Walking - a short video

If you have two minutes to waste watch this short video of my walk today. Sandhill cranes, a bald eagle and a bunch of crows made things a little more interesting than usual.

The septic system is installed! We have a yard again. Pictures to post this weekend.

Cranes and Backhoes

Below is a picture of the crew at work this afternoon. They have found the plumbing line that goes to the old crib and are discussing whether or not the Mountain Ash (left foreground) needs to be pulled to find the line coming from the house. As it turned out the tree is safe! The BioCycle tank is visible behind the backhoe and  it will go in right about where the small mound of dirt is (center-right). The hole will be dug tomorrow.

As work ended we noticed a visitor in the road at front of the cabin. A Sandhill crane! You should click on this picture for the larger file. These birds are beautiful.

A few of the cranes are congregating in a field just up the road. Looks like a lot of young ones here....

Salmon. A very cool fish!

The BioCycle tank is here. It will be buried to the green section so you can see it needs a very deep hole. Earth work is going on right now and I think it might be in the ground by the end of the day!

While that's going on Bob is down at the beach hoping to catch a silver salmon. They are coming in with the tide and jumping just enough to keep him interested. No combat fishing here.

Some patient soul set up this rock stack at the entrance to our trail.

A curious otter came to watch Bob fish.

On the slopes behind us, an eye-catching flash of red: a Rumex species, either arctic or sour dock. 

Slopes covered with yellow monkey flower. 

So why do I think Salmon are cool?

Of course, they are delicious. Salmon caught in the bay are so much better eating than those caught up the rivers, and that gets into what I call the "cool" factor. There are numerous physiological changes happening when salmon enter fresh water that cause the deterioration of color, texture and flavor. 

They stop feeding, living off fat stored in their tissues, and the stomach begins to disintegrate. 

They undergo changes in osmoregulation while they are hanging out at the mouth of freshwater streams and estuaries before heading up for spawning. In the ocean salmon need to drink seawater constantly. A gland extracts the salt so they don't dehydrate. A large part of the exchange occurs through the skin. In fresh water they take in water (through the skin in large part) and become bloated, so now they have to stop drinking and release large amounts of urine to get rid of the excess water. This "flex-fuel" type osmoregulation totally jazzes me. There aren't all that many fish that can live in both salt and fresh water. 

Anyway, those are some of the changes salmon undergo before spawning that cause the loss of color and flavor and mushy flesh texture. Males further develop some hooking in the snout, might grow a hump and undergo color changes as they head upstream. I think it's also pretty amazing that their sense of smell leads them to the same stream of their birth. The spawning process is pretty cool, too. I have to admit I really like these fish. They are very complicated!

Bad news for the survival of the salmon is that the water temperature of streams here in the Kenai has been increasing with global warming. Salmon need cold water even in their earliest stages of life. A five year study on that (by ADF&G, iirc) is being wrapped up this year so I hope to learn more about this in near future, but I am wondering if this has something to do with the bad fish runs we've been having.

Mid-August already!

There isn't much going on at the moment. The cloudy, rainy weather is back for a few days and we're on hold waiting for the arrival of the septic tank so I'm messing around on the computer.

The Sandhill cranes are moving again, flight training for the young ones, and shorebirds are staging before their flight south. Elderberries are ripening and the trail down to the beach is overgrown with whatever... lots of green stuff. The camera on my iPhone is acting flakey, not focusing on still shots like the birds below but fine on video. Tap the camera to get it to work, I've read in the forums, Apple isn't responding to the problem. The video above was taken at Homer Spit where we walk the dogs. Really a beautiful location, wouldn't you agree?

Shorebirds

Elderberries

The beach trail

Color for my desk

Some beautiful pink flowers from the garden to brighten my dark desk.

The predicted bad weather didn't materialize so we've been spending time outdoors. Fields of magenta fireweed are in bloom. It's said when the fireweed flies (the downy seeds) winter is soon to come. Looks like a few more weeks before the flowers open all the way to the top so I'm not panicking yet. I think the temperature has finally gotten into the low 60's -- and too hot for us. Not complaining though, just enjoying all the blue sky and sunlight.

A Pendant

Walking on a foggy morning

Here is an interesting piece of turquoise I've set in silver. The turquoise beads pick up the multiple colors in the stone so well that I've incorporated them into the necklace which will be finished out with a clear rubber cord and silver components.

Kingman turquoise pendant and beads

Cooking Salmon

Thought I would start posting the various ways we prepare salmon. Fish is our main source of protein and we have a freezer full of reds. When you eat fish three or four times a week you have to get creative with recipes. Bob came up with this method and it is one of my favorites. There is no dry meat cooking it this way.

Beautiful red salmon filet

First step is removing bones. Best time to do this is just before the filet is completely thawed. The bones will pull right out without mushing up the meat. I use needle-nosed pliers to grab and pull. The white spots to the right of the mid-line are the cut ends of the bones. You can feel them if you run your finger down that line. The bones angle to the right in this picture. I leave the skin on for cooking.

Pull out the bones 

De-boned filet

Salt and pepper and add whatever might be tasty with the rest of the meal. Garlic, onions, peppers are always good, but tonight it was simply salt, pepper and dill. Add oil to just cover the bottom of the pan. My favorite oils for this are grapeseed or walnut because of their mild flavor. When the oil is hot put the salmon in skin down, cover with the large leaves of a green, like chard, and cover the pan. I think this is rapini leaves in the picture. We get greens from the CSA every week and have no idea what most of them are.

Cover with greens

Cook covered till done

Turn the heat to low and cook about 15 minutes or until done. No turning. Time depends on size of cut. The meat will lift right up off the skin and be moist and tender. 

Camp-out

Perfect for the pups!

Pinks and Purples

We had a morning of sun today in what looks like a few weeks of clouds and rain ahead. It was perfect for a beach walk. Look... shadows!

It's been such a cold summer several perennials in the garden are absolutely refusing to flower, most are flowering a few weeks later than usual, but a few cold loving plants are blooming right on time.

Pictures from the garden this cloudy afternoon.

A bumblebee in the delphinium.
This plant is huge and needs to be divided next spring.

Marie Bugnet has been blooming steadily.
I got another one for the front yard.

First peony of the season. A pretty pink.

Primula vialii.
New to the garden. It bloomed two weeks after  planting.
I love this color combination.

Who knew yarrow came in such a luscious color!
I'm getting more next year.

Monkshood, like the Columbine earlier this summer,
is popping up all around the garden.
Poisonous, but pretty; it's a late bloomer and welcome
to stay for the color it adds to the garden.

Another rainy day

Spent some time filing the copper bracelet to reduce the bulk of the prongs that I had mentioned not liking last time. That allowed me to fit the stone a little more snugly, too. I forgot to include a shot of the back side of the bracelet showing the prong construction so am adding that today. The close up shot shows some pitting and scratches on the underside that need to be polished off. I didn't see it until the photo! Guess I could really use some magnifying lenses before I am totally blind.

  

Copper and turquoise

Here is another bracelet with additional prongs to hold the stone. This one is copper and turquoise, a two wire cuff instead of three, and I added decorative spirals at the ends. I am having trouble taking pictures of these things...  available light sucks on gray cloudy days.

(Sorry for the blurry pic above.)

 Below is close-up of the stone taken with flash, light is much warmer than the two photos taken in existing daylight above. It shows some of the neat colors in the stone so I'm posting it.

I used a heavier gauge wire for the prongs on this bracelet and think they are too heavy. Next time smaller. I will figure this out yet!