4 Seasons

Wow, what a crazy years its been for our household!  We've had a ton of activity & it seems that the last year has breezed by.  Here's a peek at our memorable moments of 2009.

Spring:
* Started the year with a bang *literally*, the numerous eruptions of Mt. Redoubt finally made its impact in Anchorage with a dusting or two of volcanic ash! 

* We watched the ceremonial start of the 36th Annual Iditarod Sled Dog Race. 

* We took our spring pilgrimage to Valdez, its become an annual tradition, & our visit always falls on Memorial Day weekend & early enough in the year so that we can still enjoy the many waterfalls that dot the mountainsides around Valdez.

* Kyle had to take a business trip to Seattle & I was able to join him for several days & extend the trip into a few leisure days of fun. 

Summer:
* A short day ride south of Anchorage, we travelled the tram to the top of Mount Alyeska for a view of the seven glaciers surrounding the resort. It was a nice afternoon trip & I am hoping next year to paraglide from the top!

* Just two weeks later we travelled to California for a mixture of business & leisure.  We spent 4 days in Anaheim then travelled, for work purposes, to Apple Valley for another 5 days.

 












Fall:
* We squeezed in a trip to the U-pick farm.  We were rewarded with warm weather & a bountiful variety of fresh fruits & vegetables.

* The perfect weather for picking berries in Arctic Valley!  We were a bit slow to harvest, but enjoyed the trip nonetheless. 

Winter:
* Time for celebrating with parties & lots of tasty food!  Our company Christmas Party.  Always enjoyable, a fun evening of food & entertainment, & a reason to get all dolled up.  I kept the pics to a minimum, between socializing with co-workers, I thought it would be a bit rude to walk around taking a bunch of pics, so you'll just have to believe me when I say it was a great party!

Just a little bit

of Ash...

a

a

a

Ash on the cars. This is from the 3:29 eruption, the ash arrived in Anchorage approx. 6pm. Mt. Redoubt erupted again at 7:23pm and this ash is also expected to drop in Anchorage. We managed to get our cars covered but they did get a light dusting before hand. You can definitely taste the ash as a fine grit that irritates your throat, no fun! There is an ash warning into effect until 1am, the really bad part is that there is also a high wind warning in effect until Sunday evening. Ash and wind is defiinitely not a good combination.

a

The ash has arrived

Well the volcano finally affected Anchorage, reports from the last 30 min. have been ash fall in and around Anchorage from its most recent eruptions. We can't physically see anything yet on the ground but the sky is a brownish color and it smells faintly like burnt matches. Will keep an update as available.

*Photograph of lightning from Redoubt's 1:20 am March 28 eruption.
Picture Date: March 28, 2009 Image Creator: Higman, Bretwood;
Courtesy of Alaska Volcano Observatory / U.S. Geological Survey.*

Mt. Redoubt reaches 14 eruptions

I guess the title says it all. Mt. Redoubt erupted for the 14th time just a little over an hour ago. Just some quick facts regarding Mt. Redoubt's explosions affecting Alaska.

*Anchorage has been lucky to have missed most of the ash fall.
*The airport is completely dead so any type of air travel is really bunked up right now.
*The Alaska Volcano Observatory believes that this period of active eruptions will continue for as long as several months.
*You can find more info. regarding Mt. Redoubt HERE, and pictures HERE.
*Above picture Info, Date: March 26, 2009 Image Creator: Neal, Tina;
Image courtesy of AVO/USGS.Please cite the photographer and the Alaska Volcano Observatory / U.S. Geological Survey when using this image.
a

Mt. Redoubt update

Above picture: Volcanic tremor has increased in the past half hour. Clear views at the Hut web camera show a large steam plume. Radar data indicate there may be some ash in this plume. There has not been a large explosion since this morning's large eruption at 9:24AM.

A large eruption of Redoubt volcano occurred at 09:24 AKDT (17:24 UTC) this morning. National Weather Service reports the cloud height to be at least 65,000 ft above sea level and pilot reports indicated a plume height of 60,000 ft.

An ashfall advisory is in effect until 4 PM for the western Kenai Peninsula. High level ash (above 30,000 feet) is forecast to pass over Anchorage, but is not expected to produce ash fall.

**Photo and information courtesy of Alaska Volcano Observatory**
There have been a total of 9 eruptions of Mt. Redoubt since Sunday, March 22nd.
a

Update on Mt. Redoubt

As of Monday afternoon, Mt. Redoubt has erupted 5 times with eruptions lasting four to thirty minutes long and the last eruption ending at 5am Monday morning. The ash plumes have been high enough that the ash cloud completely misses Anchorage and drops ash north of here, at least, so far. Information from last nights eruptions was slow in coming and could be a huge problem if ash is expected to fall in Anchorage.
a
Not much else going on now but we are somewhat prepared and hoping that the mountain will finally quiet down, I don't want to ruin my spring/summer with ash falling on my new plants.
a
You can find more information regarding Mt. Redoubt HERE, & HERE.

AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) false-color satellite image showing the eruption cloud from an explosion at Redoubt Volcano at 3:31am AKDT on March 23rd 2009. Image was captured at 5:30am and shows the ash cloud passing over other volcanoes and heading NE towards Anchorage.
Picture Date: March 23, 2009 14:30:29 UTC Image Creator: Bailey, John;
Image courtesy of the AVO/UAF-GI. Please cite the photographer and the Alaska Volcano Observatory / University of Alaska Fairbanks, Geophysical Institute when using this image.

a

**Mt. Redoubt erupted!**

We just got word that Mt. Redoubt has erupted approx. 20 minutes ago. Up to date estimates project an ash cloud of 50,000 ft above sea level. We still haven't heard if it is coming this way as it is now 11:31 pm. Will try to update as possible as we are really confused right now.
a
Please say a prayer for those living in Alaska so that we may be safe during this time.