More Random Pictures

More Pictures

Kari's Birthday

Well, my lovey turns 23 this weekend and to celebrate we've decided that we're going to hike up 4 miles to a cute little remote cabin called Raven's Roost on Mitkof Island. The trail head starts just behind Petersburg, Alaska airport. Middle section of hike is very steep, then flattens out along ridge top. We are allowing 3 hours for ascent. Once we arrive, there are all kinds of wildlife such as grouse, deer, black bear, and ptarmigan. Endless opps for hiking, berry picking and excellent scenery. The top of the cabin has a secondary exit especially for years of high snow accumulation. If your interested in viewing this cabin just go onto Tongass National Forest and click on remote cabins, search for Raven's Roost. We are so excited to get away for a couple days and how fortunate to have this great recreation opp just out our back door. I'll post pictures just as soon as we get back. Hope your all enjoying our site and I'm off now to take our fresh caught coho salmon out from the oven. Take Care.

Finding a Groove....

I'm trying to keep up with this blogspot, but
until I find a job, I'll feel forever guilty about clicking away on my keyboard while Aaron is at work. Anyway, friends and family need to know, so here's the latestest update on Natwick adventures.

I'm still looking for work...ugh, job hunting. I abhore the task. But, I have landed something temporarily. I work for the hostel in town called Alaska Island Hostel. I'll be working there until the end of August/beginning of September. I'll be taking it over at times as the owner will be out of town on other business. For those of you who want to learn more, check out the website...

http://www.alaskaislandhostel.com/

It's a great gig. The woman, Ryn, who owns the hostel is so wonderful to work for, and she has become a great resource for ideas on how to drum up a little nutrition business and who to connect with around here for potential employment. It's such a great environment to work in, talking with travelers from all over the world. The only downside is that it gives me way too many ideas for places to go and sparks my wanderlust. I keep reminding myself to reign it in, settle in and find a groove.

Overall, I have found the transition into Petersburg a pretty easy one. Aaron has so much more to adjust to on the other hand, having lived in MN for 31 years. SE AK just feels like home to me. We have a cozy little apartment about 2 miles from town, so it gives us an opportunity to live more actively by biking into town as much as possible. Gas is $4.80 here, gulp. That price tag is motivation enough to put our bikes to good use. We both have Weight Room Passes at the local Community Center. There is a small weight room that is hardly state of the art, but still a good place to pump iron. There are also treadmills and eliptical machines that get our hearts pumping. Our dog Jack has been the most successful with the weight loss program so far! When we left Minny, he had gained about 13 pounds and was resembling a little pork chop. He's trimmed up and I can actually feel his ribs. Good boy Jack.

Last weekend, one of Aaron's co-worker's took us Halibut fishing. Here's me pulling in a big one. To my dismay, it was a skate, which is a big ugly fish that looks like a manta ray of sorts. Gross! We didn't even let it in the boat!

A couple shots of the halibut we caught. I know, I know, they're not very big. They're what locals call "chickens." They still tasted delicious! :)


YYYYUUUUUMMMMMMYYYYY!
Alaskan blueberries.

First Friday in P-Burg!!

We Made IT!!!

There have been so many good things that have happened to us in the past two weeks, so many great experiences/adventures, it's hard to know where to begin. So, just an update on our journey, we made it to Petersburg, Alaska. The adventure began on August 2nd. We loaded our UHaul with the help of our wonderful and supportive family. We slept in our sleeping bags on our living room floor that night, and the following morning said good-bye to our home in Barnesville, MN and hit the road. The first night we made it to Theodore Roosevelt National Park and camped surrounded by a beautiful river and many of the resident bison in the park. The next day, after a drive around the park, we made it to Bozeman, MT. The next night to Coeur d'Alene, ID and the next night to Bellingham, WA. It was such a treat to stay in some of my favorite cities along I-94/90 and to travel at a relaxed pace, stopping and sight seeing when inclined or inspired to do so. Our last two nights on the "mainland" were spent with Alissa and Caleb McSherry, two of the most amazing people and hosts on the planet! We are so grateful for their hospitality, guidance and company during our time in B'ham. It's such a blessing to have such amazing people in our lives. The next leg of the journey was a 2 1/2 day ferry ride from Bellingham to Petersburg. For anyone that would ever consider a trip to visit us, I would highly encourage you to take the ferry. It was one of the most amazing traveling experiences I've ever had. For starters, the sheer beauty of the inside passage is remarkable! We saw humpback whales and orca whales, enjoyed informative talks by the naturalist on board, and made many friends. The pace was relaxed and there is no comparison to the level of stress that I often feel going through an airport. Again, there is so much to say about each place we visited, but if I am so inspired, maybe I"ll blog about each of those places later.

For now, here we are in Petersburg. This place is literally one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. It's paradise. Unfortunately, it has been raining almost constantly since our arrival, with the exception of a break in the weather last evening. So, we took advantage of the clear skies, and had our first opportunity to head out on the waters of the Wrangell Narrows and do a little shrimping and crabbing. Our captain (Aaron's boss) has been living in Petersburg for 9 years and Bethel, Alaska prior to being a P-burg resident. He shared with us a few tricks of the trade to which we are eternally sworn to secrecy. There were many comments made about the "touri" as he called them, and their foolishly unsuccessful tactics in an attempt to catch the creatures of the local waters. It's good to know and be a local.

Aaron started his position with AP&T on Wednesday and I'm hot footing it around town trying to find work.