Winter Is Coming; Fall, 2018
You never know exactly what sort of a Fall or Winter Anchorage will experience. Predictions rarely seem to match reality. Fond memories of late September snow and October skiing (training upper Alyeska in October - Spider Sabich came to train slalom decades ago) probably reflect exceptional years that are likely never to repeat. So everyone watches for early signs of what might happen in the next weeks and months, always hoping for the best. Which means hoping for a real winter.
Early signs: high snow is across the Inlet in mid-October.
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Gusty wind whips at trees, barely shrubs, clinging to the rocks and roughens water.
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High above the highway there is no visible snow yet; about 13 sheep (the white blobs) graze in a high meadow.
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Early snow lies in a band below dramatic clouds on the other side of the Inlet.
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Closer to town, thin snow has dusted high Chugach peaks.
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Wet, blustery weather hits the next day. Wet leaves still hang and illuminate the drive.
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And a day later snow appears high in Alyeska's bowl.
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Winter is even later in Auke Bay, as November approaches.
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There is nonetheless ample snow over Southeast Alaska's coastal mountains, and a glacier seems to
disappear into the engine inlet.
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After a lifetime of mainly expressing myself with words, my postings here will mainly rely on images. They will speak for themselves to some extent, but I'll usually add a few comments of explanation. I've taken photographs for decades, since the 1950's, inspired in part by my father's photographic skill. Four years of photo assignments and quality darkroom time eventually gave way to decades of casual and family picture-taking. I re-immersed myself when I left film and turned to digital.