Life

A large brown bear boar takes a break near the McNeil River Falls viewing platform. (Photo provided by Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: Could you win the Alaska Lottery?

Winning an Alaska lottery is the ultimate experience of a lifetime. Although it may not be a lottery with a big cash payout, it does… Continue reading

A large brown bear boar takes a break near the McNeil River Falls viewing platform. (Photo provided by Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)
Long live the Salmon Run Series

Long live the Salmon Run Series

The sun peeked through the July clouds just long enough for me and 100 other people to run a few miles through the woods on… Continue reading

Long live the Salmon Run Series
A melanistic red squirrel residing at the Northern Peninsula Recreation Center this summer. (Photo by Rachel Parra)

Refuge Notebook: What’s up with the black squirrels?

A black squirrel is hanging around this summer. I became aware of this strange little creature when a picture from the Northern Peninsula Recreation Center… Continue reading

A melanistic red squirrel residing at the Northern Peninsula Recreation Center this summer. (Photo by Rachel Parra)

An Outdoor View: Grandkids

Earlier this month, Brady Allred, 14, a grandson from Everett, Wash., came for a two-week stay with my wife and I in Sterling, his first… Continue reading

An angler fillets his sockeye salmon caught on the Kenai River near the confluence with the Russian River on June 11. Many successful fishermen can their catches to preserve them for the winter. The Cooperative Extension Service has some helpful suggestions to ensure the process is done safely. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Canning your catch

If the fishing is good, it’s important to keep in mind how to preserve salmon for when the fishing is bad. Canning provides a good… Continue reading

An angler fillets his sockeye salmon caught on the Kenai River near the confluence with the Russian River on June 11. Many successful fishermen can their catches to preserve them for the winter. The Cooperative Extension Service has some helpful suggestions to ensure the process is done safely. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Kim McNett paddling by the Skull Cliffs south of Barrow. (Photo courtesy Bj&

Couple completes first fat bike journey from Point Hope to Utqiagvik

In the past 10 years since fat bikes have become popular for riding on beaches and snow in Alaska, people have regularly ridden them from… Continue reading

Kim McNett paddling by the Skull Cliffs south of Barrow. (Photo courtesy Bj&
Shown here are biting snipe flies on the face of a sedated mountain goat, Kenai Mountains, July 13. At the same time the flies were attacking the attendant biologists in comparable numbers. (Photo by Dom Watts/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: The bad biter par excellence

On a glorious, sunny day years ago after biking up the Resurrection Pass Trail to Juneau Lake, my companion and I paused to enjoy the… Continue reading

Shown here are biting snipe flies on the face of a sedated mountain goat, Kenai Mountains, July 13. At the same time the flies were attacking the attendant biologists in comparable numbers. (Photo by Dom Watts/USFWS)
In this May 2008 photo, Billy Morrow shows his enthusiasm for a paddling trip with his father, Clarion editor Will Morrow, on the Swanson River, part of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge’s canoe trails.

Paddlers’ paradise: Canoeing the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge

Lakes, portage trails and small rivers join together to make the Kenai Refuge Canoe System, which offers nearly 120 miles of trail traveling across 70… Continue reading

In this May 2008 photo, Billy Morrow shows his enthusiasm for a paddling trip with his father, Clarion editor Will Morrow, on the Swanson River, part of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge’s canoe trails.
What to watch for: a strand of Elodea trying to hitchhike on a boat trailer from Sports Lake to another waterbody on the Kenai Peninsula. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: Your photo can save salmon on the Kenai Peninsula

So here’s a riddle. What’s green, likes water but travels by airplane, is freely passed around but is actually quarantined in Alaska, and has the… Continue reading

What to watch for: a strand of Elodea trying to hitchhike on a boat trailer from Sports Lake to another waterbody on the Kenai Peninsula. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

The Lake Iliamna cryptid saga

Many people do not realize that there has been thoughtful consideration taken of the presence of a creature(s) that needs explaining in the depths of… Continue reading

An Outdoor View: On variety in fishing

Author’s note: Not much has changed about fishing on the Kenai Peninsula in the 18 years since I wrote this piece, first published by the… Continue reading

This July 6 photo, taken at the Biltmore Estate near Asheville, N.C., shows a Three Sisters Garden which is a traditional grouping of corn, squash and beans that thrive when planted together. (Dean Fosdick via AP)

For easy meals, plant ‘menu gardens’ of favorite foods

If you’re looking for fresh meal ideas, consider planting “menu gardens.” Grow a few of your favorite foods together in pots or raised beds, following… Continue reading

This July 6 photo, taken at the Biltmore Estate near Asheville, N.C., shows a Three Sisters Garden which is a traditional grouping of corn, squash and beans that thrive when planted together. (Dean Fosdick via AP)
Tom Lyman of Michigan holds up a sockeye salmon he caught in the Kenai River on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. Lyman, who is visiting Alaska with his son, said he hadn’t been casting for long when he hooked into the fish. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Fishing report: Some sockeye showing on Kenai, big pulse yet to come

Kenai River sockeye salmon are making their way up the river in growing numbers, though it’s still a little slow. Tom Lyman, a Michigan resident… Continue reading

Tom Lyman of Michigan holds up a sockeye salmon he caught in the Kenai River on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. Lyman, who is visiting Alaska with his son, said he hadn’t been casting for long when he hooked into the fish. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Clarion reporter Kat Sorensen demonstrates how to tie an angler’s loop knot to create a stringer so sportfishermen can hang onto their catches on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. For a full video demonstration, check out the Peninsula Clarion’s Facebook page. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Photo: Learn to tie an angler’s loop knot

By Elizabeth Earl Peninsula Clarion… Continue reading

Clarion reporter Kat Sorensen demonstrates how to tie an angler’s loop knot to create a stringer so sportfishermen can hang onto their catches on Wednesday, July 12, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. For a full video demonstration, check out the Peninsula Clarion’s Facebook page. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
Avery Walden, then 9, poses at the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania with her father Chris Walden (right) and a family friend on Jan. 6, 2017. The group climbed the famous mountain in January, making Avery the youngest female to ascend the mountain. (Photo courtesy Chris Walden)

Mountain-climbing family plans rock gym, next adventures

Editor's note: This article has been edited to clarify that because Mt. Kilimanjaro is near the equator, January is not technically winter there. A little… Continue reading

Avery Walden, then 9, poses at the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania with her father Chris Walden (right) and a family friend on Jan. 6, 2017. The group climbed the famous mountain in January, making Avery the youngest female to ascend the mountain. (Photo courtesy Chris Walden)
June Searcy-Josten, of Happy Valley, gears up for a day of beachcombing in the cold wind with a large bag for driftwood and smaller bags for miscellaneous shells and rocks. (Photo courtesy/June Searcy-Josten)

Combing the peninsula — tips for beachcombing

The beaches of the Kenai Peninsula are a treasure trove to those who are willing to keep their head down. Beachcombing in the area doesn’t… Continue reading

June Searcy-Josten, of Happy Valley, gears up for a day of beachcombing in the cold wind with a large bag for driftwood and smaller bags for miscellaneous shells and rocks. (Photo courtesy/June Searcy-Josten)

Out of the Office: Bear encounters bring the noise

The woods are getting a bit louder these days. With the uptick in bear encounters this summer in Alaska, the trails and backcountry wonderlands are… Continue reading

A pellet dropped by a snowshoe hare. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)

Refuge Notebook: The story behind snowshoe hare pellets

Few people are aware of a unique tradition that happens annually here at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. For the past thirty years only the… Continue reading

A pellet dropped by a snowshoe hare. (Photo courtesy Kenai National Wildlife Refuge)
Survivalist Kellie Nightlinger lays out seaweed to dry during a walk in early June. Nightlinger has been voted the top female survival expert in the world, and has chosen Alaska as her home for the past five years. (Photo by Alex McCarthy/Juneau Empire)

‘Wild Woman’ finds home in Juneau

There’s a fine line between a plant causing a blood infection and a plant making a healthy snack, and Kellie Nightlinger knows the difference. As… Continue reading

Survivalist Kellie Nightlinger lays out seaweed to dry during a walk in early June. Nightlinger has been voted the top female survival expert in the world, and has chosen Alaska as her home for the past five years. (Photo by Alex McCarthy/Juneau Empire)
A pressed herbarium specimen identified in 1941 as Kenai Birch by Eric Hult&

Refuge Notebook: A tale of two birches

Did you know there are two species of native birches on the Kenai Peninsula? Well, actually three if you count the dwarf birch (Betula nana),… Continue reading

A pressed herbarium specimen identified in 1941 as Kenai Birch by Eric Hult&