SURPRISE! It's payback!

Well, in the 2 years that I have now lived in Alaska my mom has surprised me twice with a visit.  It was time to pay her back!  Because I have such a wonderful boyfriend, that also happens to be a pilot, we were able to plan a surprise visit to Texas.  I must also add that I have great friends in Alaska that were able to cover my shifts in order to allow me 2 extra days in texas.

one thing that I am always excited about is to see my dogs as well.
low Rider AKA Rider is the bigger dog.  both of our dogs are rescue dogs.  Rider was one of those dogs that you walk into Petsmart not having a clue you are going to leave with a dog from the pound.
Delilah, the miniature dachshund, was found by a dumpster when I was in college in Louisiana.

Devin and I also love being able to take them for a walk without having to worry about snow....or an eagle taking Delilah (hint of sarcasm).

 One of my favorite parts about flying home was visiting my great  grandmother.  Yeah you read it right, my nana is 95 years old and still a spit fire.

                                                      I also visited my papa, Grandfather.
                                                               love you most Papa!

Well, sadly it was eventually time to return back to Alaska.  We are getting prepared for our easter event.  Sarah boiled 2 dozen eggs and after work we had fun dying them.

This year we got a bit more creative than just dying them simple colors.  We used wax crayons, duct tape, and even vegetable oil to get all kinds of effects.

I think I may have to buy another dozen tonight.  I still haven't quite got my Easter egg dying itch fulfilled.

Hmmmm, I may have to google some more ways to dye them.

Any suggestions?

Goodnight Lower 48,

ErIn

Devin's Here!

Well even though it has been a few weeks since his visit I haven't blogged in over a month!  And it isn't even summer yet when things really get busy!  My boyfriend, Devin, visited me in Alaska on a few of his days off.  he had never been further south than Anchorage so I really wanted to give him an alaskan experience.  What better way than feeding a moose!

I was also dog sitting two Brittany's at the time.  Devin and I went snowshoeing while walking them
one day.  It was a first for both of us.  This dog is named "Cream".

And of course Devin had to meet the famous "snickers"!

Earlier in the week a few other interns decided to build an igloo.  Perfect timing!  Even though it is collapsed now it was still fun to say we got to sit in an igloo in Alaska.

Snowshoeing was fun, but Devin soon learned that there can be some hidden holes in the snow.  I wouldn't dare post the picture showing Devin stuck in the hole.....hehe.










This was the best picture I was able to get of the two brittanys.  "Cream is the younger one on the left.   "Brandy Rose" is the mother of "Cream".  

Cream was having a little bit of fun....what do you think?

Doug Lindstrand snapped some great photos of our 2 youngest musk ox playing around on March 16th.  Mukluk and Walter are getting along great.


Photo Courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Well I will end this blog on one last note.  Notice anything that's not supposed to be in this picture?

If you look closely you night see a different type of deer poking her head out from behind a tree.

Leia, one of our Sitka Black Tailed Deer, jumped the fence into the elk enclosure!  At least she was getting along well with the elk.  I wonder how many people thought they were looking at a baby elk that day?

Goodnight Lower 48,
ErIn

Portage’s Prickly Prognosticator

Happy Groundhog Day....alaskan style!

 Even though it's been a week I guess it's better late than never.  Last saturday we had our first annual Groundhog Day with Snickers the porcupine.  What was the outcome you ask?  snickers determined that there is not going to be 6 more weeks of winter.  He also said that even if he did see his shadow he wouldn't tell us; he is ready for summer!

photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Sarah and I did the presentation for about 25 people.  Even though that doesn't seem like a high number; we were quite happy with the turnout considering it was the first annual AWCC groundhog day.  Afterwards, we moved the presentation to our barn where we had coffee and hot chocolate to warm up with.
                                                                        Photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Our Sitka Black Tailed deer are sure growing up fast.  Leia, the female, deer was enjoying the sunshine we had on 2/9.  

                                   Solo, the male, wanted to see if I had any treats for him.

On my day off today it was pretty crummy weather.  MT, a friend of mine, and I hoped in my car and drove to portage lake to checkout the weather there.  it was even worse, but we still got a quick video to show the viewers how bad it was.  

sorry it's a short blog but not too much going on at the center right now.  Well, I need to go make some playdo now for the upcoming porcupine presentations.

Education Programs

These past few days we have been busy with school programs.  Yesterday, Sarah an intern, did a reindeer presentation at Girdwood Elementary.

After the kids learned about reindeer, which are domesticated caribou, Sarah had them make their own reindeer puppet out of a brown paper bag.  Once the kids were finished with their craft they went outside to meet our reindeer named Bert.

Today, Thursday, we had porcupine presentations in anchorage.
So we loaded up the yukon with Snickers our porcupine and headed to town.
But before we left Portage we had a few mouths to feed...

                                                    Can you guess who this belongs to?

Today's porcupine program was at Russian Jack Elementary.  First, Scott and Sarah presented to the ASSDHH. This stands for the Alaska State School for Deaf and Hard of Hearing.  Scott has taken 2 years worth of sign language studies in college.  This came in handy today.  The teachers were very impressed with his skills.  By the end of the 2 programs we all learned a few more signs.

Meanwhile, back at the center, Doug Lindstrand took some amazing photos of the animals enjoying the little bit of sunshine that they had.

                               Walter sure was being a photo bomber!  He is so handsome!

Photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Hooty and Snappy were also photogenic today.  Actually, I think every animal is photogenic when Doug Lindstrand is behind the camera. They were also awaiting their meal which was a nice fat rat.

photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Jeremy fed the lynx for us today since we were in town all day.  You may not see it in this picture, but I am sure Jeremy was terrified the whole time.







                 Photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

Well the reindeer have almost lost all their antlers. Out of the five we have in the herd I think only 2 reindeer have one left each.  The reindeer lose their antlers to signal that rut is over.  Rut is the time of year when they are breeding.  People ask me if it is a painful process.  I like to compare it to losing a baby tooth; just a little uncomfortable.

photo courtesy of Doug Lindstrand

It has been a very productive day along with educational.  I better catch some shut eye so I can get ready for Groundhog's Day Alaskan style!  Oh I can't tell you what it is yet....you will just have to wait and read!

Goodnight Lower 48,
ErIn

What's that bright thing shining in the sky?

Boy did I wake up to a nice surprise today...the sun is shining!  December and January in Portage, Ak; or any where in Alaska for that matter, are the darkest months out of the year.  On top of having the shortest days these past few month we have had so much rain.  When I would usually be able to step out my door into a few feet of snow; I find myself wearing my mukboots on a rainy day.
So today was a pleasant surprise to have a sunny day off.  I hopped in my truck and drove around the center to take advantage of the nice weather.  oh, and did I mention that it was also a warm 38 degrees...no seriously that is warm weather right now.

Normally I don't get very good photos of the musk ox herd because they are either too close to me or trying to charge me.


This photo shows the three senior females in the front  , with Slide our bull in the back.

Slide managed to get in this next photo.  I still can not imagine Walter, last summer's calf, getting this big!  You can really tell the size difference between the males and females just by comparing their horns.

 Look how big our 2 calves from this summer are!  I remember when Gilly and Nelson, who are now going on 2 years old were this size.  Soon enough we will be moving these 2 moose in with the other 3 moose.  Jack, billy, and Nelson, will have 2 knew roommates!

Even Patron, the 9 year old brown bear was sunbathing a bit today.

With the warm winter we have been having our bears have been up more than usual.  The rain also drives them out of their dens sometimes.







                              I also had fun visiting the lynx today.  Venetie and Kaltag were curious to see if  I had a special treat for them.  Sometimes we like to spray different scents in their enclosure.  They really like bath and body works scents.  I have a few extra from home that I brought back with me.

             
Goodnight lower 48,
ErIn

Back from a long Vacation

Well it's been nice texas but time to go back to Alaska and play with the critters.  I miss them!

But first here is a quick recap of the past month's adventures:

 I went to Pennsylvania for the first time ever!  I went with my Boyfriend to see the Liberty Bell.

We also went to the Hershey museum on the way to Philadelphia.  I was to o excited to see all the chocolate to even take pictures.

There were so many historical statues and buildings in the area.  it was nice learning our nations history.




One of the things I miss most about Texas, besides my friends and family, are the dogs!  This is Low Rider AKA-Rider.

 One of my friends works at the Houston Aqaurium.

 She let me hang out with her for the day.  I thought aquariums only had marine animals?  Nope, they also have a variety of birds, 4 white bengal Tigers, 1 sloth, serval, and a cute fox.

This is Katie in the picture on the right.

Thanks again Katie!

 Katie was showing me some of the commands that the birds know.

This is a serval that the aquarium also has.

So back to my own turf.  when I went back to work I was amazed at how big some of the animals have gotten in the past month!  This is solo on the left.  he is starting to bulk up like a male deer should.  I wonder if he is going to be territorial this summer with the 2 other female deer?






Well since I have returned the weather has been sort of yucky.  I used one of these photos that Doug Lindstrand sent back in november.  This is the bull elk that was used for breeding this year.  My oh my he sure is handsome!

                              Photo courtesy of: Doug Lindstrand - http://douglindstrand.com

Once I see the sun again I will be sure to post some more photos of the critters.  I know you just miss seeing Snickers cute face.  (at least you can't smell him..... )

Goodnight Lower 48,
ErIn

Back in the Lower 48!

Wow what a busy end of the year it has been.  I haven't blogged in a while for a few reasons.  First, I could not find my camera charger for almost a month back in November.

The snow arrived shortly after that.
                                    This is Rick, one of our handy men, feeding the Bison herd.

In order to get ready for the holiday season some of the animals were also preparing for the big day in December....particularly Bert the reindeer.  Tom, Sarah, and I were walking Bert around so he could get used to walking around kids again.  He did very well when we took him to Girdwood Elementary for their annual Holiday Bazaar.  We also took him to a few holiday parties as the greeter at the door.

Soon it was time for my vacation!  I decided to make a pit stop in Hawaii to visit a few old friends from the summer.
  I needed to thaw out a bit!

 

 First stop....Maui!  Kate, who was an intern at the center, is now doing an apprenticeship on Maui at the Surfin Goat Dairy Farm.  She picked me up from the airport and wanted to show me where she worked.  Just as we arrived it was time to milk some of the goats.  They just walk right up to ramp and get their feed as they are being milked.

 Then, Kate let me hold some newborn baby goats!

 Ahhhhhhhhhh...more babies!!!!!

  

 Next on my agenda, snorkeling! As a thank you gift for house sitting; my co-worker Ethan and his family bought me a day trip to Molokini Island!  Wow!!!! What an awesome form of payment!  I also rented an underwater canon camera to make things even more interesting. 

I was having a blast!

Just before we were taken back to the harbor the boat crew stopped at a popular site to see sea turtles.  Sea Turtle populations are very protected.  They are finally back on the rise!  They can lay up to 200 hundred eggs at a time.  Unfortunately, only 2 or 3 hatchlings will survive to adult hood!

On my last day in Maui I just layed around and soaked up the sun, let the sand get between my toes, and take a few last minute splashes in the ocean.  

 and also enjoyed a sunset view...

 But that wasn't the end of my Hawaii visit.  I jumped on a small 10 passenger plane and went to visit another friend on the Big Island Hawaii.

Claire took me to Waipio Valley.  It was beautiful!  We hiked from the road down into the valley to enjoy the black sand beach.  Claire taught me a few interesting facts about the islands of Hawaii.  The black sand beaches are so young that there hasn't been enough time for the wearing away of the coral and rocks to have whiter sand.

 Just before Claire and her family took me to the airport to fly back to Texas; we stopped and had lunch on a beach close to the airport.  I love the tidal pool that is behind us.  I love exploring them and finding things hidden in crevices and under rocks.

I had a blast on the islands and am so glad that I was blessed to have such wonderful friends take care of me during my visit.  I hope to return the favor one day.



I know it's late but I wish all my viewers a Happy Christmas and New Year.  Goodnight Lower 48, or I guess I should say Goodnight upper 2!

-Erin