Alaska magazine Dec-Jan 2019 Travel Planner Issue

CHENA HOT SPRINGS MUSIC FESTIVALS BEST 2018 GEAR The Magazine of Life on the Last Frontier

The

TRAVEL PLANNER Issue

BucketList 28 Alaska Experiences Including… >> See Polar Bears >> Tour Kenai Fjords

National Park

>> Fish for Halibut >> Hike on a Glacier

and more!

Photo Essay:

DANCES WITH WOLVERINES

The Alaska Railroad believes the journey should be just as spectacular as the destination. That’s why our trains offer glass-dome ceilings, freshly prepared meals and local Alaskan tour guides. Plus, our packages take passengers to the most extraordinary places across the state for the ultimate Alaska adventure.

Request your free 2019 Alaska Railroad brochure at AlaskaRailroad.com/Alaska2019

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THE MAGIC STARTS NOVEMBER 10 AT 5PM

FREE Photo with Santa!

The magic starts on November 10 at 5PM. Come inside your local Bass Pro Shops® and Cabela’s® for your FREE photo with Santa during Santa's Wonderland®.

FREE Crafts, Games & Activities!

Gather the family and come to experience the joy of a classic Christmas. Stay for FREE games, crafts, and activities that celebrate the season.

PLUS! Toys for Kids of all ages!

You'll find our store filled with magical gifts for folks of all ages, with plenty of awesome toys for girls and boys.

NEW Toys for 2018!

AVAILABLE AT BOTH BASS PRO SHOPS & CABELA’S !

SEE STORE FOR DETAILS.

BP181884

12.1801.19 V OLUME 84, NUMBER 10

FEATURES

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Photo Essay: Dances with Wolverines

Kroschel Wildlife Center delights visitors Text and photos

by Michelle Theall

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Essential Alaska Bucket list adventures of the Last Frontier

By Alexander Deedy

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The Forks Roadhouse

New owners resurrect historic property as a place for all ages

By Kaylene Johnson-Sullivan

Small plane is the only way to get to many of Alaska’s most remote locations.

MICHELLE THEALL/ wilddepartures.com

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DEPARTMENTS

QUOTED

The Cache

“I felt like I was on the clock: For every second of daylight squandered on one end I would be begging for it on the other.”

22 Hardy Beasts All Alaskan muskox are descendants of 34 original transplants 22 Alaska Apps Download these apps to get travel planning and info in your pocket 24 Local Flavor In need of a nostalgia fix, one Alaskan woman launched a spice company 26 Year of the Salmon Understanding Alaska’s favorite fish

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STATEWIDE

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~ A LITTLE TRIP HOME STEVE KAHN P. 32

CHENA HOT SPRINGS

Discover 32 Sense of Place

A Little Trip Home

36 Itinerary

Weirdly Wonderful: Chena Hot Springs

38 Try This

El Capitan Cave

42 Out There

Sheldon Chalet

46 Gear

PLUS: 8 My View North 12 Feast 14 Alaska Exposed 18 On the Edge 50 Community 95 Interview 96 This Alaskan Life

On the Cover: Under bright moonlight, the Sheldon Chalet perches in the middle of Ruth Glacier in the Ruth/Don Sheldon Amphitheater on Denali. Luxurious accommodations and dining await visitors to this new lodge adjacent to the Sheldon family’s historic mountain retreat. ~Photo by Jeff Schultz/SchultzPhoto.com

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

(TOP) MONICA DEVINE (BOTTOM) PATRICK J. ENDRES/ALASKAHOTOGRAPHICS.COM

Top Picks of 2018

Small Town Alaska

The Seaview Bar and Café in Hope is a gathering place on summer weekends for music lovers.

M

UCH FANFARE IS PAID TO ALASKA’S MOST POPULAR

attractions—Denali, Brooks Falls, the Inside Passage, Glacier Bay, and others—all warranted for their natural grandeur and wildlife watching opportunities, as well as to the state’s three largest cities: Anchorage, Juneau, and Fairbanks. But our smaller, cozier places also deserve some love.

Take the community of Hope, for example, a former mining town nearly a two-hour drive from Anchorage. Today, almost 200 people live in this hamlet at the base of steep, forested mountains along Turnagain Arm. Throughout winter, residents go about their quiet lives, but come summer, tourists drop in regularly, and each weekend at the historic Seaview Bar and Café, live music attracts a crowd for dancing and camping.

Services and nerves could get stretched thin with the influx, but they don’t, in part because business owners actively participate in reminding revelers of quiet hours and of helping preserve the small-town charm by keeping public restrooms and parks clean.

Visitors can also wander the dirt streets and check out notable mining-related structures and equipment, pop into businesses, hike on local trails, or fish for pink salmon in Resurrection Creek. For such a tiny town, dining and accommodation options are plentiful, making Hope an easy destination to recommend.

Other well-known small towns like Talkeetna and Girdwood are also delightful places to spend a day or a week exploring.

A trip to Talkeetna isn’t complete until you’ve bellied up to the bar at the Fairview Inn to rub elbows with the locals or tap your toes—for free—to the likes of Tim Easton or The Goodtime Travelers. During the Denali climbing season, you can meet sunburned adventurers fresh off “The Mountain” while enjoying pie or pancakes at the Roadhouse on main street. All kinds of tours are available from Talkeetna—flightseeing, riverboating, fishing, ziplining—but it’s also fun to simply relax in one of the

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many outside dining areas and people-watch.

Girdwood is well-known for having Alaska’s largest and most easily accessible alpine ski resort, but it’s also a foodie enclave and a hiking and mountain biking mecca. From dry (no running water) cabins to lavish lodging, and with shopping of all sorts, Girdwood easily fulfills anyone’s expectations. All this without crowds—Girdwood’s population sits just under 2,000.

Anyone who’s taken the time to drive the gravel road from Chitina to McCarthy will tell you what fun McCarthy is, even though you must park on the opposite side of a raging glacial river, walk across the footbridge, and either walk the rest of the way to town or ride the frequent, daily shuttle. And with one main street—yes, dirt—McCarthy seems a little sleepy at first, but give it a chance and you’ll meet all of the dogs (they run loose), friendly families, and eager guides. Of course, you’ll eat at least one meal at The Potato, and of course, you’ll head five miles uphill to Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark to tour restored and shored-up buildings.

Add farther-flung locales such as Wiseman, Nome, Utqiagvik, Unalaska, Sitka, and Seldovia to your Alaska travel plans, too.

Off-the-beaten-path communities often make the best getaways if you’re looking for a unique experience and want to meet resourceful people who eke out a living any way they can.

Wherever you choose to explore in Alaska, schedule it now and start planning!

And speaking of calendars, for the first time ever, we’re offering our annual Alaska magazine calendar for sale. Please see our website, alaskamagazine.com, to order copies.

Susan Sommer Editor editor@alaskamagazine.com

COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER

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You’ve won a one-week, all-expenses-paid trip anywhere in Alaska. Where do you go?

This month at

alaskamagazine.com Log on and explore life on the Last Frontier.

Kayaking in Prince William Sound (summer), or a long soak in Chena Hot Springs (winter).

Kobuk Valley and Gates during the caribou migration.

Sign me up for a polar cruise around Alaska and through the Northwest Passage.

The Magazine of Life on the Last Frontier GROUP PUBLISHER EDITOR

Susan Sommer

SENIOR EDITOR

Michelle Theall

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Melissa Bradley

ART DIRECTOR ASSISTANT EDITOR GEAR EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Paddling in Glacier Bay.

HUMOR COLUMNIST DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER

Give us your best shot!

Share your best photos with us on Facebook and tag us on Instagram for a chance to be featured on our social media or here. Chris Lindner of 907Shots snapped this picture of fireweed and Gulkana Glacier.

Madelyn Pearman captured this photo of her friend’s daughter holding up a forget-me-not, Alaska’s state flower.

DIRECTOR OF PUBLISHING SERVICES

Fly-in fishing at one of the best lodges in western Alaska.

John Lunn

SPECIAL PROJECTS PRODUCT MANAGER

DIRECTOR OF MANUFACTURING

Steven Merritt Alexander Deedy

First, I’d like to go to western Alaska and view the walrus migration. Then, I’d like to sail around the Arctic and watch polar bears from the deck.

Sign me up for western Kodiak or some remote river on the Alaska Peninsula—I have the big bear fever this time of year.

Bjorn Dihle Nick Jans Susan Dunsmore Seth Fields Karen Fralick David L. Ranta

The islands of Attu and Kiska at the end of the Aleutian Chain. Site of massive, bloody, but largely unknown battles in WWII. Not to mention it’s as far east (by longitude) and remote as Alaska gets.

Mickey Kibler Donald Horton

ALASKA ADVERTISING SALES

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ALASKAMAGAZINE.COM

Donna Kessler Patty Tiberg Scott Ferguson

Morris Communications Company, LLC CHAIRMAN William S. Morris III PRESIDENT AND CEO William S. Morris IV Alaska, ISSN 0002-4562, is published monthly except for combined July/August and December/January issues by MCC Magazines, LLC, a division of Morris Communications Company, LLC. Editorial and Advertising Offices: 301 Arctic Slope Ave., Suite 300, Anchorage, Alaska 99518. Not responsible for the return of unsolicited submissions. Known office of publication: 735 Broad St., Augusta, Ga. 30901. U.S. subscription rates: $24 for one year; $46 for two years. Canada and Mexico add $20 per year (U.S. Funds only). Outside North America add $40 per year (U.S. Funds only). Our trademarks registered in the U.S. Patent Office and in Canada: “Alaska,” “Alaska Sportsman,” “Life on the Last Frontier,” “From Ketchikan to Barrow,” “End of the Trail,” “The Guide Post,” “Main Trails & Bypaths,” “Alaska-Yukon Magazine.” Periodicals postage paid at Augusta, Ga., and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Alaska, PO Box 433237, Palm Coast, FL 32143-9616. In Canada, periodicals postage paid at Winnipeg, Manitoba; second-class registration number 9771, GST No. 125701896. Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement No. 279730. © 2018 Alaska magazine. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. Volume 84, Number 10.

FACEBOOK POLL RESULTS

Tell us one of the top destinations on your Alaska bucket list that you crossed off recently or hope to visit soon.

Below are a few reader comments from the poll question posted on facebook.com/AlaskaMagazine

➜

Lynda Lee Weir: I lived in Alaska as a child and visited on a cruise recently. My bucket list spot is Katmai to see the bears fishing!

➜

Rebeca Rix: I finally got to see Homer and go to The Spit after living in Alaska for seven years.

➜

Bert Verstraete: Glacier walking in the Wrangells.

Pat Caylor: We have made four trips to this beautiful state and hope to go back many more times. I would love to go to the Katmai area to see the grizzlies up close.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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Down-to-Earth Baked Alaska Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop’s local roots

BY MOLLY RETTIG

of bed and into a room filled with mountains of muffins and baskets of buttery croissants? Well you can, if you live in east Anchorage, downtown, or on the south side of the city, where the Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop has recently opened its third location.

Since 2009, the bakeshop has tantalized food lovers with treats that reflect Alaska’s wide sweep of seasons and soils. From Parisian macaroons to sprouted grain sourdough bread, the artisan bakery melds sweet and savory flavors to create a dazzling selection of sandwiches, cookies, cakes, and other goodies–often sourced from right within the neighborhood.

Founders Janis Fleischman and Jerry Lewanski started the bakery after 30-year careers with the State of Alaska. Their four children have all worked there over the years, either baking, marketing, or taste-testing. Today one of their daughters, Rachel Pennington, runs the business while another supplies it with veggies from her farm down the street.

Family is also baked into the atmosphere at Fire Island, with plenty of toys and games to go along with the coffee and scones. What makes it most special, Pennington says, is the customers.

“Alaskans are so appreciative to get high-quality bread and pastries without needing a plane ticket.”

The beet and chèvre muffin is a staple on Fire Island’s winter menu. The recipe takes advantage of the flavorful root veggies that grow in the rich glacial soil of the Mat-Su valley. Head baker Carlyle Watt dreamed up the muffins to surprise and entice the palate. “With the crunchy orange streusel on top, it reminds us of a bowl of Fruity Pebbles. No kidding!”

These delicacies can be found at the original downtown bakery, east side bakeshop, or at the new location on 91st Avenue. fireislandbread. com

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Beet chèvre muffins are just one exotic flavor among many at Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop in Anchorage. Other combinations include strawberry and basil, and maple and rhubarb. Breads range from rustic wheat to plum flax to garlic sea salt.

Many of their goodies are dairy- or gluten-free, or vegan, and they source local ingredients whenever possible.

Beet Chèvre Muffins INGREDIENTS:

• 540g all-purpose flour • 25g baking powder • 15g salt • 53g chopped pecans • 285g chèvre • 450g granulated sugar • 600g sour cream • 230g beet puree • 240g safflower oil DIRECTIONS:

Prep your beet puree ahead of time so the mixture has time to cool. Chop beets into medium size chunks and steam until tender. Let them sit until cool enough to handle, then remove the skin. Place in food processor and puree until smooth. Allow puree to cool to room temperature or store in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Crumble chèvre and mix gently to incorporate. Set

aside. In a separate bowl, mix together wet ingredients, including beet puree. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Line your muffin tin with papers and fill each cup about 3/4 full. Top with orange streusel and bake for 30 minutes.

Orange Streusel Ingredients • 216g all-purpose flour • 74g granulated sugar • 70g brown sugar • 16g orange zest • 3g salt • 113g salted butter, cubed DIRECTIONS:

Combine all dry ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl. Add butter and use hands to fully incorporate into the mixture. The end result should be crumbly but will hold together in a ball when pressed.

COURTESY FIRE ISLAND RUSTIC BAKESHOP

D

O YOU EVER WISH YOU COULD ROLL OUT

Where do you read Alaska?

I spent 15 days in Tamale, Ghana, on the African continent in June of 2018. I am taking a break in front of a water retention tank that our mission team helped construct and paid for. I have been to the American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska, four times in the past and am scheduled to go again this fall. I was also in Alaska in February 2017 for the International Ice Carving Championships in Fairbanks. Last year I went a week early for the ABEF to attend the Whale Watch Festival in Sitka. The Great Land has some spectacular events.

Rod Marietta Hanover, OH

Saw this unknown person reading Alaska magazine at Sherando Lake National Campground in Waynesboro, Va. The article must have been good!

Jim Hooper

Hello From the beautiful beaches in Conneaut, Ohio. It is my favorite place to feed the sea rats, as we call them, and dive into my beautiful magazine of drop-dead images and articles of a place so opposite of where I live.

Lisa Kosmatine Albion, PA

When Jon wanted to RV through Alaska for almost three weeks, I thought he had lost his mind!

This city girl in an RV? I have a deep love for Alaska, but I also cherish long, hot showers, and I hadn’t “camped” for 30 years. Well, off we went in a rental RV and, as you can see, Alaska magazine kept us company all along the way. We had spectacular picnics along the Alaskan roadways with incredible landscapes, parks, and ocean views as our backdrop. We enjoyed meeting people from all around the world. Now I can’t wait to come back to Alaska, perhaps in our own RV this time?

Barbara & Jon Peters Conyers, Georgia

This is a picture of my wife, Lisa, and me in Budapest in front of Matthias Church standing on the turreted Fishermen’s Bastion. We were on a Viking River Cruise that started a week earlier in Passau, Germany. I have only been to Alaska once and am looking for the opportunity to return. Lisa and her family moved to Anchorage just months after the great earthquake in ‘64. They remained for six years until being transferred back to the Lower 48. Lisa has some good stories about growing up in Alaska. Thanks for a great magazine!

Bill & Lisa Webster Charlotte, North Carolina

Connect with us! Send us pictures of where you read Alaska and submit letters to the editor at editor@alaskamagazine.com.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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ALASKA EXPOSED Tunnel of Ice

Fat tire snow bikers explore ice caves on Spencer Lake, reached by pedaling 12 miles along the frozen Placer River at the head of Turnagain Arm. Â MATT HAGE /

hagephoto.com

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DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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ALASKA EXPOSED Deep Diver

A harbor seal with a half-wet and half-dry face rests on an island along the Katmai Coast. Harbor seals can dive up to 1,640 feet.

JEFF SCHULTZ/

schultzphoto.com

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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Out the Road

T

BY NICK JANS

HE NARROW RIBBON OF CHILKAT LAKE ROAD CURVES

ahead, rising between cottonwood, spruce, and birch. I lean into my mountain bike pedals on an early July evening, weaving around potholes and clumps of bear scat. Snow-streaked ridges and peaks stretch skyward, spotlit in surreal clarity. A quarter mile earlier, I’d paused by the Little Salmon River to watch a grazing cow moose; on the far side of the river’s mirrored, beaver-pond meadow, a pair of nesting trumpeter swans shone. I might as well be riding through a threedimensional postcard…yeah, including the poop. Three nights in a row, I’d seen its maker—a rangy male brown bear browsing along the roadside. And each time (like most bears in these parts) he beat a polite retreat. Whether I see him or his leavings, he’s part of this perfect Alaskan image.

Four miles later, breathing hard, I coast to our place: a post-and-beam Dutch barn thing in a grassy clearing, framed by trees that might pass for big elsewhere; around here, medium. I

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sit on the back steps, sipping a beer, swatting an occasional mosquito and watching the long summer twilight settle over the country. Hummingbirds squabble over the feeders, and Foxy the squirrel makes endless laps between his various caches and the seed board, sometimes passing within touching distance.

Besides bear and moose, I might spot a coyote or even a lynx; goshawks, eagles, owls, and many smaller creatures make their homes around me, everything from boreal toads to sapsuckers.

A few evenings back, I heard wolf howls twining with the cold rush of the Klehini River, where the first salmon will soon be spawning.

This is the sort of country people come to Alaska to glimpse for a day or two. So why not live here? After 15 years in Juneau, Sherrie and I had been ready for something else—quieter, smaller, more secluded. Places with too much rain or too cold were definitely out. And for the sake of logistics, we’d rather have a road. I’d done the remote, off-grid bush thing in the northwest

NICK JANS

At home in semi-rural Alaska

On the Haines Highway, the next great view is right around the bend.

All several hundred of us out-the-roaders share something in common: not far from our doors, the country gets seriously wild and big-shouldered in a hurry. How deep or far you go is up to you.

Arctic—still made an annual pilgrimage to that fine house on the upper Kobuk, in fact—but knew that living there, or someplace similar, wouldn’t work for my Florida-raised wife. We looked around small towns as far north as Palmer and Homer; up Lynn Canal to Skagway; and settled on the Porcupine Bridge area out the Haines Highway about 26 miles north of town, just above the confluences of three glacier-fed mountain rivers: The Chilkat, the Klehini, and the Tsirku. The rough-around-the-edges but well-built homestead and the lay of the land seemed perfect, but you never know if a move like this is going to work out. Even after doing all our homework, including several visits and seemingly endless debate, the final decision still amounted to holding our breaths and jumping. And we did.

A rumble of tires on gravel announces a human neighbor—one of maybe a dozen vehicles that pass over the course of a day.

I raise my hand to Josh as he drives by.

Despite the wilderness vibe, this is actually a neighborhood—a couple dozen houses, everything from bare-bones cabins to custom homes, scattered over a mile or so of gravel lane, with plenty of woods between each place. People are incredibly friendly and will drop what they’re doing to help, but day to day, we all stay pretty much to ourselves.

Along the Haines Highway, which follows the sprawling, mountain-rimmed floodplain of the Chilkat Valley 40 miles from the coastal town of Haines (population 2,500) to the British Columbia border, lie a number of such enclaves, some with

Nick’s home out the road from Haines.

names like Mosquito Lake or Eagle Vista, others known simply by the nearest highway milepost: 7 Mile, 18 Mile, 39 Mile.

There’s also the Tlingit village of Klukwan, just before the Chilkat bridge—the original neighborhood. Some folks live what locals call “Out the Road” year round; others shift with the seasons and work, as I do these days.

All several hundred of us out-the-roaders share something in common: Not far from our doors, the country gets seriously wild and big-shouldered in a hurry. How deep or far you go is up to you. Logging and mining two-tracks lead into some remote areas. To those with a hankering for mountain-goat bushwhacking, the sky’s the limit. A jet skiff or snowmobile in skilled hands also gains access to country beyond those trails. On the other hand, town—the sort of place where you can buy groceries or go to the bank, order a pizza, or jump on a plane or state ferry to Juneau and the larger world—is less than an hour away for most of us, even if you’re the sort of driver who likes to poke along, rubbernecking at the scenery.

And talk about scenery. From tidewater in downtown Haines to the British Columbia border and farther, the Haines Highway winds through country as gorgeous as it gets. On nearly every 40-minute drive to or from town I find myself gawking like some first-time tourist. Down low, forests of cottonwood and evergreen line the Chilkat’s wide, braided course as it pours seaward; craggy peaks draped with hanging glaciers rise into the clouds. The next

great view lies right around the next bend.

You might meet a bear or who knows what anywhere, sometimes up close. As the summer fades into autumn, bald eagles—always a common sight in these parts—gather by the thousands to feast on late-run salmon, and the cottonwoods seem draped in living ornaments. The Klukwan people know this area where the three rivers meet and downstream a few miles as The Council Grounds; the state labels it the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve.

Whatever you call it, at peak time in late autumn, it hosts the largest assemblage of bald eagles in the world—not something you see every day…that is, unless you live here.

By now, you probably suspect that I have a serious crush on this place, and I plead guilty. It’s been about five years since we moved from Juneau, with its Alaskasuburban ambiance; and though things have since changed—these days, Sherrie and the dogs stay year-round at our similar, but less remote, Florida place in the boonies along the upper Suwannee River, where I spend the winter as well—I’m totally thrilled each May to pull up in our overloaded minivan and find myself at rest. And with each year, this Out the Road place becomes more home.

Nick Jans is a longtime contributing editor to Alaska and author of the national bestseller A Wolf Called Romeo, available from nickjans.com.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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Cache The

12.1801.19

“The Cache” is written and compiled by Assistant Editor Alexander Deedy.

Crash!

Spectacular calving action at

Lamplugh Glacier in Glacier Bay, photographed from a skiff taken off a small boat cruise.

MICHELLE THEALL/ wilddepartures.com

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the CACHE

A domestic muskox in Alaska.

HARDY BEASTS

>> Some of the most popular apps allow you to plan a vacation, find a camp site or nail an aurora viewing.

COURTESY USGS

All Alaskan muskox are descendants of 34 original transplants

THE ORIGINAL TRAVELERS

Early human migration through Alaska AFTER TRAVELING THROUGH mainland Alaska, the first human migrants to the Americas could have taken two routes, either along the coast, or inland between two giant ice sheets. There’s been some debate between which route was most likely, and new evidence bolsters the idea that they likely traveled along the coast.

Scientists who studied rocks in Alaska’s

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Dall Island in Alaska, one of the research survey points.

southeast islands discovered that pervasive glaciers retreated from the area about 17,000 years ago—although some small, local glaciers lingered—and the land was immediately filled with plant and animal life. The findings suggest it’s possible for humans to have traveled the coastal route when they entered the Americas about 16,000 years ago.

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

ALASKA APPS

A screenshot of the Travel Alaska app.

Download these apps to get travel planning and info in your pocket TRAVEL ALASKA: The State of Alaska’s official app for vacation and travel information, this app can help you plan your vacation before you leave and stay informed while you’re on the go.

THE MILEPOST TOUR GUIDE: This app gives detailed guides on essentials for road trips in Alaska, like the driving distance between gas stations and where you can stop and camp.

MY AURORA FORECAST—AURORA ALERTS NORTHERN LIGHTS: Stay up to date on the best viewing opportunities in your location with short-term and long-term forecasts, plus notifications when viewing opportunities are high.

(THIS PAGE) LEFT: COURTESY SHOREZONE; ABOVE: CARIBOU PHOTO BY MICHAEL DEYOUNG (OPPOSITE PAGE) COURTESY ANTHONY J. PRICE

MUSKOX ARE NATIVE TO ALASKA, but the population was decimated by hunters, and by the early 1900s there were none left. In 1930, a team of scientists set out to reverse the extermination.

A group of 34 muskox were captured in east Greenland and shipped to New Jersey, where they spent a month in quarantine. All the animals survived the remarkable first ordeal, but there was more to come.

The herd took a train across the country to Seattle, and then a steamship north, and another train until they finally arrived in Fairbanks. The muskox stayed there for six years, until scientists transported the animals by barge to Nunivak Island, 25 miles off the coast of western Alaska. The herd slowly grew, then began to thrive and blossomed to 750 animals.

In the late 1960s and ‘70s, wildlife managers transported groups of muskox off Nunivak Island to several points around the state. About 4,000 muskox now live on Nunivak and Nelson islands, the Seward Peninsula, and the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.

the CACHE

LOCAL FLAVOR

In need of a nostalgia fix, one Alaskan woman launched a spice company KUNNIAK HOPSON GREW UP in Utqiagvik seasoning her food with McCormick Salt ‘n Spice, so when the company discontinued the spice mix, she knew she would need a replacement. She found a recipe for the mix online, made a few adjustments, and mixed up a batch at home. Hopson now lives in Chugiak, just north of Anchorage, but she sent a sample of the mix to her sister in Utqiagvik. Her sister loved it, noting that it tasted very similar to the McCormick mix.

“A lot of people up there used McCormick Salt ‘n Spice on their Native foods,”

Hopson says. So when word got out that there was a replacement spice, “everybody wanted it.”

Though she originally made it just to satisfy her craving, the mix’s popularity prompted Hopson to start a business, Kunniak’s Spices. Since its inception six years ago, the online business has expanded to 14 flavors including a dry rub, ghost blend, and spicy versions of the original salt and spice. She has shipped packets of her spice to Inupiaq communities all over Alaska’s north slope, and recently she’s been getting lots of orders from western Alaska towns like Bethel and Unalakleet.

Customers have even placed orders from as far away as New York and Norway.

Hopson says she’s slowly learning the ins and outs of being an entrepreneur, and she hopes to eventually bring the business back home to Utqiagvik. In the meantime, she has plenty of her favorite spice mix available for herself and her family.

“We use it every day,” she says.

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Kunniak Hopson with containers of her spice mixes.

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

COURTESY KUNNIAK HOPSON

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or centuries, a Damascus steel blade was instantly recognizable and commanded immediate respect.

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the CACHE Matanuska Glacier.

GLACIER GLOSSARY WITH 616 OFFICIALLY NAMED GLACIERS and an estimated total of more than 100,000 glaciers, there’s plenty of opportunity to see rivers of ice in Alaska. Before you go, brush up on terminology and some fast facts, so when you visit an Alaskan glacier, you’re in the know.

ABLATION: Wastage of a glacier due to melting, sublimation, and calving.

CALVING: When chunks break from the front of a glacier that ends in water.

MORAINE: Debris that accumulates alongside a glacier, created

YEAR OF THE SALMON

Understanding Alaska’s favorite fish SALMON IS TO ALASKA WHAT APPLE PIE is to America. The state just wouldn’t be the same without it. Some salmon populations, especially Chinook, have been declining in recent years. January marks the beginning of the International Year of the Salmon, a project that supports research and education to ensure salmon are protected in the face of environmental change.

One of the key research projects tackled during 2019 will be a study of salmon populations in the Gulf of Alaska. Scientists will sample 72 sites in the gulf in an effort to learn more about salmon populations in the open ocean, and what environmental challenges they may face.

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

(TOP) COURTESY RICHARD MOORE (LEFT) RYAN HAGERTY, COURTESY USFWS

Chinook salmon make their way up Ship Creek in Anchorage.

by ice scraping at the earth. A terminal moraine marks the glacier’s farthest advancement.

Glaciers form when snow accumulates and compacts into ice, then becomes heavy enough to move.

Most glacier ice in Alaska is less than 100 years old, because flow moves snow and ice through the entire length of the glacier in less than a century.

Alaskan glaciers melt about 75 billion tons of water into the ocean each year, annually increasing global sea levels by two-tenths of a millimeter.

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>> During WWII and the Cold War, when the island was a strategic military outpost, a general thought it would boost morale for his soldiers to plant Christmas trees.

OURTESY PAXSON WOELBER

THE HARSH ENVIRONMENT of the cold, windswept Aleutians keeps little foliage other than grasses from growing on the island of Adak, which is home to the westernmost city in the United States.

But in WWII and during the Cold War, when the island was a strategic military outpost, a general thought it would boost morale for his soldiers to plant Christmas trees. Most of the trees died off, but a few hardy conifers refused to give way to the elements.

About 30 evergreens remain standing. The community on Adak referred to the small grove as America’s smallest national forest. The running joke is even supported by a sign standing near the trees that reads, “You are now entering and leaving Adak National Forest.”

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

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SENSE OF PLACE

Even sourdoughs find winter in the bush challenging Bella Hammond and Steve Kahn in Bella’s kitchen.

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

A

BY STEVE KAHN

SERIES OF EARLY WINTER SNOWSTORMS KEPT MY

wife, Anne, and me working on our rental home in the Mat-Su valley. The six weeks we’d been gone from our remote cabin on Lake Clark seemed like six months.

The weather forecast suggested we’d be stuck for a while—until I took a peek at the observations the next morning. A small break had developed, and I woke Anne to tell her this was our chance. A mad scramble ensued to assemble gear and load our Super Cub. I felt like I was on the clock: For every second of daylight squandered on one end I would be begging for it on the other.

When we were finally airborne, I relaxed a bit, even though the time between sunrise and sunset dwindles to less than six hours in southcentral Alaska in mid-winter, and our flight would take over two hours. We reached Lake Clark to find that where the slate blue waters ended, deep snow was visible on shore. The beach in front of our cabin, marginal for landing in the best of conditions, was unusable. We flew on.

(TOP) STEVE KAHN (LEFT) ANNE CORAY

A Little Trip Home

The author’s Super Cub after a late winter ice storm swept through Lake Clark.

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A winter scene from the author’s cabin at Lake Clark.

The author’s favorite coffee cup steams on the wood-burning cookstove.

just as I heard Anne throwing out indelicate syllables of her own. She was somewhere below me in the dark; her tone was as raw as my shinbone.

“Are you okay?” I yelled. Her voice cleaved the dark. “The sled’s so *#*#! heavy I tripped over my snowshoes.”

Inside, I stuffed paper and kindling into the barrel stove. When the fire started to crackle I threw on more wood and headed back out to shovel the steps, but Anne called up to tell me that a tree had fallen across the trail. As she detoured around it her sled tipped over again and she offered another blue streak to the blue-black evening.

We’d both hit the half-century mark some time back, me with almost a five-year lead on Anne. Fifteen years ago, it would have felt great to be home, no matter the obstacles. But nowadays it isn’t place alone that provides a balm, it’s place spiced with comfort: a warm cabin, a firm bed for my weak back, coffee brimming in my favorite cup with the epoxied handle that reads, “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

I felt a shade of contentment return as heat fingered its way to the corners of the cabin. With Zipper curled on his bed and the nightglow from our propane light bouncing softly off of the walls, the wind that howled outside seemed friendlier.

Soon we were warm enough to sip chilled white wine.

The wine made it easier to dabble in hubris, to be the purveyor of our own mythology. Although we wouldn’t want every homecoming to be as grueling, the act of pushing ourselves, working as a team, being out in the weather, made us feel accomplished. The truth is though, that while we’ve both lived in the bush for years, we aren’t half as savvy as we think.

There are legions of folks with greater experience, strength, skill, resolve.

Coming home was more taxing than it would have been when we were younger.

Several moments during this little trip home I would gladly have traded for a recliner and fuzzy slippers—but other moments, I wouldn’t have traded for 10 cords of dried birch. A sprinkling of adversity had awakened a part of me that I didn’t realize was missing. Impending darkness, falling temperatures, and a trickle of blood focused my energies to a renewed appreciation of place—and my place in it. It’s happened before, the unbidden breaking of routine slapping me alive. A touch of misery for which to be grateful.

Steve Kahn is a lifelong Alaskan and author of The Hard Way Home: Alaska Stories of Adventure, Friendship and the Hunt.

STEVE KAHN

Four miles west, at Bella Hammond’s (wife of late Governor Jay Hammond) strip near Miller Creek, I circled twice, but in the flat light I couldn’t determine the snow depth. I worried about drifts, so I headed across the lake to the town of Port Alsworth, landing with less than 30 minutes of daylight remaining.

The next day, Joel—the only pilot with a plane on skis—offered to fly to Miller Creek to check the conditions. The snow was deep but powdery, safe enough for my big tires. I shuttled one load and flew back to Port Alsworth to get Anne, our dog, Zipper, and the rest of our supplies.

It was discouraging to see how much snow had drifted into the tie-down spot.

Anne hurriedly unloaded the plane as I jogged down the beach to Bella’s cabin.

She lent me her snowmachine and a shovel. “Anything you need,” she said.

After delivering the shovel to Anne, I took off in search of the canoe. I located it under a huge drift in the back cove, lashed a line to the bow, and pulled it to the water. Then I started hauling gear from the airplane to the canoe.

Anne’s assignment was tougher, but she cleared the parking spot almost singlehandedly. When we finally piled into the loaded boat, she was worn out.

We paddled hard, with Anne in the bow and Zipper a black circle of fur among mounds of gear. During the hour and a half trip to our bay, the soft December light faded into the water, and the forested ridge sucked the remaining glow into its shadowy green shoulders. As I steered toward the shoreline in front of our cabin, whitecaps began to break past the point. We’d just beat the east wind, but a chill was creeping in.

On shore, the snow reached past my knees, and I fumbled to find a headlamp in my fanny pack. The three of us plowed our way up to the old cabin. I grabbed snowshoes and a shovel while Anne snatched a plastic sled and headed back to the canoe to start hauling loads. She had to take the more circuitous trail to our cabin, but I headed straight uphill, pushing through more snow than I’d seen in years.

As a deterrent to bears, we’d left our porch steps turned upside down. Now those steps were barely visible under a mound of white. I opted for a ladder, but three steps up, my foot slipped and my leg plunged between the rungs. A stab of pain riddled my shin and I felt a trickle of blood. I cussed through clenched teeth

Urgent: Special Driving Notice

To some, sunglasses are a fashion accessory…

But When Driving, These Sunglasses May Save Your Life!

Drivers’ Alert: Driving in fall and winter can expose you to the most dangerous glare… do you know how to protect yourself?

I

n the fall and winter, the sun is lower in the sky so it rises and sets at peak travel periods. During the early morning and afternoon rush hours many drivers find themselves temporarily blinded while driving directly into the glare of the sun.

Deadly accidents are regularly caused by such blinding glare with danger arising from reflected light off another vehicle or snowy and icy pavement. Yet, motorists struggle on despite being blinded by the sun’s glare that can cause countless accidents every year.

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Protecting your eyes is serious business.

With all the fancy fashion frames out there it can be easy to overlook what really matters––the lenses. So we did our research and looked to the very best in optic innovation and technology.

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Some ordinary sunglasses can obscure your vision by exposing your eyes to harmful UV rays, blue light, and reflective glare. They can also darken useful vision-enhancing light. But now, independent research conducted by scientists from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has brought forth ground-breaking technology to help protect human eyesight from the harmful effects

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Slip on a pair of Eagle Eyes and everything instantly appears more vivid and sharp. You’ll immediately notice that your eyes are more comfortable and relaxed and you’ll feel no need to squint. These scientifically designed sunglasses are not just fashion accessories for the summer; they are necessary to protect your eyes from those harmful rays produced by the sun in the winter. ®

of solar radiation light. This superior lens technology was first discovered when NASA scientists looked to nature for a means to superior eye protection—specifically, by studying the eyes of eagles, known for their extreme visual acuity. This discovery resulted in what is now known as Eagle Eyes®.

The Only Sunglass Technology Certified by the Space Foundation for UV and Blue-Light Eye Protection. Eagle Eyes® features the most advanced eye protection technology ever created. The TriLenium® Lens Technology offers triple-filter polarization to block 99.9% UVA and UVB—plus the added benefit of blue-light eye protection. Eagle Eyes® is the only optic technology that has earned official recognition from the Space Certification Program for this remarkable technology. Now, that’s proven science-based protection.

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ITINERARY

Weirdly Wonderful

Visitors enjoy the soothing mineral waters of Chena Hot Springs.

Chena Hot Springs Resort offers a unique Alaskan experience

BY MICHELLE THEALL

C

Chena Hot Springs Resort

36

Situated an hour from Fairbanks, the resort offers clear dark skies, away from light pollution and beneath the most active band of the aurora borealis in the hemisphere. The best part though: watching the streaks and bands of light dance in the frigid air above you while you soak in the warm, 106-degree waters of Rock Lake, the natural hot springs on property. While everyone wants to see the auroras, most folks tend to avoid being outside in below-zero temps in the middle of the night, which is what makes Chena an ideal and cozy place to curl up with the cinematic flares of solar winds interacting with the earth’s magnetic field.

But aurora viewing at Chena Hot Springs doesn’t stop at the water’s edge. In fact, they offer several other accommodations for aurora hunters—which is one of the reasons they’ve become a world-renowned destination. Guests staying overnight at the Moose Lodge can sign up for “aurora wake-up calls,” and sleep secure in the knowledge that if the skies are active,

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

the night staff will alert them. The nearby Activity Center holds up to 80 people and serves snacks and warm beverages to guests as they wait for the “show” to begin. A short walk from there atop a hill, the Aurorium—a prow-front heated log cabin—allows viewers to gaze out strategically placed, floor-toceiling windows from dusk until dawn. Or, adventurous souls might opt for a Snow Coach Aurora Viewing Tour, climbing up the mountainside 1,500 feet to a heated viewing yurt equipped with hot drinks and front-row seats to the spectacle.

If the northern lights aren’t your thing, you’ll find plenty of other diverse activities to enjoy here.

Soak Yourself

The Rock Lake hot springs flows from granite rock fractures 3,000 feet beneath the earth’s surface and is said to have healing properties. Many believe that soaking in the mineral-laden, steaming waters can

PATRICK J. ENDRES/ALASKAHOTOGRAPHICS.COM

all it a freak of nature—in a good way—but the obscure and eclectic Chena Hot Springs Resort might just be the best place in Alaska to view the northern lights this winter.

Step inside the Aurora Ice Museum to enjoy a drink, see how the ice martini glasses are made, and play an ice xylophone.

cure everything from arthritis to asthma.

Truth or myth aside, the natural spa definitely soothes achy muscles and relaxes body, mind, and spirit—a fact that gold miners discovered when the resort began in the 1900s. Beyond the outdoor pool, guests can enjoy an indoor one, as well as on-site hot tubs.

Go Deep

Massage anyone? Spa offerings range from gentle Swedish to deep tissue therapies, along with pregnancy massage, reflexology, and hot stone treatments. Bodywork takes place in a private cabin with a licensed pro kneading the way.

Mush

What could be more Alaskan than mushing a team of huskies through the snow? Home to more than 50 eager Alaskan huskies, the Chena Sled Dog Kennel allows guests to glide along a two-mile trail, learn about the history of the sport, and cuddle a few fuzzy balls of fur.

Skate

Indoor rinks might be just fine for some,

If you go: Chena Hot Springs Resort is open year-round.

Shuttles can be arranged for those staying at the lodge or booking a package. chenahotsprings.com

but ice skating across a frozen pond in a wilderness setting exceeds the sublime. If you forget your parka or winter pants, you can rent them along with your skates.

Cross-Country Ski and Snowshoe

The property encourages you to embrace winter with its 440 acres of scenic trails, mountain views, and dense forests. Kick and glide until you get tired, or stomp a new path for others to follow. Gear rentals available.

Visit an Ice Museum

For a truly unique and unforgettable experience, the Aurora Ice Museum welcomes visitors inside its igloo-like, 25-degree abode where intricate ice sculptures await. Life-sized jousters on horseback, a working xylophone, several bedrooms (frozen sheets included),

and internally lit, spectral orbs live inside the two-story tower, which is open year-round. At the end of your tour, saddle up to the Aurora Ice Bar for an appletini served in an ice-carved martini glass.

Get Thermal

Chena Hot Springs is the lowest temperature geothermal resource used for commercial power production in the world. That’s quite a claim and one that deserves bragging rights.

As such, visitors can learn more about the resort’s sustainable energy projects on daily geothermal and renewable energy tours. In the summer, they host a renewable energy fair, complete with electric cars and a canning workshop.

Eat Well

Log cabin dining with a “greenhouse-totable” commitment means fresh greens for guests all year. Using geothermal water, the resort maintains a consistent temperature in the greenhouse of 75 degrees, even when it’s 50 below outside. The result: hearty tomatoes, crisp lettuce, and succulent veggies to feed the hungry masses.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

37

TRY THIS

Halls of the Mountain King El Capitan Cave is a unique underground tour

of the Mountain King,” the Norwegian composer’s titular hero, Peer Gynt, faces the supreme troll in his troglodyte home, surrounded by courtier goblins and gnomes. A tremendous uproar floods the hall, echoed in the music’s crescendo. Like Grieg’s opus, southeast Alaska’s karst caves— though much quieter—suggest the fantastical. Their flowstone formations of water-dissolved, deposited calcium carbonate mimic dwarfish architecture: stalactite pillars, petrified trellises, and fluted balconies.

With over two miles of rugged passages, Prince of Wales Island’s El Capitan is the state’s longest mapped cave, one of hundreds that tunnel the Panhandle’s soluble limestone. Paleontologists have unearthed fossilized bones of foxes, wolverines, bears, ermines, and other Pleistocene fauna there.

A boardwalk and wooden stairway with 367 steps snake through lush hemlock-spruce forest to the cave’s mouth. Near the locked steel gate, a sign warns visitors of falling rocks, sudden flooding, and “deep & sudden pits.” Only enter the Mountain King’s hall prepared with multiple light sources, ropes, ascenders, and survival gear! If the thrills won’t keep you alert, underground weather—ice-cold, muskeg-born water dripping down your neck—will.

In 1990, Ketchikan caver Kevin Allred did enter to discover an

38

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

BY MICHAEL ENGELHARD Formations inside El Capitan cave.

ossuary of chestnut-colored black bear bones, which he dubbed the Hibernaculum. The bear den fossils, the first such found in these parts, looked exquisite; they formed a complete skeleton larger than any modern black bear’s, a bone puzzle 10,750 years old. Brown bear remains close by proved to be 1,500 years older.

Combined with the cave’s stable environment, the chemically basic nature of its rocks and water had preserved the bones much better than the forest’s acidic surface layers would have.

A Forest Service trailer downhill from the entrance served as a

COURTESY JON FAUL/@JFIMAGES01

I

N EDVARD GRIEG’S 1875 ORCHESTRAL PIECE “IN THE HALL

The entrance to El Capitan Cave on Prince of Wales Island.

makeshift lab during the exploration, while a spring fed by El Capitan’s subterranean river supplied the scientists with water.

The importance of these crypt-like chambers cannot be stressed enough.

Forty-five invertebrate species live there, including three newly discovered ones.

They are critical roosts and wintering places for five kinds of bats. River otters follow scent trails into the dark, commuting to protective dens. Alkaline karst waters benefit salmon smolts, trout, and trees, and the caves’ high-latitude, temperate-rainforest, archipelago setting is unique. Clear-cutting and climate change threaten this hydrological web.

Visitors, too, should tread lightly in these netherworlds.

As discoveries at El Capitan sparked more extensive searches, other Ice Age secrets came to light. The nearby, tellingly named On Your Knees Cave—located during a 1993 logging survey—helped revise the theory of peoples’ migrations into the New World. Its crawlways yielded bear bones up to 41,600 years old. The faunal strata also held bones from seabirds, sea lions, seals, marmots, lemmings, voles, and caribou, some

40

Visit El Capitan Cave Situated near the northern tip of Prince of Wales Island (three hours by ferry from Ketchikan), El Capitan Cave can be reached by car, boat, or plane. It’s a three-hour drive from either Thorne Bay or Craig. Follow Forest Service Road 20 to Forest Service Road 15 and turn left, driving about a mile to the cave. Watch for signs. There’s a USFS dock for dinghies and floatplanes in El Capitan Passage. Visitation is possible only through the summer months and with a Forest Service naturalist-ranger. (No charge.) For reservations, call the Thorne Bay Ranger District (907-828-3304) at least two days in advance.

dragged there by carnivores. Younger layers contained fire-cracked stones, a stone spear point, and microblades, plus the lower jaw, pelvis, and bone tool of a human occupant. The Tlingit, who had used these caves for centuries, gave permission to further examine the finds.

The remains of Shuká Káa (“Man Ahead of Us”) were later transferred to the Craig and Klawock tribes for ceremonial burial.

Dated to 10,300 years ago, the bone tool

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

showed that, against common perception, this stretch of the Northwest was not glaciated at the time. It allowed passage south, adding another, coastal, corridor for the peopling of the Americas. Despite the ensuing media frenzy, the Tongass National Forest’s caves remain little known even to many Alaskans.

Snowhole Cave, Starlight Cave, Puffin Grotto, Mossy Abyss, Colon Crawl, Shelob’s Lair, Rumbling Pit, Robin Falls, Steam Room, Son of a Beach…It’s a wormhole mess of sensations, of shapes and textures in pastel-mineral tones.

Mapmaking cavers enjoy naming these features as much as rock climbers do cruxes and routes, and their coinages stir our imaginations. Still, despite all visual, aural, and tactile extravagances, the voids’ deepest allure takes hold only with headlamps switched off: darkness like nowhere else on Earth—the planet’s dank, primal embrace.

Michael Engelhard is the author of Ice Bear: The Cultural History of an Arctic Icon and of American Wild: Explorations from the Grand Canyon to the Arctic Ocean, a Foreword INDIES gold medalist. He lives in Flagstaff, Arizona, and works as a wilderness guide.

COURTESY JIM BAICHTAL/USFS

Limestone cave formations.

An aurora display arcs over the summit of Denali and parts of the Alaska Range along with the Sheldon Chalet in the Ruth/Don Sheldon Amphitheater. Ruth Glacier is in the foreground.

Opposite page: A 1966 poster announces a ski party on Mt. McKinley (now Denali) hosted by Don Sheldon and his air taxi service.

OUT THERE

Sheldon Chalet

Siblings carry on legacy of their family’s Denali retreat lessons with their offspring, and for the children of noted Alaskan pilot Don Sheldon, they have translated into the realization of a dream. Sheldon was a symbol of Alaskan aviation, exploration, and conservation. His name was legendary in Alaska as the expert, go-to guy for bush flying, guiding, and exploring the heart of Alaska’s wild country and its people.

If you’ve ever taken a flightseeing trip near Denali National Park, it’s likely you’ve seen a tiny hexagonal structure perched above Ruth Glacier with wide, sweeping views of the High One’s inner reaches. This is the Sheldon Mountain House, where Don and his wife, Roberta, welcomed enthusiastic mountain-lovers to their personal slice of North America’s highest peak. Sitting atop a nunatak, a rock outcropping above the icy footings surrounding it, Sheldon Mountain House was a carefully crafted retreat orchestrated by the elder Sheldons at 6,000 feet and, we now know, only the first. In 2017, 50 years after Don Sheldon trundled lumber to the nunatak in his airplane with the hope of building a larger facility, dream became reality with the opening of Sheldon Chalet.

A Mountain Retreat In order to understand the passion Don and Roberta Sheldon had for Denali, it is important to understand pre-statehood Alaska. The territory was raw, rugged, and largely unsettled in the early 1950s, and Don Sheldon flew often with Bradford Washburn, director of the Boston Museum of Science, the person responsible for mapping Denali’s expanse and the

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

Don Sheldon with son Robert in 1973.

(THIS PAGE) TOP: JEFF SCHULTZ/SCHULTZPHOTO.COM; BOTTOM: COURTESY SHELDON FAMILY (OPPOSITE PAGE) COURTESY SHELDON FAMILY

P

ARENTS OFTEN LEAVE DEEP MEMORIES AND TANGIBLE LIFE

BY ERIN KIRKLAND

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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The view from one of the five guest rooms of the Sheldon Chalet shows the flanks of Denali and the Alaska Range.

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

Sheldon Family History Holly, Kate, and Robert Sheldon were young (8, 6, and 4, respectively) when their father died of cancer, but they have strong memories tying them to Alaska, flying, and the mountain (Holly now co-owns Sheldon Air Service in Talkeetna). Don and Roberta were a team, both as parents and outdoor adventurers, and worked to make their Alaska life—Sheldon Mountain House included—a place of ample recreation and education. It was a living Alaska history that couldn’t be delivered any other way, the siblings reflected, telling me stories about sledding parties, tents pitched on the nunatak, and Don playing his accordion.

“Kate and I discovered that my parents wanted to provide a visitor experience beyond that which the Mountain House could afford,” Robert said. “We found an article in an old edition of Alaska Sportsman magazine talking about the Sheldon Mountain House as the ‘first structure’ and realized my parents always had something more in mind for this place.”

What Don and Roberta had in mind was a second building where luxury and rugged mountaineering could meet along the spine of the nunatak, but the couple did not have the chance to see the project fulfilled before Don’s death in 1975.

As adults, Robert and Kate decided to move forward and build the larger structure in a style they thought their parents would want. Roberta passed away in 2014, and while organizing her affairs, Robert and Kate came across the original plans for building number two.

JEFF SCHULTZ/SCHULTZPHOTO.COM

entire Alaska Range. Sheldon was already known as an expert in the fine art of bush aviation. He had been everywhere and done everything, according to James Greiner’s book Wager with the Wind, but Denali was special—fierce, constantly changing, and yet indescribably beautiful. Sheldon was smitten, and before the establishment of Denali National Park and Preserve prevented ownership by individuals, he purchased five acres of rock above Ruth Glacier.

Don and Roberta loved the mountain, children Robert and Kate told me, and wanted other people to love it, too, believing that natural beauty anywhere should be shared.

As flightseeing along Denali’s flanks and landing upon its glacial surfaces became a popular activity, the Sheldons saw an opportunity to encourage longer stays. Don strapped boards to the outside of his Cessna 180 or a Super Cub (depending upon the day) and made multiple trips to Ruth Glacier before enlisting help from two Talkeetna craftsmen to construct the unique Sheldon Mountain House structure in 1966.

This wasn’t a typical cabin, even by Alaskan standards.

Placed high above the Sheldon Amphitheater, the original Mountain House sits at 5,850 feet in elevation and brings pause to most who climb the 300 steep stairs to its front door. Once inside, however, the views from this 200-square-foot building are nothing less than spectacular. It is, without mincing words, very much the essence of all that makes Alaska exceptional.

Perhaps, then, it shouldn’t be so unusual that the Sheldon children sought to carry forth a secondary project started by their adventurous mother and father, in their honor.

A couple relaxes with Champagne on the viewing deck and helipad of the Sheldon Chalet with a stunning view of Denali and the Alaska Range.

“It was uncanny,” Robert recalls. “What Kate and I had drafted almost exactly matched the plans my parents had laid out in 1968. It just furthered our desire to see this project through.”

Sheldon Chalet The 2,000-square-foot Sheldon Chalet has been receiving high-end guests since November 2017. Sitting just 850 feet beyond the Mountain House, the Chalet shares the same hexagonal shape and panoramic scenery from every window, but there the similarities end.

With more space and a decided luxurious footprint despite the remote location, Sheldon Chalet is designed, as the website proclaims, for guests to “Experience Grand,” and that sense of grandeur also extends to preservation of the Sheldon family legacy.

Charged with keeping the memory of Don and Roberta Sheldon alive for their children and future grandchildren, Kate Sheldon takes very seriously her duties as family historian.

Since opening the chalet, Kate has been responsible for the addition of Sheldon memorabilia to the decor, including maps, photographs, gear, and clothing from Don and Roberta (and their various alpine clients). Guests also have an opportunity to view the original plans and see, in real life, their realization.

“The blueprints are so forward thinking, professional, and truly reflect the comprehensive business he had set up,” Kate said. “I’ve learned so much more about my Dad and the reasons

he claimed the land on Denali.”

In order to further their understanding, brother and sister tracked down as many stories written about Don as they could, including a collection of audio cassettes he recorded for an upcoming biography about his life.

“There are 30-plus hours of his voice,” Kate said, “And every word captivated us.”

With two levels of common space, accommodations, and observation decks to bring the outdoors in, Sheldon Chalet has already enjoyed superstar status among guests who can afford the $2,500-per-person-per-night base rate.

Perhaps, though, the Sheldon Mountain House and Sheldon Chalet’s value is greater than that which is tangible. Robert and Kate are at home here, connected to the spirit of Don and Roberta at the intersection of adventure and emotion. Both have brought their own families to the Mountain House time and time again and enthusiastically endorse a future of stewardship and awareness of Alaska beyond their own unique childhoods.

Robert summed it up. “His fingerprints are all over this place,” he reflected. “Literally and emotionally. This is what he and my mother wanted.”

For more information about the Sheldon Mountain House, Chalet, and the story of Don and Roberta Sheldon, visit sheldonchalet.com.

Erin Kirkland is a freelance writer and author of the Alaska On the Go guidebook series. She lives and works in Anchorage.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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April

GEAR

The Best of the Best Our top gear picks for 2018

BY BJORN DIHLE

The holidays can be more terrifying than an encounter with an ornery Sasquatch after it has lost its harem to a larger and more aggressive male. I find it easier to rationalize with a heartbroken cryptid than Christmas shop for my lady love. One way to make gift shopping easier and less wrought with peril is to check out my top gear picks for each issue of 2018. Each product has been tested in tough conditions and has stood up to the harsh realities of Alaskan wilderness. Need more ideas? Check out Alaska magazine staff members’ favorite gear from this past year.

February Patagonia Stormfront Roll Top Pack I’ve used and abused this pack for more than a year on journeys across the north and it’s still in optimal condition. If you’re looking for a drybag backpack for big and small adventures, this is it. $149.00; patagonia.com

Alpacka Raft These amazing boats, weighing around six pounds on average, have revolutionized travel for backcountry enthusiasts and road warriors alike. The 2017 Yak I tested had a new and improved design that made it paddle much better in confusing currents and whitewater. $925-$1450; alpackaraft.com

May MSR Hubba Hubba 2 Person Tent This is a phenomenal lightweight yet burly three-season tent. Built to last and for serious weather, the Hubba Hubba performed great in rain, snow, and winds. $400.00; msrgear.com

March MSR WindBurner Stove System Family This quality, easy-to-use stove is perfect for both ultralight epics and family campouts. I used mine with great results on everything from wilderness float trips to family campouts. $180-$260; msrgear.com

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

June Patagonia Middle Fork Packable Waders The lightest chest waders I know of on the market, Patagonia’s Middle Forks are of the highest quality.

I’ve used them while thrashing through brush, lining a boat up a glacierfed river, and exploring salmon streams. Mine are still going strong. $349.00; patagonia.com

Top Gear Picks from Alaska staff SUSAN SOMMER, Editor: Epic Mid Wing Paddle

July/August

My Epic Mid Wing paddle made of epically strong club carbon served me well while training for and racing in the Yukon River Quest.

Sitka Gear Kodiak Jacket This jacket was designed to withstand Kodiak Island weather, which means it’s darn near as burly as a brown bear pelt—yet significantly lighter, more comfortable and, dare I say, fashionable. It’s a great jacket for hunters and fisherman, and its camo blends in remarkably well. $549; sitkagear.com

$350-$480; epickayaks.com

MICHELLE THEALL, Senior Editor and Photographer: Nikon D850 SLR Camera

September FoodSaver GameSaver Big Game Vacuum Sealer Perfect for hunters, gatherers, and especially fishermen, this vacuum sealer will keep you in good eats all year long. $210; foodsaver.com

October

After renting it a few times, I finally purchased the Nikon D850. The whopping 45.7 megapixels and full-frame sensor let me blow up images to gallery scale without losing quality. They also let me crop in and still deliver a nice full-page cover shot for Alaska magazine. $3,300; nikonusa.com

MELISSA BRADLEY, Account Executive: Big Agnes Q-Core Pad We bought new Big Agnes Q-Core pads after patching our old ones for nearly a decade. The edges are thicker to help prevent roll off, and it has two nozzles for filling: one with a valve and one without, for fast inflation. $140-$250; bigagnes.com

Duckworth Hi-Line Wool Shirt This wool shirt is equally great for ventures into the wild or fancy dinners. I wore mine on numerous deer hunts, and it still smells as fresh as the dawn. That’s saying something, since I’m often described as smelling like a skunk-ape after it’s raided the dumpster of a Taco Bell. $175; duckworthco.com

NICK JANS, Contributing Editor: Ozark Trails Backpack/Cooler I bought it as a waterproof, floatable, and padded camera bag for an SLR with a big lens. Works fabulous, high quality, and very inexpensive compared to the hoy-hoy brand names. They make two sizes, and it’s a wonderful dry bag/backpack, though that’s not what it was made for. $45; walmart.com

SUSAN DUNSMORE, Humor Columnist: Hawkins 2-liter Pressure Cooker

November MSR Lightning Explore Snowshoes These are a fantastic, ultralight pair of snowshoes good for the mountains and the flats. They make snowshoeing fun enough that I’m compelled to dance and yodel while deep in the snowy wilderness. $280; msrgear.com

My favorite piece of backpacking gear is my Hawkins 2-liter pressure cooker. On anything longer than a six-day trip, the amount of fuel you do not need to carry outweighs the small pressure cooker, plus you can cook good food in the field in the same amount of time it takes to boil water for packet foods. $30; amazon.com

DAVE RANTA, Special Projects: Safariland Outside-the-Waistband Holster Picked up a Safariland 7378 7TS™ ALS® Outside-the-Waistband Holster for my 40 cal. Glock 27. Very comfortable and provides quick access to my firearm if needed. $50-$75; safariland.com DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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A sorted stone circle in the Brooks Range.

Designed

by Nature

Arctic Alaska’s mysterious stone walls

BY BILL SHERWONIT

one recent year, I happened upon an unusual array of rocks, unlike anything I’d seen in more than three decades of exploring Alaska’s diverse wildlands. Upon discovering the piled stones, two thoughts flashed through my mind. Who would build rock walls deep in the Brooks Range wilderness, many miles from any settlement? And why?

I knew that during their nomadic days, the region’s Nunamiut Eskimos had in places built “stone guards,” called inuksuk, along caribou migration routes. Intended to mimic humans, the stone figures helped the Nunamiut steer caribou toward areas where the animals could be more easily harvested.

But these rocky forms were totally different. Built along one edge of a wide valley bottom in the central Brooks Range, they had been shaped into walls, not widely spaced cairns. And those walls were far too low—from a few inches to a couple of feet high—to act as any sort of enclosure or other barrier to the Arctic wildlife humans might hunt. What other purpose might they serve?

Though their shape and distribution strongly suggested some sort of intentional design and artistry, I soon decided these had to be natural features. That led to a new question: How had they been made?

The more I studied the rock formations, the more amazing—and puzzling—they seemed. Some were crudely linear in shape and brought to mind New England’s famed (and long-lasting) stone

48

walls, constructed by farmers in the 1700s and 1800s to mark the boundaries of their land. Many of them still crisscrossed the Connecticut woods where I played as a boy.

Other piles stretched in large, sweeping arcs and, here and there, they formed complete circles, some only a few feet across and others many yards wide.

As I walked through the remarkable network of piled rocks, it became clear that these natural walls stretched across hundreds of yards. Wondering how they would appear from afar, I ascended a nearby hill. Seen from above, a number were linked in a way that resembled enormous script, as if some ancient, gigantic being had left a message on the tundra flats, indecipherable to humans, both beautiful and eerie.

The stones that formed these walls were white to dark gray in color. Most were “limy” rocks—limestone and marble—that had once been part of the

A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

layered bedrock that formed long ago, far below the Earth’s surface, and which later had been uplifted into the great towering spires that soared along the nameless valley’s perimeter.

Individual pieces ranged from pea-sized gravel to boulders larger than my daypack. Adding to the mystery of their presence, the rocks were in places remarkably well sorted, again suggesting intention, forethought.

That sense of mystery—fed, perhaps, by memories of Connecticut’s human-made stone walls, which in my boyhood seemed to hold their own secrets—prompted me to learn more about the origins of these fantastically shaped natural piles of rock.

My quest led to scientist and author E.C. Pielou’s comprehensive book, A Naturalist’s Guide to the Arctic.

In a section on “patterned ground,” I found drawings that closely matched what I observed in the Brooks Range. And I learned that the curious rock formations

BILL SHERWONIT

H

IKING ACROSS THE ARCTIC TUNDRA

Stones sorted into lines by nature’s freeze-thaw cycle.

that appeared so mysterious to me are well known to scientists who study Arctic landforms. They are called “stone stripes” and “sorted circles.”

Like several other forms of patterned ground that occur in Arctic regions—for instance, tundra polygons, pingos, and tundra hummocks—the natural stone walls I found are caused by alternating periods of freezing and thawing. They tend to occur where tundra vegetation is sparse or absent and the ground is flat or sloping at a very slight angle; the former favors circles, the latter (influenced by slow downhill creep) tends to create the more linear stripes.

As Pielou astutely observes, such formations “illustrate, convincingly, that the absence of [plant] life does not imply absence of activity.” What appears to be “lifeless” ground made from clay, sand, pebbles, and larger rocks can move about, its activity spurred by the sun—or more accurately put, the combination of its periodic presence and absence.

When the sun is heating the landscape, rocks warm and ice melts. When it’s

absent, the rocks cool and water freezes.

Each freeze-thaw cycle may cause only miniscule changes in the ground—including the sorting of particles by size. But as the cycles are repeated again and again over long periods of time, Pielou explains, those tiny shifts “accumulate to produce some extraordinary patterns.”

I like that: here’s a scientist who appreciates that the end result of this natural, incremental, and largely hidden process is something “extraordinary.” I

would add that the process itself also seems remarkable. And the resulting stone stripes and sorted circles are a beautiful example of what might be called nature’s own “intelligent design.”

Anchorage nature writer Bill Sherwonit is the author of more than a dozen books about Alaska, including Changing Paths: Travels and Meditations in Alaska’s Arctic Wilderness and Animal Stories: Encounters with Alaska’s Wildlife.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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I Want to Live in an Alaskan Music Festival

The Chris Robinson Brotherhood performs at the first annual Great Alaska Music Festival in Palmer last spring.

O

NE NIGHT WHILE SITTING AROUND A CAMPFIRE

after an outdoor folk concert, someone posed the question: If you had to make a choice, would you rather lose your sight or your hearing? Without hesitation, my fellow music lovers said hearing, of course. A visual impairment would be much more difficult to navigate. Frankly, I wasn’t so sure. At 65, I’d seen a lot. I had thousands of mental images accrued to keep me busy for at least a couple more decades. I’d seen spectacular sunsets from all corners of the world, watched babies be born, summited mountain peaks with breathtaking

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

BY MONICA DEVINE

vistas. So many small things at eye level, too: sparkling dewdrops on flower petals, hundreds of gallery paintings and photographs, my super sweet grandbaby’s feet.

I couldn’t imagine never hearing music again, though. And doesn’t the answer to a question like that depend on who you ask? Take a poll of serious musicians. Or amateurs like me who play for the visceral joy it brings, unlike any other source of bliss and well-being.

Alaska is bursting these days with musical entertainment. We feast on folk fests where famous headliners from “Outside” pack

COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER

Notes and advice from an incurable groupie

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Jewel, originally from Homer, sings at the 2017 Salmonfest in Ninilchik. She is one of several wellknown members of the Kilcher family.

auditoriums in both Anchorage and Juneau every winter and spring. Small towns and villages off the road system draw crowds just as well. One year as I whizzed past Mendeltna Creek Lodge on my way to fishing at our cabin in Tazlina, I saw a modest sign propped up by the front door of the over-80-year-old roadhouse, announcing the Mendeltna Creek Music Festival. I swerved in.

Inside the lodge were a couple dozen people sitting in a wide circle, jamming on guitars, banjos, a couple mandolins, and a slew of percussion instruments. This is where you learn to strum and pick and sing by joining the circle whenever you please, because it’s not about showmanship, it’s about community. All day long, musicians came and went. The smell of chocolate chip cookies straight from the oven wafted through the air as lodge owner Mabel set out plates of free goodies for everyone to enjoy.

Outdoors on the main stage, a whole string of acts played well into the light-filled night. The Oudean family, the whacky and incomparable LuLu Small, the Rock Bottom Stompers, and Hog Heaven String Band urged many at this family friendly festival to take off their shoes and dance in the grass.

I was elated and surprised when Betty Harford, wife of the late, great Nashville singer/songwriter John Hartford, appeared on stage, and sang traditional folk songs from the 1960s, songs I hadn’t heard for decades.

Nothing could delay fishing plans more than the bait of live folk music. I ended up sleeping in my car for two nights and jamming into the wee hours with a handful of newfound musician friends. Sadly, the Mendeltna Lodge has since burned down, but the music still lives on in the ethos.

You could spend the whole summer road tripping around Alaska to music festivals held in very small venues as well as in the bigger cities. And there’s nothing better than a music fest to break up the winter doldrums. After several weeks of below-zero temperatures and negotiating eight-foot snow berms, we get relief every January by attending the Anchorage Folk Festival, where you can enjoy for free 10 days of performances, workshops, jam sessions, and dances, plus all kinds of silly raffles.

This is how you get through the long winters. If you haven’t yet jumped on a plane to Hawaii for relief, you can thank the Folk Festival, where you forget about the sun, or lack thereof, and immerse yourself in the arts. Dances rise up all over town,

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A L A S K A M A G A Z I N E . C O M DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019

from contra to swing to the art of a simple, elegant waltz.

The festival sprouts all kinds of talent: The Alaska Native American Flute Circle, Raggedy Banjos, Sourdough Biscuits, Down Home Easy, and Rogues and Wenches (I’d fit right in with these folks who sing sad love ballads, happy war songs, sea shanties, and pirate fare). There’s Hot Sauce and Jubilee. Red Elk and Mountain Echo. Anyone for Acoustic Banana or Three Fish in a Tree? Most memorable one year was Esther Golton’s flute duet called Aurora Borealis. I swear you could hear the swish and crackle of the northern lights and feel the full display as it crescendoed across the night sky. A real spine tingler.

Another highlight was the Hanneke Cassel Trio, playing traditional Celtic and North American themes. Their music was exuberant, rhythmic, and eerily haunting.

Many Alaskans will fly over 500 miles from Anchorage to Sitka to imbibe in Alaska’s premiere classical music festival, featuring

MONICA DEVINE

The Mendeltna Creek Music Festival, currently on hold due to a devastating structure fire in 2018, attracted talent such as Betty Harford (above) and the Oudean family (lower right) as well as local acts like LuLu Small, Rock Bottom Stompers, and Tanana Rafters.

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musicians from around the world. Past and present musicians to grace Stevenson Hall’s stage include: The Arianna String Quartet; Nancy Allen, principal harpist of the New York Philharmonic; Atar Arad, viola musician and musical composer who has played with the most prestigious orchestras on the planet; Maria Asteriadou, an artist with an intense artistic flair on the piano, and many, many more. If flute, violin, cello, and string ensembles are your thing, the place to see classical chamber music in one of the most pristine coastal towns in Alaska can be found at the Sitka Summer Music Festival.

If you ain’t never been to Chicken, well now’s the time to pony up on your 4-wheeler and go (I pretend they talk like this).

Mid-June, jam to “music on the top of the world,” in the last surviving gold rush town in the middle of absolutely nowhere!

The 2018 Chickenstock featured many Alaskan artists, including Steve Brown and The Bailers, The Dry Cabin String Band, Cotton Ginny, and others. Truly, I would like to interview every band I see across the Alaskan landscape, just to ask where and how they derived their names. Don’t miss the saloon, and have some buffalo chili while you’re up yonder in Chicken. While the festival’s going on, nobody sleeps.

Folks from the radio station KSKO in McGrath have this to say about their two-day music event in Anderson Park: The Back to Bluegrass Festival is a great social event, not only for the residents, but for all the folks who arrive by plane or boat (the only ways to get there). Boogie down to good tunes, enjoy locally prepared meals, and laugh (a lot) with great company. McGrathians go all out to host visitors and musicians, and they supply an ever-ready eager crowd of toe tappers. The event has featured the Tanana Rafters, Saturday Cinders, Arctic Jungle, and more.

Hospitality is king in McGrath. You should go.

One of my favorite events of the year is Salmonfest, held in early August at the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds. Each year, over

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Food trucks are a staple at Alaska music festivals and serve up everything from traditional fair food like corndogs and milkshakes to gourmet taste treats like fish tacos, cheesy spinach bread, crepes, berry cobbler, and hand-pressed espresso.

6,000 people head down to this salmon-conservation-minded music festival promising “three days of fish, love and music.” The event features arts and food vendors and a musical lineup past and present to include our very own Jewel, originally from Homer; Lucinda Williams, Brandi Carlile, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Emmylou Harris and Michael Crowell, Indigo Girls, Tim Easton, Fruition, Rising Appalachia, Tumbledown House, and many others. I bought a pair of hippie pants at this festival, you know the ol’ tie-dye type, with an electric purple, blue, and green mind-bending pattern. I don’t wear them in public, I swear.

(THIS PAGE) TOP: COURTESY CHRISTINE DAVENPORT/SITKA SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL BOTTOM: COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER (OPPOSITE PAGE) COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER

Violinist Paul Rosenthal, pianist Navah Perlman, and cellist Jia Kim perform at the Sitka Summer Music Festival. Andrew Hames assists Perlman.

COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER

Other Alaska Music Festivals

Seldovia Music Festival: Soak up four days of music and art in beautiful Seldovia, with live performances throughout town, a plein air workshop, yoga, an art exhibit and a Sunday barbecue on the beach.

Fairbanks Folk Fest: Head to Ester Community Park and jam to the musical stylings of local folk musicians. Last year’s fest featured more than 15 performers as well as arts and food vendors.

Michael Franti and Spearhead rocks the crowd at the 2018 Salmonfest.

Annual Athabascan Fiddle/Music Festival: David Salmon Tribal Hall in Fairbanks. Live music, dancing. and prizes.

Juneau Jazz and Classics Festival: Enjoy the classics at an annual music festival held in beautiful downtown Juneau.

The Copper River Salmon Jam: Music, arts, crafts, and dancing in the coastal fishing town of Cordova.

Anchorage Chamber Music Festival: Enjoy live chamber music in Anchorage.

Sitka Jazz Festival: Professional jazz musicians from around the world come to Sitka’s island community to entertain, teach, and inspire.

The first annual Great Alaska Music Festival, held at the Alaska State Fairgrounds in Palmer on Memorial Day weekend this year, brought up Grammy-winning, eight-piece country star Asleep at the Wheel and the prolific rock band Chris Robinson Brotherhood, fronted by Chris Robinson ( formerly of the Black Crowes).

The festival had plenty of entertainment for the kiddos too: a dedicated “Children’s Forest,” a chalk-art zone, and climbing walls. Kite-flying exhibitions and performances by aerial silk experts Cirque Boreal rounded out a full menu of great music filling the airwaves for two days.

Headliners are great, but go to the side shows too. Jump up and down in the mosh pit, but make it a point to frequent the spots where the locals debut. I saw singer/songwriter Ava Earl

(who hails from the ski-bum town of Girdwood) on a side stage, where only a handful of people were present. In rock-fest language it is appropriate to say, I was blown away by her performance. Her voice snakes gently like a slowly braided river, melodic, lifting, expressive. And her lyrics are incredibly mature for a 15-year old kid. Just think of what she’ll write after getting her heart broken for the very first time! I can only imagine. “I am the one with wing,” she croons. Yes, you are Ava Earl. And I can’t wait to not only hear, but see, you fly.

Monica Devine’s new book, Water Mask, a collection of biographical essays reflecting on family, place, culture, memory, and perception will be released in March of 2019 by the University of Alaska Press.

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Dances with Wolverines

Kroschel Wildlife Center delights visitors

Text and photos by MICHELLE THEALL

Steve Kroschel holds Lennox, the lynx, for his visitors. Most of the animals at the center were “imprinted,� raised from a young age to realize that humans neither meant them no harm nor posed a challenge for food or a mate.

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ucked away into the shoulder of a mountain beyond a rusted gate is a haven for rescued and orphaned wildlife indigenous to Canada and Alaska and, with a five-star Travelocity rating, one of the best tours in Alaska. Steve Kroschel, the mastermind and showman behind Kroschel Wildlife Center in Haines, Alaska, understands nature and animal behavior and thrives on sharing it with others. Enter the sanctuary, and he’ll introduce you to Isis the wolf, Banff the wolverine, and Karen the moose. In fact, more than 15 species of wildlife call Kroschel’s home, living on 60 acres with Steve, on “film sets” where photographers and filmmakers can capture the animals in a natural setting devoid of bars or fencing or through specially made camera holes.

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teve grew up on a farm in northern Minnesota as the third generation of his family working with orphaned North American wildlife. “I began to do presentations at school with live animals,” Steve says.

“Growing up with wildlife gifted me with opportunities to witness the everyday miracles of animal behavior and nature’s other beautiful revelations. I don’t know what normal life is like without a wild

animal following me or on me or me chasing after it.”

These early experiences led to a career as a filmmaker in the 1980s, apprenticing on Disney’s classic True Life Adventure films, where he worked training wolves. “It was at that unhurried time that I was able to assimilate the deep and important lessons of the wilderness. That we, as humans, can’t ignore these natural heartbeats around us.”

A rescued snowy owl poses on a falconer’s leather glove. Birds of prey, including a merlin, are typically the first creatures visitors meet at the center.

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Steve kisses Banff, a wolverine, who often plays with a furry pelt for visitors, eliciting laughter and surprise. “If I was forced to save one [of my animals] in a forest fire or nuclear storm, with limited room, I’d probably grab the tail of the wolverine,” Steve says. “They’re so versatile, tolerant, optimistic, and effervescent—and misunderstood.”

Lennox chases frozen mice, pouncing off downed timber for a quick bite. His natural instincts on display allow visitors to glimpse the behaviors of a lynx in the wild.

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Rocky Seward works and lives on the property and is related to William H. Seward, who bought Alaska. The sign behind him about hope is particularly poignant as Rocky was somewhat homeless when Steve hired him to help at the center. Steve believes Rocky’s gentle nature has helped him to form strong relationships with the animals, especially with Kitty, the grizzly he feeds oatmeal to from an oversized spoon.

The daily menu posted outside the kitchen cache, decorated by bones and skulls and electrified to keep out area critters looking for a free meal.

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ake no mistake, Kroschel’s isn’t a zoo, and that’s what makes it special. Kroschel’s, a private nonprofit run solely by visitors’ donations, provides intimate interaction with fox, grizzlies, snowy owl, reindeer, ermine, porcupine, black bear, lynx, and other on-site wildlife. Decades of raising and caring for these animals mean that visitors are in the capable hands of a true wildlife whisperer—a gifted prodigy, eccentricities included.

Rumors about the man drift through Haines and beyond like thick Southeast fog. Before meeting him, you might hear that he shared his cabin with a pet bobcat until his wife left him over it. Or, that Steve’s skin is permanently tinted orange from the high-doses of betacarotene he ingests as part of a rigid health-food diet. That he goes barefoot, even in winter, to stay connected with the earth’s energy, prevent disease, and reduce inflammation. Man or myth, what you will find is a charismatic and confident steward of the environment, with an intensity matched only by some of his birds of prey.

Leading his tour groups, Steve chirps and yips with manic energy as he encourages a lynx to leap off of a boulder and pounce on a frozen mouse.

He picks up a wolverine in his arms and cuddles and kisses it. He raises his arms to elicit a howl from the crowd, which results in Isis, the grey wolf, joining in with her head tilted up toward the sky.

In between these entertaining segments, Steve educates his audience about habitat, statistics, and behaviors.

“I have a healthy understanding of the capabilities of these ‘imprinted’ animals,” Steve cautions. “They aren’t domesticated, therefore, I have a finely tuned proclivity to listen and read what they communicate through body language and vocalizations, in order to stay on the right side of being alive.”

Steve’s determination to make a difference shows in the health of the animals and in the joy of the guests as they interact with Steve and the wildlife he has rescued and raised. “We all are part of nature,” he says. “When people leave here, they’re invigorated. They’re given hope.”

Steve proves to be as mesmerizing and compelling to watch as any of his animals, which makes the place a “must see” on a vacation to Southeast.

Reindeer on the property gather to meet visitors for feeding time.

Isis stands atop a large boulder in between catching treats tossed by Steve, who positions her for the best light and opportunities for action shots.

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J

OHN MUIR STEAMED OUT OF SAN FRANCISCO IN 1879 and headed north, past the Oregon coast, past Puget Sound, and past British Columbia to southeast Alaska’s Alexander Archipelago, where the naturalist wrote he felt he was floating in a true fairyland. Despite more than a decade in the West, Muir had never before witnessed such noble and indescribable scenery. Every day left him in awe, and each new view seemed more beautiful than the last.

“To the lover of pure wilderness Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world,” Muir wrote when he recounted the trip in his 1915 book, Travels in Alaska.

The state has, of course, changed over the last century. It has cities, roads, wi-fi, planes, trains, and automobiles, even 4G LTE coverage. Most people today equate Alaska with Discovery Channel specials or Hollywood films like Into the Wild. But the adventurous who travel north will discover that, at its heart, Alaska is still the Heaven-on-Earth Muir first saw 140 years ago.

It’s still a place that will cause your heart to flutter when Denali emerges from the clouds, or take your breath away when you see an eagle soar overhead. Alaska is still a place where 1,500-pound bears snatch leaping salmon in their jaws and moose that stand six feet tall browse on willow branches.

Larger than Texas, California, and Montana combined, Alaska is a state with an endless to-do list. To help you make the most of your trip, we’ve put together some of the top items to see or do in each of Alaska’s five regions. You won’t be able to do it all in one trip, but we encourage you to come back, because the next view will be better than the last. >>

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2019 TRAVEL PLANNER

Essential Alaska Bucket list adventures of the Last Frontier

By Alexander Deedy

Denali still glows after official sunset from a ridgeline above Wonder Lake in Denali National Park and Preserve on June 14, 2017, at 12:22 am.

TODD SALAT

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SOUTHEAST

McBride Glacier flows into Muir Inlet in Glacier Bay National Park.

Cruise this 3.3-million-acre park to see this and other glaciers, sea life, and soaring mountain peaks.

Cruise Glacier Bay As recently as 1750, a glacier thousands of feet thick filled what is now a 65-mile-long fjord at the heart of this national park and preserve, where visitors have the chance to see tidewater glaciers, marine life, land animals, and stunning scenery.

Trekkers explore natural wonders as they cross a small melt stream on Mendenhall Glacier just outside Juneau.

Wander through Totem Bight State Historical Park

Marvel at Eagles in Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve This preserve is often touted as home to the world’s largest gathering of bald eagles. The regal birds feed mainly on fish, and this preserve has five salmon runs and rivers that remain open late into winter, making it the perfect dining ground for the hungry raptors. Virtually every part of this 48,000-acre preserve is used by eagles at some point during the year, but the most popular viewing areas are along Haines Highway between miles 18 and 24.

Ride the White Pass & Yukon Railway The narrow-gauge railway winds from seaside Skagway along steep mountainsides, over trestle bridges, and through tunnels

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(THIS PAGE) TOP: EMILY MOUNT; BOTTOM: JOHN HYDE (OPPOSITE PAGE) TOP: MICHELLE THEALL; BOTOM: JOHN HYDE

The 14 totems here each tell a unique story, like the birth of thunder or how Raven brought daylight to a dark world. Just outside Ketchikan, this park was created as a home for the replication of traditional totems that were left behind when Native villages were abandoned in the early 1900s. Walking past these cedar monuments and the large clan house also on site is an educational glimpse into Tlingit and Haida culture.

One of the best and most easily accessible places to see hundreds of bald eagles congregate is at Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines.

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To get the freshest crab catch, look for Dungeness crab, which is harvested during summer in Southeast.

climbing at grades of nearly 3.9 percent up and over the 2,864-foot White Pass. Riders experience stunning vistas of mountains, gorges, and waterfalls along the way. The route was constructed between 1898 and 1900, during the height of the Klondike Gold Rush, and has been designated an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, a title bestowed on landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Panama Canal, and Statue of Liberty.

Hike on a Glacier There are several popular glacier tours across Alaska; none may be more accessible than Mendenhall Glacier outside Juneau. Take a helicopter ride onto the ice or hike to the terminus and explore the ice caves. Walking on ice that’s thousands of years old and helped shape the landscape around you is an unforgettable experience. Just be sure to take a guided tour or go with someone who knows how to navigate the glacier safely.

Gorge Yourself on Fresh Seafood What could be more Alaskan than filling up on succulent crab legs or digging into a salmon fillet?

To get the freshest catch, look for Dungeness crab, which is harvested during summer in Southeast, or pay attention to which species of salmon is running during your visit. Try less common seafood too, like black cod and rockfish.

Ride the Tram up Mt. Roberts

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Fresh from southeast Alaska seas: crab, salmon, rockfish, and cod, plus other shellfish and shrimp. Make sure you sample some when visiting.

Get the chance to stand tall on an Alaskan mountain without having to work your quads to exhaustion. The Mt. Roberts Tramway in Juneau is a quick ride from the docks to the top of a mountain on the south end of town. In addition to stunning views, the top of Mt. Roberts has a trail system, a restaurant, gift shop, and nature center.

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SOUTHCENTRAL The historic structures at Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark are prime examples of how Alaska’s early mining communities went boom and bust. Wander the grounds on your own, or take a guided tour to learn the stories that formed this distinct destination.

Lower Cook Inlet and Kachemak Bay outside Homer are touted as some of the best halibut fishing waters in the world. Spend a day, or several, reeling in these sideways-but-delicious fish from the depths and you won’t regret the savory white meat it yields.

Shop and Eat in Downtown Anchorage The Last Frontier is a state of vast wilderness, massive wildlife, and jaw-dropping scenery, but not every adventure in Alaska requires Carhartt or XTRATUF gear. Anchorage is a thriving urban center with plenty of restaurants, bars, museums, theaters, shops, and coffeehouses to keep you entertained. Start your exploration by walking Fourth Avenue, the city’s historic downtown drag, and check out popular stops like F Street Station and Snow City Café.

From Fourth, head north a few blocks to see the anglers compete for salmon on Ship Creek, then turn south to stop in the Anchorage Museum.

Visit the Alaska Native Heritage Center With 229 federally recognized tribes, the northernmost state overflows with indigenous stories, Native art, and traditional food.

You won’t get a true feel of the state until you learn about the north’s first people, and the best place to start your education is at the Alaska Native Heritage Center, where you can explore exhibits on the state’s major cultural groups, witness Native artists creating traditional art, watch dances, and see Native games demonstrations. Don’t miss the chance to wander around the outside loop, where you can stroll through six examples of traditional Native dwellings.

As Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage fulfills even the most discerning person’s tastes for shopping, dining, and entertainment. These hats made of qiviut (muskox wool) are extremely warm and lightweight.

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Fish for Halibut

Mountain goats are just one species you might see while exploring Southcentral.

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Nearly 40 glaciers descend from the Harding Icefield to meet the ocean in the awe-inspiring Kenai Fjords National Park.

Explore Kennecott Mine

Tour Kenai Fjords National Park

Understanding Alaska requires an understanding of the independent, hardy people who made a journey north to pull natural resources from the depths of the wilderness. That drive is what kickstarted modern Alaska, and Kennecott is a marvelous testament to those times. The ground beneath Kennecott held some of the richest copper deposits in the world, and it fed the copper needs of a nation hungry for electric wiring, railroads, and munitions during World War I. Now on the National Register of Historic Places, Kennecottâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s beautiful red buildings offer visitors a chance to wander and explore a remote, wild corner of Alaska.

Nearly 40 glaciers descend from the Harding Icefield to meet the ocean in this awe-inspiring national park. Boat tours leave daily from Seward in the summer, and on your way to and from the glaciers, keep your eyes peeled for puffins, sea lions, sea otters, porpoise, fin whales, Minke whales, and humpback whales. If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re lucky, you may see a pod of killer whales, and in early spring migrating gray whales pass through Kenai Fjords.

Spire Cove in Kenai Fjords National Park.

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SOUTHWEST

Discover WWII History in Unalaska/Dutch Harbor

Photograph Bears at Katmai National Park

Dutch Harbor is the number one fishing port in the United States, but Unalaska is still a small community of about 4,500. Visit the island to see the Aleutians’ windswept volcanic peaks and seaside cliffs, plus delve into the history of the only battle fought on U.S. soil during WWII and see the impacts the war had on the island chain’s people and environment. Take a hike up Bunker Hill, visit the Museum of the Aleutians, and check out the Aleutians WWII National Historic Area Visitors Center.

Katmai is the place to go for witnessing the real-life version of those iconic bear photographs. Stand on the viewing platform at Brooks Falls, where you can watch as many as 25 bears snatch salmon out of midair and witness young bears give way to giant, dominant bruins.

To get to Katmai you’ll need to fly in a small Alaskan bush plane, which is an essential experience unto itself.

WWII history lurks around every corner in Unalaska and Dutch Harbor in the Aleutians. The Extra Mile Tours (unalaskadutchharbortour.com) drives visitors to key locations and provides a detailed background on each site.

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A brown bear family fishes at Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park.

Slope Mountain glows from the setting sun in Lake Clark.

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Dutch Harbor is the number one fishing port in the United States, but Unalaska is still a small community of about 4,500.

Behold Birds in the Aleutians The Aleutians are home to an estimated 40 million seabirds that nest in the islands during the summer. Some, like the red-faced cormorant and famous Aleutian cackling goose, are found only in Alaska. Others migrate from South America, and more than 90 Asian bird species have been spotted on the islands. On a visit to Unalaska, visitors might see whiskered auklets, guillemots, and murres. Head to the cliffs of St. George Island to see one of the largest seabird colonies in the Northern Hemisphere.

Explore Lake Clark National Park Most widely known as the area where Richard Proenneke built his cabin by hand and filmed the whole process, this sprawling wilderness is one of the most remote national parks in the country.

Getting to the roadless park requires a trip by air taxi or boat, which means visitors will get to experience truly pristine Alaska. Once at the park there are only seven miles of maintained hiking trails, so spend your days fishing, watching wildlife, rafting, or wandering.

Appreciate the Kodiak Crab Festival First held 60 years ago to celebrate the end of the crabbing season, this week-long festival leading up to Memorial Day is now a celebration of spring and a way to give thanks for the oceanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bounty. The festival features a carnival, a fish tossing contest, and a race in which contestants must wear survival suits. The celebration culminates with a song to bless the fleet and a priest sprinkling passing vessels with Holy Water. << Kodiakâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Baranov Museum is a must-see when on the island, as are other attractions: the Kodiak Crab Festival each spring, Fort Abercrombie State Historical Park, and wildlife viewing.

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INTERIOR

Relish the Midnight Sun The longest day of the year in Fairbanks actually lasts 70 days: From mid-May to late July the sun never sets. Spend summer solstice watching a baseball game at midnight; go for a stroll at 2 a.m.; stay up late; get up early. Do everything possible to soak up the sun because if you go back in winter it’ll be the opposite.

Visit Chena Hot Springs and See the Aurora Weary miners used to relax here, and today these natural hot springs in interior Alaska are perfect for a soak after your summer adventure or staying warm while watching the northern lights during winter. About an hour from Fairbanks, the hot springs has an

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Opposite page: Winter is prime time to see the aurora borealis swirl overhead. Watch it from the outdoor pool at Chena Hot Springs, or look for it anywhere skies are clear. Find real-time northern lights information at explorefairbanks.com/aurora-tracker.

indoor heated pool and an outdoor rock lake for those aged 18 and older. Some people say the mineral mix in the hot springs’ water helps heal and relieve ailments.

Experience Denali National Park At 20,310 feet, Denali is the tallest mountain in North America, and it’s surrounded by miles of wilderness. Despite its notoriety, Denali National Park remains largely pristine. There’s only one road in and out of the heart of the park, and past mile 15, most people have to ride a park-approved bus.

The preservation practically guarantees that you’ll see some wildlife, including possible sightings of moose, bear, caribou, or wolves.

(THIS PAGE) COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER (OPPOSITE PAGE) TOP & MIDDLE: JIM MCCANN; BOTTOM: PATRICK J. ENDRES/ALASKAPHOTOGRAPHICS.COM

Exquisite carvings appear in Fairbanks each winter at the World Ice Art Championships.

Raft a River There are about 365,000 miles of streams and rivers in Alaska, so there’s plenty of opportunity to see the backcountry from the comfort of a raft rather than hauling gear on your back. Get your adrenaline fix by barreling down rapids in the Nenana Gorge near Denali, or take a leisurely float and enjoy the scenery.

Gawk at Ice Sculptures The World Ice Art Championships held in Fairbanks each winter from mid-February through March attracts some of the best ice carvers on the planet. These artists turn chunks of ice into intricate sculptures of animals, buildings, architecture, boats, and more. Have some family fun by letting the young ones play on slides made from ice in the Kids’ Ice Art Park.

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The longest day of the year in Fairbanks actually lasts 70 days: From mid-May to late July the sun never sets.

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Above: Raft the whitewater of the Nenana River near Denali National Park with an experienced guide. << At left: Seeing wildlife is on most people’s bucket list.

This bull moose shows off his “velvet”-covered antlers of mid-summer.

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FAR NORTH +

There are nearly 200,000 caribou in the Porcupine herd of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Caribou in Alaska’s Arctic need lots of space for their annual migration and calving.

See Polar Bears Each fall, before the sea ice returns to Alaska’s northern coast, polar bears gather along the water’s edge, and the coastal community of Kaktovik has one of the highest concentrations of bears. In the last few years, it has become the polar bear viewing capital of Alaska. Book a trip with a tour company to ensure your bear viewing is safe, and then fly from Fairbanks to Kaktovik for the experience of a lifetime.

The population center of Alaska’s North Slope Borough, Utqiagvik is home to just over 4,000 people. Visit the whale bone arch, constructed from the jaw of a bowhead whale, for a photo opportunity, and stop in the Inupiat Heritage Center to view artifact collections and learn about the culture of the indigenous people.

Check out the etched baleen and carved ivory made by the town’s artists and talk to locals to learn about contemporary life in the north.

Taste Muktuk and Akutaq There’s not much crab and halibut on the north slope, but partake in local delicacies like muktuk, a traditional dish made of frozen whale blubber and skin. Another favorite is akutaq, a dessert originally made with whipped animal fat, but now often made with Crisco, berries, and sugar.

Watch a Caribou Herd There are nearly 200,000 caribou in the Porcupine herd of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Caribou change their migration routes year to year and can move 50 miles a day, but the best

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Jimmy, a resident artisan in Utqiagvik, holds up the whale baleen he uses to make intricate carvings depicting life in the North.

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Meet People in Utqiagvik

Watch the Iditarod from anywhere along the 1,049mile route, but celebrate the finishing teams in Nome. Here, Joar Leifseth Ulsom of Norway runs up the bank and into the Nikolai checkpoint during the 2018 race.

What to Expect Statewide chance to see a large herd is in late June and early July, when caribou have been known to gather in the tens of thousands.

Travel to the End of the Road Three hundred and twenty miles north of the Arctic circle, Utqiagvik is the United States’ northernmost community, and about nine miles north of town is the very tip of Alaska—a sand, dirt, and gravel peninsula that juts between the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. Take a tour to ensure you make it north and back safely.

Celebrate in Nome Head to the city on the Seward Peninsula in March for the Iditarod celebration, which some locals call the “Mardi Gras of the North.” Be prepared to stay awake late into the night or get up extra early if you want to see the first musher enter town, and book your hotel in advance, but leave some flexibility around the expected finish date.

ON THE ROAD SYSTEM: Alaska is spread out, so traveling between destinations will take several hours of driving. Be sure to account for travel time in your plans. Find maps, detailed descriptions, and a mile-by-mile log of every road in Alaska in The MILEPOST®.

WILDLIFE: There’s lots of it in Alaska, but the best chance to see animals is in a park or with a tour that takes you away from the road system.

ANCHORAGE: Alaska’s biggest city has about 300,000 residents and includes everything you’d get in a major city, including traffic, fine dining, museums, parks, and shopping. Downtown is walkable; further exploration is best with a car.

FAIRBANKS: It gets hot in the summer, with average highs in the 70s. The city is spread out, so exploration is best with a vehicle.

DENALI: The road is closed to private traffic past mile 15, so the best way to experience the park is by bus. Expect crowds in summer.

UNALASKA: Trade crowds for nature in this small, remote community with few visitor amenities. Aleutian weather is often foggy or cloudy.

SEWARD: Small, seaside town. Bring lots of layers for wind and cold if you plan any water adventures.

JUNEAU/KETCHIKAN/SKAGWAY: Often cloudy or rainy in summer, but plenty of culture and shopping. Lots of cruise passengers.

A pair of juvenile polar bears plays together in the waters off Barter Island in Kaktovik, one of the top places in Alaska to see these bruins.

UTQIAGVIK/KAKTOVIK/NOME: Groceries and lodging will be simple, but high priced. Few cars, lots of ATVS. Catch a cab around town.

Alexander Deedy is a freelance journalist and assistant editor of Alaska magazine.

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The new Forks Roadhouse, at mile 19 of the Petersville Road and near the foothills of the Alaska Range, attracts families and outdoor recreationists.

The Forks Roadhouse

New owners resurrect historic property as a place for all ages

E

ven after a fire that burned it down in 2012, the Forks Roadhouse continues to be what roadhouses have always been in Alaska, a hospitable place in an often inhospitable wilderness. A place to rest and regroup and revel with friends.

On the day my husband and I paid the Forks Roadhouse a visit, we drove to Trapper Creek and unloaded our snowmachine near Kroto Creek along Petersville Road. In winter, most of the road is closed to vehicles but it serves as a trail for snowmachines, skiers, and dog teams. We were not the only ones headed to the roadhouse.

A family of five—Mom, Dad, and three young children—each climbed aboard snowmachines of their own and disappeared single file down the wide snowy path.

As we rode, the foothills of the Alaska Range and Denali, the largest peak in North America, rose on the horizon. We stopped to drink in the view. Farther down the trail, we watched a sled dog team trotting across the flat surface of a frozen lake.

Like colorful confetti, snowmachines were already scattered all around the Forks Roadhouse when we arrived. Several were parked by a weathered gray post with a sign that read “Dog Team Parking.”

As we climbed off our snowmachine, another family pulled up beside us. Dad held a bundled toddler in a front pack and a second youngster was sandwiched between him and Mom on the back—for this family, everyone fit on one machine.

Belle McDonald, along with her husband Mack, owned the original Forks Roadhouse.

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(THIS PAGE) TOP: KAYLENE JOHNSON-SULLIVAN; BOTTOM: COURTESY TALKEETNA HISTORICAL SOCIETY (OPPOSITE PAGE) COURTESY FORKS ROADHOUSE

By Kaylene Johnson-Sullivan

The original Forks Roadhouse was a popular stop for locals and visitors until it burned down in 2012.

Located at mile 19 on the Petersville Road northwest of Talkeetna, the remoteness of the Forks Roadhouse doesn’t stop old-timers or a new generation from dropping in for libations, food, or a warm spot around a large stone fireplace.

That’s just what new owners, Bryan and Tracy Hulse, John Stenehjem, and Dan Kirschbaum were hoping when they rolled up their sleeves to rebuild the roadhouse after it burned. They were part of an entire community of patrons that mourned the loss of the historic landmark.

“It had a draw to it,” Tracy said. “It’s hard to describe how beautiful, romantic, and pristine the area is.”

Bryan agreed. “It was unique, in the middle of nowhere.”

The friends commiserated and decided to rebuild it.

“A structural rebirth of the old roadhouse was impossible.

There were things in the old roadhouse that would never pass code,” Bryan said.

“In the original building, you had to back up against the wall to get to the pool room,” remembers John.

At the newly opened roadhouse, my husband and I sat at a gleaming birchwood bar and sifted through old photos recovered during the cleanup. Pictures of the old roadhouse show dark logs, a low ceiling, and dollar bills fastened to the walls.

Characters at the bar included a predictable cast of grizzled sourdoughs and eccentrics.

The vision for the new roadhouse was to include the charm of the old saloon but build it bright and open enough to attract

families on weekend outings.

It took four years from the start of cleaning out charred ruins until the new roadhouse opened in November 2017. They took turns working weekends and whenever weather and daylight allowed. Most of the supplies had to be hauled in by snowmachine. Family and friends pitched in—Tracy’s father, John Clayton, hand-crafted the birchwood bar; the couple’s friend Arnie Gagnon built the floor-to-ceiling rock fireplace.

Scott Hulse, Bryan’s brother, helps look after the place. At his regular job, he is a boat tender on two vessels he built himself.

He’d never bartended a day in his life, but he said customers were happy to tell him how to make their drinks. He donated the two generators that keep the lights on. During the daytime, the roadhouse operates on solar power.

As construction commenced, they added a new member to their growing group of friends. A cat took up residence and they named him “Free Ride,” presumably a tribute to the snowmachine hangout and possibly a reference to the cat’s employment status.

“We think he ought to be the new candidate for mayor of Talkeetna,” Bryan said. (Until his passing in July 2017, the beloved mayor of Talkeetna was a cat named Stubbs.)

Once the Forks opened, there was a learning curve about running the place. It was far busier than any of them expected.

“Keeping ahead of the freight was a challenge at first,” John said. There were some harried trips to town where they loaded DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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Roadhouse co-owners John Stenehjem, Tracy Hulse, and Bryan Hulse show off the birchwood bar Tracyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s father built.

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KAYLENE JOHNSON-SULLIVAN

Today the roadhouse continues to be a place to gather. On weekend evenings, live bands entertain the crowd, and during the day, kids play board games and tussle outside in the snow.

beer and food onto sleds for a snowmasome of the locals, most of whom had chine trip back to the roadhouse. frequented the roadhouse at one time Along with being a stop for food and or another. sleep, as much as possible, the owners In the 80 years since it was first built, try to accommodate whatever is the Forks Roadhouse has served as a needed in such a remote location. checkpoint for sled dog races and People have asked for spark plugs, fuel snowmachine rallies. It was a wilderpumps, and extra boots. ness chapel for the wedding of famed The owners all said that the most adventurer Norman Vaughan and his gratifying thing about bringing the wife Carolyn and a hangout for Joe roadhouse back to life has been getting Redington, co-founder of the Iditarod acquainted with friends they didn’t Trail Sled Dog Race. know they had, all people who enjoyed Today it continues to be a place to the old roadhouse and wanted to see gather. On weekend evenings, live the new one succeed. bands entertain the crowd, and during “As kids we used to come down here the day, kids play board games and Scott Hulse, the owner’s and we’d get Shirley Temples,” said Sara tussle outside in the snow. The day my brother, serves up a Tougas, whose family has owned a husband and I visited, the roadhouse draft beer at the Forks cabin in the area for 40 years. “Back was the hub for a fundraiser for the Roadhouse. then there was a drawer of candy for Petersville Search and Rescue group. fifty cents and more dog sleds than The event included a poker fun-run snowmachines. It’s fun having a new where players rode snowmachines to generation here.” checkpoints, collected playing cards, and the best poker hands Originally built between 1935-36, the roadhouse was a relic of at the end of the day won prizes. the gold rush era. Belle McDonald first opened a trading post People big and small came in from the cold, stomped snow and bunkhouse in Talkeetna. She then built the roadhouse off their boots, and made themselves at home. Friends hailed along the wagon trail at the entrance to the Peters and Cache each other across the room. creeks mining country. Belle was known for her generosity in John Stenehjem shook his head, smiling as another family grubstaking local miners and came under suspicion during came through the door. “It’s amazing how far people will come Prohibition for allegedly selling spirits from her Talkeetna for a hamburger.” trading post.

The McDonald Roadhouse (as the Forks Roadhouse was then Kaylene Johnson-Sullivan is a frequent contributor to Alaska called), was the place where a barroom fight preceded the magazine. She’s the author of several books, including Canyons and infamous 1939 Cache Creek murders. The crime claimed the Ice: The Wilderness Travels of Dick Griffith, which was recently lives of two men and a woman. Potential suspects included made into a PBS documentary for Alaska Public Media. kaylene.us.

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The Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum in Fairbanks features over 80 vehicles as well as historic fashions of the day.

Sky Above, Earth Below

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T’S SO COLD I FEEL LIKE MY NOSE FREEZES EVERY TIME I INHALE, BUT I DON’T CARE. My chin is up and my eyes are skyward, watching Mother Nature’s light show: the aurora borealis.

Tonight’s display is one for the ages. Ribbons of green wave in the invisible magnetic wind and there’s the occasional band of red. Tendrils of light stretch up to the sky, and others extend down, seeming to reach for us.

I’ve been anticipating tonight for a long time. I planned my trip to Fairbanks in hopes of this exact experience. Last time I visited interior Alaska was during the summer, and I had the time of my life touring Denali, river rafting, ziplining, exploring the backcountry on ATVs, and watching wildlife. But the nighttime sunshine kept the northern lights away, so I knew I would need to return in winter.

This trip, I’ve kept busy in urban Fairbanks dining, visiting museums, and learning about the culture and science of the north. I kept my eye on the aurora forecast and, luckily, the prediction I waited for did not disappoint. So I breathe deeply, ignoring the cold, and pause for a moment to just soak in the experience. I know tonight is a night that will create memories for a lifetime.

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(THIS PAGE) COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER (OPPOSITE PAGE) COURTESY EXPLORE FAIRBANKS

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907-978-2388, alaskaisg.org Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitors Center Once armed with information, have a look around the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center. Enjoy Alaska Native art, music, stories, and dance. Free world-class exhibits tell the story of life in Interior Alaska. Wave to family around the world on the Antler Arch webcam. Free films, Wi-Fi, and parking.

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STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULATION (required by Act of August 12, 1970: Section 3685, Title 39, United States Code). 1. Alaska 2. (ISSN: 0002-4562) 3. Filing date: 10/1/18. 4. Issue frequency: February, March, April, May, June, July/August, September, October, November, December/ January. 5. Number of issues published annually:10. 6. The annual subscription price is $24. 7. Complete mailing address of known office of publication: MCC Magazines, LLC, PO Box 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936. Contact person: Kolin Rankin. 8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business office of publisher: MCC Magazines, LLC, PO Box 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936. 9.

Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor, and managing editor. Publisher, John Lunn, PO BOX 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936, Editor, Michelle Theall, PO BOX 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936 , Managing Editor, N/A. 10. Owner: MCC Magazines, LLC; Wholly-owned subsidiary of Questo, Inc., W.S. Morris III, , Mary E Morris, W.S. Morris IV, J Tyler Morris, Susie Morris Baker, THE MORRIS FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, PO BOX 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936, PO BOX 936, Augusta, GA 30903-0936.

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14. Issue date for circulation data below: October 2018. 15. The extent and nature of circulation: A. Total number of copies printed (Net press run). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 93,727. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 95,466. B. Paid circulation.

1. Mailed outside-county paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 81,833. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 83,793. 2. Mailed in-county paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date:0. 3. Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors and counter sales. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 2,544. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 2,775. 4. Paid distribution through other classes mailed through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. C. Total paid distribution. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 84,377. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date; 86,568. D. Free or nominal rate distribution (by mail and outside mail). 1. Free or nominal Outside-County. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 523. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 556. 2. Free or nominal rate in-county copies. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 3. Free or nominal rate copies mailed at other Classes through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 4. Free or nominal rate distribution outside the mail. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. E. Total free or nominal rate distribution. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 523. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 556. F. Total free distribution (sum of 15c and 15e). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 84,900. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 87,124.

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Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 505. B. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 85,058. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 87,073. C. Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 85,581.

Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 87,629. D. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16b divided by 16c x 100). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 99.4%. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 99.4%. I certify that 50% of all distributed copies (electronic and print) are paid above nominal price: Yes. Report circulation on PS Form 3526-X worksheet 17. Publication of statement of ownership will be printed in the December 2018 issue of the publication. 18. Signature and title of editor, publisher, business manager, or owner: Scott Ferguson. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanction and civil actions.

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Alaska Wild Foods & Gift Baskets Perfect for the holidays!

Real Opportunity

Martin Sensmeier

From Yakutat to the silver screen So far, Martin Sensmeier is probably most recognized for his role as Red Harvest in the 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven.

Born and raised in Yakutat, a city of about 600 in southeast Alaska, Sensmeier worked as a roughneck on oil rigs in Alaska for five years before pursuing acting full time. He’s since acted in Wind River, HBO’s Westworld, and the independent film Spare Room. He is an ambassador for the Native Wellness Institute and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. ~as told to and edited

by Alexander Deedy Tell me about when you were first bitten by the acting bug and why it became a passion of yours.

I would have to say the first time I got bitten by the acting bug would be around the fourth grade when I started doing theater plays in school.

It planted the seed, definitely, because I never stopped thinking about it after that. Being a small-town Alaska boy, I never saw that as a realistic opportunity.

COURTESY JEREMY VALDEZ/HINES AND HUNT ENTERTAINMENT

What do you think gave you the faith to move to L.A. and give it a shot?

Los Angeles Lakers, man. I was out working on the oil rigs. After my first hitch I got my first paycheck and I bought some Lakers tickets and I bought a ticket to L.A. I flew down here, watched the Lakers play and I made a friend. She was an actress and I went to her [acting] class and I just really enjoyed it. Every two weeks I flew back.

It’s been three years since you got your big break with Magnificent Seven; how has life changed?

Honestly, routine-wise, not a whole lot. What really changed post Magnificent Seven is my mentorship roles and ambassador roles.

You’ve said you don’t want to be defined as an Alaska Native actor, just as an actor. What sort of challenges does that create for you and how have you worked to break those stereotypical barriers in Hollywood?

I think we’re at a turning point in Hollywood. I’m in Utah right now working on a show called Yellowstone; it’s a modern-day story and I’m playing a physical therapist. Spare Room is a love story and I’m playing the lead in it. They didn’t specify my race; it never came up. So, I’m getting opportunities to do those roles. That being said, it is challenging because those roles are limited. Although I’m getting these good opportunities, not every other Native actor is. But I think that storytelling

is a reflection of what’s real and so I think Hollywood is turning this corner where you’re starting to see a lot more diversity.

Tell me more about growing up in Alaska.

I grew up in my tradition, in Tlingit culture in a small town in Alaska.

Anybody who’s been to a small town in southeast Alaska, they’re fishing villages, and people are awesome there. I love home. It’s just such a grounded place. I grew up hunting and fishing and subsisting. I try to get back to that as much as I can, whenever I can.

What advice do you have for other young Alaskans growing up in small villages who have big dreams?

I would say just pick one thing and get really, really good at it. It doesn’t have to be film, it doesn’t have to be media, it doesn’t have to be any of that. I have friends who really enjoy fishing and they knew from the time we were 10 years old that’s what they were going to do their entire lives. If that’s your path, then invest in your future. Whatever you dream of doing, whatever you aspire to become, it’s possible, it just takes a lot of hard work and perseverance and not giving up.

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019 A L A S K A

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This Alaskan Life

How to Survive Alaska in December Hint: Aloha

BY SUSAN DUNSMORE

N 2000, I SHOWED UP IN ALASKA FOR A TWO-MONTH CANOE TRIP.

Eighteen years later, I’m still here. I love it here. I’ve threatened to move away a few times, but when I travel “Outside” I am reminded that I can live nowhere else. Then December rolls around and I ask myself, “What were you thinking???” It’s bad enough in Anchorage where the sun peaks over the Chugach at about 10:30 in the morning and is gone by 3, but Fairbanks?

Nome? I’d say my hat’s off to you guys but I can’t take my hat off or I’ll get frostbite, and I say that while sitting in my living room.

Enough is enough. Time to get out of here and head to Hawaii.

In the summer, it’s easy enough to get to Alaska from the contiguous states because there are a number of direct flights from hub cities. In winter, it can take three flights just to get here from Portland, Oregon. The exception in winter is that Alaska Airlines opens up direct flights from Anchorage to Hawaii because they know us and they know we will pay any price to get out of here. I went to Maui once in the summer and had to stop in Juneau, Seattle, and L.A. before I arrived after 23 hours of travel, but in December you’re on the islands before you finish your second free Mai Tai. Most Alaskans are a pretty frightening shade of pale by December so in order to not blind everybody, we try to get some color on ourselves before heading out into the world. Fishbelly white is not flattering on anyone but the low light level we have around here in winter kind of tones it down. On a beach with overhead sunlight, we’re a hazard. The only responsible options are to risk skin cancer in a tanning bed or to experiment with self tanners for a month ahead of time to figure out which shade of orange looks best on you. Last year I actually found a fake tanner

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that didn’t turn skin orange. It turned it green, which, trust me, is not an improvement. For once I followed the label directions and tested in on a small patch of skin, which was a darned good thing because this product lived up to its promise of “long lasting color” and I spent a week looking like I’d been kicked in the shin by a very pissed off moose. How we can put a man on the moon but not have the technology to make a decent tanner is a mystery yet to be solved.

Now that you have some color, as well as one of the three bathing suits available at Target this time of year, it’s time to figure out what to wear to the airport. No one wants to lug a parka around Hawaii but it is 20 below zero and the snow is deep. Most of us opt for running from the car to the terminal in shorts, a wind jacket, and sandals with wool socks. You end up cold and you look ridiculous but glance around the airport and you’ll see everyone else looks just as bad. The people returning from Hawaii have a sunburn tempering the orange glow, and they have already forgotten what it’s like outside and aren’t wearing the socks but other than that we all look the same.

Luckily fashion is not a top priority around here.

Hawaii’s beautiful, the time passes too quickly, and next thing you know you’re back on the plane. Alaska Airlines doesn’t hand out Mai Tai’s on the way back like they did on the way there. The party is over, you’re going to be paying for your own drinks, February is staring you in the face, and if you didn’t pay extra for covered parking, you’ve got some time to spend with an ice scraper before you can get to your house. Hope you packed those socks on top. Welcome home.

COURTESY SUSAN SOMMER

I

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