Life

An Outdoor View: The little red boat

Like the Kenai Peninsula, the place where I was born and raised in Western Washington is a place where people either own a boat or… Continue reading

Despite two feet of ice, a big spider hole formed on Headquarters Lake from the weight of recent snow. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: Oh no, overflow!

Right next to the headquarters of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is a lake, cleverly named Headquarters Lake. With excellent views of the Kenai Mountains,… Continue reading

Despite two feet of ice, a big spider hole formed on Headquarters Lake from the weight of recent snow. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)
The northern line of the Sterling fuel break before (left) and after (right) treatment. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: Sterling gets a break with wildfire risk

Trivia question: What does the 2014 Funny River fire and 2015 Card Street fire have in common? If you guessed both were human-caused and spotted… Continue reading

The northern line of the Sterling fuel break before (left) and after (right) treatment. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

An Outdoor View: On cutting regulations

At a Monday meeting with the heads of some of the nation’s largest corporations, President Trump said, “We think we can try to cut regulations… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR USE SATURDAY, JAN. 21 - In this Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, Marisa Paine skis with her daughter Carys Paine, 5, near the base of Sunshine Accelerator ski lift at Mount Bachelor in Bend, Ore. (Ryan Brennecke/The Bulletin via AP)

Teaching kids snow sports can take patience, persistence

MOUNT BACHELOR, Ore. (AP) — Mason needed a nudge, so I did what parents often do and resorted to bribery. “Mason, if you come ski… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR USE SATURDAY, JAN. 21 - In this Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017, Marisa Paine skis with her daughter Carys Paine, 5, near the base of Sunshine Accelerator ski lift at Mount Bachelor in Bend, Ore. (Ryan Brennecke/The Bulletin via AP)
The sun rises over Engineer Lake on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Reserving one of the refuge’s public use cabins can be a fun, Alaskan way to celebrate the holidays. (Photos courtesy Rebecca Uta)

Refuge Notebook: A Christmas Adventure

Every person has a bucket list to be marked off when they come to this beautiful land. Our list has always been simple: something Alaskan.… Continue reading

The sun rises over Engineer Lake on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Reserving one of the refuge’s public use cabins can be a fun, Alaskan way to celebrate the holidays. (Photos courtesy Rebecca Uta)

An Outdoor View: On being a puker

Hi. My name is Les, and I’m a puker. Being predisposed to seasickness, I have on many occasions observed while in an under-the-weather, over-the-railing position… Continue reading

Angie Brennan picks up speed on a downhill section on trail in the Caribou Hills near Ninilchik on Jan. 8, 2017. (Photo by Will Morrow/Peninsula Clarion)

Head for the hills: Fat-tire bikers discover Caribou Hills

By Will Morrow Peninsula Clarion It started with a text message from a friend — “Want to go up to the Caribou Hills Sunday morning?”… Continue reading

Angie Brennan picks up speed on a downhill section on trail in the Caribou Hills near Ninilchik on Jan. 8, 2017. (Photo by Will Morrow/Peninsula Clarion)

An Outdoor View: Future fishing

With the rapid advances in technology we’re seeing now, I’m wondering what fishing on the Kenai River will be like a few years from now.… Continue reading

Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS Big-eared Radix at Stormy Lake, July 12, 2016.

Refuge Notebook: The Kenai Peninsula’s first exotic freshwater snail

Sometimes one thing leads to another. It was in fall 2012 as the Alaska Department of Fish & Game and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service… Continue reading

Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS Big-eared Radix at Stormy Lake, July 12, 2016.
AP Photo/By Dean Fosdick This Dec. 3, 2016 photo taken at a Langley, Wash., grocery store, shows poinsettias. Poinsettias aren’t annuals if grown indoors. You can restore them to provide good cheer for yet another holiday season. The main attraction of poinsettias, like these pictured here, is not their flowers, but their leaves. The actual flowers are the small buds buried deep within the leaf cluster that bloom yellowish green.

Wait, don’t toss those poinsettias to the curb!

Poinsettias have become the best-selling potted plants in the United States, and are second in popularity only to Christmas trees during the holiday season. Unfortunately,… Continue reading

AP Photo/By Dean Fosdick This Dec. 3, 2016 photo taken at a Langley, Wash., grocery store, shows poinsettias. Poinsettias aren’t annuals if grown indoors. You can restore them to provide good cheer for yet another holiday season. The main attraction of poinsettias, like these pictured here, is not their flowers, but their leaves. The actual flowers are the small buds buried deep within the leaf cluster that bloom yellowish green.
In this March 2, 2014, file photo, Julie Rau cross-country skis with her daughter, Kaylee, in tow at the Gold Fork Park N’ Ski Area near Idaho City, Idaho. Cross-country skiing includes two distinct styles—classic and skate skiing. (Pete Zimowsky/Idaho Statesman via AP, file)

A newcomer to cross-country skiing gets hooked by the sport

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The first time I tried cross-country skiing, I was in junior high in southern Minnesota wondering why anyone would want to… Continue reading

In this March 2, 2014, file photo, Julie Rau cross-country skis with her daughter, Kaylee, in tow at the Gold Fork Park N’ Ski Area near Idaho City, Idaho. Cross-country skiing includes two distinct styles—classic and skate skiing. (Pete Zimowsky/Idaho Statesman via AP, file)
This undated photo shows a poinsettia flower in New Paltz, N.Y. Poinsettia's true flowers - the small, rounded structures at the very tips of the stems - aren't as showy as its red bracts, but are quite fascinating under a magnifying glass. (Lee Reich via AP)

There’s more to poinsettias than their showy leaves

Early winter is when poinsettias come into the limelight, showing off their colors in homes and shop windows. But a poinsettia is more than just… Continue reading

This undated photo shows a poinsettia flower in New Paltz, N.Y. Poinsettia's true flowers - the small, rounded structures at the very tips of the stems - aren't as showy as its red bracts, but are quite fascinating under a magnifying glass. (Lee Reich via AP)
In this Jan. 2, 2016 photo, Adam Holt, of Bend, rides a fat bike on one of the groomed singletrack trails at Wanoga Sno-park in Bend, Ore. For those who just refuse to stop mountain biking, even when most Central Oregon singletrack is covered in snow - fatbikes are an option. (Joe Kline/The Bulletin via AP)

Fatbike tracks make mountain biking a year-round sport

BEND, Ore. — For those who just refuse to stop mountain biking, even when most Central Oregon singletrack is covered in snow — fatbikes are… Continue reading

In this Jan. 2, 2016 photo, Adam Holt, of Bend, rides a fat bike on one of the groomed singletrack trails at Wanoga Sno-park in Bend, Ore. For those who just refuse to stop mountain biking, even when most Central Oregon singletrack is covered in snow - fatbikes are an option. (Joe Kline/The Bulletin via AP)
This map shows that goldeneyes banded in Alaska and the Yukon Territory, Canada, were mostly recovered on the southern Kenai Peninsula and Kodiak. (Data from the National Bird Banding Lab, Patuxent, MD)

Refuge Notebook: An eye on goldeneyes

During the past two summers, I have had strange encounters with a duck flying through the woods on my property. Usually in the dusky early… Continue reading

This map shows that goldeneyes banded in Alaska and the Yukon Territory, Canada, were mostly recovered on the southern Kenai Peninsula and Kodiak. (Data from the National Bird Banding Lab, Patuxent, MD)

An Outdoor View: Reader’s quiz

This week, a quiz for Peninsula Clarion readers:1. Snowy River is(a) a tributary of the Kasilof River.(b) a major river in the Australian states of… Continue reading

Lucy and Leo wait for Clarion editor Will Morrow on the front porch of Barber Cabin on Lower Russian Lake in Chugach National Forest on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017. (Photo by Will Morrow/Peninsula Clarion)

Photo: Dog days of winter

… Continue reading

Lucy and Leo wait for Clarion editor Will Morrow on the front porch of Barber Cabin on Lower Russian Lake in Chugach National Forest on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017. (Photo by Will Morrow/Peninsula Clarion)
Les Palmer

An Outdoor View: Dippers

Editor’s note: This column previously appeared in the Clarion on Dec. 27, 2002.   The other day, I got to thinking about the birds that… Continue reading

Les Palmer
The 3-mile-long Marsh Lake Trail was newly completed in 2016 on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. The logs came from trees removed as part of treatments to reduce fuels around Sterling this past summer.

Refuge Notebook: 2016 highlights from the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge

In thinking about highlights in 2016 for the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, I’m reminded yet again that what is valued is ultimately in the eyes… Continue reading

The 3-mile-long Marsh Lake Trail was newly completed in 2016 on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. The logs came from trees removed as part of treatments to reduce fuels around Sterling this past summer.
ADVANCE FOR RELEASE SATURDAY, DEC. 17, 2016 AND THEREAFTER- In this Dec. 8, 2016 photo, Emily Mengershausen demonstrates negotiating a black route at Ascension Rock Club in Fairbanks, Alaska. Mengershausen, one of Fairbanks' premier climbing instructors, taught herself to climb and started competing after she was injured as a young gymnast. (Eric Engman /Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via AP)

Climbing the rock of Fairbanks instructor’s life

FAIRBANKS (AP) — When a young gymnast named Emily Mengershausen fell from the balance beam in Kansas City, dislocating her elbow, her life’s trajectory took… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR RELEASE SATURDAY, DEC. 17, 2016 AND THEREAFTER- In this Dec. 8, 2016 photo, Emily Mengershausen demonstrates negotiating a black route at Ascension Rock Club in Fairbanks, Alaska. Mengershausen, one of Fairbanks' premier climbing instructors, taught herself to climb and started competing after she was injured as a young gymnast. (Eric Engman /Fairbanks Daily News-Miner via AP)