Feeding Time - Baby Tern, how cute!

I didn't realize it has been almost 10 days since my last post! Not much going on lately. I've been doing a lot of fishing but haven't really seen much wildlife. And the weather has been dark and rainy so even scenic shots are not very good these days.

I did get luck when I took my dog for a swim a couple of days ago. A pair of Terns had taken one of their babies out for lunch. They had it perched on an old piece of lumber that sticks out of the river and they went out to catch it some fish. One of the adults would chase off the seagulls and the other would catch fish and bring them back to feed the youngster. I love the burst mode on my camera - I can shoot 5 frames per second which helped me get these great pictures.

FYI - my back surgery will take place on Friday 7/31. I'll be out fishing until then and will write more a few days after surgery.

Wild Fires Everywhere

There are about 70+ wild fires in the state right now with two near my home. Here are a couple of pictures showing how the smoke is affecting my community of Cooper Landing. Normally the mountains here are seen very clearly, but as you can see in the first image, the haze is obscuring them.

Insane Combat Fishing

As an Alaskan living in Cooper Landing I am near one of the greatest salmon fisheries in the state. I love fishing in the clear water of the Russian River and sight fishing for the explosive red (sockeye) salmon. This year, due to low water in the Russian and massive crowds in the sanctuary area, the reds aren't pushing up the Russian. This is the first time in my life that I have walked that stream this time of year and seen no fish. In order to catch any I actually had to fish in the combat zone.

It was a mad house. The fish were thick - you could see their dark backs through the turquoise water, and easily hook up in just a few flips. But the people, my oh my the people. So many that if you do hook up with a fish it is almost a guarantee that you will tangle several lines in the process of bringing it in. Catching red salmon is a thrill for me but I sure do hope those fish push through into the Russian River soon. I really dread having to enter the combat zone again!