NAILIRAQ – MARMOT ISLAND NAILIRAMEN QAYARCIQUA. – I WILL KAYAK TO MARMOT ISLAND. The hoary marmot (Marmota caligata) is the largest member of the North American squirrel family. These chubby rodents live in rocky areas throughout much of southcentral Alaska, but they have never been indigenous to the Kodiak region. So, why does the […]
KICAQ – ANCHOR KICAQ AGTUNARTUQ. – THE ANCHOR IS HEAVY. Before the availability of metal tools, Alutiiq people fashioned anchors from large cobbles. Craftsmen selected a relatively flat, rectangular rock and shaped it by chipping. A stone anchor found in Karluk is 10 inches long and weighs about six pounds. The edges of the stone […]
KIAK – SUMMER KIAKUTARTUKUT. – WE ARE GOING TO HAVE SUMMER PRETTY SOON. Summer in the Kodiak Archipelago comes slowly. In April and May, low pressure systems generated in the Aleutian Islands shift westward into the Bering Sea and Kodiak’s weather begins to moderate. Warm, foggy conditions replace cold winter winds as the days […]
WIINAQ – SEA LION WIINAT CARLIANGUT. – THE SEA LIONS ARE HAVING BABIES. The Gulf of Alaska is home to the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), the largest pinniped in the North Pacific. Bulls average 1,150 pounds, cows 580 pounds, and both are nearly ten feet long. Sea lions are opportunistic feeders that range […]