Fishing report: Fall anglers have sights on silvers, rainbows, steelhead

While anglers should be cautious with rising water on the Kenai River from the release of the Snow Glacier-dammed lake, the event does come with… Continue reading

The fishing how-to

The first fishing how-to in print was Izaak Walton’s “The Compleat Angler,” published in 1653, and writers have been writing how-tos ever since.Writing fishing how-tos… Continue reading

The aftermath of this year's Card Street fire where it burned along the Kenai River. Kenai National Wildlife Refuge photo

Refuge Notebook: After the fire

There’s a saying in Alaska that when the fireweed stops blooming that the wildfire season is over. This seems to be valid for most but… Continue reading

The aftermath of this year's Card Street fire where it burned along the Kenai River. Kenai National Wildlife Refuge photo
This June 10, 2015 photo shows a honeybee about to descend on a blackberry blossom growing near Langley, Wash. Hundreds of flowers, shrubs, trees and vines can be used to sustain pollinators. Take a walk around the neighborhood to determine which blooms are the most popular with bees and butterflies and then add similar varieties to your yard. (Dean Fosdick via AP)

Pollinator Pockets: small plots with nectar-rich plants

It doesn’t take massive flowerbeds to make beneficial insects happy — just a few pollen- and nectar-rich plants in a small area, a “pollinator pocket.”Common… Continue reading

This June 10, 2015 photo shows a honeybee about to descend on a blackberry blossom growing near Langley, Wash. Hundreds of flowers, shrubs, trees and vines can be used to sustain pollinators. Take a walk around the neighborhood to determine which blooms are the most popular with bees and butterflies and then add similar varieties to your yard. (Dean Fosdick via AP)

Fishing report: Enjoy the sunshine and the silvers

Normally, the Kenai Peninsula seems to go straight from summer into fall. This year, however, summer has been lingering — and the fish in peninsula… Continue reading

A panoramic view from the summit of Bear Mountain Trail. Hinton's Knob divides Skilak Lake into two sections. Skilak Lookout and Vista trails climb up opposite sides of Hinton's Knob. Photo by Nick Longobardi/USFWS.

Refuge Notebook: Bear Mountain Trail offers photo, berry-picking options

Is that expensive camera you bought last winter in hopes of becoming a professional photographer just sitting there collecting dust? Or did you just get… Continue reading

A panoramic view from the summit of Bear Mountain Trail. Hinton's Knob divides Skilak Lake into two sections. Skilak Lookout and Vista trails climb up opposite sides of Hinton's Knob. Photo by Nick Longobardi/USFWS.

An Outdoor View: Zoo comes to Alaska

For centuries, mankind has been the dominant species. We domesticated animals, locked them up, killed them for sport. But what if all across the globe,… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR WEEKEND EDTIONS, AUG. 15-16 - In this photo taken July 29, 2015, backpackers Samantha Journot and Luke Bakken of the Spokane Mountaineers climb or crawl through tangles of timber along the Boundary Trail in the Pasayten River drainage  north of Winthrop, Wash. The area was ravaged by a wildfire in 2006. (Rich Landers/The Spokesman-Review via AP) COEUR D'ALENE PRESS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

Outdoors club celebrates centennial

WINTHROP, Wash. (AP) — A 100-mile backpacking trip is a good start for sizing up a wilderness area as well as understanding what makes a… Continue reading

ADVANCE FOR WEEKEND EDTIONS, AUG. 15-16 - In this photo taken July 29, 2015, backpackers Samantha Journot and Luke Bakken of the Spokane Mountaineers climb or crawl through tangles of timber along the Boundary Trail in the Pasayten River drainage  north of Winthrop, Wash. The area was ravaged by a wildfire in 2006. (Rich Landers/The Spokesman-Review via AP) COEUR D'ALENE PRESS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT
This undated photo shows a cover crop that is ornamental even as it improves the soil in flower beds at Chanticleer Gardens in Wayne, Pa. (Lee Reich via AP)

Clothe your soil: Cover crops help enrich it

Cover crops are plants that gardeners and farmers have, since the beginnings of agriculture, grown not to eat but for the good of the soil.Blanketing… Continue reading

This undated photo shows a cover crop that is ornamental even as it improves the soil in flower beds at Chanticleer Gardens in Wayne, Pa. (Lee Reich via AP)

Conserving the Kings

I can’t remember the last time I fished for Kenai River king salmon, but it was at least four years ago, and then only once… Continue reading

Back to front, Nathan Lervold, Talon Musgrave, Atom Skeeba, Elizabeth Keys and Amber Hamar repair benches used for outdoor educational programs at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: Local kids do big work

This year’s Youth Conservation Corps program has come to an end. Every summer a few lucky, randomly-chosen local high school students apply for positions to… Continue reading

Back to front, Nathan Lervold, Talon Musgrave, Atom Skeeba, Elizabeth Keys and Amber Hamar repair benches used for outdoor educational programs at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

An Outdoor View: Why do we hunt?

Author’s note: This column first appeared in the Clarion on Aug. 14, 1987. I’ve edited it slightly for brevity. — LPThe sight of gold leaves… Continue reading

Deanna Wohlgemuth stands outside her camper on July 17, 2015 in Vancouver, Wash.   Wohlgemuth's dubbed the camper "Matilda," which is a 1963 16-foot Aristocrat camper she rescued from the junk heap, she now rents it our for camping and events. (Natalie Behring/The Columbian via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

Live small to live large: Vintage campers inspire bartender

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Sometimes, smaller is better.Just ask Deanna Wohlgemuth, who still lives with her children in the small first home she bought 15 years… Continue reading

Deanna Wohlgemuth stands outside her camper on July 17, 2015 in Vancouver, Wash.   Wohlgemuth's dubbed the camper "Matilda," which is a 1963 16-foot Aristocrat camper she rescued from the junk heap, she now rents it our for camping and events. (Natalie Behring/The Columbian via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
This March 16, 2015 photo shows pink salmon cakes on sourdough with lemon herb aioli  in Concord, NH. (AP Photo/Matthew Mead)

Pink salmon offers lean, soft meat

With a delicate flavor, rosy pink flesh and a texture similar to trout, pink salmon offers a blank canvas for sauces and other flavorings. Pink… Continue reading

This March 16, 2015 photo shows pink salmon cakes on sourdough with lemon herb aioli  in Concord, NH. (AP Photo/Matthew Mead)

Fishing report: Silvers slow to show, reds still running

On Wednesday afternoon, a handful of anglers were enjoying the sunshine at Cunningham Park on Beaver Loop Road in Kenai, waiting for silver salmon to… Continue reading

This March 16, 2015  photo shows grilled coho salmon with sesame celery relish  in Concord, NH. (AP Photo/Matthew Mead)

Firm flesh, bright flavor with silver salmon

Coho, also known as “silver” salmon for its bright silver sides, offers a lighter, more distinctly flavored fish than king or sockeye. Coho’s orange-red flesh… Continue reading

This March 16, 2015  photo shows grilled coho salmon with sesame celery relish  in Concord, NH. (AP Photo/Matthew Mead)
Sockeye salmon returning to Bear Creek are one of those special events in nature that occur every season in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: The Kenai Peninsula rediscovered

Browsing through my grandfather’s stack of In-Fisherman Magazines as a boy was the first time I had ever heard of the Kenai River. At the… Continue reading

Sockeye salmon returning to Bear Creek are one of those special events in nature that occur every season in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

An Outfoor View: Jenna talks habitat

Author’s note: In yet another attempt to teach readers about fish and fishing by baiting them with a steamy romance novel, here’s yet another chapter… Continue reading

In this Aug. 3, 2014, photo, a grizzly bear walks through a back country campsite in Montana's Glacier National Park. Glacier National Park officials recommend that hikers stay in groups on all of the Glacier trails and make noise in grizzly country. (Doug Kelley/The Spokesman-Review via AP) COEUR D'ALENE PRESS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

Follow bear safety rules to prevent trouble for everybody

SPOKANE, Wash. — Following guidelines for camping in grizzly country can prevent trouble for everyone, including the bears.A Spokane man experienced a good case in… Continue reading

In this Aug. 3, 2014, photo, a grizzly bear walks through a back country campsite in Montana's Glacier National Park. Glacier National Park officials recommend that hikers stay in groups on all of the Glacier trails and make noise in grizzly country. (Doug Kelley/The Spokesman-Review via AP) COEUR D'ALENE PRESS OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT
This July 19, 2014 photo shows typical terrain in the Bear Lake Corridor Trails area in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. The corridor offers good day hikes in the eastern side of the park, using the town of Estes Park as a gateway. The park is launching a yearlong celebration of its centennial in September, and fall is a nice time to visit. (AP Photo/Lindsey Tanner)

Rocky Mountain National Park offers spectacular views

ESTES PARK, Colo. — No adjectives can do Rocky Mountain National Park justice. The jagged snow-draped peaks, rocky tundra, green valleys, and roaring waterfalls render… Continue reading

This July 19, 2014 photo shows typical terrain in the Bear Lake Corridor Trails area in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. The corridor offers good day hikes in the eastern side of the park, using the town of Estes Park as a gateway. The park is launching a yearlong celebration of its centennial in September, and fall is a nice time to visit. (AP Photo/Lindsey Tanner)