Uncategorized
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Wallpaper
The Russian Bishop’s House in Sitka included this sample of the colorful wallpaper that covered the building’s walls in the early 1800s.
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Lovebird Drum
This Eagle/Raven “Lovebird” design decorates a drum in the Sitka National Historical Park museum.
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Green
Walking through the rainforest by Sitka, it’s no surprise that lots of things are green. This view of the ground cover has plenty of different textures.
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Trader Legend Pole
Native carvers placed a white man on top of this pole with images representing thievery under him. It’s a reminder of a dishonest Sitka trader — not the best way to be remembered!
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Yaadaas Crest Pole
One of the sights walking through the rainforest near Sitka. This replica of the totem pole that stood at the corner of the Yaadaas clan house in Old Kasan represents the symbols of that clan.
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Raven Crest Pole
Visiting Sitka’s National Historic Park, I found several replicas of original totem poles — this one created in Tuxekan Village in 1903. Can you identify the creatures below the Raven?
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Dawes Glacier
Located at the southeast end of Endicott Arm, Dawes Glacier has 200-foot tall cliffs of deep blue ice that calved several chunks into the water while we watched. An amazing sight as the sun peeked through the clouds overhead.
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Bergy Bits
These icebergs floating down Endicott Arm from Dawes Glacier will probably melt before they get to the Pacific Ocean. They are deep blue because the ice is so dense that it only reflects blue light.
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Endicott Arm
Sailing up Endicott Arm fiord southeast of Juneau on a cloudy/foggy day, I asked a couple to take a photo of me as we approached Dawes Glacier.
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Crazy Quilt
This quilt in the Alaska State Museum titled “The Ladies of Alaska” of velvet and silk was a farewell gift to a District Court judge in 1888.
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Icons
These beautiful Russian Orthodox icons and incense holders in the Alaska State Museum reflect different styles of devotional art from the Russian period of Alaskan history.
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Moccasins
These Kachena moccasins in the Alaska State Museum have beadwork typical of the upper Yukon and Tanana River people from the early 20th century. We have a much smaller pair of similar moccasins that my dad wore as a child when my grandfather was a doctor in Tanana in the early 1930s!
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Old Basket
”Old” is an understatement when the basket remains are 5,450 years old. Coastal natives were making similar baskets of spruce roots into the 1800s, like the one on the right, for gathering shellfish.
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Lodge Wall Painting
We visited the Alaska State Museum in Juneau, which features some amazing native artwork like this wall painting from a lodge that includes a couple of salmon pointing toward the entry door.
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Welcome to Juneau
First view of Alaska’s capital is the busy cruise pier (King Crab!) and mountains covered by clouds and waterfalls. The totem pole by a Tlingit carver honors (from top down) the White Frog (supernatural), Raven (group), Coho Salmon (clan), and a clan member at the bottom.
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Whale of a Tail
This humpback whale dove near our cruise ship in the waters of Southeast Alaska, showing off a big white tail that scientists can use to identify specific animals.
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Cash Fortune
The casino on the Westerdam reflected off the ceiling during our cruise to Southeast Alaska in early June.
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Stairway
Looking down a curved stairway on the Westerdam, the gold railings and mirrors made a striking pattern.
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Seattle Harbor
Cruising out of the harbor, we could see sailboats, the port’s docks, and Mt. Rainier rising above it all.
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Cruising from Seattle
After driving across the state on June 1st, we boarded the Holland America’s Westerdam and sailed out of Seattle’s harbor on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
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Orange Sky
Sunset on a smokey evening created an orange glow behind a pine tree above the Spokane River near Nine Mile Falls on the last day of May.
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Power Pole & Moon
The new moon rose through the wires of a power pole near our house on a spring evening.
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Rhody Bud
The lilac-colored rhododendron in our front garden began to open deep purple buds in late May.
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Yellow Saints
”The little yellow flowers by the side of the road that nobody notices are saints looking up into the face of God.” – Thomas Merton
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Deep Pink
Should a photo give the big picture or zoom in on the details? I opted for the latter in this shot of a tree in our neighborhood in May, while still giving a sense of the rest of the tree.
