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catalysta   
Toto, we're not in Alaska anymore!


Real Name: Wendy
Lives In: Bellingham, US
Birth Date: October 28
Member Since: Nov 07, 2003
Last Login: Jan 29, 2009   23:12 UTC
Member's Time: Jul 04, 2009   22:52 PDT
VT Rank: 256
Deals Rank: Unranked
Travel Interests: Wine Tasting, Historical Travel, Arts and Culture, Diving and Snorkeling, Beaches

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Escaping Winter

by catalysta - last update: May 15, 2008

The latest escape trip - Roatan again!

PALS Diving Butterfly
The PALS Butterfly goes diving

I had one of Fred Siwak's butterflies laminated to go diving with me, and took this photo of my buddy Linda on a shore dive.

Fred, you were there with us in spirit, wish you could've been there in body too!!! e-hugs to you, Wendy
Caribbean Blues

Virgin Gorda: A Voyage In Caribbean Blue

I can never quite capture the exquisite shades of blue & blue-green that permeate the waters of the Caribbean. Aqua tinged by the soft pale sands shifting beneath in the shallows protected by the reef...A deeper green-blue floating beyond the reef...a sudden change to darkest aquamarine blue where the ocean shelf drops off to the deeps...melting at the horizon where the blue of the sky seductively rubs up against the ocean...and then it slowly becomes one dark midnight blue, merging the sky & sea together as the sun sinks low, and finally the stars so bright on black velvet dazzle my sun-drenched mind.

My body came back to Alaska, but the rest of me resisted admitting that I ever left that perfect island (some call it "jetlag", right?). New pages are all done now, drop in for a glimpse of paradise Caribbean style:
British Virgin Islands
Virgin Gorda
Beef Island
Tortola

For a list of Islands I Have Known (with links to pages) & another of Islands I'd Like To Know, see Travelogue My Obsession With Islands.
Frozen Trees

The Seasons of Alaska

Morning In Late October 2005

Fall fell so quickly in Anchorage, it was all over in one blustery wet night. The birch trees were stripped bare by furious wind gusts clocked at up to 70mph. The next morning they stood out in stark contrast against a backdrop of the Chugach Mountains covered with white "termination dust".

You'll notice I have no spring or fall shown here in the "Seasons Of Alaska"; that's because the 2 transitional seasons pass so quickly I have no good photos of them. This year I was down in America when autumn happened in Anchorage, and then it was all over while I was still too jet-lagged to catch it.

Back at work here on the Pipeline, the long winter has solidly arrived. We're coping with our first heavy snowfall of the year. The plows are running continuously to keep up with it all, and I have to step outside to shovel the entry deck & stairs outside my office every 2 hours or so, or it will build up to a depth that will block my door.

Heavy sighs...Have to control myself, I'm supposed to stay at home this R&R, but already I'm longing for warmth, sunshine, salt water...the tropics are calling again!
Windsock Sunrise, 9:30am

Post Winter Solstice Notes, early 2005

It was a bitter cold winter 2004-2005, the coldest I've experienced in Alaska so far. Had several days where the temperature hovered around -40F, and then the winds started. My god was it cold!

Longing to take my frozen body parts to Florida again....
Denali Closeup

Denali's Winter Face

Caught this shots from the crew change flight on the way to work for January hitch. Glad to be in a heated airplane, not down there, whew.

Strangely, when we landed in Fairbanks that day, in -30F temps, there was a freezing fog so thick at the airport that we wondered how we could land in it. Flew down into the cloud blanketing the runway, & suddenly we were on the ground. Impressively smooth landing! (Grateful for experienced pilots.)
Sunrise 7:20am

Early March Morning 2005

Slowly the sun swings north, ice melts...

Alicin rushes into my office, breathlessly ordering me to come see the red sunrise. I grab my faithful C770 and trot out the door, slipping and sliding on the half-frozen slush in the yard. I look up to the east and there it is: Red glowing over orange, but fading quickly. I click and I capture this beautiful moment, still seconds too late to record that phenomenal glowing redredred.

Each day is measurably longer, as we yearn for Summer Solstice. "It's coming," I tell myself.
Rainstorm Sunset View From Condo

Summer Storms & Rainbows

Thunderstorms...people up here tell me they never used to get thunderstorms in Anchorage, not for decades. But now they are a regular occurrence every summer (one more in-your-face evidence of global warming). In 2004 they triggered the terrible forest fires that destoyed over 10 million acres in Alaska, and millions more in neighboring Canada.

For several nights running, the storms over the Chugach Mountains east of town provided us with lush and gorgeous color shows, and one perfect arcing prism.
Old Sketch Of A Friend

A Plague of Artists

We are gradually and very surreptitiously taking over VT, and my VT friend Sean in Cardiff has started a list of VT artists for you to view. Just go to Sean's homepage at aaaarrgh.

To see a few more of my drawings, check out the album:
Drawings

catalysta's Albums
Title [Click to view]Travel YearPictures
Once upon a time, I lived on an island....- 4
My all-time favorite ever news story- 1
My obsession with islands- 4
A Few Drawings- 6

Comments for catalysta
aussiedoug Wed Feb 11, 2009 10:55 UTC
 G'Day stranger. See you've made a big move south (well not that big, but far enough to be a bit warmer lol!). I do miss our emails. Hope all is well in your life.
Agraichen Thu Jan 1, 2009 18:19 UTC
 Beautiful pictures of the area. I'm hoping that 2009 will be my year to make it to Alaska. I've just met 4 people at the new year in Loreto Mx that are from Anchorage.
Ilona. Mon Dec 22, 2008 03:42 UTC
 Wow I must say you are very well traveled !! Ever since I read Onions in the Stew by Betty MacDonald I've wanted to either move to or visit Vashon. But the most mysterious & fascinating Island to me is Easter Island.
VeronicaG Sat Dec 20, 2008 17:18 UTC
 Wishing you a very merry Christmas and the best year ever in 2009!
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