Ideal Cove & Petersburg, Mitkof Island
In the mountains east of Frederick Sound and Mitkof Island, a river runs, carving a sinuous path through the landscape, plucking sand, silt and clay as it carves an ever growing valley. Ultimately, the river meets the sea and the battle of push over shove ensues with the ebb and flood of the tide. At this boundary, the river is slowed, and it drops its sediment load as a muddy sprawling fan. This is where we spent our morning.
Tucked back on the southeast side of Mitkof Island, Ideal Cove is a dimple in the shoreline. From the edge of the shore starts an amazing winding pathway allowing easy access and subsequent meanderings into the temperate rainforest. Threading our way through the forest on a series of planks and steps, we reveled in the moisture, the smell and feel of damp, the sweet juiciness of salmonberries and the song of the diminutive winter wren.
Our afternoon was spent in the delightful town of Petersburg. Much was left to serendipity as we chose our own pathways of discovery; a mosey down main street (and a cursory look in the hardware store), an invigorating bike ride along the scenic coastline, perhaps an investigation of the muskeg environs or a flight over the glaciers that fringe Frederick Sound.
Some of our guests have been inspired from their meanderings and subsequent musings. We share these with you now:
Friday Morning’s Walk: An Aerobic Meditation
(By Susan Bateson, Guest)
I stretch myself
and listen to the call
to drink in yet more of the beauty.
The path … a tame walkway
that nature attempts to untame.
The air …clean, so clean and cool
scented by the lush flora.
A teasing glimpse of sunshine through the leaves …
then soft rain that barely kisses the lakes.
The sounds … of running water
a winter wren and varied thrush
and forest silence, delicious silence.
Hands touch a tree, and I offer a prayer …
and its gifts of energy and groundedness
are returned to me.
Alaska’s beauty beckoned
and I heeded its call
to drink my fill.
Melting Glaciers
(By Alex Kim, Guest, age 9)
Sun shining brightly
Glaciers melting very fast
Ice crashing loudly
