There’s lots of traffic on the commute these days, but never as much as when I used to drive it early in the mornings. I saw the first moose in a while last night and at least one porcupine every night. Lots of birds flitting around, even saw an owl one night that I almost hit. A fox scampered across the road one night in that gait they have that is deceptively fast because they stay low and look like they are slinking with very little up and down motion. The one glaring exception is swans. No swans on the pond yet and it’s getting late now. I still wonder if the ones shot a week or so ago aren’t the ones that usually hang out on the pond I pass.
That criminal has been caught. Like the trooper said, we take our swans seriously. Someone had taken a picture around the lake where they were found and either accidentally or on purpose managed to photograph the license plate of the suspect’s car. Turns out he was a soldier on one of the bases here. He was arrested and two firearms confiscated. You just don’t mess with swans in Alaska. But, none of this is going to put two white birds on the pond I pass this year. I feel that loss and I expect others who pass the place do, too.
Another resident of the commute has been spotted as well. Though I often look, I haven’t seen the Solitary Man since that encounter in the movie theater parking lot a while back. But, a friend on a birthday picnic saw him the other day. Here in her words:
“Your solitary man was there too, just sitting with his gear at an isolated table. During the time we were there, he used the restroom, washed his hands in the river, and eventually gathered up his bed roll and other things. He walked under the bridge of northbound traffic, and climbed the hill to the area between the two highways - just like you said. The guy who is the park supervisor came around wanting money for the park use (yes, he was the real guy, not a sneaky panhandler), and he was collecting $5 for each car. He looked at the solitary man and ignored him. I am sure he has seen him often. As soon as Tess saw him, she said, ‘hey that guy was here when we were here last year.’ Interesting.”
Reassuring to know there is some constant in the world and that this fellow lives pretty much on his own and under the radar. But, curiouser and curiouser …
And there was a moon, an almost full moon, probably the last one we'll see until September or so,
You make Alaska sound like such an intriguing, beautiful place - set apart from the world by its uniqueness and wonder. It's a place I would like to see one day, although, like so many places, I will probably never make it. So I imagine through your writings how it must be and envision being in such a wonderful place. I can feel the beautiful nature around me.
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