Gear Review – Rain Gear

April 5th, 2017 by Carl D
Backpacking rain gear Wrangell Mountains Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks

This isn’t your typical gear review. It’s more my commentary on rain gear and the failings of waterproof breathable rain gear.

I’ve bought and worn dozens of rain jackets over the years. Literally, dozens of them. Right now on the rack beside me as I type this I can count 11 rain jackets. Eleven.

It’s a bit ridiculous. I have everything from my old Aussie Dryzabone to my most recent Outdoor Research Goretex jacket I bought last year. Whatever your jacket, chances are good I’ve owned at least one of those.

And none of them, I mean none of them, work like I want them to. In fact, it’s fair to say none of them work like they did when I first bought them.

It’s been my experience that the magic of waterproof breathable technology is in the DWR (durable water repellent) coating. I don’t know what kind of black magic voodoo those manufacturers employ, but that stuff is astonishingly good. Continue reading…

How big is a polar bear?

March 7th, 2017 by Carl D
Large adult male polar bears can weigh over 1400lbs. Polar bear, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska.
Large adult male polar bears can weigh over 1400lbs. Polar bear, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska.

Large adult male polar bears can weigh over 1400lbs.

Seriously? How big?

We’ve all heard polar bears are the largest terrestrial carnivore, right? We’ll side-step the rather silly idea of labelling Ursus maritimus (Sea bear), a marine mammal, as a “land-based carnivore ” for the moment. Instead consider the point behind it. Polar bears are the largest predator on land. This begs the question “just how big are polar bears?”

That’s a tough question to answer, for a number of reasons.

What does “big” mean? How tall? How heavy? What’s the volume?

Generally animals are measured by weight. Largely because weight can be such a good indicator of health and particularly population health. So we’ll consider the question (for now) of “How heavy is a polar bear?”. Continue reading…

Wrangell Mountains: Image of the Month, March 2017

March 1st, 2017 by Carl D
Wrangell Mountains in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Wrangell Mountains in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey folks,

Welcome to March, 2017!

A photo of my favorite view. And a view I’ve seen many, many times this winter. The Wrangell Mountains. Left to right, you’re looking at Mt Drum, Mt. Sanford, Mt Zanetti (the little “cone” shaped peak the looks like a ski-jump on the side of Mt Wrangell (the broadest mountain on the far right that looks like an egg on its side – a big egg).

To give you a perspective on this mountain range …. Mt. Zanetti, the tiny little cone .. is the same volume mountain as Mt. St. Helens, in Oregon. The one that went “Boom” all those years ago.

The Wrangells Rock.

Cheers

Carl

Image of the Month, Feb 2017: Bald eagle

February 9th, 2017 by Carl D
Bald eagle grabbing a fish Prince William Sound, Alaska.
Grabbing a fish. Prince William Sound, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Here’s another image from last summer. I spent some time in Prince William Sound scouting for a new trip. While we had some good opportunities the trip potential wasn’t quite what we were hoping for.

But with patience and persistence and a whole lotta good fortune we were all able to make something work. Continue reading…

Alaska polar bear cub playing on ice

January 30th, 2017 by Carl D
Playful young polar bear cub rolling on snow and ice. ANWR, Alaska.
Playful young polar bear cub rolling on snow and ice. As the Beaufort Sea begins to freeze up in the fall the bears get antsy, looking forward to returning to their hunting grounds on the frozen ocean. Ursus maritimus, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, ANWR, Alaska. Click the image to view a larger version of the photo.

Hey Folks,

Few things are as cute as polar bear cub playing on the snow and ice. This young fella, and his siblings, were having a ball on this particular day. They’d just had a few days of harsh steady high winds and nobody likes that.

The snow fell and after the winds died down everybody was keen to enjoy it. The bears played, the photographers fired away and and it couldn’t have been better. Continue reading…

Image of the Month Jan 2017: Polar Bear on Ice

January 2nd, 2017 by Carl D

Hey Folks,

Welcome to 2017. Here’s a polar bear for ya.

Juvenile polar bear lying on iceberg, ANWR, Alaska.
Juvenile polar bear lying on iceberg, ANWR, Alaska.

Looking forward to more photography and more polar bears this year. Hope you enjoy the photo, and we’ll see ya around.

Cheers

Carl

Favorite Photos 2016

December 4th, 2016 by Carl D

Hey Folks,

It’s that time of the year again. Wrapping up image editing and putting together a quick gallery of photos from the year for you. These are mostly from different photo tours we ran this year.

 

Brown bear fishing – Image of the Month, Sept 2016

September 8th, 2016 by Carl D
A brown bear chasing salmon in a small stream along the coast of Katmai National Park, Alaska. Ursus arctos, brown bear.
A brown bear fishing, chasing salmon in a small stream along the coast of Katmai National Park, Alaska. Ursus arctos, brown bear.

Hey Folks,

Been a while. Sorry about that. Summer is too often the season of not updating the blog. This summer, it’s mostly been photographing the great brown bears of the Katmai Coast.

I’ve had a great summer, and spent much of it photographing bears. In another week, I head off for 2 more weeks of brown bear photography, followed by 2 weeks of polar bear photography. Should be a blast.

This shot was taken last week on a fantastic trip camped along the Katmai Coast. Great fun.

Cheers

Carl

Image of the Month, April: Sea Kayaking Icy Bay

April 4th, 2016 by Carl D
Icy Bay Alaska sea kayaking trips Sea kayaker in icy Bay on the icy Bay Sea kayaking trip, in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Please click the image above to view a larger version of the photo.
Sea kayaker in icy Bay on the icy Bay Sea kayaking trip, in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Please click the image above to view a larger version of the photo.

Hey Folks,

Thinking about the coming summer already. Anyone else want to visit Icy Bay this summer? Sea kayaking like nobody’s business.

Icy Bay is on the southern edge of Wrangell  St. Elias National Park. Arguably some of the best seat kayaking in the world. Amazing place!

This is a fun shot from a trip a couple years ago with Chuck. Tons of fun. Definitely a favorite trip for me.

Cheers

Carl

Image of the Month: Brown Bear Cub

March 7th, 2016 by Carl D
A cute young brown bear cub strolls by, Katmai National Park, Alaska.
A cute young brown bear cub strolls by, Katmai National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks

Here’s a curious young brown bear cub from one of our photo tours last summer. We had a blast photographing this guy and his sibling and mom; amazingly cute, try tolerant of our group, and they loved to play. We all got some great photo opportunities on the trip.

The bear tours are extremely popular, and always a ton of fun. Bears are just such an amazing animal to be around. Continue reading…

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