Nome Rocks!

Nome does rock, but it also has rocks -- and lots of them! This week I signed up for a geology workshop through University of Alaska Fairbanks, which has a small campus here in town. It was being taught by a grad student who is currently working for one of the gold mining companies, and consisted of an evening in-class session followed by a full-day field trip around Nome.

Through the lens: Winter's coming

On Sunday my housemate and I rented a car from an extremely generous local in town (she wanted to let us use it for free, but finally accepted a few bucks!), which afforded us an opportunity to spend the day in the mountains. The forecast called for freezing temperatures and rain, but once we got out of town the precipitation turned to snow flurries and we found ourselves cruising through an early winter wonderland. 

The art of staying busy (and the interesting things that happen when you do)

Post-college life is an interesting force to be reckoned with. I thought it would be hard to get used to not having any homework or big responsibilities to contend with at the end of each day, but in fact I've hardly thought anything of it. And the little thought I have given to the matter has been more along the lines of: Oh hey, I can do whatever the hell I want right now!

So far this summer, that mindset has translated itself into a number of various pursuits: salmon fishing; hiking; biking in the mountains; berry picking; cooking; baking; walking on the beach; drawing; watercolor painting; writing; learning harmonica; reading; photography; and working out and running.

Incredible weekend at Serpentine

Alaskan native tradition says the valley of Serpentine Hot Springs is the home of powerful spirits. I could see how those beliefs came about last time I visited in July, but the 3 days I spent there this past weekend were perhaps some of the most beautiful days I have ever been lucky enough to experience.

Beaver lodge and dam

Update and lots of pics

This week was relatively uneventful, so I'm taking it as an opportunity to post a backlog of random photos that don't really fit anywhere else. 

As you may have guessed, the rest of my trip into the field totally fell through and I ended up staying in Nome. My trip for next week has been postponed too -- I was supposed to go out to Serpentine again on Monday for the week, but yesterday we found out that we're not allowed to go because it would mean working on Labor Day! Yay government.