Mt. Rainier Portraits

We left Anchorage at 7am and made it to the Seattle Art Museum a little after noon where we met our daughter and granddaughter for some play time and then some Indian lunch.  The came with us on the train back to the airport before saying good bye.

These are some pictures of Mt. Rainer as we left Seattle.  They're each from somewhat different angles.  But overall it's like looking at one side of the moon as we flew by on the west, from the north.

This last one show the southern side.

We just walked into my mom's house.  We haven't been here in about six months.  When we last left we worked in a frenzy trying to get it clean and empty of things that had real importance to us.  There's enough furniture that people can stay here and we've had some friends use it during the time.  And the woman who cleaned the house so well for my mom still comes by regularly.

All that is a preface to the pleasant surprise we got when we got the alarm turned off and walked in.  It looks good.  I know that tomorrow when we look in the garage we'll find a lot of stuff still to do, but in the house things look better than I expected.  And when it's light out tomorrow I can see how the garden has fared.  And then I'll make a list of things to do while we're here.

From The Air

I've got a million posts in my head and not much time, but I suspect most folks would rather look at a few decent pictures than read a long post.  We walked our grandson to day care this morning, then left San Francisco at 1pm for Seattle.

Seattle had been  clouded when we landed, but the clouds seemed to have gathered over by Mt. Rainer as we took off, leaving downtown Seattle in bright sunshine. (Click the pics to see them sharper.)

Then we veered over Puget Sound.

Then I got some work done, read my book, and before I knew it we were over Prince William Sound with Denali and Foraker silhouetted in the sunset glow.

Minutes later we were passing Anchorage from the south so we could loop around over Cook Inlet to land.

(Sorry about the stray light coming in as they turned on the cabin lights.)

We spent a good amount of time at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art yesterday and I have so many pictures I have no idea how I'm going to tackle posting about that.  I do like modern art museums because I see work that lots if not most people would dismiss, that I love.  And I don't feel as all alone in my weird tastes. Which reminds me I still have a follow up post from the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris.

Moses At Yosemite

We walked over to Temple Sherith Israel for Rosh Hashanah services today with my son and his family.  This is a large and beautiful old synagogue.

While I looked at the stained glass window of Moses and the ten commandments, my brain blinked as it seemed to recognize Half Dome and El Capitan.

It wasn't appropriate to take pictures during the services, 

so this image is from the temple's website.  It's only part of the window.

Later I read more about the window on the Temple Sherith Israel website:

"West window: This dramatic work, "Moses Presented the Ten Commandments to the Children of Israel," was designed by Paris-trained artist Emile Pissis, brother of architect Albert Pissis. Emile created a movie-star handsome Moses, red robe flowing, surrounded by vibrant tribal flags and the Hebrew people. But instead of standing at Sinai, the Jewish people are gathered on granite rocks at the gateway to Yosemite, Half Dome and El Capitan in the distance. This is a modern Moses, and California is the Promised Land. . .

The identity of the glass artist/s was unknown until congregants Joan Libman and Ian Berke discovered an invoice for $1,100 made out to Emile Pissis. Emile, who frequently painted scenes of Yosemite, designed the Moses window on the west wall and seven other windows in the sanctuary."

The building was consecrated on September 24, 1905, and for those who know their history, the big San Francisco earthquake hit seven months later on April 18,1906.  But the building sustained only slight damage, and none in the 1989 earthquake.  But it's recently been undergoing architectural strengthening required by the City of San Francisco.

Flying Over Chugach Mountains Never Gets Old

On good days, which really is any day you can see the mountains, the views flying in and out of Anchorage are breathtaking.  Even after almost 40 years.  And even with a scratchy window that caught the morning sun, some of the pictures came out ok.  Just click on the pictures to see them sharper.  Here's downtown Anchorage in the middle with Government Hill on the bottom and Westchester Lagoon on the top right.

Quickly we're up over the mountains.

And then suddenly, we're over Prince William Sound.

And eventually, I'm watching the clouds preparing for an invasion of San Francisco.

And we get to have dinner with family.

It's All About Being At The Right Place At The Right Time

Was biking home last night to a huge rainbow that arced the sky, with a dazzling display just over Flat Top.   I only had my little Spotmatic to snap with, but you can get a sense of how vivid it was.

This morning, about 12 hours later I was back at the same spot I had gotten this picture.  But things were different.  

Evening Stroll At Powerline Pass

My bookclub met on the Hillside last night, not far from the cutoff to Glen Alps and Powerline Pass.  It was a little after nine pm when we got out, so I turned right up the hill.  Here are some shots.  Since this is summer in Alaska, and as a recent guest remarked, "It's 9pm in the afternoon."  The last shot was taken about 9:45pm.

Monk's Hood

Do I need to say anything about this?  After all these years I still can't believe I live 20 minutes from this other world.  

Cow Parsnip Seeds

I'm not sure what these are.  They were growing on a long dark purple stalk near the creek.  Click to focus better.  

Good Day At Denali - Mountain, Moose, Caribou, Bears, And Blue Skies

click to enlarge and focus

A great day at Denali National Park.  I forget that not everyone who finds their way here knows that Denali is the name of the national park, and now, officially, of the highest mountain in North America that used to be named Mt. McKinley.

This was our first view this morning with the caribou moving in to pose as well.  Denali is on the right in the background.

There were several more caribou in the distance.




A little further on there was a moose with last year's calf on the mountain side.

Since moose are fairly common in Anchorage, these are a little less exciting, but still good to see in more natural settings than crossing the road.

Being in the park reminds me why I'm alive.  It's just so spectacular.  Again, click the picture to enlarge it, and more important, get it sharper.

The road is open to Teklanika campground.  From their you can walk or bike as far as you want.  Once the buses start, May 20, cars aren't allowed.  We walked down from the Teklanika view point to the bridge - the view here - and then on another mile  and a half down the road, for a good, warmish (the sun had warmed things up into the high 50s, maybe low 60s and the wind was much less than it was yesterday.)

 And nearly back to the visitor center, there were cars stopped on the road, and three bears walking along the tundra across the river below.  I don't know that we would have seen them without seeing the others watching them.  But the telephoto makes them a little more than specs.


Lots more pictures, but I want to post this before they shut off the wifi at the visitors center.

April In Denali

Our May - before the buses run - trip to Denali is in April this year.  It's been the warmest winter on record and the weather forecast was good.

On the right is the view from the Mile 135 look out.  That's the Chulitna River.  On a clear day you can get one of the best views of the mountain from this southern viewpoint.

Current conditions at

McKinley Park, McKinley National Park Airport (PAIN)

Lat: 63.73° N Lon: 148.92° W Elev: 1719 ft.

Fair

36°F

2°C

Humidity	65%
Wind Speed	Calm
Barometer	29.61 in
Dewpoint	25°F (-4°C)
Visibility	10.00 mi
Last update	26 Apr 8:16 am AKDT

More Information:

Local Forecast OfficeMore Local Wx3 Day HistoryMobile WeatherHourly Weather Forecast

Detailed forecast for

Denali

Today

Mostly cloudy in the morning...then partly sunny in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 50s to lower 60s. Local south winds gusting to 25 mph in passes...otherwise variable winds less than 15 mph.

Tonight

Partly cloudy in the evening then becoming mostly cloudy. Lows in the mid 30s. In passes...south winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 40 mph. Elsewhere variable winds less than 15 mph.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy. Isolated rain and snow showers in the morning...then scattered rain showers in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 50s. In passes...south winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 40 mph. Elsewhere variable winds less than 15 mph.

[Weather forecast from forecast.weather.gov]

As you can see, it wasn't completely clear. But you can see the base of Denali and a little bit more in the veil of clouds, flirting.








A little further down the road after Honolulu Creek, you get to the plateau surrounded by these exquisite mountains.









We got here a little after 4pm yesterday and drove to the Savage River bridge where we had dinner.  Just a ribbon of water flowing through the ice.  And it was windy.






Not much wildlife.  Some ravens, seagulls, and a squirrel.

It's sunny and blue this morning and we're hoping to get a better view of Denali today before the clouds come in.  Just stopping at the visitors center to borrow some wifi.  (It was shut off when we came back to Riley Creek campground about 8:30 last night.

Anchorage Early Spring

As we flew back into Alaska yesterday, the mountains and glaciers of Southeast welcomed us.

And here's a photo of the Chugach that edge Anchorage.  If this were a painting, some folks would complain it was just patterns, but this is an undoctored photo.

AND, most amazing, here are the new leaves today on the birch tree out front.  It's April 21.  The earliest I ever remember fully budded leaves on the birch was around May 7.   Usually it wasn't until the end of May.  OK, I'm not sure about last year.  We were in LA with my mom about this time and there were leaves on the cottonwoods when we got back on May 13.  Then we headed for Denali where things weren't green yet.

When we got to Anchorage in 1977 we were told not to plant anything until June 1.  This year I put in sweet pea seeds on April 3, because over the years spring comes earlier and earlier.

Odds And Ends - Central American Peaks, 99 Year Life Ends, Race, Police, And Headlines

A colleague has driven from Seattle to Mexico in the hopes of climbing the highest mountain in each Central American country.  (I actually have a book of the highest peaks in all the US states, but doubt that at this point I'll reach the tops of too many of them.)  Anyway, Sharman's blogging the trip and some of you might like to follow along.  Her partner Mike made it to the top of Mexico's highest mountain Citlaltépetl, but Sharman decided not to fight the altitude and only went part of the way.

Frank at 99

My step-mother's husband died the other day. (She married him after my father died.)  We saw them Here's a video I made of the two of them in 2008, with more biography of each.
in early January.  Frank was 99.  He grew up in Czechoslovakia, speaking Hungarian and Czech and was in Nazi work camps during WWII.  His younger brother Larry got out of Europe before WW II to study at UCLA.  Larry died a couple of years ago.

Time speeds along.  The Anchorage IRS advocate (I didn't know each state had one.  Sen. Murkowski's office contacted her on my behalf.) called yesterday to let us know she's working on the case and will get back to me.

I probably should have mentioned yesterday for folks not in Anchorage that the library steps are getting torn down to reconfigure the entrance. We aren't tearing down the library.  The fact that money was found for this is a positive sign.   The old entrance was a compromise between the original architectural design and lack of funds to do it right.  That led to the main entrance being on the second floor with a big staircase.  Not terribly accessible, especially in the winter when the steps got covered with snow.  So they built a cover.  But now they are planning to put the main entrance on the ground floor.  I haven't seen the detailed plans.


I still have video from the racial equity summit Monday and Tuesday. (And from other encounters as well.)  A regular reader also send a link to an interesting article about researchers demonstrating subconscious responses that show racism based on very quick (less than a second) views of people.  Clever techniques to figure this out.  Interesting article.   Here's the beginning.

"Jennifer Eberhardt presented her research at a law enforcement conference, she braced for a cold shoulder. How much would streetwise cops care what a social psychology professor had to say about the hidden reaches of racial bias? Instead, she heard gasps, the loudest after she described an experiment that showed how quickly people link black faces with crime or danger at a subconscious level. In the experiment, students looking at a screen were exposed to a subliminal flurry of black or white faces. The subjects were then asked to identify blurry images as they came into focus frame by frame.

The makeup of the facial prompts had little effect on how quickly people recognized mundane items like staplers or books. But with images of weapons, the difference was stark—subjects who had unknowingly seen black faces needed far fewer frames to identify a gun or a knife than those who had been shown white faces. For a profession dealing in split-second decisions, the implications were powerful." [To read the rest]

This is particularly interesting in light of Mike Dingman's commentary in the ADN today about police reaction to the Mayor's intent to diversify the Anchorage police department.  The headline was:

"Mayor calls for diversity in APD, and some folks get the vapors"

But then again, I'm seeing more and more sensational headlines these days.  When you read the article it doesn't seem as extreme as the headline.  Like this teaser on the cover of the ADN today:

"In sharp clash, Clinton and Sanders swap barbs and views
In a brutally caustic debate Thursday night . . ."

Really?  If the Clinton/Sanders exchange was 'brutally caustic' how would you describe the recent Republican debates.  In the article (link is to original NY Times article) it tells us that Clinton said,

". . . months of criticism by Mr. Sanders over her taking speaking fees from Wall Street banks amounted to a suggestion that she was corrupt — or, as she put it, a 'very artful smear.'

Is this an attempt to be even handed?  To make the Democrats look as belligerent as the Republicans?

Visiting Alaska While We're Home

One of the most common axioms in Alaska is that Anchorage is just 20 minutes from Alaska.  And while we've been going back and forth so much lately, I have to remember that while we're back home in Anchorage, to make sure we go see a bit of Alaska each time.  So Sunday, with blue sky and sunshine and relatively warm weather (20s), we headed to McHugh Creek.

Note that it was January 31 and the water of Turnagain arm was . . . water.  Not ice.

And the trail was ice and snow free as we started off.

I checked the rock map.  Wish I could read the story it's telling us.

Further up the trail, there were patches of ice.  It's ironic.  All the snow is gone, except on the trail where people's footsteps packed the snow down and it became ice.  The very reason I work hard to keep our sloping driveway snow free - so it doesn't become an ice slope.

There was also ice over the creeks the path crosses.


All these pictures are much sharper if you click on them.

Two ravens began a raucous alert.

And above we saw the reason, flying over.

It looked more like early fall as the setting sun put an orange glow on the hillside.

So good to get out and walk in the woods.