Springtime in Alaska

I scored a free working propane smoker on Craigslist. I fired it up, and it all seems in working order.

I took out 2 big bags of moose pieces to make jerky. Sara found some ancient bottles of marinade we bought at Costco. I picked one, and cut up the moose and put them in the marinade for an over night soak in the fridge.

It’s now 8 pm and I’m sitting here looking out our window on North Douglas Highway watching 4 mountain goats across Gastineau Channel feeding on the mountainside above town. They look ravenous feeding on whatever they are finding.

It’s in the 40’s.  I cross country skied Montana Creek trail today. I was the lone skier. Lots of pine needles on the trail, but the needles did not seem to impede my skiing. Still lots of snow. Maybe 2 more weeks of skiing.

When I got out to the end of the 3 km trail, I paused to listen. And there they were. Hooters booming from the hills across the valley.

I didn’t regret bringing a gun or snowshoes to go after them. They were farther away than I was willing to hike.

As I close in on 60,  hearing them is as fulfilling as harvesting them. Maybe more so.

At about 445 pm, I got the phone number of my old friend from Cuba, NY, Ozzie. I came to Alaska with him, Scott and Bob on 1983.

I texted him first to see if he was up as it was 4 hours later in NY state. He was. And then I called and he picked up before the first ring ended.

We hadn’t talked for 30? years. He sounded the same now as we did when we were both about 20 when we drove up to Fairbanks in 1983. And we talked like we hadn’t talked for a week, and not 30 years.  One of those people in your life that you shared a life changing event.

So good to talk to him. Maybe he’ll come see us next year.

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