c/alaska

Hit 10,000 miles on my snowmachine this season - didn't see that coming

I've been running a 2018 Skandic out of Fairbanks for trapping and general winter hauling. Last week the odometer rolled past 10,000 miles, which surprised me since I thought the machine was closer to 8,000. That made me realize I've been doing more back and forth to my cabin than I estimated, about 40 miles each trip. Most of those miles are on frozen rivers and packed trails, not deep powder. Has anyone else tracked their winter travel or just ballparked it like I was doing?

Finally got my moose tag after 5 years of applying

Old timer in Talkeetna warned me about glacier ice fall patterns

I was up near Talkeetna last summer helping a friend with his flightseeing business. This old bush pilot named Hank pointed at a glacier and said never land near the base after 2 PM because the sun loosens things up. I kind of shrugged it off, figured he was being dramatic. Then on August 17th around 2:30, I watched a chunk the size of a school bus peel off that exact glacier. It hit the moraine and sent debris flying across the whole valley floor. Has anyone else had an experienced local call something that seemed too cautious but turned out to be dead on?

My snowmachine died 15 miles into a trip up the Denali Highway last weekend

Was heading out to check some cabin lines near the Maclaren River, engine just started sputtering and then nothing. Turned out the fuel line had a crack I missed during preseason maintenance. Had to tow it back with a buddy's machine, took like 4 hours in the dark. Lesson learned to replace all rubber lines every 2 years even if they look okay. Anyone else have a mechanical fail at the worst possible time up here?

Finally landed a 10-pound silver salmon on my own rigged gear

I've been fishing the Kenai River for about 4 years now, mostly borrowing my buddy's rods. Last month I built my own setup from scratch - a Lamiglas rod and an Okuma reel - and I took it out last Saturday. After 3 hours of nothing, I hooked into a 10-pound silver that fought like crazy for 15 minutes. I actually landed it without any help, and it felt WAY different than using someone else's gear. Guess I finally understand why people get so particular about their own combos. Has anyone else had that moment where your own rig just clicked compared to borrowed stuff?

Used to think bears were the only real threat up here. Then I learned about moose.

I was walking my dog near Eagle River last week and a cow moose charged us out of nowhere because her calf was in the brush. Had to drop the leash and climb a tree while my dog ran home - never again will I underestimate those things.

That feeling when you pick a carbureted snow machine over fuel injected

Back in 2019 I had to choose between a used Skidoo with the old carb setup and a newer model with electronic fuel injection. Price difference was about $1,200 and I went with the carbureted one because parts are everywhere and I can fix it myself with a screwdriver. First winter was fine, started okay down to about 10 below. But last January when it hit 40 below in Fairbanks I spent 20 minutes trying to get that thing to fire while my buddy with the EFI just flipped a switch and left. I still think I made the right call for my wallet and my mechanical confidence though. Has anyone else here gone back to carbs after dealing with fuel injection issues in extreme cold?

That river taxi ride in Ketchikan cost me more than a flight to Anchorage

I was planning a trip to Misty Fjords and looked up a water taxi from Ketchikan to get there. Turns out a round trip for two people runs about $320, which is actually more than I paid for my one-way flight from Seattle to Anchorage back in April. Did anyone else get sticker shock on transportation costs up here, or am I just bad at budgeting for Alaska travel?

That week in Ketchikan when it rained for 9 days straight

Back in 2017 I was up in Ketchikan painting a seafood processor's exterior and the weather just would not let up. Day 1 I figured we'd get a window, day 3 I was still scraping wet paint off my brushes, by day 7 the crew was playing poker in the motel lobby. The fish smell mixed with the damp got into everything, even my truck seats. On day 9 the sun cracked through for about 4 hours and we scrambled to get two coats on before the next squall hit. That job ended up taking three weeks instead of one and I lost my ass on the bid. Anyone else had a stretch of weather that just killed a project schedule?

Just looked up how much ice Alaska has lost since I moved here in 1998

Found a report from the Alaska Climate Research Center saying the state has lost about 75 billion tons of glacier ice a year since the mid-90s and it really hit me different because I remember when Portage Glacier came right up to the visitor center. Has anyone else noticed trails changing or creeks drying up in places they used to be reliable?

Spent 4 hours trying to get a snowmachine started in -30, turned out the kill switch was frozen

Serious question about my wood stove insert failing mid-winter

My Blaze King insert quit on me during a -20 snap in Fairbanks two weeks ago. The thermostat rod froze up and the catalytic combustor stopped working right. I had to run a space heater for three days until I could get a repair guy out. Has anyone else had this problem with their catalytic stove?

Overheard my neighbor talking about the old days of dog mushing

Ngl, it got me thinking. My neighbor was telling his grandson about running supplies up the Iditarod trail in the 80s, no GPS or nothing, just a map and a compass. Makes me wonder if we've lost some real grit up here now that everyone uses satellite phones and apps for everything.

Caught my first silver salmon on the Kenai River this weekend after 7 years of trying

I was using a hot pink Vibrax spinner on a cloudy Saturday near the Soldotna bridge and it hit so hard I almost dropped my rod, anyone else have a fish that completely changed where they fish?

Tried using a cheap ice fishing rod last weekend near Anchorage and it snapped on my first catch

I picked up one of those $30 ice fishing combos from the big box store, figured it'd be fine for a weekend trip. Got out to Campbell Lake, drilled my hole, and within 10 minutes I had a decent rainbow trout on the line. The rod bent weird and then just cracked right above the handle. Lost the fish and the rig. Learned that cheap gear really does break when you need it most. Anyone else had a rod fail on them in the middle of a good catch?

Finally got my sourdough starter to work after 6 months of failed attempts near Fairbanks

I used to just wing it with store-bought yeast for my bread, but nothing beat the taste of real Alaskan sourdough. After my 12th dead starter, I realized the cold cabin was killing the bacteria - I was keeping it by the window at 55 degrees. Switched to using a heating pad set to 70F from Amazon back in January, and now I get a bubbly rise every time. The trick was feeding it every 12 hours with equal parts flour and water, not guessing. Has anyone else in northern towns had trouble keeping starters alive in the winter?

Dropped $600 on a snow machine that died after 3 trips near Anchorage

Bought a used Ski-Doo from a guy on Craigslist who swore it was rebuilt last season. Third time out by Hatcher Pass, the engine just seized up on a flat stretch. No smoke, no warning, just dead. Took it to a shop in Wasilla and they found the guy had patched the crankcase with JB Weld. Tried to get my money back but the number was disconnected. Anyone else get burned by a garbage private sale up here?

Got charged $75 for a broken headlight cover in Fairbanks last week

I was parked at the Fred Meyer lot in Fairbanks getting some rest before heading north, and when I came back someone had cracked my passenger side headlight cover. No note, nothing. I had to stop at a shop in North Pole and they wanted $75 just for the plastic cover piece, not even the whole assembly. Has anyone else had trouble finding cheap replacement parts for older rigs up here?

TIL moose actually eat more willow than birch in winter, found it in a state DNR study

I saw this breakdown of browse preferences from a 2022 Fairbanks survey and it totally flipped what I thought I knew about winter foraging around my cabin, anyone else trust their old-timer tips over the actual data?

That old trick with a spoon for starting a fire in wet weather actually worked for me near Talkeetna

I was out camping last fall up near Talkeetna and everything was soaked from three days of rain. My usual lighter and fire starter cubes were useless and I was getting desperate for hot coffee. My buddy who guides in Denali told me to try scraping a metal spoon against a knife blade to create sparks onto a dry piece of cotton ball mixed with petroleum jelly. I thought he was messing with me because it sounded like some bushcraft myth. But after 10 minutes of scraping and cussing, I got a tiny spark that caught the cotton and had a flame going within 30 seconds. It felt ridiculous but it saved my morning. Has anyone else had luck with weird fire starting methods up here when the tinder is wet?

Folks keep moving to Fairbanks without checking the propane situation first

I've had three new clients in the last two months who moved up here and didn't realize their heating costs would double what they were paying down south, and now they're scrambling to budget before winter hits hard in October.

Old timer at a hardware store told me my anchor knots were all wrong last spring

I was picking up some rope for a mooring line in Seward and an old fisherman just watched me tie a quick bend and shook his head. He showed me how a simple double figure-eight would hold way better in tidal pulls and I've switched all my dock lines since. Has anyone else had a local give them a tip that changed their whole rigging setup?

Had a talk with a denali ranger that shifted my whole view

I was grumbling about the new permit system at the visitor center last Tuesday and this ranger just said 'the park was here before any of us, we're just guests.' It hit different because I've been coming here for a decade and never thought of it that way. How do you guys balance wanting access with keeping places wild?

Rant: wasted $350 on an airboat tour that never left the dock

Booked a ride with a guy in Soldotna last summer who claimed he ran tours daily on the Kenai River. Showed up at 10 AM like he said and he was just sitting there with a half empty beer. Said the engine had a fuel issue and he'd fix it in an hour. Four hours later he was still messing with it and I finally asked for my money back. He got defensive and said no refunds, so I had to file a chargeback with my bank. Has anyone else dealt with these fly by night tour operators up here?

Was in Juneau last week and noticed way more cruise ships than locals. Is tourism killing the real Alaska?