BitterSweet Africa

A month away from the cold - in the heat and sun of southern Africa. Cape Town was the first southern hemisphere destination for the Marine Mammal Conference. A city of contradictions - Maserati and Ferrari intermingled with abject poverty. Table Mountain rising up behind town.



A day off to see the Cape of Good Hope, a name that has resonated since childhood. On the way, took the chance to visit boulder beach's Penguins.



I arrived at the conference early to take part in a Sirenian workshop. The day after was free so we went out to wine country. The surroundings were most conducive to sampling the local libations!



After the conference, I took a train to Jo-berg and then bus onto Kruger National Park. The local bus option in Africa was small and unpredictable. You just wait until the bus is full and then it leaves...not before. Here is the bus station at Maputo, the capital of Mozambique.



Whenever the buses stopped, we'd be mobbed by a host of food sellers





Kruger was pretty spectacular. A huge expanse of park with most of Africa's renowned wildlife species. It was definitely a treat to drive around, seeing a host of mammals and about 80 species of bird. Many come to see the "Big 5" of which we saw 3, elephant, lion, and buffalo. Leopard and rhino remained elusive.









Nevertheless, we were lucky to see many other great sights. Maybe one of the most special was the first, Sable which are regarded as very unusual. Unfortunately no pictures of them, so I took this off the web.



Hippos had been my most desired sighting and we saw them everywhere in the park. Periodically they'd trumpet, a sound I'll always remember.



Kudu





After Kruger, took a bus up to Tofo in Mozambique, a sleepy little surfer spot that was an idyllic place to relax. It was also a good relax after the crazed Rasters who drank a bottle each of Brandy on the bus north. At one point the whole bus was screaming and shouting at each other. I'd periodically hear the word "Tourista" and wonder what on earth was going on. After a few hours of this (of the 9 hour ride), the rasters were let go, their confiscated machete thrown unceremoniously from the bus after we were a few hundred meters away!



Tofo was wonderful, and gave the chance to swim with whale sharks. This seemed like such a pipe dream, but was worth every bit of the trouble to get there. I swam with the shark for about 40 minutes, close enough to touch. The sharks are inquisitive and would stay close so I spent more time trying to avoid it than find it!! I took this picture from the web as a close approximation of what this all looked like.



The flowers of Africa were also captivating...here are a few of my favorite pictures:







And then there were the kids!

Hutlinana

Yesterday, I had the chance to catch up with my friend Kyle on a 12 mile round-trip hike into Hutlinana hotsprings. Apart from the 3 hour drive on icy roads to get there, it was a beautiful day - warm enough to not need hat or gloves, and only a few inches of snow so we just hiked in with running shoes. The hot spring was well worth the trip, tucked in against the small cliff on the left side of the river.



The dogs had fun. Here's Yugi (living with us for four months) and Turtle. We were in prime squirrel country - their favorite!



The sunset on the way home was superb.

Winter's Transition

Fall was still hanging in the air a few short weeks ago. We took advantage of the cool weather to observe the fall colors one last time before the snow turned the world white. This is at Kesugi Ridge between Fairbanks and Anchorage.



When the snow finally hit, it was cause for celebration. Time for skiing and snow angels again.



The early season skiing is great. Lots of glide and warm temperatures.

Anadyr

Ever since I started my research in the Bering Strait, I've been wanting to travel across the short distance to Russia. Last week, I had my chance, taking a small plane for the 2 hour ride to Anadyr, the regional capital of Chukotka. We landed along side Bear Bombers and were met by an entourage of military and customs officials.



For a reason, I'm still a little unclear on, Anadyr is separated from it's airport by a mile or so of water. This involves a ride in a small landing craft as for us in summer, an ice road in winter, and in the intervening seasons, a helicopter.



I went to present my walrus research at the annual Beringia Days conference. It was a great chance to meet collaborators in person and to share information on walrus research.



Roman Abramovich is the governor of Chukotka. Britain knows him as the owner of Chelsea football club. Anadyr knows him for the extensive investments he has made in Chukotka, including in some new paint!







Anadyr is an interesting mix of the old and new. Large murals and Russia's largest wooden orthodox church. We went to a service which was quite moving in its ethereal beauty and singing.



On one of the last days, we took a trip out onto the tundra for a wonderful barbecue of reindeer chased down with some great vodka.



As usual, I was captivated by the kids. We were delayed for a few days due to cross winds at the airport and took a tour of the local kindergarten. Here are a few of my favorite photos.





Finally, at the airport we met families stuck for two days waiting to travel an hour toward Alaska to the town of Providenya. They were fun to play with, including Amy here from KNOM in Nome who used the camera distortion program on her mac to entertain them for at least an hour!

Musings before the Fall

August turned out pretty busy with comprehensive exams and a work trip to Portland, but didn't stop the necessary few last trips to enjoy the summer before it eases into winter. The chill is already in the air and the nights dark and starry again. Northern Lights on Friday were some of the best I've ever seen (see our friend Patrick's blog for some photos of them and the cranes that are congregating before heading south). Here are a few photos of the last weeks. A productive trip out into the hills to pick blueberries with Ben and Julie. You have to wonder if Ben has a red bucket for raspberries and and an orange one for salmon berries.





Yesterday, had a chance to catch up with Kyle and Julie (now back from their wedding and honeymoon in Africa), and another friend Adrian on a mellow float along the Chena River in Fairbanks. Kyle and Julie are enjoying the cleanliness of Fairbanks...which believe me is a telling story of Africa!



The paddle was a pleasant way to spend a Saturday afternoon, even with the Discovery paddle wheel churning past us during lunch. Even though it was now September 1st, the sun was hot keeping dogs in the shade and us relaxed and ready for ice cream at the finish.

News from the Field

It's been a hectic week preparing for my comprehensive exams, coupled with giving Tupac some extra love. He was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease for which there is no cure. Although quite sick, he's putting on a brave face. So for now, I'm living vicariously through Tawna's adventures.

She's a long-day's drive north of Vancouver at a bird-banding station. The drive really exhausted Turtle apparently.



The banding station is a beautiful place in amazing surroundings. I'm hoping to visit at the end of the month.




Here's one of their birds, a yellow-winged variety.

Turtle and the Indigo Girls

Tawna and Turtle headed to B.C., Canada a couple of days ago; here's Turtle taking a final nap.



Tonight, headed out with friends to see the Indigo Girls. It was fun to have them in Fairbanks and play such a small venue. As you can see, the setting was really quite intimate for such a well known group.





Never thought I'd meet a person called Turtle...but here is Turtle, a 40-year resident of Fairbanks with my buddy Ben. It was a fun evening for all!