The Arrival of Autumn

Sunrise in Wasilla
Late August 2015

Chilly Greetings from your Alaskan Family!  Although temperatures try to sneak into the 60s some days now, we have resigned ourselves to the fact that longer sleeves, warmer socks, and readying the coat closet for snow are in our near future.  Fall is actually our favorite time of the year...well, except for Ethan. He likes winter snows the best! Truth be told, I think we are all a little anxious for that first snowfall just to see how Ahtna behaves in the cold "white stuff."  Until then, we prepare, trying our best to harvest all of the wonders of summer/fall before the temperatures curb our abilities (or our desires) to continue.

Ethan's First Salmon Catch!

This last week has seen more adventures at Fish Creek and ptarmigan hunting at Hatcher's Pass.  Ethan and I are in agreement that we could live here our entire lives and never hike all of the trails of Hatcher's Pass; but it sure is fun trying!  Early last Monday morning on August 17, 2015, Ethan caught his first salmon!  We had found a secret spot on Fish Creek (that really isn't so secret). Just before the tide comes in, the running salmon gather together in a small pool and eat just about anything thrown to them.  Two fellas were leaving and one had extra bait.  He let Ethan throw his line while they were cleaning up and within seconds, Ethan had a fish.  We, of course, didn't have bait that morning -- we were using spinners; however, the spinners worked well, too, as we left with 4 silvers.  We think with bait we would have had our limit of 12; but 4 was enough to process the remainder of the morning and to fill the freezer with 11 bags of frozen salmon. Thank the good Lord! He probably knew that as salmon rookies we would be sore and stiff with more than 4 of those monsters to process.  Of course that didn't stop us from trying to catch more of them in the following days.

Combat sport fisherman waiting for the tide to arrive
August 2015

Waiting for high tide
Ironically, this is the EXACT same spot we had to pull him out of a few weeks ago!

Eagles Wait for Salmon Bites at
Fish Creek

With the weather turning and the high tides arriving later, it's been hard to catch the good salmon runs of earlier in the season.  That doesn't stop droves of anglers from arriving to combat fish for the salmon that are there.  When school is finished, if the weather is nice, Ethan and I go and try our hand at it if the timing of the tides is just right.  He fishes a little, but enjoys playing in the water more than anything.  Give a 10-year-old boy a pair of waterproof hip waders and I guarantee you he will tempt the water to get as close to the top of those waders as possible! Regardless of our fishing prowess, the scenery around us is breathtaking.  And as the sign at my Daddy's house says, "A bad day fishing is better than a good day working."  To which Ethan responds, "Yeah, but if a man won't work, he won't eat!"  We have decided that if our family were dependent upon the two of us for fish as a main source of food, we would all be much leaner or we would be going very hungry!  As a result, Ethan decided to try his hand at ptarmigan, grouse, and hare hunting.

As the first member of the Martin family this go-round to be eligible for an early hunting season, the day did not get off to a good start.  Ethan was awake most of the night before with an upset stomach from gorging himself on The Millers chocolate ice cream dipped in hardening chocolate. So much chocolate!!!  The Millers are a Mom n Pop shop along the Parks highway that cause traffic to come to a standstill on more than one occasion because of the long lines of cars waiting in their drive-throughs (yes, they have a drive-through on each side of their building)!  We just happened to hit it right Sunday evening after church when they had NO LINE!  Needless to say, their soft serve ice cream and flavor bursts rival Dairy Queen blizzards, and Ethan went crazy with his chocoholic self! And we let him...bad parents!  After the ache subsided Monday morning, he was ready to go hunting since his Daddy had a day off from work and the weather was gorgeous!

Entering Archangel Valley at Hatcher's Pass

Beaver Dam in Archangel Valley

We woke up to temperatures cold enough to snow, but by midday it was close to 65 degrees.  In fact, we were outside long enough above the treeline to get sunburned a little.  We tried Archangel Valley at Hatcher's Pass, which is not an area we had scouted before.  However, the road was open (which rarely happens), and we have had several locals tell us that ptarmigan and grouse are plentiful there.

Charlie Brown's Christmas Tree

Ethan's Grazing "Rock Bear" -- 3rd Rock Down

They lie. Probably not on purpose, but we sure didn't scare any up, even having the dog with us!  We did spot Charlie Brown's Christmas Tree, though, and a "Rock Bear" that nearly caused Ethan to have a panic attack!  He was using the range finder to make sure we were 1/4 mile off the road when he spotted what he thought was a grazing bear.  He begged for his Daddy's binoculars and then nearly made himself sick in the aftershock when he realized it was only a grass covered rock and not a "real" bear.  The hunt wasn't a total loss, however, as we discovered an untouched blueberry/crow berry patch that extended for at least 1/4 mile in most directions!  We now have a "secret" berry spot.  It is taboo to ask locals where they berry pick, and having found such a treasure trove ourselves, we can understand now why.

Homemade Blueberry Swirled Cheesecake
Made with the Blueberries from our secret spot at Hatcher's Pass

So while our harvest has been minimal, the sting of that has been alleviated by the views that surround us.  On more than one occasion during the past week, Ethan has remarked that "I could never explain to someone how beautiful it is here. I'm not sure our English language has the words for it." And we agree.  We feel so blessed each time we are able to look out the window or be out in the beautiful creation that the Lord has given us.  It's a shame that so many people see it, but they don't see it.  May the Lord open all of our eyes to the beauty that He has created.  Blessings to You All!

Geographical Oddity...1/4 Mile from Everywhere!

First Ptarmigan Hunt
Youth Hunt at Hatcher's Pass Aug 2015