Streaming Water

My son and I went for a walk this afternoon after we dropped my daughter off at work. There was a fine mist of rain falling, but we were perfectly dry under the trees. We stopped at this waterfall so I could rest and of course I couldn’t resist taking out the old camera. The large, leafed plant swooping over the stream, and along the bank, are called Devil’s Club (Oplopanax horridum). They have horrible thorns along their steams and stocks. I would have much rather sat and watch the water tumble over the rocks than continue on exploring the Devil’s Club laden forest where my son wanted to explore. It’s awful when you grab whatever you can find to keep from falling and feel tiny, small thorns penetrating your palm(s).

Liquid Sunshine

Juneau received record amounts of precipitation during the past two days. Records were broke at both the airport and the National Weather Service (NWS) office (on Mendenhall Loop Road) Wednesday. The NWS received a record 1.98 inches on Wednesday surpassing the 2006 record of .75 inches. Since January 1, 2010 Juneau has received 19.74 inches of precipitation, which is less than last year’s year to date amount of 23.07 inches. No wonder it feels so much drier this summer.

Sea Princess

     The last week or so has been pretty hectic around here. Three families whom we’re friends with are either moving or preparing to move. One of the families is being transferred with the Coast Guard and leaves on Sunday, so today we took their oldest daughter, who is also our daughter’s best friend, up the Mt. Robert’s Tramway. She had never been before, so we thought it would be a special treat to ride the tram up Mt. Roberts, explore the trails, gift shop, have lunch, and take a few photos.
     We checked the cruise ship schedule this morning and discovered that there was five cruise ships due in Juneau today. Once we got downtown, there were only four in port and the fifth was on it’s way out. We figured the line, at the Tram, would be horrible, but instead we were able board one of the tramcars after only waiting a few minutes, thanks to the tram running every 5 minutes.
     After spending 3 hours at the top, we had to wait in line to make our decent, so I took the opportunity to photograph the four cruise ships in port.  The Sea Princess (the one anchored in the Gastineau Channel) was the same ship used for the “Love Boat” episode in 1981 when Julie McCoy (played by artist Lauren Tewes) was married aboard the Love Boat. When researching which ships were used during the filming of the television series the “Love Boat,” which ran from 1977 to 1986, I learned that a total of six different cruise ships had filming take place on them. Apparently it depended on the episode trip (ex. Europe, China, Caribbean, etc.).

If you would like to see more photos from those participating in Watery Wednesday, just click on the link.

Twin Lakes

This afternoon I took my daughter and her friends swimming at Twin Lakes. Here they are wrestling for a turn on the inner tube. It’s hard to believe the high temperature for today was 69 degrees. Even though it felt like ninety on land, it was still too cold to get me in the water.
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Thunder Mountain

Thunder Mountain reflects in a slough along Mendenhall River.

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Reflection

From the shores of Mendenhall Lake, you can see the deciduous alder and willows are beginning to green up displaying the forest succession of where the Mendenhall Glacier once excited.
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Kayaks

Kayaking is a popular recreational sport for locals and visitors. The protected waterways around Juneau provide the perfect environment for paddling. The weather can be very unpredictable and can change quickly, so it’s always best to dress appropriately, wear a life jacket, carry a survival kit, watch the weather, go with an experienced kayaker, and enjoy the spectacular scenery and wildlife.

Breakup

The ice on Mendenhall Lake has broken up leaving behind massive chunks of lake ice and bergy-bits (a.k.a. small icebergs). It wont take long before the lake ice empties into the Mendenhall River.

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Fishing Boats

As I made my way down the bank to take in the scenery, I found these boats tied up to the dock near Taku Fisheries. Thanks to them I was able to capture this shot.

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