#Alaska
Dumpling Mountain - Katmai National Park: https://explore.org/livecams/brown-bears/dumpling-mountain-brown-bear-salmon-cams
Alaska has the highest violent crime rate in the nation. So does their Attorney General want to ramp up law enforcement? Nope, he’d rather arrest librarians. #Alaska #BookBanning #libraries https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0MUNvyQenUo4sHqN9u62u34UWBiVRJey5zW2edbiS3uJcyVqX9r6KEYWubS9ZQ5e7l&id=100001741803107
6:15AM: 44F & cloudy.
One thing about rain in the SE: if you keep predicting it long enough it will eventually happen. (I'm looking at you, NWS...WTH was up the last few days??)
The wind started around midnight-ish so our first (of now 3!) gales is upon us. There was a bit of rain, but it's paused right now.
Now we're supposed to have heavy rainy weather through Wed. 🤷♀️
In other news, our cultural-Christmas/Yule decorating is complete.
Gift link from Washington Post: A life-giving river in Alaska is running out of salmon
Petition: Tell Biden to Stop the Willow Project in Alaska #Alaska #environment #WillowProject https://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/petition-tell-biden-stop-willow-project-alaska/
Sun setting on Turnagain Arm near Anchorage this evening. Photo by Lacee Johnson. #Alaska #AlaskaSunset
A little pyrotechnic energy with the Northern Lights at the Knik River on Dec. 1. Photos/fireworks by Tim Doner & associates. #Alaska #NorthernLights #AlaskaWinterSky
Denali glowing on the horizon this morning during our late sunrise. The short days are here. #Alaska #Anchorage #BearValley #ViewFromTheDeck #Denali #DenaliNPS #photography #LandscapePhotography
In Interior #Alaska, a company is preparing to start production at a controversial gold mine near the Native Village of Tetlin. Tribal members claim their leaders broke laws when agreeing to the project, alleging years of corruption and back-door deals.
If you watched "Killers of the Flower Moon," you may be interested in reading this @grist investigation: https://grist.org/indigenous/an-alaska-native-tribal-council-greenlit-a-gold-mine-some-tribal-members-arent-happy/
Good morning! Sun lovers out there, enjoy it while you have it!
7:00AM: 40F, mostly cloudy.
Just cloudy today which is fine with me. I need to get a walk in! Then it will be on to decorating our cedar Christmas tree. (Of course pics to follow.)
We have a "potent low" heading our way early Monday bringing rain for Sitka and a decent gale out front.
My partner hasn't been able to get the boat out for weeks and he's getting stir-crazy. We need venison for the freezer and he needs his Goddard hot spring fix. 🤣
Oh, I also finally committed on our flights to Seattle in May! #Alaska #Canada #PrincessCruises
Well, the lights were certainly flashy in the wee hours today in the Mat-Su Borough at the Knik River. These photos by Tim Doner are AMAZING!! 😲 💗 #Alaska #NorthernLights #AlaskaWinter
Here's another list that may be helpful... #USRegionalNews sources (random order) that I've come across. Feel free to suggest accounts to follow...
Regional US News
@TexasObserver
Founded in 1954, the #Texas Observer is a #progressive #nonprofit news outlet and print #magazine covering the Lone Star State.
@coloradosun
Telling stories that matter for a dynamic, evolving state. Independent, journalist-owned news covering the entire state of #Colorado.
@gbhnews
#GBH News is your home for news, distinctive storytelling, and what matters to you in Boston and beyond. #Boston, #Massachusetts, #USA
@BostonGlobe
#NewEngland's leading source for breaking news and analysis.
@sarahstierch Journalist. I write about weather, wildfires and other subjects relevant to #Mendocino County for the Mendocino Voice. I cover portions of #Sonoma, #Napa, and #Marin on social media. #California
@AK_OK
#Alaska statehouse reporter for the Alaska Beacon, formerly with the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire, Kodiak Mirror and Fairbanks Daily News Miner.
@Chron
#Houston’s home for news, culture and conversation. Chron, a free digital news site, is Hearst owned and run independently from the Houston Chronicle.
@Toastie
#Indigenous affairs reporter, #HighCountryNews
#PacificNorthwest
@SFPublicPress
Noncommercial news and #investigative reporting for #SanFranciscoBay Area
Alaska's autumn 2023 climate highlights. Fatalities-causing landslide near Wrangell with a wetter than normal autumn contributing; the snowiest November on record at Anchorage; late first freeze but early winter snowpack in the Interior and a mild November all around. No surprise, sea ice and even river ice running behind schedule. #akwx #Alaska #Climate #Autumn2023
@Climatologist49
#Wrangell #Alaska #landslide Update 1 December: The remains of 65-year-old Otto Florschutz were found and recovered on 30 November: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/w7nKkahgRiMKVmcM/?mibextid=WC7FNe.
But little Derek Heller, age 12, is still missing as of 1 December.
With #Israel resuming the genocide, protests in the US picking up again, in states like #NewYork #NewJersey #Texas #Florida #NewHampshire #Colorado #Georgia #California #DC #Maryland #Oregon #Alaska
Please find one near you and boost 🌝
https://uscpr.org/oct-2023-protests/
#FreePalestine #apartheid #palestine #gaza #genocide #ceasefire
#USpol
Brooks Falls Brown Bears: https://explore.org/livecams/brown-bears/brown-bear-salmon-cam-brooks-falls
5:30AM: 44F, cloudy, rain is coming in an hour or two.
Woke up to the wind that blew clouds in last night. I think one or two people got a "green glow" last night, but no dancing ribbons for us. 😭
Next time, eh?
We knew we were way to early to see the aurora at Starrigaven but we went anyway. Then we came back across the bridge to one of the best views of Sitka, with or without the Northern Lights.
I know someone will be out around 11 tonight and will get awesome pics. It just won't be me! 🤣
Peace out!
Alaska is at a KP 7 tonight and Sitka is right in the thick of it! Aurora watchers get your butts out there!
There are NO clouds! I repeat..there are NO clouds! Red alert!
Circa 1973/74 Igloo hotel near Cantwell. Original owner Leon Smith built it off his own design but was shocked when fire marshal (no fire escapes) and banks were not enthused about the project. Planned opening was summer of 1973, but it never opened. #alaskahistory #alaska
This is Lothario. He is a black phase gray wolf who lives at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center. When he was born, he was pure black, but as he ages, his coat will turn gray. #Alaska #AlaskaWildlifeConservationCenter
Yep, that's a moose photobombing a beautiful shot of the city of Anchorage. Photo by Lacee Johnson #Alaska #AlaskaWildlife #Moosetodon
Pastel colors for todays Sunrise. 10:17a.m. 17 f. degrees in North Pole
#alaska #sunrise #goodmorning
6:30AM: 41F, light rain.
The rain is supposed to be mixed with snow this morning, but it's too dark to tell. 😆
Here’s another interesting story about how some people in the little community of #Wrangell #Alaska managed after the #landslide cut off road access to about 70+ people. | Anchorage Daily News https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2023/11/27/a-wrangell-mans-retirement-project-has-become-a-lifeline-for-families-cut-off-by-deadly-landslide/. The road has now been cleared, but access remains limited during road repairs.
This is Juniper. She lives at the Running Reindeer Ranch in Fairbanks, Alaska and just finished eating some lichen and apparently wants more. #Alaska #AlaskaReindeer #WinterInAlaska
My enigmatic friend Terry created a petition to change the name of the #Alaska ferry LeConte. (AK ferries are named after AK glaciers, and LeConte glacier is also & previously named Hutli)
“Joseph LeConte was a slave-owning Georgian who believed in racial superiority,” the petition states. “He never once stepped foot in the state of Alaska and does not need to be recognized here.”
https://www.juneauempire.com/news/petition-seeks-name-change-for-leconte-state-ferry/
#Alaska landslide: 6 #dead or #missing. ‘[Otto] Florschutz [missing]…served on Wrangell’s Port Commission, [&] was one of 48 candidates [for the]… seat vacated when…US Rep Don Young died… back then, Florschutz said he was known for his ability to forge consensus…“Besides catching fish, I have served in community elected positions, done boat repair, mechanics, welding, carpentry, business….” ‘Beth Heller [deceased] served on the #Wrangell School Board…2019 to 2020... | AP https://apnews.com/article/alaska-deadly-landslide-missing-ee0ab1494655032ef6581018641f67c1
An amazing story of #Wrangell #Alaska landslide survivor Christina Florschutz. ‘The force of the mountainside slammed into the home she shared with her [still missing] husband…tossing her around “like a piece of weightless popcorn”… When…[she] regained consciousness… she was trapped between the roof of her house & debris. “I was hanging kind of head down, at an angle, with my feet up,”… She felt around & found a bag of polar fleece from her upstairs sewing room.’ | AP https://apnews.com/article/alaska-landslide-survivor-interview-wrangell-ee230a3a941614465f365e5b9ad0e3ed
Deadly Wrangell landslide is part of a pattern in vulnerable Alaska mountainous terrain: Scientists warn that #ClimateChange, by increasing precipitation & extreme rainfall, adds to risks. “As the Southeast #Alaska community of #Wrangell mourns & continues to respond to a landslide disaster… Alaskans face a longer-term challenge: how to prevent similar tragedies in the future as mountainous regions become more unstable…” | Alaska Beacon https://alaskabeacon.com/2023/11/28/deadly-wrangell-landslide-is-part-of-a-pattern-in-vulnerable-alaska-mountainous-terrain/
Why #Navajo is the world’s hardest language to learn
The tonal #NativeAmerican #language differentiates words based on #pitch and makes Spanish conjugation look like child’s play.
by Tim Brinkhof, November 27, 2023
"Concentrated in #Arizona and #NewMexico, the Navajo are one of the largest Native American groups in the United States. Consisting of up to 400,000 tribal members, they are thought to have originated from northwestern #Canada and were forcibly moved to their present location by the federal government in the 1860s during #TheLongWalk.
"Traditional Navajo families live in circular mud-and-log homes called hogans, create intricate ceremonial paintings made of sand, and hold four-day runs (a ritual called kinaalda) to celebrate young girls turning into adult women.
"Arguably, the most important aspect of Navajo culture is their language. Also known as #Diné #Bizaad (the “people’s language”), Navajo is similar to #Apache, from which it separated between 1300 and 1525 AD. Both Navajo and Apache belong to a language family called #Athabaskan, which, providing evidence for their geographic origin, is also spoken by native tribes in #Yukon, #Alaska, and #BritishColumbia. As with other Native American languages, #globalization and #discrimination threaten Navajo’s survival. In 2017, the number of fluent speakers was estimated at 170,000, less than half of the tribe’s population.
"Learning Navajo isn’t easy. Compared to other complicated but more widely spoken languages, like Korean or Arabic, there are limited resources available to non-speakers. Mastery of Navajo language also requires a level of familiarity with Navajo customs, something even some Indigenous people no longer have access to.
"That said, the most daunting aspect of learning Navajo is the language itself. Described by linguists Robert W. Young and William Morgan as a 'hopeless maze of irregularities,' its unique grammar, syntax, and tonal pronunciation are so indecipherable to outsiders that, during the Second World War, the American army used Navajo as a form of military code."
https://bigthink.com/high-culture/navajo-language/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-us
#CulturalPreservation #IndigenousLanguages #IndigenousCulture #Linguistics #Anthropology #Codetalkers
6:00AM: 39F, mostly cloudy. Rain expected to start late morning/early afternoon as a gale moves in. Just a wee one, though. 35kt and 17ft seas.
I've seen wonderful pics of last night's full moon with a perfect circle around it. Glad we had clear skies!
The rest of the week is rain, rain, rain likely, rain likely, rain, rain...
Last year at this time when we went into the woods for our Xmas tree, we had snow, snow, snow!
Sweetness and cuteness overload. Rescued sea otter pup getting the best care at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska. #Alaska #AlaskaSeaLifeCenter #RescuedSeaOtterPup
Who better for #TongueOutTuesday than the now famous leucistic raven in the Anchorage area? Photo by Michelle Hanson
#Alaska #AlaskaWinter #AlaskaBirds #WhiteRaven
Today is the feast day of Herman of #Alaska https://cromwell-intl.com/travel/alaska/equinox/?s=mb #travel
Polar bear mom and cub in Kaktovik, Alaska this evening. Photos by Melvin Kayotuk #Alaska #AlaskaPolarBears #AlaskaWildlife
Gorgeous red fox photographed today by Lacee Johnson. So regal and stunning. #Alaska #AlaskaWildlife
Just a few hairs away from being an adult eagle. Photo by Lacee Johnson of Bluemoosephotography89. #Alaska #BirdsOfAlaska #AlaskaWildlife
#Wrangell #Alaska #landslide on 20 November. Searchers found the remains of little Kara in the debris yesterday. Announced today: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/XnKHU2BXfmZcukWp/?mibextid=WC7FNe. Her 12-year-old brother is still missing, as is a 65-year-old man.
Shout out to the Interior. Glenn Highway, January 29, 2018. Mt. Drum.
Some commonly seen winter birds in eastern Interior Alaska and the Tanacross Dene names. As a show of respect I try to make it a habit to use Dene names when talking to them.
tsuugaay "birds generically, but especially small birds"
tsuugaay t’ox "bird nest"
nah’og ts’egąąg s̲h̲axeh’ąą "chickadees are making a lot of noise out there"
#Dene #Language #Alaska
@ScoterD @DinjiiZhuh
And a few more pics from today's walk and views from Old Town Kenai. It was a gloriously beautiful day! #Alaska #WinterInAlaska #OldTownKenai #KenaiAlaska #CookInlet #KenaiRiver
A walk in Old Town Kenai never ever disappoints. It sits above Cook Inlet and the mouth of the Kenai River.
#Alaska #WinterInAlaska #KenaiAlaska #CookInlet #OldTownKenaiAlaska