LIFE, DEATH, SEX AND HUMOR

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 21ST


When my brother called and proposed this trip, he told me it was going to be the adventure of my lifetime. Well, since I feel like I’m on a new untried path, I jumped on the offer. Each day I have new and untried adventures here in Alaska, i.e. Saturday we were taking a walk around a lake and Dick reached down and picked up “something”. “Bear scat” he said. A few steps later he bent down, picked up “something” and said, “Moose scat”. Scat is obviously a technical term for “something” and I’m not into something that adventuresome. I knew I was afraid of bears but moose looked sweet and warm fuzzy until I read a poster giving the warning moose signs. It appears moose are not the brightest animal on the block but are vicious with their hooves and Alaskans would rather see a bear on the trail (as they are “predictable” and don’t want to see me either) than a moose (totally unpredictable). I now have decided that,
coward that I am, I don’t want to see either on the trail. I asked Dick to forgo the walk around the lake, and he asked if I was brave enough to go to the next big rock. He was proud of me for going a few steps further than my fears; I’m sorry I didn’t get to see Lost Lake, but am happy to have lived to tell my story!

Later we drove to Bear Lake and saw the unbelievable sight of salmon swimming upstream to lay eggs with the males fighting for the prize of fertilizing the eggs. It was an unbelievable sight! Naturally I have heard about salmon spawning and have never been very interested. I’m shocked that it was so very fascinating. I could have stayed and watched for a few more hours - the fish were swimming very hard and did not really move upstream as the current was terrific. When the female found her spot she would fan her tail and lay the eggs. She could fan the tail so hard as to rub 9/10’s of it off. Meanwhile, the male salmon were lined up behind her, jockeying for position to deposit their sperm over the eggs. Some aggressive males would push the others waiting in line out of their place. Now some of you already know this and are totally bored with my kindergarten prattle, but this was my first time seeing it, the setting was gorgeous, and I was excited. Of course, I added my coward approach, and kept yelling to any blind bear that we were around in his territory and asking him please not approach. Life, death,(if you can call spawning) sex, and humor - all by one beautiful scene.

Life doesn't get any better!
Marilyn

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Comments

[kathy]

life, death
I am so enjoying your articles about the trip. I am so jealous and am looking forward to all the pictures when I see you in Oct. ps. your brother really knows his scat!!! LOL kathy