Most of the American and foreign-born miners, settlers and railroad workers who began flooding into the upper Cook Inlet region around the turn of the 19th century are faceless today.  Their names and experiences were unrecorded.  That loss is even more stark for the Native people who lived here. A few individuals have punctured the film of anonymity by doing something remarkable or by being … Continue reading “Dad” Hunt: Mushroom King of Eklutna

The Eklutna River Bridge was once a curvaceous, symmetrical beauty with lacy struts.  Over a decade ago, when the State of Alaska proposed replacing the 1930s-era structure, some people didn’t like the idea.  It was eligible to be a national historic site.  Some people who saw the price tag for the new bridge didn’t like the idea either.  Neither did the people who lived in … Continue reading Eklutna River’s bridge: Connecting Eklutna Valley to the rest of the world

“Surprisingly, after being banned in the early 90s, the [Slip ‘N Slide] made a comeback in the early 2000s.  We still would not recommend buying one, especially if you are over the age of 12.”  Edgar Snyder & Associates, personal injury law firm[1] Have you ever found yourself sitting in the dark on the detached roof of your vehicle, having slid down the road no … Continue reading Blackberry brandy on ice: The Eklutna Lake Road slip and slide

All last week we suffered through a false spring.  First the sun, wind, and warm air temperatures smacked all the snow off of the trees.  After days of howling wind, the skeletal gray aspens finally stopped their herky-jerky, sepulchral dancing.  But then the snow pack started settling and our precipitous driveway grew slick.  Am I going to have to put the tire chains back on? … Continue reading Oh what a day

What mountain is not a great one?  Every mountain is a study in uniqueness as much as similarity.  One might reflect upon that question for the rest of one’s life, I realize, my gaze focused not on the cold mountain behind me but on the many small birds flitting almost randomly about the feeder outside my window.  We think we know what the birds are … Continue reading Eklutna Valley’s very own Denali

“At a certain season of our life we are accustomed to consider every spot as the possible site of a house.”  — Henry David Thoreau, Where I Lived and What I Lived For I have pored over maps, photographs, sketches, newspaper articles and reports for years trying to understand when and how people have occupied Eklutna Valley.  In other words, to paraphrase Henry, I want to know where … Continue reading House hunting in Eklutna Valley

“Swallows with spools of dark thread sewing the shadows together.”       — D. H. Lawrence, “Bat” It’s almost Halloween, do you know where your bats are?  The last time I recall seeing one flitting past my windows was in late September, but they can often be seen into October, weather depending. Although several bat species occur in Alaska, the lone species living north of the Kenai … Continue reading ‘Sewing the shadows together’ on Eklutna Valley’s short summer nights