Tree trunks and sun stars

 

Here are some post elk hunt dog walk pictures. In September and early October I generally try to avoid taking the dogs where there are spawning salmon.  I've learned that the dogs inevitably roll in rotting salmon and then there are the bears feeding on the salmon. ... So lately I've been mostly hiking in the alpine or in Abercrombie.

But yesterday it was super windy and Nora and I decided that rather than hike on the top of Pillar Mountain we'd go to the golf course for a change of pace.  But at the golf course people were playing golf - and so we decided to hike down to the lake.  Salmon spawn around the shores of the lake, but I figured it would be OK because it is getting to be late October - right?  Boy was I wrong.

Half way to the lake Red found an enormous bear poop composed of jellied rotted fish and rolled in it. YUCK.  Nora and I figured we'd clean her off in the lake.  Then at the lake both Bode and Rey immediately found rotted fish to roll in.  We tried cleaning them off and throwing sticks into the lake for them to swim after.  But while some what cleaner they all still stank.  

We continued our walk around the driving range (top photo below) - and gave the first bear poop a wide berth.  But then they found a bear regurgitated pile of rotting fish which they all immediately scarfed up.  YUCK. Doggy rotten fish breath.  

We got them back to the car - no obvious rotting stuff on their coats and drove home with the dogs in the far back of the car.  At home we put them into the penned in yard and closed the dog door to house.  Then one by one I took a shower with each dog and gave them thorough shampoos.  The dogs were not happy about this. 

A reinforced lesson on why I avoid spawning salmon on dog walks. 

Patrick

Mushrooms

 

A pack full of mushrooms - 20 pounds worth!

This year on the elk hunt we hit the mushroom mother lode.  Never before have we found so many hedgehog mushrooms.  Hedgehogs are actually my favorite wild mushroom too - I prefer them even over morels.  They are very 'meaty' and have a sublime taste.  

On the hunt we collected them while carrying meat back and forth from our 'meat' camp to the boat, and had them as an addition with practically every meal.  Then after all the meat was on the boat we went back on shore one last time and collected around 70 pounds to take home with us.  

We also saw but did not collect or eat both Angel wings (not pictured) and what is for me a new type of mushroom - winter chanterelles.  I'll wait to try them after I am a little more positive of their identification. Not that I don't trust my friend who showed them to me - but I'd rather have seen him eat one before I try one. When eating mushrooms it is best to be absolutely sure of what you are consuming!

Back in Kodiak after we had cut up and processed all the elk meat, we processed all of the mushrooms.  Hedgehogs do not dry well.  The best way to keep them is to cook them in a little oil and to sweat all the moisture out of them.  Then you wrap them up and freeze them for later.  I have done this in the past and have found that they last for a couple of years in the freezer.  I also kept a pound or so of unprocessed hedgehogs in a cloth bag in the vegetable drawer of the fridge.  I'll use these mushrooms in various meals over the next month or so.

I add hedgehogs to pasta meals, sauces, stews, and, my favorite, as a topping on pizzas.

Patrick

The distinctive bristles on the underside of a pair of hedgehogs

Hedgehogs in situ

The distinctive inter-woven veins (NOT GILLS) on the underside of a winter Chantelle

Distinctive dimple in the top of a winter chanterelle

Cooking down mushrooms and onions on the woodstove for a meal in the teepee

some mushrooms collected on the go while packing out meat

Processing ('sweating') mushrooms on the stove at home

Elk Hunt 2023

 

We got back from a successful Afognak elk late Thursday night and it has been a blur of activity ever since.  On Friday and Saturday we cut up and packaged 2 large bull elk.  Then on Sunday we processed hedgehog mushrooms and cleaned up gear.  All the out of town elk hunters had to pack up and leave too.  So it has been a super busy weekend.

But now everybody is gone, the elk hunt is over, and that's it for hunting season.  My freezer is full of elk, deer, and mushrooms and it is officially time to wait for the snow to arrive and ski season to begin.

The elk hunt went very well.  We had spectacular weather, traversed some beautiful country, and harvested two bulls on the first day.  We then spent the next 3 days carrying the elk to the boat.  We ended up with around 70 pounds a person of packaged elk meat.  We also collected 60-80 pounds of hedgehog mushrooms.  I think these are just as valuable as the elk meat!

Anyway, more to come in subsequent elk hunt posts!

Patrick

Abercrombie after the Rain

 

This Fall even when it rains it does not rain for long.  Yesterday morning was rainy, but by lunchtime the sun had come out.  I took the dogs for a walk in Abercrombie and the recent rain made for mist under the trees.  Everything was wet and dripping and the sunlight sparkled on the droplets.

Patrick

Golden Grass

 

It's raining today, but we've been having some beautiful weather lately. As usual I have been taking the dogs for long walks in the afternoon.  Mostly we have been climbing up to the alpine.  But lately I think my favorite aspect of the hikes has been down low where the grass has been glowing in the sunshine.  It's been pretty windy too and I love to watch the sun touched grass swaying back and forth in the wind.

Patrick

Some dreary weather

 

This past weekend it rained. The sun finally came out Sunday afternoon, but before that it was pretty much hard rain, wind and fog.  Not that I minded too much.  Each morning I slept in, guilt free, listening to the rain in the gutters.  Bad weather makes the house feel very cozy.  

Still, it was nice when the sun came out while I was hiking with the dogs up Pillar Mountain. The sun reflected off of the ocean and announced that it was back.

Patrick