Long Fall

I haven't posted in a while- it's been a quiet October. Everyone up here swears it's also been the longest fall they can remember- it's beautiful and sunny and in the 40's, but I hear winter is coming. The sun doesn't rise until around 9 now- I really enjoy driving to work in the dark- the sky is still pitch-black at 8, without even a glimmer of sun. It's great because when I scrape my windshield in the morning, I don't get that terrible sun-glare if the window isn't fully defrosted before driving. The sun's been setting around 8 at night, so there's been some great daylight after work.

The leaves are gone from the trees now- but I got a few pictures along the river before they fell.Here was the view from my backyard at day:


And at sunset:


The boys have liked being out by the river too- bear will sit with me on the bench while we read outside, and Mr. Darcy does more exploring than he should:


There's a really friendly bluebird in our yard- when I sit outside, he comes and perches- I didn't know what he was- he's really dark, but my neighbor said he thinks they darken for winter to blend in better against the trees.


It's pretty bare here now without the leaves- the evergreens are everywhere, but they're all thin and scraggly, not like the ones in MN:


Not having snow is interesting- there's lots of hiking paths open, with no one around- even the long lengths of fishing boardwalks are completely bare:


There have been a lot of moose around lately- this mama was right by our house, the baby was further away, I didn't dare go further than my doorstep:


There was a mama and baby right by the post office in town- it's neat to see how much the babies have grown- they are a lot bigger than they were.
Here's the baby:

With mom watching nearby:

My weekends are pretty full with orchestra practices- it takes up most of the day- we practice in Ninilchik, halfway between Soldotna and Homer- at the fairgrounds. We have a dress-rehearsal tomorrow and concerts next week, so that will be fun.

Fall foliage with snow-topped peaks

This past week we had a conference in Anchorage. The trip up was an incredibly clear day with blue skies and beautiful scenery. The hills are all filled with fall foliage (strictly yellow and green, with a little orange), but the mountain tops are covered in snow from the first few snowfalls. It was so beautiful, I wanted to get out and take pictures, but a co-worker was riding with me, so I didn't. It was really beautiful, like seeing fall and winter at once. I got one shot:


On the way home, it was raining (and snowing in the mountains) so I wasn't able to get the incredible pictures I was hoping for. It was neat to see the scenery change though.

Turnagin Arm with snow:


Seward Highway: (it was cool to see both rain and snow simultaneously, I think it was my first time seeing that- but it was dark and so the pictures didn't turn out as well as it looked in person)


On the Kenai:


I have to go back to Anchorage next weekend to get my studded tires put on- hopefully it won't snow before then so I can get there safely. I am hoping that there will still be leaves on the trees and a beautiful clear day to see the nice scenery again.

Snow on the Mountains in Homer

Every other week I drive to Nikolaevsk, my Russian Old Believer school. Here's a picture of the town (if you didn't know it was a town, you would think it was just a cluster of buildings):


And here is the school:


Nikolaevsk is elevated, you have to climb up really sharp curves and steep hills to reach it (Thus my need for studded tires as soon as the snow comes), but once you're up there, the views are incredible. On a clear day you can see all three volcanoes. On Monday, I could only see Redoubt, but it was impressive:


After work, I drove down to the Homer spit to get my fish from the fishing trip- I had some if it filleted and frozen to make keeping it easier. The rain that we've had the past week was snow on the mountains- now all the tops of the mountains across the bay are covered in snow. It was beautiful. I can't go to Homer and not take pictures, and seeing the changes with the seasons is so fun! I can't wait to see it in winter when the mountains are completely snow-covered.


Float plane harbor:


From the spit:



Homer at Sunset:


On the way back, the clouds around Mt. Iliamna cleared, and the sunset was beautiful:


It's so beautiful, it's always hard to go back to Soldotna.