Spring Time in Unalakleet

Spring time... it's my favorite! At least in Bush Alaska. Bird hunting, crabbing, ice fishing, emperatures are warmer, there's still snow, you can still ride snowmachines on the snow and on the water. It's just a happy time for me :) I went home to Unalakleet for my dad's birthday and Mother's Day; it was perfect timing, though it was a little early for the birds.

Out bird hunting, I didn't shoot anything, but I was completely content with life, sitting in the blind out on the flats. My dad was a "stay at home dad" when I was little (fished in the summers), so he took me where ever he went. Bird hunting in our family has been more than providing - it's bonding and spending quality time with each other without the distraction of Western technology (despite the fact that we have fun with our snowmachines and enjoy the water skipping portion of hunting). I love it and it will forever be my one of my favorite past times.

I also got to help my dad check their crab pots which they keep out from the time there's ice in the ocean until the spring. This is for subsistence purposes. In some of the pictures you can see Unalakleet right behind us, that's how close we are to town! It's a bountiful land that'll forever be home.

My brothers and I heading to the blind with our snowmachines


Here's my dad & I heading out when I was little with our hunting dog Jabbar


Crane flying over Unalakleet


My baby brother sitting in our blind


My dad, brothers Keoni & Gage, and little cousin Kanayaq pulling crab pots from the ice


My brothers & I with the crab we got from two pots

You Haven't Tried Crab Until You've Tried Norton Sound King Crab

So I had a post earlier on checking crab pots on/through the ice, now here's the product! I normally don't like crab, but I'll make an exception for this crab. It's super sweet, juicy, and is just different from any king crab you'll ever taste! We even eat the bellies, which have a different texture than the rest of the meat. Most people throw them away, but you're missing out on crab's best kept secret! In the winters, crab migrate toward the shore in the winter & mate in the spring. So, we have our pots set about a mile from town, if that. Can you say yum? We later made seafood chowder & crab cakes.

The Best Combination - Home & Springtime

Being home gives me a feeling I can't describe. It's the only place I can't sleep in 'til noon, maybe it's the comfort of being home and being around my family. I love Unalakleet in the spring. The weather's great, the sun is warm, and the summer animals are beginning to show up, including the little chickadees. It also means it's almost bird hunting and oogruk hunting season. I grew up hunting and now look forward to this from the time it ends up until I can get out to the blind that next year. It also means trout fishing with friends and family. This year we've been blessed with thick ocean ice that goes for miles, so my family has been able to have crab pots out almost all winter. Imagine being able to go out each week and have a big crab feast with fresh, sweet, juicy Norton Sound King Crab. Well, since I've been home, I've been able to go out both trout fishing AND checking the crab pots. Enjoy the photos, I definitely enjoyed being able to take them!