Friday, June 18, 2010
The Point at the End of the Trail
Human Impact on this Place
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Past and Present


At left is a historical photo of the Princess Kathleen as it sat on the rocks at Lena Point in 1952. At right is a photo taken this spring as the bunker fuel was pumped out after a sheen was spotted in early spring. You can read about this fuel recovery effort in this Juneau Empire story.
This local "small" oil vs. environment story shows how one's ( a student's?) connection to place has the potential to lead to investigations about, concern for, and connections to other parts of our planet both near (Valdez) and far (Gulf of Mexico).
Photo credits: Princess Kathleen(Alaska's Digital Archives), Oil recovery(NOAA)
Everyday, Every Year: Fauna


The point is a good place to view a few animals also. Marine mammals including sea lions, humpback whales and seals are frequent passers by. Birds such as bald eagles, ravens, crow, seabirds and LBB (little brown birds, as my father says) can be observed year around. Fish, especially dog salmon, jump below the point in summer.
Red squirrels (and their sign) are abundant, but not as plentiful as the afternoon's biting insects! I often used to see black bear sign on the trail to The Point, but in recent years there is very little bear activity. My guess is that the two new subdivisions in the neighborhood have had an impact on the bears.

Photo/illustration credits: Stellar Sea Lion(NOAA), Eagle/crow(Ciar@Creative Commons), Red Squirrel by Kathy Hocker,(AKDF&G)
Everyday, Every Year: Flora
Depending on the season, constants of The Point include: lots of skunk cabbage, ferns, beautiful spring wildflowers, devil's club, small berry patches here and there, Sitka spruce, hemlock, mountain hemlock, alder, grasses, mosses, dogwood, and many other plants common to Southeast AK. I marvel at the abundance of the color green in all its variations. Smells, both refreshing and not so (skunk cabbage and chocolate lily) are abundant, each highlighted at different times throughout the growing season.

Chocolate Lily(AKDF&G), Beach Pea(Cier) and Coastal Paintbrush(Mary Hopson) retrieved from Creative Commons. All other photos by author.
Connection to Place
The Point is a place that I've explored, by frequent walks, for about ten years. I've seen changes caused both by humans and nature, and observed the constants of each season.
Students could make connections to places near their schools. Every Juneau school has a natural "getaway" nearby. All that would be necessary is a chunk of time and some gear for the weather.
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