Not as detailed because I wrote this a few weeks later.
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Today, we had our junior ranger program. Quinn designed this program: It was on the Lake Clark food web. In the first activity, they got cutouts of different living things in our park, and then they had to fill a web. It was a good activity. After that, we played a modified version of tag: bear, mosquito, and salmon. Players were divided into two teams. Then each team had to decide what they wanted to be (mosquito, salmon, or bear). Once picked, both teams revealed what they were and then chased each other. Mosquito chased bear, who chased salmon, who ate mosquito.
Wednesday, July 1, 2026
After a long wait, the National Park Passport books arrived! We got 100 books. We even sold one as soon as they came. Otherwise, the day was normal as usual.
In the evening, I tried doing an isometric workout. It was good. I can definitely incorporate such workouts into my routine.
In the evening, after eating, I hung out with Claire while she packed for her upcoming field trip.
Thursday, July 2, 2026
In the morning, after getting to work, I went to SP to deliver the packets for the upcoming week’s couples. They treated me to an espresso and two cookies while I was there. Tabby (barista at SP) is very good at making coffees, I have heard.
Then Quinn and I joined the Kramers on a trip to Rivermile 22. We were going to give them some supplies. Since there was space in the boat, Quinn and I were invited! The waters were pretty much glassy. Just a few light bumps here and there. After we reached, we hung out there for a few hours. James gave us some smoked salmon, which was tasty! It was teriyaki flavored. Quinn made some rhubarb butter, sourdough bread, and fireweed jelly. I had all of that. I counted fish on a tower with Chad as well. We left soon after. I forgot to give them a paper that Dan gave me to deliver. The way back, the waters were still calm.
I returned to the VC and ate some snacks. Afterwards, I went to Erin’s house for dinner. She fed me moose tacos, Spanish rice, and chicken enchilladas. The moose tacos were good! Then Erin, Randy, and I took a boat trip to drop Erin off near Nondalton to go fishing for the weekend. This time, however, the waters were incredibly choppy. We were facing whitecaps all over the massive lake. I got each of us a beer.
It took me forever to drink it, though, because the boat bounced around more than I could handle. After more than an hour, we reached and dropped Erin off. Randy told me I could go to Rivermile again (it was only 5 minutes away) to deliver the paper Dan asked me to. I also got the Rivermile folks a can of Diet Coke each since they were talking about it earlier. After that, Randy took me to his house in Nondalton.
Randy grew up in Nondalton with his twin brother. Nondalton seemed a shell of a town that never boomed to begin with. Randy and his stepdad, Steve (a.k.a. Joseph), talked about construction and the lack of appropriate water infrastructure. We left after 30 or so minutes. The waters were less choppy on the way back.
I slept as soon as I reached home: I was tired from being in the sun all day.
Friday, July 3, 2026
Today was a slow day. I wrote a Junior Ranger program on mission planning. I just spent the day dilly-dallying and studying some geology.
Saturday, July 4, 2026
Because of the 4th of July, I was off today. I had a slow morning. Hank and I were supposed to summit Holy Mountain, but due to the rain, we did not. We pushed it to tomorrow.
I went to HQ to watch Love Island USA. I am pretty much over the show. It is not as interesting as I assumed it was going to be.
In the evening, Randy told me that Jess invited me to her house for a BBQ. I ate a lot over there and drank a beer too. Her house is cozy. She grew up in Port Alsworth. Her and her brother Shane’s house has interesting things in their yards.
Sunday, July 5, 2026
This is the entry I wrote for the Chigmit Chat Issue #2 (our newsletter):
Last year’s July 4th weekend, two friends and I decided we would do a massive day hike and end the day with a beer. We were in Sequoia National Park and decided on the Ranger Lake trail. We walked 22 miles that day, and it was memorable. I wanted to go through that experience again here at Lake Clark: we chose Holy Mountain. On Sunday, July 5, 2026, at 5:35 AM, Hank and I started our hike with the easiest part of the journey: going to Kontrashibuna. Our legs itched to move, the overcast kept us cool, and our minds were eager. We reached the undisturbed, glassy lake. Letting the canoe into the lake and watching ripples spread across the water was like dragging a brush across a finished painting. The winds had not yet found their voice. We parked the canoe and began our hike on a game trail. A few miles in, the trail turned too much toward the right for our own comfort. Hesitatingly, we abandoned the trail. We would not stumble upon a better game trail for the rest of the day. By the time we were out of the alders and trees, Hank and I were soaking wet. The morning dew from the plants stuck to us. My waterproof shoes worked against me: they held all the water inside! I felt like Davy Jones in that one scene in Pirates of the Caribbean in which he stands in a bucket of water on land. As soon as we were above tree line, I gazed upon Lake Clark and Tanalian Mountain, and then took off my shoes and socks to squeeze out the water they seemed proud to hold. Note to self: keep an extra pair of socks. After a few minutes, around 10:30 AM, we resumed. In my mind, we had 30 minutes left to the summit. Likely a rite of passage, there was a false peak: no worries, just 15-30 minutes more, perhaps! Another false peak; and then another. Four “just thirty more minutes” later, we were at the peak. We stood 4259 feet (I think!) above sea level, but it felt taller. Mountains and clouds have a way of making you feel higher than you are. The winds had found their voice, but the sun was still playing hide-and-seek. From the peak of Holy Mountain, you could see the eastern edge of Iliamna Lake, Upper and Lower Tazimina Lakes, and, of course, Lake Clark. From my house, Spruce Ridge, Holy Mountain blocked the view of the mountains behind it. My curiosity was satisfied: I witnessed the elusive, unnamed mountains. “Holy shit,” I thought to myself. Cliche, but apt. I have an imaginative mind. So much so that I often mistake distant rocks for bears.I fall victim to my imagination frequently, and on the way back, I spotted what I thought was another rock. The hill in front of us has a bald spot, like the one I am dreading as I grow older. In that patch of green, a dark rock sits with no other rocks around it. I look away briefly and lock my eyes with the rock again, but the rock has moved. I did not want to be betrayed by my mind again! I was not. Indeed, there was a bear on the path we wanted to go. My first bear viewing experience in the wild from a safe-enough distance; how exciting! We observed the bear for a while, and then changed course. We made our way through knee-deep moss and bushes, while navigating our way to the parked canoe. I say parked because I saved the canoe as my parking spot on Google Maps. A few hours and tired ankles later, we reunited with our shiny canoe. It beamed in the sun like a lighthouse at night. We paddled across the lake, took a break, and marched back to town. Our legs were no longer itching to move, the sun warmed us, and our minds were ready to rest. We concluded our hike at 7:30 PM, almost 14 hours later. I wanted a milkshake, but the vendors were closed. I would fulfill my wish the next day: chocolate-strawberry, if you are curious.
Monday, July 6, 2026
I had another slow morning, recovering from yesterday’s summit. Today, I finally signed my lease for my house in Colorado. I also watched The Devil Wears Prada 2. The movie was not as good as the first one; they never are.
Tuesday, July 7, 2026
We did the Junior Ranger program I planned a few days ago. We also had our busiest day! We had 86 people. It must be some park record.
In our program, we explained to the kids how to plan for a trip. We discussed the 10 essentials and more!
After work, I walked on the treadmill and went to Erin’s house after. Erin fed some of her fresh-caught salmon. She baked and fried the salmon. I also had some fish eggs. They were delicious—all of it! I was stuffed. At the end, Erin also gave me a fillet to keep.
Wednesday, July 8, 2026
At work, in the morning, we had our Day Camp meeting. We met Evelyn Trefon for the first time: A woman from Kansas who moved here more than 2 decades ago, I think. She is now heavily involved with the community. So much so that she is running for a public position. In Port Alsworth, she does not have much support, however.
In our meeting, Evelyn told us about her community involvement and the various projects she does: Teaching Dena’ina, selling groceries, and teaching at the school.
After our meeting, I got some information and insider tips about Denali National Park from Quinn.
I broke for lunch. Post-lunch, I got an interesting call: A man called to ask me if the park was interesting in buying some land that he was going to be allotted due to his military service. Grant was in town, which was timely. I passed on this information to Grant. Apparently, we have a team that deals with land acquisitions—makes sense that we do, I just never thought about it before.
I wrote my submission for our team’s newsletter. I described Hank and I’s summit of Holy Mountain. The piece is above. I also received gear from Hank to take to Denali.
Thursday, July 9, 2026
Just a day left to leave for Denali. I packed in the evening and went over my itinerary.
PICTURES
I took all the pictures from my phone.
AI USAGE
There was absolutely no artificial intelligence used in any capacity to produce this article.