Winter Quartet
November Journeys
Seeding the kelp farm
Dad in his element at Trap 6, late 1980’s.
What a month! After wrapping twine impregnated with local kelp seed onto our grow lines, then letting it all settle to its optimum depth of seven feet below the surface to grow during the winter, Tollef traveled back to Minneapolis to deliver our salmon, reconnect with the wonderful people who were waiting for it to fill their freezers, and spend time with family. Meanwhile, I was with my parents in Kodiak, leading up to the second half of the month and one of the most significant of journeys we all will take – that transition from this life to oneness with the wind and spirits. At the end of the month, we bid farewell to my dad, who passed away peacefully after many long years with a rare form of dementia. I will share more about his influence on my fishing and outlook on the world in a later post – perhaps for Father’s Day….but suffice it to say this is a reason we haven’t been blogging this winter.
December Celebrations
After 6 weeks with my family, I was able to come home for a restful chunk of December. Tollef and I relished the chance to really be with the darkness of this month, to light our candles and decorate a tree, put up extra window lights, and not feel the slightest bit guilty for long nights’ sleeps! The best snow of the winter lightened our paths and made for excellent snowshoeing. After chasing the sun in celebration of solstice, we bundled up for the frigid skiff ride to town to be with my family again for Christmas and New Year’s.
January Crab
The center of our universe for the duration of the Tanner crab fishery off Kodiak, coming in to the harbor
Our intention was to zip home soon after the holidays, but instead we found ourselves signed up to go crab fishing again on the 68-foot Miss Linda – we had done this previously in 2019, and Tollef has fished on that boat for several different seasons over the past decade. It was sort of impossible to say no when the skipper boiled the crab season down to an astronomical price per pound and the excellent harvest forecast. After a couple weeks of boat and gear work, the fishery itself was a quick 5-day trip, marked by pretty great weather with above freezing temperatures and tame ocean swells, clear skies, pots rising to the surface jammed full of the creatures from the deep, and good morale among crew. At the end of it, though, I kept saying I was going to retire from crabbing as I still had to deal with some seasickness, and I was all bruised up from scooting in and out of the 7 foot crab pots, being the “bait girl.” Time will tell….we’ll see what I say next year!
Waiting for the next pot to rise from the depths
February Sun
A driftwood haul - a loaded skiff with a few logs towed behind - makes for good firewood
Checking on the kelp farm and replenishing our wood supply left us satisfied that all was well on the home front, so, being Alaskans, it was time to treat ourselves to a little vitamin D before spring made itself felt and we were once again living life at a full sprint toward summer. Mid-February found us driving, hiking, and camping between Phoenix and San Diego in a loop of exploration, of course with our furry companion alongside. What a great time of year for him to take his first southern road trip! Takeaways: Ice cubes are a fluffy dog’s best friend, friend’s avocado trees rock, travel is always great to remind ourselves of a broader world!
The end of the trail….a box canyon in the Anza Borrego desert