Humpback Whales

Our windows look out onto the cove, the island reefs, the Cook Inlet and the Chigmit mountain range beyond. A tall white sail points straight into the sky, only to disappear a moment later. This has happened before, and I know I just witnessed the exciting moment of the first whale blow of the…
Read More »The Shorebirds are Here

Shorebirds- large flocks of them in graceful formation just flu low over our skiff and all around us as we left the harbor with a load of supplies going home to the island. What a treat to be surrounded by their amazing presence and beauty! They are mostly smallish brown birds, sometimes hard to tell…
Read More »Old Man Otter

I am witnessing the ultimate state of relaxation! is the first thing that comes to mind when watching the large male sea otter floating leisurely on its back, tucked into a small niche in the cove, where neither current nor wind carries him out into the open water. So calm, so playful the sea mammal…
Read More »Creatures of the Beach

Kachemak Bay has some of the most extreme tides in the world. Often, in one day, there would be a vertical tidal difference of more than twenty feet. That was the difference between taking the kayaks a few paces from the top of the beach to the water and carrying the heavy load down for…
Read More »Our Polygamous Eagle Neighbors

Our close neighbors are a very unusual family – not unheard of, but very, very rare – what are the chances…? The family in question is a threesome of bald eagles, consisting of two females and one male. They have lived here together for over ten years, maintaining several lofty nests, fishing and hunting together,…
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