Mistaken expectations
Walking next to the water just south of Seward one evening, I came across an odd sight. Bobbing in the failing light were two little birds that swam slow circles, […]
Author Archives: mcodland
Two Ways to Find Home
A school bus pulls up outside the Exit Glacier Nature Center to unload its passengers. A stream of 6th graders pours out its door under a blanket of gray clouds. […]
Nahstalgia
Tomorrow is my last regular Exit Glacier shift at Kenai Fjords. The moment is almost bittersweet… No more interpretive walks for 2 – 30 visitors (no telling how many or […]
Get Set
Fall is here. Nighttime is an increasingly convincing presence in the wee hours of the morning, schools are starting up, and the Education staff at Kenai Fjords is kicking into […]
Mainly on the (Outwash) Plain
It had to happen. I didn’t know when, exactly, but there was no avoiding it. Too many Sewardites warned me, ‘this isn’t the real Alaska.’ I knew it couldn’t last, […]
Out of Town
I’ve recently had the chance to get out of town a little to do some camping. Not very far, just a 6 or 7 mile hike south of Seward along […]
Change of Pace
Summer is well under way here in Seward. Temperatures regularly soar into the high 60s, the sun breaks through the clouds (most days) by the afternoon, and hikers and sight […]
Success(ion)
It’s nearly impossible to miss how much the landscape changes over the course of the short walk from the Nature Center at Exit Glacier to the glacier itself. You might […]
Phenology, Part 1
Summer comes on fast in Seward. I never would have thought I’d say that as of a month ago, when the ground in town had patches of crusty snow left […]
Find Your Fungus
After a week of interpretive training plus another two weeks of prep work and shadowing the more experienced rangers, I’m excited to lead my own programs. Though similar to the […]
Seeing the Green Fire 