Alaska Outdoors

A grizzly bear sow and cubs that are fishing for chum salmon in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, northern Alaska. (Courtesy Photo / Matt Cameron, National Park Service)

Bears alert scientists to secret salmon streams

How could people have missed those salmon runs?

 

Swamp gentian flowers are common in the meadows at Eaglecrest Ski Area. (Courtesy Photo / Bob Armstrong photo)

Getting in July explorations while the sun shined

We reveled in the dazzling light and warmth.

 

Wild Shots: Photos of Mother Nature in Alaska

Reader-submitted photos for July 2020.

 

This gastropod has appeal

Banana slugs ooze all over Alaska.

Jokes aside, August is a pretty special month in Southeast Alaska and it is probably Jeff Lund’s favorite. If you disagree, that’s fine. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)

Southeast Alaska’s best month is right around the corner

The totally non-biased data is in: August is the most desired month in Southeast Alaska.

Jokes aside, August is a pretty special month in Southeast Alaska and it is probably Jeff Lund’s favorite. If you disagree, that’s fine. (Jeff Lund / For the Juneau Empire)
A red-breasted sapsucker braces its strong central tail feathers against the tree trunk. Mary F. Willson notes the bird is not excavating. (Courtesy Photo / Kerry Howard)
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How tails help birds get ahead

Focusing on particular uses of tails that have special functions.

A red-breasted sapsucker braces its strong central tail feathers against the tree trunk. Mary F. Willson notes the bird is not excavating. (Courtesy Photo / Kerry Howard)
Video
This graphic shows All the large recent earthquakes on the Aleutian Subduction Zone, including the magnitude 7.8 in the “Shumagin Gap” that occurred July 21, 2020. (Courtesy Image/Alaska Earthquake Center) This graphic shows All the large recent earthquakes on the Aleutian Subduction Zone, including the magnitude 7.8 in the “Shumagin Gap” that occurred July 21, 2020. (Courtesy Image/Alaska Earthquake Center)

Recent earthquake adds missing piece to puzzle

What was learned from the biggest earthquake on the planet so far in 2020.

This graphic shows All the large recent earthquakes on the Aleutian Subduction Zone, including the magnitude 7.8 in the “Shumagin Gap” that occurred July 21, 2020. (Courtesy Image/Alaska Earthquake Center) This graphic shows All the large recent earthquakes on the Aleutian Subduction Zone, including the magnitude 7.8 in the “Shumagin Gap” that occurred July 21, 2020. (Courtesy Image/Alaska Earthquake Center)

Being a fly on the wall for complicated life cycles

Not just growing up.

Pond lilies and dandelions brighten a cool, damp day

Some of the dandelion stems had reached extraordinary lengths.

Sue Mauger, Cook Inletkeeper’s science and executive director, works in the Russian River. (Courtesy Photo | Joe Yelverton)
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What climate change means for Alaska’s rivers — and king salmon

A study finds some answers for Chinook salmon decline lie in freshwater rivers and streams.

Sue Mauger, Cook Inletkeeper’s science and executive director, works in the Russian River. (Courtesy Photo | Joe Yelverton)
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Eaglecrest Ski Area will be closed to all users on Thursday, July 23, 2020, as they conduct blasting operations. (Courtesy photo | Eaglecrest Ski Area)

Eaglecrest to hold demolition work

They’re blasting into a rock face to create more material for trails.

Eaglecrest Ski Area will be closed to all users on Thursday, July 23, 2020, as they conduct blasting operations. (Courtesy photo | Eaglecrest Ski Area)
The Nenana River originates near here, north of the Alaska Range, and flows through the mountains south of the range. (Courtesy Photo | Ned Rozell)

Rivers U-turn through Alaska range

The ‘unusual’ feature that makes bananas cheaper in Fairbanks.

The Nenana River originates near here, north of the Alaska Range, and flows through the mountains south of the range. (Courtesy Photo | Ned Rozell)

Monkey boats and sailboats: Bringing a Bristol Bay relic back to life

They were looking for a boat with history. They found it.

Jeff Lund attempts to hook a golden trout in Wyoming during a recent trip. “Yes, [I] traveled to fish during the pandemic,” Lund said. (Jeff Lund | For the Juneau Empire)

Yes, I traveled to fish during the pandemic

Don’t mistake the tone of this, I am not making light of traveling during a pandemic.

Jeff Lund attempts to hook a golden trout in Wyoming during a recent trip. “Yes, [I] traveled to fish during the pandemic,” Lund said. (Jeff Lund | For the Juneau Empire)
A grizzly bear roams an exhibit at the Woodland Park Zoo, closed for nearly three months because of the coronavirus outbreak in Seattle. Grizzly bears once roamed the rugged landscape of the North Cascades in Washington state but few have been sighted in recent decades. The federal government is scrapping plans to reintroduce grizzly bears to the North Cascades ecosystem. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

Conservation groups upset by North Cascades grizzly decision

Decision draws rebukes from conservation groups, who have worked to grow the tiny population.

A grizzly bear roams an exhibit at the Woodland Park Zoo, closed for nearly three months because of the coronavirus outbreak in Seattle. Grizzly bears once roamed the rugged landscape of the North Cascades in Washington state but few have been sighted in recent decades. The federal government is scrapping plans to reintroduce grizzly bears to the North Cascades ecosystem. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)
Nolin Ainsworth sights down an Ishapore 2A1 rifle at the Hank Harmon Rifle Range, Dec. 1, 2019. The range will be closed Monday and Tuesday as the brush around the perimeter is cleared by the COVID-19 Conservation Corps. (Peter Segall | Juneau Empire)

Rifle range closing Monday and Tuesday for maintenance

It’s been some time since the hedges were trimmed.

Nolin Ainsworth sights down an Ishapore 2A1 rifle at the Hank Harmon Rifle Range, Dec. 1, 2019. The range will be closed Monday and Tuesday as the brush around the perimeter is cleared by the COVID-19 Conservation Corps. (Peter Segall | Juneau Empire)

Proof of the past: These rock formations offer evidence of an ice-free Alaska

It’s hard to believe Alaska’s cold heart was grassland when Manhattan and Chicago were under blue ice.

Twice-told tales — Juneau style

This essay brings together a few of the special stories from our little expeditions over the years.

Bald eagle rescued on Fourth of July

Injured but conscious, the raptor will get treatment in Sitka.

Wild Shots: Photos of Mother Nature in Alaska

Reader-submitted photos.