Refuge Notebook

Rigby and Christine Cunningham patiently waiting in a duck blind, both watching a flock of teal high overhead. (Photo by Steve Meyer)

Refuge Notebook: If the goose honks high

Some mornings are darker than others, and then there are the mornings Steve calls “as black as the inside of a cow.” The first day… Continue reading

 

Rowan Yorkston teaching "Critter Campers" about the different shapes of eggs. (Photo provided by refuge)

Refuge notebook: Beauty doesn’t boast

Beautiful things don’t ask for attention, and I think that can be said about the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is not a theme… Continue reading

 

Strand of invasive elodea on top of boot submerged in water. (Photo by Deb Kornblut/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: The big deal about Big Lake — A collaborative conservation success

With more than 3 million natural lakes in Alaska, the state is a kaleidoscope of freshwater blue. Their diversity is astounding ― lakes may be… Continue reading

 

Brown bears fishing for salmon on the Russian River. (Photo by Kris Inman/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Fishing with bears

Anglers and bears spend more time on the river as the first run of salmon makes its way upstream. While the rivers and tributaries offer… Continue reading

Brown bears fishing for salmon on the Russian River. (Photo by Kris Inman/USFWS)
Braided flood plain into Skilak Lake. (Photo by Jackie Morton/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: The futures ahead

I’m sure you’ve all looked back at your lives at some point, thought back on decisions, be it with regret or gratitude, and recognized that… Continue reading

Braided flood plain into Skilak Lake. (Photo by Jackie Morton/USFWS)
If you teach a kid to fish, she will feed you a trout breakfast every morning of the campout. This proved true for this girl, who holds up a rainbow trout while sitting on a kayak. (Photo by Leah Eskelin)

Refuge Notebook: Loon calls, campfire s’mores and prebooked campsites herald summer on refuge

There’s a buzz in the air. It’s the charged energy of early summertime in Alaska. It’s the murmur of fishermen counting their tackle. It’s the… Continue reading

If you teach a kid to fish, she will feed you a trout breakfast every morning of the campout. This proved true for this girl, who holds up a rainbow trout while sitting on a kayak. (Photo by Leah Eskelin)
A basket of lovage leaves harvested at a Kenai Peninsula beach, June 9, 2023. (Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: I love beach lovage

For my family, as for many people on the Kenai Peninsula, growing and harvesting food is a regular part of our lives. We garden, we… Continue reading

A basket of lovage leaves harvested at a Kenai Peninsula beach, June 9, 2023. (Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS)
A pair of Trumpeter Swans break through the thin ice in search of emergent vegetation at the Kenai River Flats with Mt. Redoubt in the background. (Photo courtesy T. Eskelin/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Has spring sprung?

I have always found the arrival of spring to be championed by the first sightings of geese at the Kenai and Kasilof Flats

A pair of Trumpeter Swans break through the thin ice in search of emergent vegetation at the Kenai River Flats with Mt. Redoubt in the background. (Photo courtesy T. Eskelin/USFWS)
Winter is the time for fuel break projects. (Photo by Jeff Bouschor/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: What do wildland firefighters do in the winter?

Most people do not think about wildfires during the winter months, but the fire management program at the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is hard at… Continue reading

Winter is the time for fuel break projects. (Photo by Jeff Bouschor/USFWS)
Example of a culvert blocked by natural materials on Port Graham Road. (Photo by Sarah Apsens/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Connecting fish and community to resources in Port Graham

Streams that baby salmon live in provide shelter from predators, food and conditions for optimal growth

Example of a culvert blocked by natural materials on Port Graham Road. (Photo by Sarah Apsens/USFWS)
A snowmachine at rest in front of the Snag Lake public use cabin. (Photo by credit Scott Slavick/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Preparedness is key to staying safe in the backcountry

If you spend any time in the backcountry, it’s bound to happen: an ankle sprain halfway into a day hike; afternoon wind unexpectedly turns a… Continue reading

A snowmachine at rest in front of the Snag Lake public use cabin. (Photo by credit Scott Slavick/USFWS)
The bronze statue depicting a "giant Kenai Moose" of the early "19s" stands to welcome present-day guests to the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Marking 82 years in the great flow of past, present and future on the Kenai

Whether they were pulling my leg or not, a couple of years ago, my kids started asking me questions like, “Mom, did you have phones… Continue reading

The bronze statue depicting a "giant Kenai Moose" of the early "19s" stands to welcome present-day guests to the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by USFWS)
Young samplings are better than a muffin to this moose on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo by Colin Canterbury/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: We stand on the shoulders of giant moose

This story starts 2,500 miles southeast as the raven flies from Kenai National Wildlife Refuge to the heart of the Weminuche Wilderness in the southern… Continue reading

Young samplings are better than a muffin to this moose on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo by Colin Canterbury/USFWS)
Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges volunteer Beth Sullivan surveys for the invasive plant elodea at Campfire Lake on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge on Aug. 30, 2023. Here she pulled up a rake full of star duckweed (Lemna trisulca). (Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Deja vu and something new — Probing Kenai Peninsula lakes for invasive species

We had been here before. Agencies, nongovernment organizations and community members had all taken part in an effort to remove invasive northern pike and elodea… Continue reading

Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges volunteer Beth Sullivan surveys for the invasive plant elodea at Campfire Lake on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge on Aug. 30, 2023. Here she pulled up a rake full of star duckweed (Lemna trisulca). (Photo by Matt Bowser/USFWS)
The banded Annaճ hummingbird is being released and flew away seconds after the photo was taken. (Photo by T. Eskelin, USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Tales of the traveling hummingbird

In the book “A Sand County Almanac,” Aldo Leopold wrote, “To band a bird is to hold a ticket in a great lottery. Most of… Continue reading

The banded Annaճ hummingbird is being released and flew away seconds after the photo was taken. (Photo by T. Eskelin, USFWS)
A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteer intern collects data in the Alpine. (Photo by Jackie Morton/FWS)

Refuge Notebook: Inspired by the impossible

A few weeks ago, a mentor, Dr. Maurice Hornocker, reminded a roomful of us why we chose to be wildlife biologists. He captured it all… Continue reading

A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteer intern collects data in the Alpine. (Photo by Jackie Morton/FWS)
Ryan Chen lopping seasonal growth at a vista on Emma Lake Trail during a weeklong camping trip. (Photo by Shea Imgarten)

Refuge Notebook: That’s a rap — YCC leaves a trace on refuge’s legacy

They’re everywhere: a munched branch on the trail, muddy boot prints in the house, the rippling of water after a floatplane takes off. All of… Continue reading

Ryan Chen lopping seasonal growth at a vista on Emma Lake Trail during a weeklong camping trip. (Photo by Shea Imgarten)
A close-up view of spruce tip rust on spruce tips on the Kenai Peninsula. (Photo by USFWS/Kris Inman)

Refuge Notebook: Another big year for spruce tip rust

Much like 2018, the orange tips of young spruce trees are catching people’s attention and reminded me of 2018 when a co-worker asked, “What is… Continue reading

A close-up view of spruce tip rust on spruce tips on the Kenai Peninsula. (Photo by USFWS/Kris Inman)
A beautiful stop along Skyline Trail on the way to collect vegetation surveys in the Swan Lake Fire. (Photo by USFWS/Jackie Morton)

Refuge Notebook: Wild and free — My summer as an intern in Alaska

Dozens of Dall sheep pellets pelted my face like hail on a windshield. A celebratory selfie, finished off with “confetti” after a long day of… Continue reading

A beautiful stop along Skyline Trail on the way to collect vegetation surveys in the Swan Lake Fire. (Photo by USFWS/Jackie Morton)
A brown bear cub "catches" a salmon carcass. (Photo by C. Canterbury/USFWS)

Refuge Notebook: Keeping it wild while fishing, camping on Refuge

Sliding one foot in front of another, we crossed the Russian River; our quest for the day was not fishing but checking on terrestrial invasive… Continue reading

A brown bear cub "catches" a salmon carcass. (Photo by C. Canterbury/USFWS)