First Salmon Run of the Season

The Chum Salmon heading upstream
Lining the River
  Here we go! I've been looking and looking for salmon to start showing up in numbers in all the Southeast Alaska streams. It only took a closer look in Juneau to find my first salmon run! And it actually turned out to be two different runs, the chum and the sockeye!

Eagles Eagles Everywhere
  The first was at Lemon Creek. The fact that hundreds of bald eagles were surrounding the creek was a great tip off that something was up. A closer look at the creek showed that is was packed with chum salmon. They fought their way upstream in the creek that was only inches deep. Still they fought on. It seemed that some had either already spawned and passed on or perhaps just ran out of energy. There were salmon carcasses all around.

Feasting on fresh salmon
"This is my meal."
   Quite a few of the carcasses could be chocked up to the hungry eagles. I got up close and personal with one juvenile bald eagle who was so intent on its meal that it could have cared less about me taking its photograph. Some of the dead fish lining the banks looked pretty intact except the eyeballs which had been pecked out by some predator with very picky taste.

Red (Sockeye) Salmon
   A little ways up the road near Mendenhall Glacier I came across the second kind of salmon beginning its run. This was the red salmon which I saw last year being feasted on by a black bear mom and cubs at the very same spot. I wasn't lucky enough to see bears again this time but I bet I'll have a few chances yet to come. The summer of wildlife is heating up!





Comments

Post a Comment

Leaving a comment is a great way to provide feedback, ask further questions, and inspire more answers...so go for it.

Popular posts from this blog

Secret Maui Waterfall

Image
  No matter how quick a trip to Maui might be there will be hidden gems found and great times had. After a little snafu with my flight I made it standby to Maui, picked up my rental car, and rushed off to meet my friends on the road to Hana. We met at Frog Pond, one of our favorite swimming holes near the beginning of the road to Hana. After some rock hopping and cliff jumping here we decided to check out the hidden waterfalls at mile 11. I'm not sure what the name of these falls are but there are two of them, each with their own swimming holes. It is just off the highway but separated by lush jungle. A rope swing beckons the adventurous and rocks warmed by the sun give you more than enough reason to while away the afternoon.
Read more

Hidden Ulupalakua Lava Tube, Maui

Image
  High above the crowded beaches of South Maui lies a hidden secret adventure that only those in the know will ever experience. Hidden only a thousand yards or so off a well traveled road around 4,000ft in elevation sits a massive cave which angles slowly down the side of Haleakala volcano. The amazing formations inside and the cave itself were formed by lava, creating an underground tube to transport the lava farther down the slope of the volcano. The same thing can be seen actively happening on the Big Island currently. Luckily this lava tube is all dried up making it much safer to explore. However the loose rocks and obvious cave ins leave some cause for concern.   Part of this adventure is just finding the entrance. This included a dirt road, a jeep trail, jumping an old stone wall, then bushwhacking through dense brush for about tweny-five minutes before finding the lava tube entrance. It was surrounded by ferns, just like the famous Thurston Lava Tube in Volcanoes National
Read more

Search for Chameleons, Maui

Image
  You never know what might be hiding in your backyard. Here on Maui there have always been tales of people finding Jackson's chameleons in their bushes. The trick is to travel a few thousand feet up Haleakala volcano to Makawao, Pukalani and Kula towns where the temperature is a little cooler and it is a bit wetter, perfect conditions for chameleons.   There are no native reptiles on Hawaii. These beautiful chameleons were released or escaped from the pet trade. Luckily they have not become invasive like many other introduced species, however they have increased in population and seem to be doing quite well in the higher elevation areas. Heidi and I went on a search the other day at our friend's house in Kula and were shocked to find a dozen different chameleons in her side yard hedge. They were mostly at eye level, and were curled up asleep for the night. We found them easily enough with flashlights since they seem to sleep near the outer edge of the hedge at night.   W
Read more