Here we go again!

Okay...so I don't have too much to report on actually!! Just a few little experiences--so this won't be such a novel---I think :)

We went kayaking this week!! One morning Josh asked us what we were going to do for fun.  We said, "Gardening of course."  He said, "Gardening?  You are going crazy if that's what you call fun around here."  We just looked at him.  I then said, "Well, what would YOU do for fun?"  Josh responded, "Sure not gardening!"  Then he suggested that we take the kayak out.  So we did that!  It was really fun.  It was a beautiful day and we just paddled around close so we didn't get lost.  (For those of you who don't know..the GPS was created just for me :) )  It was really awesome.

When we were out in the Kayak, our rock carrying golden lab decided it would be a good idea to follow us the whole time!  She is quite a swimmer!!  But it was quite a swim for her!!  We felt really bad that she was trying to keep up--then she would try to come in with us and that as simply not happening!!  So needless to say she has been pretty dead since that experience!

Yeah..the sunsets are pretty amazing when we are out on the boat :)

For the rest of the week, we have been working our little hearts out in the garden and making the flower beds all gorgeous for when the guests come on Saturday!  That will mostly be our tasks for this week.  Working hard to get the grounds all ready for the guests!!  We are excited for when they come.  Our work will change a little bit then.  I will update you when it happens so I give an accurate description. :) I still don't know quite what to expect.

I have been going running this

We went out fishing again this week and watched the sunset (which was gorgeous!) and that was very fun.  I included a little video that I thought you all might enjoy :)

I sure love you guys and hope that all is well!!  Keep smiling and being cool!! Life is good :)

Hey there kids!  It's time for more shenanigans with Alicia! Yay!!!!

So really quick, if you recall the last blog post with the gnat story, I decided to put together a little something that I hope will make you all laugh and shake your head. below you will see Caitlin and I in our bug getups.  We like to call this "the evolution of the bug net".  Yes, we really did this.  Desperate times my friends.  Desperate times.

The evolution of the bug net

The Adventure Continues

Well Folks,  time here is flying--and dragging at the same time oddly enough!  I haven't posted lately because (1) there hasn't been time and (2) I haven't had much to update you all on!!  Things have gotten significantly more exciting though--so I thought I would give some recaps of events!!!

Our work has changed a bit now that the hunters are gone.  Our job for the first half of the week has been pretty exciting---wait for it....wait for it.....we have become champions at picking up PINECONES!! Wooooooooo!!!! On Monday and Tuesday...and Wednesday we raked, and painstakingly picked up pine cones and sticks by hand so that we could make this the LOVELIEST little place ever.  When we began this task, we thought it would not take too long. Oh how wrong we were.  We have been picking up pine cones for days.  It has been a blast :)  

The gnats are really terrible here right now.   I think you all will get a kick out of this story--we were weeding and picking up pine cones next to one of the cabins and the gnats were absolutely TERRIBLE.  Caitlin was getting really fed up so she pulled up her hood, tied it as tight as she could and put on her sunglasses.  That worked for her for awhile but she couldn't breathe that well.  I tried to do the same thing, but the sweatshirt I was wearing didn't have a draw string.  So I just ended up pulling it around my face and biting it.  That was hard to breathe with too!!  So we got really annoyed with that and were running around in circles screaming.  :)  Yeah...it was a pretty sight.  So we decided to come to our room and try to come up with something to help.  Well, I have these really cute scarves that are light weight and it turns out that you can see through them a little bit!!  So I wrapped Caitlin's head up in one of the scarves and it was wonderful!!  She looked pretty funny, but we didn't care.  So I grabbed another one of my beautiful neon scarves and tied it around my head.  We walked down the stairs and Luke had been looking for us to relay a message from his mother.  He saw us and was like---uh...what are you guys doing?  You look ridiculous.  We started laughing and told him that we were trying to save ourselves from the gnats.  He said, "you know, we have bug nets that you can wear."  That was the best news we had heard all week!!!  Those things work wonders!  Whoever invented them is my hero :)  We will have pictures on the way of the evolution of our head-wear.  It was pretty funny. :)  The nets have been our best friends ever since.  Gnats still get in every once in awhile but they do made a huge difference! 

The pine-cone-raking-picking-cleaning etc has been interspersed however with random odd jobs.  For example, we carried flowers to the greenhouse, watered in there, learned how to work the hose, and other various jobs.  We were also recruited by Josh and Jordan to help them move a whole ton of pipes and debris to the opposite end of the property.  That was  a good time.  It was actually great to be doing more work like that.  The time went by a whole lot faster!  

The best part about this week (except for the discovery of bug nets around our heads) is that we finally got to go out in the boats!!  Both on Wednesday and Thursday night!!  Jordan took us out on Wednesday and we went and saw a whale carcass, and the beautiful sunset!  It was amazing!! We also had the opportunity to go FISHING!! Yay!!  I caught my first sea bass!  And it was teeny!  Haha..Caitlin caught one at about the same size and it was huge!  It was pretty fun to fish there though.  Jordan is one of the guides when the season starts so he gave us some pointers and would tell us where the fish were etc.  So we caught quite a few!  We just threw them back, but man, it was fun!!  We also went to Russian Island.  It is a little island that is just down the way from us.  It is a pretty cool place.  I guess we will be going there for some summer barbecues and parties.  On July 4 we here that we have a huge firework show on the beech there.  It will be pretty cool :)  While we were on Russian Island, Jordan took us up on a peak and we he taught us how to shoot.  We shot at seagulls and I don't think I even got in their vicinity!  I will have to practice :)  We saw some otters and watched the sunset from the boat.  It was really cool.  

The lovely whale carcass--I was pretending to throw up and it grossed Caitlin out :)

Sunset last night.  Isn't it beautiful? :)

We went out the next night with Luke and Jordan and we went fishing.  It was really fun.  The awesome thing about fishing here is that you just let down your line as fast as you can until you hit the bottom and then reel up a few times.  Then you just put it up and down and up and down and before you know it, you have a fishy!  One time I just barely let it down and within like 7 seconds I had a fish!  I didn't even get it down to the bottom!!  It was amazing!  Another time, I had a fish but I got it to the top and it got off--but he was still interested in my line for whatever reason so I played with it at the top and watched him try to get it until he finally gave up.  That was kind of fun to watch!!  I will really enjoy going fishing for the even bigger stuff!!  The guys were telling me that they are excited to take me fishing for halibut because I will freak out.  Its also funny to see me fish for these big fish because my arms are so weak and my pole goes everywhere.  So it will be interesting to see me with the REALLY big fish!!  

Night 2 of fishing--so stinking fun!!!!

So that's most of the really exciting stuff folks!!!  I will keep you posted when there is more to report! Stay tuned!! :)

Background: Afognak Wilderness Lodge--Who is here, and what I do (so far :) )

 Afognak Wilderness Lodge functions as mainly a hunting lodge.  Right now we are on the tail end of the bear hunts.  We have three guests here right now: A couple and their son.  As soon as they get a bear they will be leaving.  The longest they can stay is to May 16th.  So right now, that is what we are looking at as far as guests for the rest of May.

This Lodge has been created from the ground up by Shannon and her late husband, Roy. It has been around for 40 years or so and has many returning guests.  It is a homey place and is a wonderful refuge from the world.

View from the float plane coming in

We came in on the blue float plane at the very end :)

Our Lovely garden...complete with peas in the back!

The next couple of weeks for me are going to be getting this place all ready for when we have photographers and fishermen come for the summer.  We have currently been very busy with weeding the garden and planting the vegetables.  It has been very tedious and we have been working extremely long hours.  It has been great to be outdoors though. It is so beautiful here!  We have been enjoying the bald eagles that sore above us.  We are enjoying the sun--which doesn't go completely down until 11 p.m. or so...now that's a little strange for me for sure!!  It has been great for Caitlin and I to get to know each other as well. We sit in the garden and just chat and ask each other questions. That's been fun.

Our workload will change a little bit once we have a steady flow of guests.  We will be working full days still, but not quite like we are doing now.  It sounds like we will have a more structured schedule which will be nice :)  From what I understand we will be helping in the kitchen, making lunches for fishermen on the boats during the day, as well as processing fish and packaging them etc.  We will be learning all sorts of new skills and I am very excited for that!

So that's a little bit about where I am.  I can't explain how beautiful it is here.  I will try to post pictures to display the beauty.  Its amazing :)  The people are great too..as far as I can tell.  Here is a little bit of a preliminary background for each of them. 

Shannon:  She is the owner and main operator of the lodge.  She manages the schedule, paperwork and things like that.  She is a member of the LDS church for about 30 years.  She has LOTS of stories and talks quite a bit!  In short, we have to be very careful when we go in to ask her a question...because we might not get out for an hour or more!  She is a good person though and I will enjoy working for him.

Josh and Luke: They are Shannon's sons They lead the bear and deer hunts and are great outdoor-men. They both pretty much do everything!  They have helped build many of the buildings here, they maintain the grounds, take guests on the boats and out hunting, and basically everything around this place.

Jordan: I have only briefly talking to Jordan, but he is a nice guy.  He is Shannon's grandson.  As far as I understand he does much of what Luke and Josh do.

Brian:  He is an outstanding cook.  So far I have eaten soooo good!! I planned to lose some weight this summer/fall, but I don't think that will be happening if I don't watch what I eat better!!  He has made some of the most amazing pastries, great potatoes, venison, scallops in rice, many different salads, different breads and the desserts are superb!!  I could go on and on!!

Caitlin, Sadie and I :)

Sadie:  Sadie is our little golden lab.  She is so cute!! She enjoys carrying around rocks and won't play with anything else.  We have enjoyed playing with her in the garden.  She doesn't bark and is just awesome.

So far that is the staff!! There will be a couple of other people joining us, but for the most part, that's it!!  I look forward to getting to know each of these people better!!  

And so it begins...

Here is the beginning of my adventure thus far:

I left for Alaska on Monday, May 5.  I left with Caitlin, the other girl who is going to be working with me this summer.  Quick background on Caitlin, she is 19 and is from Logan, Utah.  She is a very nice girl and we are becoming great friends already :)

We flew out from Salt Lake around 11 on Monday.  To make a very long story short, we had several connecting flights--and we ended up getting stuck in Anchorage due to fog in Kodiak (where we were going to stay the night and then take the float plain to Afognak Island where I will be working.)  We had to do a lot of figuring out--but ended up getting a flight out for the next day at 6:25 a.m.  Because it was already 12 --a.m., we opted to stay in the airport--that was really fun :).  We got to Kodiak the next day around 8 and finally checked into our hotel.  It was glorious!!  We got stuck in Kodiak for longer than expected due to the fog again, but we tried to stay very positive.  After a lot of phone calls and coordination, we were given the call that they were going to fly us in!  

When we got to the dock, I was amazed at the beauty. There were 3 float planes at the dock.  The pilot came and introduced himself.  His name is Peter.  He is a nice guy who is probably around 27 years old.  He has been flying here for about 2 years and loves it.  He is originally from Austin so this is a change for him!  He was a big tease and reminded me a lot of Brian (both in looks and personality! haha)  He loaded the plane and then it was time for us to head off! I sent off texts saying goodbye to the world like I wouldn't be able to see everyone again..then on the plane we went!  We were taking two men with us that we were dropping off at Kitoi Bay along with their mail.  As we were about to get on the plane, Peter turned to us and said "Ok, I need someone to fly up front with me and the rest will be in the back."  Everyone just stared at each other awkwardly and I finally said "I'll do it!!"  So I had the privilege of hopping in first.  I was really excited to experience riding in a float plane!  I didn't really know what to expect, but I was really looking forward to the experience.

I must say--this was like nothing I have ever experienced before.  We put on our big 'ole headphones and the engine revved up.  We started taxiing out of the bay like a boat would.  Suddenly we shot forward and then up in the air!  As the plane rose up my breath was taken away by our beautiful surroundings!!  I can't even describe how beautiful it was!!  Although it was foggy in parts and visibility wasn't completely clear 100% of the time, that enhanced the beauty!!  The lush mountains would just appear seemingly out of nowhere amongst the puffy clouds and eerie fog.  I can't wait to send pictures!!! (I gave Caitlin the job of taking pictures because the back seat was less obscured).  We made several stops so that we could drop off mail to the various places.  So the first stop was Kitoi Bay.  It seemed to be a more industrial island--like a hatchery. It was beautiful.  We dropped off the two men with us and then we headed off again! The cool thing about Peter is that he wanted us to really get the full experience especially for our first time. So he flew by the dock at Seal Bay (our bay)  He pointed and said, "That will be your new home!"  There were people on the dock and they waved at us as we flew by.  It was really cool because he dipped way down low so we could get a good look.  It was amazing.  Next we headed to Blue Fox bay which is another lodge, but this one is more like a getaway for families and just for relaxing.  Our lodge is much more centered on hunting.  It was fun to meet our neighbors.  They seem pretty cool :)  I doubt we see them again! The last place we stopped before home was Port Williams.  Port Williams used to be an old cannery. It was really cool!  There were these old run down buildings and old boats tied up.  It looked a little creepy and abandoned!  But there was a man there who we picked up.  He had been alone on that island for a month!  It's a wonder that he wasn't insane!!! 

As we flew, Peter told us fun facts about the places and we just chatted a little bit.  It was just such a great experience all around!  We saw a whale's tale briefly. The lay of the land is just gorgeous!!  It was amazing!  The plane didn't even make me sick!!  It was actually quite a comfortable ride! The taking off and landings were very smooth.  It was just a really awesome experience!! :)

We finally landed at Seal Bay where we were promptly greeted by Shannon with hugs and we unloaded the plane.  They got on their way shortly after that.  We dragged our stuff upstairs to our quarters right after that--and Sharon showed us around.  We live in a building that is all staff.  Right now it is just us upstairs in the upper left corner.  Our rooms is not huge, but it is a nice size.  We like it!  There are several rooms upstairs that will be occupied by the handyman that will be here in a couple of years.  He has worked here for about 5 years and Shannon says he is a sweetheart.  Luke and Josh, Shannon's sons, live downstairs.  Their cousin Jordan is down there as well.  There is a kitchen down there as well as a living room with a TV and such.  Downstairs there is a room with all of the tack and a lot of firs and guns and things.  Next to that room is the processing room where they process the fish and deer and things like that when they come in.  That's our house :) 

After our tour of the lodge we live in, we unpacked and got settled.  We were then introduced to the cook, Brian.  He is a really cool guy--really nice.  He has been cooking since he was 5 (now he is 60-his family owned a bakery).   He is an amazing chef.  We will be working with him a lot (as we understand thus far..)  

The rest of the day we spent unpacking and getting things all ready for our stay here.

This is quite a detailed account of the start to this adventure--but this is acting as a journal for me :)  I will be interested in hearing your feedback or questions that you have for me about my adventure here in Alaska. :)  It is an incredible place--the most beautiful place I have ever been!  Stay tuned for the next installment!! :)