more than an hour last weekend. I picked some and laid in the moss some with the sun on me. It was a beautiful slow pace and I was grateful to not be in a rush. When we returned home, I spent several hours listening to music and making a pie with the fruits of our labor. It had been years since I’d made a crust and I was grateful to the berries for bringing me back to this buttery flakey goodness.

Whether it be on the celestial or cellular level or somewhere in between; it’s about finding elements of the Earth that captivate us. Those elements that bring us wonder and engage us in our earthly existence.

(Oh, and mark your calendars. The next blue moon is in January of 2018.)

Kodiak resident Zoya Saltonstall is a mother of two and a physical therapist. She loves black labs and chocolate.

Learning Camping skills one stake at a time

MOUNTAIN VIEWS Kodiak Daily Mirror Column
Published August 13th, 2015
By Zoya

Sitting on the beach of Woody Island next to a big stack of camping gear, I was excited for the Girl Scouts to arrive on the seiner F/V Silver Fox. The weather and transportation plans were cooperating for our weekend camping trip! The state park campsite was vacant. I could breath a sigh of relief as the final pieces of trip planning had fallen into place.

Eleven excited scouts, five leaders, five tents, food, supplies and lots of cute stuffed animals in backpacks arrived on shore via zodiac. Together we packed up gear from the beach to our campsite. Without much prompting, the girls helped each other haul their big bags up the beach.

Alaska Troop #118 had patches to be completed, camping skills to be honed, trails to be explored and a geocache to be found.

Four other leaders and I helped guide the girls with the morning tasks to get camp set up. The girls drew colored straws to break up into what Girl Scout tradition calls KAPER groups. These are small groups who would do chores around camp. One group set up the fire pit. One group helped with tent setup. One group gathered wood off the beach. The excitement built as the tents went up and the reality of our trip set in.

There were challenges the leaders had to face together; a scout who came down with a stomach virus, enforcing strict safety rules around the camp fire and teaching the girls how and where to “take care of business” in a leave-no-trace manner.

These are the less-glorious, unavoidable aspects of taking a troop camping.

After dinner the scouts took turns sharing something new that we had experienced. For many, it was eating Sprite Chicken — a greasy Dutch oven dish with chicken, carrots, potatoes and lots of bacon. For others, it was geocaching. For the adults in the group, the trip was an experience of firsts, as well. First time geocaching, first time to Woody Island. First time camping on the Woody Island State Park land.

My “camp firsts” had less to do with new foods consumed or new lands explored, but more to do with beginning to understand the culture of Girl Scout camping and the importance of rituals in the troop. I saw the principle of Girl Scout sisterhood in action; when a scout on our outing was struck with a sudden stomach virus, several scouts offered to help pack up her sleeping gear for departure.

We learned new silly fun Girl Scout songs, showed how to leave a place better than we found it, and made banana boats — once again a Girl Scout classic. My co-leader and I were reflecting on how, years from now, with these repeated camping trips, the girls will become very adept at camping and how fun that will be to see! One tent stake at a time, one fire at a time — skills were practiced this weekend.

And now, I have a few Girl Scout songs stuck on repeat in my head. Just need to somehow turn those off and I'll be officially recovered from the weekend!

Kodiak resident Zoya Saltonstall is a mother of two and a physical therapist. She loves black labs and chocolate.

Final days of dig

Team photo - other regulars missing here included: Leslie, Rachel, Ariel, and Solomon

After a whirlwind final push the Community Archaeology dig ended last Friday.  It rained for a couple of days midweek and to keep with the close down schedule we were forced to profile and dig test pits in the rain.  We had to be finished with digging by Thursday so that we could backfill the site on Friday.

Then in Block B we could not seem to find to the bottom.  We hit glacial till in the West half of the block quite quickly but on the East side it went on and on... .. We had to break out the shovels. Finally, on Friday morning at over 2 meters total depth we found the bottom of the site.  It looks like next year in the rest of Block B that we will have quite a bit of soil to excavate.  Best of all, there is still a lot of intact older deposits.

And then on Friday we finished with the backfilling. Community Archaeology 2015 is complete!

Patrick

The bottom of Block B was elusively deep!

View of site from a nearby hill - how does the site fit into the landscape?

Alex and Bree profile the main excavation in the rain

Digging a test pit under a tarp

And it is all - backfilling begins