Alaska Outdoors

Zach Brown, pictured at work in the Arctic, will this evening talk about Arctic sea ice changes and their implications at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center's Fireside Lecture.

Arctic Ocean sea ice lecture

The Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center’s free Fireside Lecture this evening will be presented by Arctic oceanographer Zach Brown, who recently received his PhD from Stanford… Continue reading

Zach Brown, pictured at work in the Arctic, will this evening talk about Arctic sea ice changes and their implications at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center's Fireside Lecture.
Anne Sutton, foreground, practices a flyfishing cast in a 2014 flyfishing class taught by Raincountry Flyfishers president Tony Soltys.

Kobuk, Wulik, Situk fly fishing

Juneau’s flyfishing club, Raincountry Flyfishers. will meet Wednesday Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. in the Thunder Mountain High School library. George Elgee will show slides… Continue reading

Anne Sutton, foreground, practices a flyfishing cast in a 2014 flyfishing class taught by Raincountry Flyfishers president Tony Soltys.

Killer and humpback whales

Juneau resident Doug Jones will next Thursday talk at the Juneau Audubon Society’s Feb. 11 program about killer and humpback whales. The talk is called… Continue reading

Dzantik'i Heeni student Ian Bugayong, left, and Floyd Dryden student Tim Degener compete while shooting Daisy Avanti 888 Medalist Co2 air rifles with .177 caliber pellets at 10 meter targets. The pellets travel 580 feet per second. This is the fifth year Juneau's middle schools have competed in air rifle competitions.

Middle school air rifle season underway

Juneau’s middle school shooting sport athletes are halfway through their fifth season. Jan. 28, they competed in the first match of the season at Floyd… Continue reading

Dzantik'i Heeni student Ian Bugayong, left, and Floyd Dryden student Tim Degener compete while shooting Daisy Avanti 888 Medalist Co2 air rifles with .177 caliber pellets at 10 meter targets. The pellets travel 580 feet per second. This is the fifth year Juneau's middle schools have competed in air rifle competitions.
Eric Prestegard, executive director of Douglas Island Pink & Chum, Inc., leads a tour of the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery on Wednesday to people attending the Alaska Young Fishermen's Summit.

The (human) future of Alaska’s fisheries

Alaska’s fishing fleet may be graying, but there isn’t much gray at the sixth annual Alaska Young Fishermen’s Summit, hosted by the Alaska Sea Grant… Continue reading

Eric Prestegard, executive director of Douglas Island Pink & Chum, Inc., leads a tour of the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery on Wednesday to people attending the Alaska Young Fishermen's Summit.
The Internation Pacific Halibut Commission increased the 2016 quota from last year's by 2.3 percent.

IPHC increases halibut quota 2.3 percent

The International Pacific Halibut Commission raised halibut quota for the second time in as many years, adding a glimmer of hope to a fishery troubled… Continue reading

The Internation Pacific Halibut Commission increased the 2016 quota from last year's by 2.3 percent.

Transboundary mine concerns continue

Southeast Alaskans concerned about British Columbian mines under development in transboundary watersheds continue to push for the involvement of the International Joint Commission, which resolves… Continue reading

Eaglecrest snow report

• Base: 0• Top: 0• Base: 0• Top: 0• Base: 7 inches• Top: 93 inches• Base: 38 F• Top: 32 F• Base: 10 mph• Top:… Continue reading

Forest Service invites guide allocation comments

SITKA–The Tongass National Forest is proposing new outfitter and guide allocations on the Tongass National Forest marine shoreline zone to be consistent with the 2008… Continue reading

Pacific walrus on Round Island, a big haulout for the animals.

Walrus sanctuary talk

Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Stephanie Sell, now based in Juneau, will talk about her time as Sanctuary Manager on Round Island, part… Continue reading

Pacific walrus on Round Island, a big haulout for the animals.

Eaglecrest to reopen Saturday; rollback weekend postponed

Eaglecrest Ski Area, which closed Thursday, will reopen for skiing and snowboarding across the whole mountain on Saturday, Jan. 30. Porcupine, Hooter, and Ptarmigan chairlifts… Continue reading

Ketchikan board wants members

Applications are currently being accepted for three vacancies on the nine-member Ketchikan State Parks Citizen Advisory Board for the term beginning in mid-February. The board… Continue reading

Fireside chat: polar bears

The Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center’s free Fireside Lecture on Friday, Jan. 29 will be presented by local photographer and guide Laurent Dick. He will take… Continue reading

Three bears have recently been seen out and about in Juneau - this one, near the Auke Bay ferry terminal, one on Back Loop, and one downtown.

Out walkin’ after midnight

It’s not bedtime quite yet for at least three bears in the Juneau area — one in the Auke Bay ferry terminal area, one downtown… Continue reading

Three bears have recently been seen out and about in Juneau - this one, near the Auke Bay ferry terminal, one on Back Loop, and one downtown.
Two tundra swans on the Arctic coastal plain.

Off the Beaten Path: My first polar bear

On a muddy beach on Barter Island, near the still waters of the Beaufort Sea, small polar bear prints mixed with the track of a… Continue reading

Two tundra swans on the Arctic coastal plain.

On the Trails: Big things from small ones

We marvel at the flight of hummingbirds, the songs of humpback whales, or a mountain goat leaping from ledge to ledge. Good! But small things… Continue reading

Off the Beaten Path: The Sinking of the Islander and the Legend of its Lost Gold

In mid August of 1901, the SS Islander, a 240-foot luxury steamer deemed “unsinkable” and designed specifically for the Inside Passage, set sail from Skagway.… Continue reading

Senator moves to halt proposed ban on Alaska predator hunts

FAIRBANKS — U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is looking to stop a proposed U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ban on some bear, wolf and coyote hunts… Continue reading

Mendenhall Glacier reflection.

Wild Shots

The Empire Outdoors page is looking for superb images of Alaska’s wildlife, scenery or plant life. Send your photos via email to outdoors@juneauempire.com. For all… Continue reading

Mendenhall Glacier reflection.
Surviving western and mountain hemlock at Goose Cove, Peril Strait, Alaska appear as green trees among the numerous dead yellow-cedar trees, illustrating a successional shift in tree species in response to yellow-cedar decline.

Report: Some yellow cedars to remain healthy through 2100

It turns out polar bears and yellow cedar trees have something common. So do ice seals and red cedars. That commonality: One is negatively impacted… Continue reading

Surviving western and mountain hemlock at Goose Cove, Peril Strait, Alaska appear as green trees among the numerous dead yellow-cedar trees, illustrating a successional shift in tree species in response to yellow-cedar decline.