Hi all! I will be leaving Tuesday for Kodiak!!! Can hardly wait to see my grandson and Alaska. The weather will be cool and probably have rain which is fine by me. The bears are still out which will hopefully lead to some photo opportunities , along with countless photos of Brody. My son says there are also lots of Bald Eagles.
The Weather Channel is having a new TV show starting November 9th, it is Coast Guard Alaska. Which was filmed in Kodiak. My son may be on it since they did film him doing practice hoists. Now I just got to figure out how to watch it since there is no cable TV here. You can watch the preview if you go to the Weather Channel site.
Thought I would give you a little perspective on this beautiful island.
The Kodiak Island Archipelago
The Kodiak Island Archipelago is a large group of islands about 30 miles from the Alaska Peninsula and 158 miles across the Gulf of Alaska from Homer, Alaska. The archipelago is about 177 miles long and encompasses nearly 5,000 square miles, roughly the size of the state of Connecticut.
At 3,588 square miles, Kodiak Island is the largest island in the group and the second largest island in the United States. Only the island of Hawaii is larger. The City of Kodiak, at the northeastern tip of the island, is about 250 miles south of Anchorage. The city serves as the major supply and transportation hub for the archipelago's six villages.
Although the main population center surrounds the City of Kodiak, there are also six small cities in the Kodiak Archipelago. Five are located on Kodiak Island and one is on Spruce Island. Each of the cities can be reached by aircraft or boat.
The archipelago is a continuation of the Kenai Mountain Range, which begins on the Kenai Peninsula, 90 miles to the north. Lying in the Aleutian Trench, the archipelago has been strongly influenced by both volcanic and seismic activity along the "chain of fire."
Ten thousand years ago, most of the islands were covered by glaciers that scored and carved the landscape. Jagged peaks, fjord-like bays and wide U-shaped valleys were left by the glacial retreat.
Nature's handiwork created a place of spectacular scenic beauty and a wilderness ideally suited for land, sea and marine life. Lush vegetation carpets the terrain, giving the Emerald Isle its name.
The Kodiak bear is a subspecies of the brown or grizzly bear. Brown bears migrated to the Kodiak Archipelago from mainland Alaska about 12,000 years ago. As the climate warmed at the end of the last ice age, the sea level rose and the bears became an isolated population. They live exclusively on the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago.
Kodiak bears are the largest bears in the world. While they may grow to over 1,000 pounds, the average adult male weighs between 600-900 lbs; females generally weigh about 30 percent less. Although Kodiak bears are often touted as the world’s largest carnivore, they are actually omnivores. Although fish is an important part of their diet, they eat more grass, plants and berries than meat and rarely expend the time or effort necessary to chase and kill animals.
Here is a little on the Coast Guard.
In 1972 the U.S. Navy closed their Kodiak station and the Coast Guard moved in. The result is the country’s largest Coast Guard station. Nearly 1,000 active duty personnel are stationed in Kodiak along with some 1,700 family members and several hundred civilian employees. A buoy tender, two cutters, seven helicopter units and five C-130 aircraft conduct patrol and rescue operations throughout Alaska. Communications, navigational support, training and marine safety are also part of the coast Guard’s diverse mission.
The Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment is responsible for inspecting and licensing fishing vessels moored in Kodiak’s boat harbors. If you have watched Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch” then you know that it is Coast Guard cutters, helicopters and personnel who assist vessels in trouble in the rough waters of the North Pacific and Bering Sea.
An early flight for me, 6:20 AM, yikes!
Just a note on fall in Llano. It has been really pretty here. Perfect weather for fall color on the trees. Warm days and cool nights. The golden rain trees are exceptional, along with the honey locust and smoke trees. One of the nicest falls we have had.
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Also, on catfuraplenty's passing. What a tragedy! I used to see her posts when I first was on WU, though I never had contact with her. It doesn't seem that you can stop crazy. I wish we could in this world but I haven't seen it work to often.
HAVE A FABULOUS AND SAFE TRIP. Enjoy your grandson and bring back lovely memories. See you when you get back.
Have a great time, and safe travels!
Should be flat out gorgeous there. Are you taking extra hot cocoa or other food stuffs that cost $$$ there to leave with the kids?
Should be really exciting to see your new grand-baby so get lot's of pics cause it's easy to forget to take them in the fun of meeting the new little one.
Be safe, have fun!
It's going to be beautiful so don't forget to look around occasionally if you can take your eyes off the baby, lol.
You'll be missing the finest weather week in many months at home but who cares about that? Have a great trip and like gg says, take lots of pictures (or have your son take lots - you'll be busy ;)).
I went to Trader Joe's today to get some things for my kids that they might not have, like avocados. I even made my own hot chocolate mix to bring to them. I haven't tried it yet.... maybe I should have! I guess I will know soon enough if it is any good. If it is I'll share the recipe, it is pretty easy.
Bye for now! :))
I was last up in '01 and had a great time.
Wow you got 2 AC's out of that trip and I didn't even know you were posting photos, LOL
Congrats!
I, too, would love to see a Kodiak bear in the wild - I'm envious and happy for you! The eagle shots are beautiful though I'm mainly drawn to them by the lichen on the post, LOL
Hope you are rested and the work day went well :)
I like the coyote pic; I might steal one for my avatar, lol! Just kidding!
Hope work goes well for you!
Glad you had such a great time. How could you not? A new grandbaby AND Alaska? My gosh - a surfeit of pleasures, as they say. Anticipating the new post, whenever.
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