North to the Future: The Last Frontier

Aerial view of Yakutat

Yakutat, Alaska!!!!
Now, I'm thinking (and secretly kind of hoping) this blog won't be as thorough as my last one, considering all of the things that I plan to be spending my time doing that don't involve sitting in front of a computer. But ultimately a blog is quicker than sending lots of individual emails out.  It also is a quick way for me to post journal entries (even though there is something wonderful about writing in an actual journal, and I will still continue to do that) and include some pictures!

As most of you know, I took a position with the SCA (Student Conservation Association) to be a Fish & Wildlife intern with the US Forest Service (USFS) in the Yakutat Ranger District of the Tongass National Forest.  The Yakutat Ranger district (District 10) is the most remote district. My funding comes through the USFS and I am also affiliated with Americorps as I plan to receive an Americorps Education Award at the end of my service, as long as I complete all the hours.

Yakutat is in Southeast AK, between Anchorage and Sitka/Juneau, and has a population of about 600 people. It is heaven for fishermen and apparently a big surfing destination too.  I am working mainly with one fisheries biologist and one wildlife biologist but will be working alongside many other people in the USFS in Yakutat.  The Tongass National Forest is the nation's largest National Forest, covering 500 square miles. The area I am living in is incredibly flat but surrounded by massive mountains which are probably about 10-20 miles away (as the crow flies, but I don't think they are possible to get to without a plane, helicopter, or boat (or a very strong pair of legs and lots of bear spray). Mt. Saint Elias (one of the largest mountains in North America) and Mt. Fairweather are both visible depending on the visibility and where you are in Yakutat.  The Tongass National Forest, a temperate rainforest, is bordered by Glacier Bay National Park to the south, the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the Southwest, and a Canadian National Park to the east. It encompasses mountains, islands, fjords, and glaciers.  Yakutat is home to the Tlingit (Kling-it) people, an Alaska Native people, who named it the "place where the canoes rest".

Tlingit art

The main purpose of this summer was to work with the River Ranger and educate people about ethical fishing practices and bear safety, and answer any questions that fishermen or anyone else have out on the Situk River, but as of yet no River Ranger has been hired (my bosses are having lots of problems with the hiring process and government red tape).  So we shall see. There will be plenty for me to do but it may not go as planned (I'm learning already how similar Samoa and Yakutat are, despite how distant they are from one another!) Things move slow here, a lot of what does get done is done by just a few people, and in some respects there is a divide between the locals and government employees or volunteer teachers from elsewhere (Americorps).  I'm already learning SO much about where our tax money goes- the good and the bad.

Thus far I've done a fair amount of just shadowing my superiors on trail surverys or wildlife surveys. But everyday is a new adventure.  I don't feel super useful yet, just getting my bearings and doing a lot of training- bear safety, defensive driving, cpr & first aid, more to come.  The first few days here were BEAUTIFUL, sunny, and warm, but since that ended it's been fairly cloudy and very cold (fore me)!  But we desperately need rain; the rivers are incredibly low.  The Cleavers know what it's like to have angry fishermen around so we can't have that!

My next few posts will cover the adventures I've gone on so far and all the wildlife I've been fortunate enough to see (and keep my distance from) :), just wanted to get this up and running!

If anyone needs my address up here my mail gets sent to the USFS office:
Sara Cleaver
C/O Yakutat Ranger District
PO Box 327
712 Cape Ocean Road
Yakutat, AK 99689