. E & O 2006 P 1 Wrangell St. Elias Newswsen.net/wsen/AR/SO2006.pdfWrangell St. Elias News (USPS...

WRANGELL ST. ELIAS NEWS SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER 2006 PAGE 1

“Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty”Volume Fifteen Issue Five September & October 2006 $2.50

Wrangell St. Elias News

Summertime highlights

WSEN staff photo

5th Annual McCarthy Kenni-

cott Half Marathon was bet-

ter than ever! Story page 7.

WSEN staff photo

Copper Valley Telephone held its 4th

annual customer appreciation pic-

nic on July 27. Story page 6

WSEN staff photoM cCarthy and Kennicott area residents enjoyed a reception

given by Wells Fargo bank on August 3 at the Kennecott

Recreation Hall. Story page 7

Photo courtesy Jim Buckingham

Another Hale-Buckingham wedding! Pg. 14

While it is m

ore

normal here in

McCarthy to visit

neighbors using a 4-wheeler,

bicycle or on foot, sometimes

more unusual means of trans-

portation are used. Dave Syren

recently paid us a visit at WSEN

in his helicopter. Watch out for

the broccoli plants, Dave!

WSEN staff photo

WRANGELL ST. ELIAS NEWS SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER 2006

Wrangell St. Elias News (USPS 011301) VOL. Fifteen, Issue Five, September & October 2006.Published every two months at McCarthy, Alaska. McCarthy, PO Box MXY, Glennallen, AK 99588-8998. Phone (907)

554-4454. FAX (907) 554-4494 E-mail: [email protected] “Copyright © 2006 by Wrangell St. Elias News. No part ofthis publication may be reproduced by any means without the express permission of the publishers.”

Contributors to this issue: Peggy Guntis, George Cebula, Don Welty, Paula Easley, Lee Ann Kreig, Doug Miller andMarne Grahm.

Subscription price is $14 for one year in the USA. Canada $16. Other countries $23. Advertising rates upon request.Deadline for publication in next issue is October 15.

PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT GLENNALLEN, AK. 99588.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Wrangell St. Elias News, McCarthy #42, PO Box MXY, Glennallen AK

99588-8998.

A note from the publisher

McCarthy is right onthe edge of the fallseason. Leaves are

swiftly turning from greens to yel-lows and even a few scattered redswhich gives the landscape the be-ginning shades of fall. After livingin Florida for many years and notseeing many changes in seasons, Ihave come to really appreciate thevarious seasonal transformationsthat occur annually in the state ofAlaska. Perhaps that adds to thefeeling that time certainly fliesbetween issues of our publication!

Speaking of flying...theJuly/August WSEN was mailedfrom McCarthy on July 21st andseveral of our Florida subscribersreported that they received their“news” on the 26th. Now that isrecord speed for our second-classmailing. We cannot help butthank our Glennallen postmasterTerry Kaiser who does his best tokeep things moving in the rightdirection. You can imagine mydismay at hearing that Terry wasgoing to retire this October. Hap-pily, however, I heard he hadchanged his mind and after talk-ing to him on the phone, discov-ered he decided to stay on foranother 5 years! So, WSEN reader,this is good news for you, too. Ter-ry, if you are reading this “note,”

please accept our thanks for a jobwell done.

When Rick and I are not sit-ting at our computer writing arti-cles for the WSEN or attendinglocal gatherings for the idea ofwriting a news item, we enjoy gar-dening, especially, the harvestingof our efforts. This year we decid-ed to run an “experimental farm”(very small scale, of course). Wepurchased a variety of potato seedfrom Wal-mart in Anchorage inthe spring and planted them inthree different garden spots. One,in particular, produced no scabwhile the other two did. Normallywe are only able to plant one kindbecause of the scab problem. Nowwith the new plot and differentsoil ph, our annual potato cropcan be expanded to include a vari-ety of “spuds.” Each year, we growenough potatoes to last us untilthe new crop is harvested. A cellarin the side of a hill enables us tostore them year ‘round. Now youknow what we might be doing ifyou call the office and all you getis the answering machine. Maybethis helps answer the most fre-quently-asked question by ourguests: What DO you do out herein your spare time?

We hope you have enjoyed the“new look” of WSEN since we wentto color on the cover and laser-

printed pages with photos on theinside of the paper. The relativelysmall press-run (currently about550) pretty much dictates that wedo the printing “in-house.” Thehigher quality and the color hasgreatly increased our costs ofprinting. Also, the cost of postagehas gone up in the past two years.Because of this we regret to an-nounce that the cost of a subscrip-tion is now $14 for one year, $25for two. Canadian subscriptionsare $16. Other countries will be$23 per year. We trust this modestincrease will not impact our read-ers.

For those of you who are“plugged in” to the modern digi-tal age, we do offer an online-onlysubscription which will continueto be only $11 per year. Each is-sue is posted online in PDF formatwhich you can download and printyourself if you desire. You will re-ceive an email with a link to thecurrent issue every two months.Print subscribers also get this linkif you give us your email address.

WSEN welcomes aboard thefollowing subscribers: WallaceMcGregor, WA; Nancy Amuso, MA;the Gibeault family, CT; Dan Sad-dler, AK; Pat and Mary O’Donnell,VA; and Jim Sartin, TN.


Items of InterestMark, Emily and Ross Bass:

The Bass family live next door tous (“next door” McCarthy style,that is). Emily and son Rosswalked over for a short visit theother day. It was a great opportu-nity to catch up on my neighbors’summer activities.

Ross is 4 years old now andturning into a fine young man. Hehas quite a circle of friends, saysmom. Let’s see... there is Kincaid,Kaylin, Emmett and Eva, the Row-land kids and that doesn’t eveninclude the 3 sets of friends, cous-ins, aunts and uncles visiting thissummer. One of his fun-packedadventures included a hike on theglacier using his own ice cram-pons.

Emily, Mark and Ross celebrat-ed Ross’ birthday with a campingtrip on the hill behind their house.This was a first-time experiencefor Ross. Although it was just anovernight excursion, Ross agedsignificantly. He left home at age3 and by the time he returned, hehad turned 4! The camping tripwas accompanied by rain and avisit from a curious bear whichLucy managed to scare off.

He loves his new bedroomwhich is complete with a ropeswing and a ladder leading to hisown loft. I was honored to receivea personal tour from Ross when Iattended his birthday party. He istaking up guitar, piano and har-monica and has a full-time job ofkeeping an eye on Lucy.

The Basses are eagerly lookingforward to their trip to Disneylandand will also attend a Van Morri-son concert, says Emily, while inCalifornia. Pre-school begins soonand Ross will be a mentor for kids

with disabilities this winter whilein Anchorage.

Emily is now all set up to pur-sue Grant Writing. Her starbandequipment is making it all possi-ble. She has submitted two grantsfor non-profits already and is quiteexcited with future prospects.

Thanks, Emily, Mark and Ross,for allowing me to make you myfirst “item of interest” for this is-sue.

Mike, Loree, Carter and MaxNelson: The Nelson family visitedthe town of McCarthy from theirhome in Seattle. Mike is the neph-ew of Paul Barrett and son ofPaul’s sister Marilyn. It was nice totouch bases with them once again.Daughter Carter is 10 years oldand son Max is now 7. I just want-ed to say it was good to have ashort visit with the Nelsons andencourage them to visit McCarthymore often.

Neil, Margaret and CatherineO’Donnell: Neil and daughterCatherine were another welcomesight to our town. Although thenumerous rainfalls during theirstay could have dampenedanyone’s adventure and Margaretwasn’t able to accompany themthis trip, Neil and Catherine madesure they had plenty of entertain-ment. They brought along Neil’sbrother, Patrick O’Donnell, whointerestingly was born on St.Patrick’s Day, Patrick’s wife, Mary,sons Conner and Christopher anddaughter Megan who were visitingfrom Norfolk, Virginia. A hike onthe glacier and attending a localbirthday party, and several neigh-borly stops were included in theirMcCarthy trip.

Neil says, “The VirginiaO’Donnell clan was very impressed

with their glacier hike, theRowland’s full-curl ram and themine buildings. They saw bear scateverywhere, but never the source.Mary did see a moose.”

Although the adults tried andfailed to climb the Rowland log, atleast Conner saved the clan fromtotal failure. The O'Donnells saidthe constant clouds and rain inMcCarthy was a nice change fromtheir East Coast heat wave.

We expect to see Neil, Marga-ret and Catherine over Labor Dayweekend.

George Cebula: As soon as Isee the leaves on nearby trees be-gin to yellow, I think of George’sbrother, Ted. You see, his annualtrip to Alaska usually occurs inSeptember. George stopped by theother day and I asked him if wecould expect to see his brothersoon. He assured me Ted was dueto arrive on the mail plane Sep-tember 6th. The Cebulas usuallyhave a “to-do” list. The major proj-ect is “to get ready for winter,”says George. By the looks ofthings (like fresh snow on themountain north of us!), it won’tbe too long before that white,fluffy stuff appears at our feet.Thanks for giving us fair warning,George!

Jim and Peggy Guntis: Eachsummer when the Guntis’ arriveat their McCarthy home, a majorproject is soon underway. Thisyear it was the installation of newwood flooring. Peggy reports thatthe job is now finished and she isthrilled with the new look it givesher home. I expect to check it outfor myself tonight when Rick and Igo to the Guntis’ for supper andgame night.


Jim and Peggy visited Homerfor the second time this seasonwhere daughter Kim lives with herhusband Richard. Kim loves herjob as a student advisor at theUAA-Kenai Peninsula KatchemakBay campus. Jim had a great timeaccompanying Richard on his hali-but charter boat. While the menwere fishing, the ladies made therounds at the many garage sales inHomer. Peggy loves books andcame home with her arms fullwhich spurred Jim on to (onceagain) enlarge her many book-shelves upstairs.

Don and Lynn Welty: The Wel-ty household is experiencing somechanges this summer. DaughtersRené and Sarah are both workingoutside McCarthy which makes fora much too-quiet house. It was awelcome sight when Jay Claus, sonof Paul and Donna Claus of UltimaThule, came for a visit recently.Lynn says she is glad to havesomeone else in the house. Thequiet was just too quiet!

Jay has been working withMartin Boenik of Wrangell Moun-tain Air, on getting his pilot’s li-cense. Martin is a flight instructoras well as a commercial pilot sowhen the Boenik family arrives inthe McCarthy area for the summerseason, folks eagerly seek out Mar-tin for their flight instruction.Before Martin left Alaska, he andJay traveled to Anchorage so Jaycould take his check ride. Lynntells me it was successful. Con-gratulations to Jay and fine work,Martin!

Don and Lynn are enjoying thefruit of their labors now that thegardens are really producing allthose fine vegetables. The green-house Don built for Lynn is doinga great job, too, and Lynn is put-ting up the produce for them toenjoy this winter. Harvest is a re-warding time and the Weltys aremaking much of it.

Jim and Audrey Edwards: TheEdwards’ recently returned fromoutside, visiting both east andwest coasts. They attended thewedding of Audrey’s grandson,Jason Valentine, held in RhodeIsland. According to Audrey, sheand Jim had to pull out their for-mal attire because the weddingwas a full military ceremony withall the bells and whistles of such agrand occasion.

After the wedding, Jim andAudrey traveled to California andspent a week at Disneyland. Theyenjoyed their stay, said Audrey,but it is always good to get home.

While looking through someof those special scrapbook me-mentos, Audrey discovered an arti-cle written by Jim’s son anddaughter, Steve and Shelly, Febru-ary 8, 1976—over 30 years ago. Atthat time they were youngstersstill living at home in McCarthy.Although we couldn’t reproducetheir pictures (I’m sure Steve andShelly, both WSEN subscribers,will be glad about that!), the storythey wrote is really delightful andone worth sharing.

I’m Proud of My Town!by Steve and Shelly Edwards,

McCarthy, AlaskaWe are proud of our town, Mc-

Carthy, Alaska. We have lived heresince we were born and have al-ways found it very quiet and beau-tiful. It is quiet mainly becausethe town’s population averagesabout 17 people all year around.

In the 1920's and ‘30's, ourvillage in Southern Alaska was avery busy mining town with morethan 1,000 people at times. Butthen a copper mine closed down,and McCarthy became a ghosttown.

The few McCarthy people arehelpful and friendly. We stick to-gether and help each other.

One of the things we like bestabout our town is that everythingis easy and slow; nobody is in a bigrush. People in McCarthy are usu-ally busy, but there is always timeto stop and talk to a neighbor.

Kenny Smith: Steve andShelly’s description of McCarthyneighbors made me think aboutKenny —a great summer neighborwho always takes time to stop byand chat over a cup of coffee. Hisnormal mid-May arrival in townwas delayed this year. Kenny takeshis grandkids seriously so whenAlex, 11, and Makenna, 8, enrolledin a summer sports camp in An-chorage, he was needed to helpgive them a hand.

His summer has taken himback to Anchorage a few times toattend the girls’ soccer games.Alex’s team took the champion-ship, says Kenny, so theactivities—which included severalplay-off games, kept Kenny on themove between McCarthy and thebig city.

He and his entire family spent10 hours at the Palmer state fairrecently. With such a variety offestivities occurring throughoutthe fair grounds, the Smith familystayed in touch with each other bycell phones. They really had fun.

Now Kenny is back at his Mc-Carthy cabin to finish out the sea-son and wait for the arrival of Pam(daughter) and Phil Okeson andtheir daughters, Alex and Maken-na. Usually the Okesons visit thearea 3 or 4 times a year, but thisyear has been a super busy one.This will be their first trip thisyear and Kenny is eager for theirarrival.

Ed LaChapelle and MegHunt: Because of all the rain (andmore rain) that McCarthy area isexperiencing, Meg says she is busycollecting that good “soft” waterfor things such as laundry andbaths. Ed and Meg are also enjoy-


ing the fruit of their gardeninglabors. A highlight of their sum-mer occurred on Saturday, August19th — Shakespeare in Kennecott,a presentation that Ed and Meg’sPorphyry Productions helped bringabout for the folks in McCarthyand Kennicott.

Nearly 60 folks turned out tosee shortened versions of twoShakespeare plays performed byprofessional actors from Anchor-age. The plays were Hamlet andTaming of the Shrew. Meg thanksAndy and Cynthia Shidner of Cur-rent Ridge Cabins for their dona-tion of two cabins for the twonights the actors were in our area.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, BOBAND SUNNY! I really appreciatefolks who search me out to sharean item of interest for publicationin WSEN. One such person is Nan-cy Cook, Bob and Sunny’s daugh-ter. She eagerly informed me thather folks had celebrated their 40th

wedding anniversary on July 16th.The Cooks own property off theNizina Road across McCarthyCreek and are familiar faces in ourtown, especially in the summerseason. Bob is a van driver forWrangell Mountain Bus and isseen often ferrying visitors be-tween McCarthy and Kennicott.He is always quick to smile andoffer me a neighborly wave of thehand when passing on the road.I’m sure he was sporting an extralarge grin on he and Sunny’s spe-cial day. They made a trip to theBremner Mine and celebrated thatevening with Champaign and cakeat the McCarthy Lodge.

Congratulations are certainlyin store for the Cooks!

McCarthy-Kennicott Museum:While visiting with Meg, who isalso the president of our local mu-seum, she shared that museumgrant money is enabling them toperform major upgrades to the

interior and exterior of the muse-um building.

Many visitors and locals alikeappreciate the new exterior’spaint job which was done by Jere-my Keller’s Ibuild contractingbusiness. Future interior work onthe walls and ceiling will be doneby John Adams, owner of McCa-rthy Building Services.

Meg reports that themuseum’s annual meeting washeld September 4th, 10 a.m., atthe McCarthy Lodge.

The museum closed at noonon Monday, September 4th. Volun-teers turned out at 1 pm to helpmove things out of the area to beworked on by John.

Dan Elofsen: Dan just re-turned from spending 10 days inthe warm (actually, hot, says Dan)state of Alabama where he didsome further training for his work.He liked it so well, in spite of thetremendous heat, that he stayedan additional week. He met asouthern “debutante.” too, who hehopes will travel north to visit hisneck of the woods.

Dan is more-than-excitedabout a recent development nextdoor to his property southeast ofMcCarthy Creek. Tom and MaryKaye Golden, Dan’s folks, just pur-chased 10 acres of land — nowmaking them Dan’s nearby neigh-bors. According to Dan, the Gold-ens were in McCarthy for a coupleof days over the 4th of July. Theyare eager to build a cabin, and itsounds like he is eager to givethem pointers along the way. “Iam looking forward to a new phasein my life,” says Dan. I believe thatnew phase includes having hisfolks as very special next doorneighbors. Congratulations to theGoldens and thanks, Dan, for shar-ing the good news with us!

Trig Trigiano: It’s the LaborDay weekend and Trig is on the

move. Until he retires from his jobat the University of Alaska/ An-chorage, he makes the most of hisholidays, tinkering on his McCa-rthy area house and taking the4-wheeler for a spin around theneighborhood.

This trip he brought along afriend, Dick Bruce, who used towork with Trig at the university.The fellows will be here for abouta week. That will give Trig plentyof time to show Dick around town.

Upon their arrival here, Trigwas pleasantly greeted by the newaddition on his property —a metalbuilding folks around here call a“Connex.” Before he came in,Rowcon Services filled his orderand had it installed and ready tofill. Just what Trig does best. Infact, Trig was so impressed withthe new storage container that hethreatened to sleep in it the firstnight. I think Dick may have talk-ed him out of that idea.

Welcome back, Trig, andthanks for bringing Dick along tomeet your friends and neighbors.

Gene and Edith Coppedge say“good-bye!” Long-time owners ofSilver Lake Campground, mile 11McCarthy Road, pass on to all theirfriends, past guests and fishing fanstheir best regards and love. Geneand Edith recently sold their popu-lar rainbow trout fishing spot tonew owners and are on their way towarmer climes —Georgia. Gene andEdith, we want to say to you,“Thank you for all those years ofservice to locals and guests alikeand always being there for us. Youwill be greatly missed and forever inour hearts!”

CORRECTION: On page 39 ofthe July/August issue, it was mis-takenly reported that Fran Ga-gnon passed away in Tucson whenit should have read Phoenix. Ourapologies to Fran’s family and ourreaders.


W RST—On Friday, Au-gust 18, 2006, asheep hunter was

seriously injured from a fall inWrangell-St. Elias National Parkand Preserve. Richard Collins andhis son, Jacob Collins, were east ofSheep Lake. At approximately 5pm Jacob lost his footing and fellabout 40 vertical feet before strik-ing a steep broken rock face, roll-ing down a scree slope, andcoming to a stop in a smallstream.

After searching for over anhour, Richard found his son un-conscious with a number of deeplacerations and bruises. Richardwas able to get Jacob into dryclothing and they spent the nighton the side of the mountain. Dur-ing the night, Jacob remained un-conscious and suffered a numberof seizures.

Early on Saturday morning,Richard stabilized his son as besthe could, hiked back to an ATV atthe end of the Tanada Lake trail,and began the long ride back to

the Nabesna Road. Shortly after9:30 pm, Richard reached theNabesna Road and contacted localresident Jeff Bertrand, who assist-ed him with placing phone calls.

National Park Service was noti-fied of the accident through Alas-ka State Troopers at 10:15 pm,and initiated rescue efforts.

Rangers Thompson and Gussemet Richard on the Nabesna Roadand placed him on an Alaska AirNational Guard Pavehawk rescuehelicopter at Duffy's airstrip. Thehelicopter then traveled to theaccident site and began searchingfor Jacob. At 7:35 a.m. on Sundaymorning, after a brief air andground search, Jacob was locatedalive, but in critical condition.

National Guard PararescueJumpers and Richard carried Ja-cob to a safe helicopter landingsite, where the helicopter hoistedhim aboard. The helicopter crewflew Jacob and Richard to Gulka-na airport, where they were trans-ferred to a National Guard C-130

and flown to Providence Hospitalin Anchorage.

Jacob remained unconsciousfor some time, but as we go topress he is awake and attentiveand responding to therapy. Al-though Jacob sustained a numberof cuts and bruises and a signifi-cant concussion, he did not frac-ture his skull. Nor did he sustainany serious internal injuries or anyother bone fractures.

A special thanks to those whoparticipated in the rescue; includ-ing Tom and Jeff Bertrand, Na-tional Park Service employeesMark Thompson, Thelma Schrank,Walker Gusse, and Matt Senger;members of the 210th Air Nation-al Guard Pavehawk HelicopterCrew, members of the 211th AirNational Guard Hercules C-130Crew; members of the 212th AirNational Guard Pararescue Jump-ers; members of the 11 RescueCoordination Center; and AlaskaState Trooper Ron Simmons.

Sheep hunter seriously injured in fall

McCarthy: —CopperValley Telephone Co-op (CVTC) held its 4th

annual customer appreciation pic-nic in McCarthy on July 27.

Anyone with a question oreven a complaint could find someCVTC employee just waiting to“take your call” —in person even.General Manager, Dave Dengel,Joanne Winney, Marketing and

Public Relations Manager, TabithaGregory, Customer Service Super-visor, and Chris Mishmash, Pur-chasing and Facilities Manager,were not too busy to visit even ifthey were slicing tomatoes, flip-ping hamburgers or turning hotdogs.

There were plenty of sodas,chips and cookies to go around.The yearly gifts that CVTC bringsare always a hit with the localsbecause they are items folks use

on a daily basis. (I am now usingthe CVTC tote for my weekly mailday bag! The only hitch is that myneighbor Audrey Edwards, picnicattendee,too, is doing the samething. We almost got our bagsmixed up the other day.)

Thanks, Copper Valley Tele-phone staff, for putting on a finefeast for your customers in theMcCarthy area. We appreciateyou, too!

Copper Valley Telephone shows appreciation


Kennecott: —Every Au-gust Wells Fargo’s state-wide advisory board and

senior leadership gathers in a differ-ent place within Alaska to meet withcommunity residents. Last year theymet on Annette Island near Craig.That is also when the board decidedwhere they would come for 2006.The 35-member group of communi-ty leaders obviously believe in plan-ning ahead.

Although the annual gatheringshave always occurred where abranch of the bank resides, Kenne-cott was chosen for this year’s fes-tivities. The nearest Wells Fargobranch for those who live in Kenne-

cott and McCarthy is located inGlennallen, about 125 miles away.

“We are excited to bring ouradvisory board members to Kenne-cott and McCarthy to visit withcommunity members and enjoy thisbeautiful place,” said RichardStrutz, Wells Fargo Alaska regionalpresident.

On August 3rd at 6 pm the doorsof the Kennecott Recreation Hallopened to receive the many resi-dents and area visitors who wereeagerly waiting for the reception tobegin. Tables laden with pastry horsd'oeuvres, fruits, fresh vegetables, achocolate fountain fondue, roastbeef, meat balls, breads, coffee and

wines greeted the hungry attendees.Benches alongside the inside wallsof the hall were quickly filled withthe diners. Friends and neighborsgreeted each other, commenting onthe delicious and beautifully-ar-ranged food which was catered byKennicott Glacier Lodge. The aro-ma from the chocolate fountain at-tempted to override all others butthat didn’t stop folks from samplingeverything. It was apparent no oneleft hungry or without making theacquaintance of at least one WellsFargo advisory board member andsaying, “Thanks for choosing Kenne-cott and McCarthy to visit.”

Wells Fargo reception, a first for Kennecott

McCarthy: —The 2006McCarthy KennicottHalf Marathon was

held on Saturday, September 3rd.By 2 p.m. the annual startingpoint, Glacier View Campgroundat mile 59 of the McCarthy Road,was the scene of 60 eager runners,all donned with their individualrace numbers. The number of par-ticipants has grown remarkablysince the marathon’s conceptionin 2002 when 26 registered to runthe 13-mile course which took therunners up to Kennicott and backdown to McCarthy.

The Half Marathon promotesthe American Diabetes Associa-tion (ADA), helping raise aware-ness and champion a healthylifestyle for those who are diag-nosed with diabetes. District Di-rector of ADA for Alaska, PhoebeO’Connell, made sure everyonewas registered properly and of-fered encouragement and assis-

tance. Her helper this year wasKathyrn Price of Palmer.

Dan Myers, the race’s originalorganizer, was on hand once againto spur on the new and seasonedrunners, and sometimes walkers.The youngest participants thisyear were Matthew Shidner, 11, ofMcCarthy and CatherineO’Donnell, 9, of Anchorage andregular visitor to McCarthy area.Some runners like Matthew andCatherine, chose the shortercourse of approximately 5 miles.The oldest was returning runnerEleanor Claus, 72, of UltimaThule. The race included severallocal folks such as Kelsey Smith,Tessa Bay, Cynthia Shidner, KrisGregory and Howard Mozen.

The following winners in themen’s category for the 5-milecourse were: Michael Montague(40:37) and his brother, BrendanMontague (42:15). A familiar facein the McCarthy area, MikeTruskowski, came in third with43:43.

The women’s class was led byPatty Montague (mom of Michaeland Brendan) with 50:47. TheMontagues hale from Girdwood.Anita Hurlburt took second placewith 51:47. Marietta Hau madethird with 57:07.

The Half Marathon winners inthe men’s division were: JulianHanna with 82:06 who came insecond in last year’s marathon;second place, Keith Weinbold,82:10; Ivan Hurlburt, third, with83:30.

The Half Marathon winners inthe women’s class were: DeborahByzys, first place, 92:50; CynthiaShidner of McCarthy, second,94:20; Sue Sears, third, 102:56.

For further information onhow you can be involved in pro-moting and/or donating to theAmerican Diabetes Association,please contact ADA, 801 W. Fire-weed Lane, Suite 103, Anchorage,AK. 99503 or call 1-888-342-2383.

5th annual McCarthy Kennicott Half Marathon —better than ever


Anchorage: —A congres-sional field hearing washeld in Anchorage on Au-

gust 14th in the Assembly Room ofthe Loussac Public Library. Thehearing was hosted by GovernmentReform, Criminal Justice Subcom-mittee Chairman Mark Souder (R-IN) and is the ninth in a series ofhearings examining each type ofNational Park Service (NPS) unitand various aspects of Park opera-tions as they relate to the NPS’smission. The Anchorage, Alaska,hearing focused on the nationalparks of the Alaska region. Thescope of the hearing included in-holdings, resource management andother issues unique to NPS units inAlaska.

The first panel of witnesses in-cluded Marcia Blazsak, Alaska Re-gional Director for NPS and foursuperintendents: Tomie Lee, GlacierBay National Park; Joel Hard, LakeClark National Park; Paul Anderson,Denali National Park; and Jeff Mowof Kenai Fiords National Park.

Panel II consisted of MichaelMenge, Commissioner, Alaska De-partment of Natural Resources;James Stratton, Regional Directorfor the Alaska Office, National ParkConservation Association; JohnShively, Vice President HollandAmerica; Rick Kenyon, inholder andpublisher of Wrangell St. Elias News,and Dave Worrell, spokesman forthe Alaska Travel Industry Associa-tion (ATIA).

Each witness prepared and sub-mitted a written statement for therecord and each one gave a verbalsummary of their prepared state-ment.

Following an opening statementby Chairman Mark Souder, MarciaBlaszak began the panel’s session ofthe hearing with a statement thatincluded: “The towns of McCarthyand Kennecott are largely privately

owned with an economy that hasevolved, in part, to cater to parkvisitors. The opportunity and chal-lenge we face is to protect the stun-ning natural and cultural resourcesof the national park and to providethe necessary access for residentsand visitors, while simultaneouslyensuring that a century-old commu-nity is able to continue to grow andto maintain its unique place in Alas-ka... In Wrangell-St. Elias, invest-ment in a new visitor center alongthe Richardson Highway, state in-vestments on the McCarthy Road,and NPS and private investments inKennecott and McCarthy are keys tothe park and its gateway communi-ties being sustainable visitor desti-nations.”

Dave Worrell, speaking on be-half of Ron Peck, president of ATIA,stated that the number of cruiseship visitors is steadily rising butvery little change in the amount ofindependent travelers. Challengesand obstacles for the Alaskan visitorare public lands access issues, infra-structure quality, improved disper-sal of visitors and recognition of allAlaska’s public lands. It is ATIA’sobjectives to increase awareness ofAlaska’s diverse national parks andencourage visitation to Alaska’slesser-known parks. Priorities in-clude the south side developmentfor Denali National Park, road im-provements at Wrangell-St. EliasNational Park and the expansion ofmarketing efforts to promote allAlaska’s park lands.

Michael Menge, DNR Commis-sioner, addressed inholder access inhis testimony: “Considerable for-ward progress has been made, al-though some solutions remainelusive. The ideal approach will re-sult in a permanent access authori-zation that is not subject torevocation or expiration. The ParkService, under the capable guidanceof Ms. Blaszak, is working hard tofind creative solutions that docu-

ment the ANILCA access guaranteewhile providing enough flexibility toboth the inholder and the NPS torespond to changing needs and con-ditions. State representatives are inclose communication with Ms.Blaszak and her staff to keep theforward momentum. We are opti-mistic that with the additional helpof many well-reasoned commentsreceived from affected inholders, anacceptable solution will soon bewithin reach.”

Rick Kenyon, inholder in theWrangell-St. Elias NationalPark/Preserve for the past 26 yearsstated: “For 26 years we havewatched the interaction betweenthe rural Alaskan communities ofMcCarthy and Kennecott, and thePark Service. For the majority ofthose years it must be characterizedas adversarial. Fortunately, muchprogress has been made during thepast two years.” Although Kenyonstated displeasure with Drafts oneand two of the NPS User’s AccessGuide, he commented: “In the pasttwo months, considerable progresshas been made as Director Blaszakand Deputy Director Knox have tak-en the reins of the project and metwith the affected parties to heartheir concerns, and to openly con-vey the concerns and goals of theNPS.”

Jim Stratton, Alaska’s regionaldirector for NPCA, testified aboutthe challenges facing Alaska’s na-tional parks —challenges such asprotecting wildlife populations andacquiring inholdings. He called onthe Park Service to increase supportfor conducting and analyzing popu-lation science for hunted species,support regularly scheduled com-munity harvest surveys and supporta new position for a statewide wild-life data manager.

On inholdings, Jim’s writtentestimony states: There are about3.3 million acres of inholdings re-

Congress comes calling —National Parks of Alaska

(continued on page 22)


July 1906 — John E. Barrettstakes his homestead and miningclaims on the McCarthy Creek,which he also names. He erectsfences, posted signs, builds a cacheand when winter approaches buildsa boat to leave the country. He re-turns 1907 and builds cabin.

1907— Barrett rents propertyto the Alaska Syndicate.

1908-1910—Barrett builds hishomestead and continues to develophis mining claims. These are theproperties called the Green Group(Greenbutte today) located on theMcCarthy Creek Valley. USGS Mapssurveyed 1907 and published 1908clearly show trails and the encamp-ments of Motherlode, Greenbutte,as well as roads from McCarthy toKennicott. Barrett also does somefarming.

1907-1911—Largest construc-tion boom takes place. Dog sledsand horses with sleds haul much ofthe freight in the winter.

1907-1910—Kennicott is estab-lished and rapidly takes shape.

March 29,1911- C.R. & N.W.Railroad reaches McCarthy & Kenni-cott.

1911—Topographic maps of theNizina district clearly show 6 milesof wagon roads established from theNizina River valley up the Dan Creekand Chititu Creek.-1911 USGS Map.

1912—February 24, 1912 theChitina Leader (newspaper) states:“One of the most active sections isthat country tributary to the rail-road at Mile 191 where McCarthyCreek runs into the Nizina River(the Kennicott today). Quite a littlesettlement is already springing upthere.” more.... McCarthy had onlyone building in 1911 but many by1912.

1912—Blackburn, the town, isestablished between the McCarthyStation and Kennicott. Located be-

tween the Bloomquist and Barretthomesteads. Neither had patent totheir property at this time.

July 1913—Word of the Shush-anna gold strike arrives in the Cop-per Valley. Shushanna GoldStampede begins. Shushanna is nowknown as Chisana.Shortest route toShushanna begins inMcCarthy townsitethen up McCarthyCreek, up the NickoliCreek over SourdoughHill (Ridge) across theNizina River, up theChitistone Canyonand over Skolai Pass to Shushanna(Chisana). Approximately 80 miles.This route includes 7 miles of theMcCarthy-Greenbutte road. Stam-pede ends by 1916.

1913—Barrett creates townshipof McCarthy and leases lots fortwenty-five years. Mercantile townbegins in earnest. Dan Creek, Chiti-tu, Shushanna and Kennicott suc-cesses fuel McCarthy's rapid growth.

1916—A.R.C. & the Territory ofAlaska receives $500,000 for thebenefit of Alaskan roads. The Nizinadistrict produces $250,000 in min-erals in 1916. The local papers be-gin to solicit upgrades for the trailsin this area and a bridge across theNizina. It costs eight cents perpound to freight goods 25 miles. 20men have lost their lives in theNizina River since 1911.

1916—Mother Lode Mine re-ports the high grade ore being pro-duced will require a large transportforce for delivery to McCarthy.Mother Lode located up McCarthyCreek.

1916—Kennicott-Tjosevig prop-erty near the Bonanza report theywill commence construction ofabout 600-feet of rock work to builda motor road that will bring ore toMcCarthy. The Kennecott-BarrettCopper Co. is formed. The Dan

Creek-Nizina telephone line reachesMcCarthy. Again, editorials solicitappropriations for the betterment ofroad conditions from McCarthy tothe Nizina (the Sourdough HillTrail).

1916—Chris Tjosevig reports$500,000 ore body atthe Kennecott-Tjoes-vig mine.

1916—Senatorialcandidate CharlesSulzer campaigns inMcCarthy, road condi-tions are high on thelocals agenda. Resi-dents of McCarthy

contribute over $1500 for streetimprovements in 1916. The A.R.C.announces that the Sourdough HillTrail will receive improvements. TheMcCarthy district receives the en-tire appropriation allotted to theThird Division. $2200 will be spenton the trail and foot bridge will bebuilt over the Nizina at $1200 dur-ing freeze up. Phone lines are ex-tended to Blackburn and Kennecott.

1917—WW1 begins to affectMcCarthy. Able men are required toreport.

1917—Barrett receives patentto his homestead and issues deedsto any landholder who wants one inMcCarthy. Businesses feel secure inexpanding more.

1917—McCarthy reaches peakpopulations during this time. Cop-per prices are high because of theWar.

1918—Nels Tjosevig conveysguests to Mother Lode in automo-biles. Automobiles also ply the Chi-tina-Fairbanks route in 24.5 hoursanother reports 39 hours. August17, 1918.

1918— “An official investiga-tion into the Nizina Bridge buildingtook place this week but nothinghas been made public as to the deci-sion. The contractor's work was ac-

McCarthy’s Time Line by Infrastructure


cepted on June 28th by EngineerSchueber.”

1919—John Barrett elected byMcCarthy's Commercial Club to repre-sent McCarthy at the Territorial Leg-islature to lobby the government“regarding the conditions [that] existin this section due to lack of roadsand bridges.”

1919— “The foundation for thebridge over McCarthy Creek is assum-ing a business like appearance.”

1919— “Gus Johnson of the RoadCommission reports having complet-ed the bridge over McCarthy Creekthis a.m."

1919—$375,000 Appropriationmade by the Territorial Legislaturefor construction and maintenance ofroads in the Territory, The Third Divi-sion (McCarthy's area) receives$100,000.

1919—The U.S. Senate appropri-ates $300,000 for use on Alaskaroads. “Engineer Morrison has arrivedon a inspection trip to the NizinaBridge.”

1919— “Work has been startedon salvaging of the Nizina Bridge bythe Road Commission crew with GusJohnson in charge. The big truck isnow making regular daily [trips] tothe Lower Mother Lode Camp bring-ing in full loads of ore sacks.”

1919— “When are we going tohear something is being done aboutthe Nizina Bridge?”

1920— “Today’s train broughtanother tractor on the (for the) Gov-ernment trail... already proved greatsuccess... hauls 8 to 12 tons... snowdrifts no obstacle and mud seems tobe its native element.”

1920— “Federal Road Official onTour of Inspection- Col. J.C. Gotwalsattention has been drawn to the badcondition of Sourdough Hill Trail...Commercial Club writes letter re-questing $10,000 for maintenance...”

1920—Col. J.C. Gotwals acknowl-edges Commercial Club letter aboutroad needs... promises to includesome allotment for 1921...

1920—Col. J.C. Gotwals visitsMcCarthy to inspect Nizina Bridgesite and Sourdough Hill Trail.

1920— Road Commission surveycrew at Sourdough Hill leaves.

1920— “The Road Commissionbroke camp this week for the winter,they have completed several miles ofnew road and will be back in goodtime next season to complete it.”

1921— “A petition is now in cir-culation to secure a much neededwagon road to Long Lake.”

1921—John Barrett is road mak-ing, clearing slides etc. on the MotherLode Road... Road Commission Im-ports Cars- Six armored, Holt, five tontractors, built for war use but neverused, have just arrived here for theuse of A.R.C. In addition to the trac-tors, 5 Dodge trucks were shippedhere, one to be sent to each camp forlocal use. Everything is now in shapefor the transportation of the sup-plies... A.R.C. horses also arrive fromAnchorage...

1921—Gus Johnson is expectedback to McCarthy on the next trainand it is believed that the road workin this section will commence shortly.

1921— “McCarthy Creek ran thehighest for several years last Sunday...Returning from the Green Group byautomobile, J. E. Barrett... two bridg-es washed out... three bridge abut-ments washed out... A crew of menwith a team were put to work by Mr.Barrett to make temporary repairs, asno appropriation has ever been passedfor these very necessary repairs on theonly completed road in this section...”“We notice by the Cordova DailyTimes that Col. Gotwals, in an inter-view to that publication, said that theroad over Sourdough Hill was beingrushed to completion and would befinished by August 1(1921)...”

1921—Green Group reports moremine development and road repairsthis summer...

1921—We Need a Bridge is statedthree times in this issue- The McCa-rthy Weekly News, July 30, 1921.

1921—Superintendent DanJones, of the Road Commission, ar-

rives... freight delays... work will beginimmediately...

1921— Road Commission work-ing on Sourdough Road for six weekswas disbanded for season... balance ofappropriation to be spent drillingNizina River to determine what typeof bridge will be required... road com-pleted to within 6,000 feet of river...Gus Johnson writes to the TerritorialRoad Board stating number of re-quests made for trails... White Riverbeing one...

1922—John Barrett repairs Mc-Carthy Creek Road...

1922—Alaska Road Commission(ARC) announces permanent campplanned and commencement of workon Nizina Bridge next winter... an-nounces bridge across the Kennicottto help ranchers at Long Lake for thefuture... start piers on Nizina this win-ter...

1922—A.R.C. opens office in Mc-Carthy (Nizina Bridge Construction).

1922—A.R.C. reports bridgeacross the Nizina a large project... sixconcrete piers 181-182 feet apart &long approaches built of pilings... re-mainder of winter putting down pil-ings and preparing concrete... atpresent 17 man crew and 10 horses...larger crew in future—summer of1924 should witness freight acrossthe bridge...

1923—A.R.C. reports all the pre-liminary work done on Nizina Bridgein preparation for the concretework... 250 tons freight to the bridgesite...

1923—Greenbutte ships a car-load of ore.... transportation aproblem...A.R.C. operations shouldeliminate problem shortly...

1923—A.R.C.- Water WashesAway Bridge Abutments—Nizina(preparatory falsework on the Nizinaproject).

1923— A. E. Trimm has contractto repair Mother Lode Trail... GreenButte ships more ore. Forest Firesthreaten bridges on Mother LodeTrail.


W ASHINGTON – Nation-al Park Service Direc-tor Fran Mainella, the

16th NPS director, announced that,after nearly six years of service, shewill leave her position to devotemore time to her family.

In her resignation letter,Mainella wrote, “Thank you, Mr.President for allowing me to serveyou and the American people as theDirector of the National Park Ser-vice. Thank you for your supportand confidence in my ability as thefirst woman to serve as Director.”

“Now, in my sixth year as Direc-tor, it is time for me to pursue op-portunities that will allow me moretime to spend with my family, in-cluding my parents and in-laws whohave been having health issues.Thus, with mixed emotions, I re-quest that my resignation be effec-tive on a mutually agreeable datethat is beneficial to the NationalPark Service and the Department ofthe Interior.”

Secretary of the Interior DirkKempthorne applauded her strongleadership of the National Park Ser-vice.

In a letter, Kempthorne wroteto her, "You wrote history in helpingto create the Great Sand Dunes andLewis and Clark National Parks.You led the effort to get 6,000 parkimprovement projects started orcompleted. You helped create theNatural Resource Challenge thathas invested more than $450 mil-lion to protect national parks. Youtripled cyclic park maintenancefunding.”

“Perhaps your most importantcontribution, one that will endurelong past your tenure as Director, isyour effort to foster a culture ofpartnership within the NationalPark Service. Thanks to your lead-ership, today virtually every national

park works in partnership with stateand local officials, local residentsand friends groups.”

“Prior to your leaving, I lookforward to working with you in plan-ning and celebrating the 90th anni-versary of the National Park Service.You have said that our ‘NationalParks are the soul of America and agift to the world.’ I agree. The 90th

anniversary should launch a cam-paign for the National Parks to re-main as havens of enjoyment,learning, recreation, and personalrenewal for the next 100 years.”

“You can take deep satisfactionthat 96% of visitors enjoy their timein national parks. On behalf of agrateful nation, the President andme, please accept our heartfeltthanks for the energy and enthusi-asm you invested in your service asDirector of the National Park Ser-vice. Congratulations on a job welldone. From our discussions, this isa time when your family must takepriority over the demands of publicservice. I honor your decision.”

In her letter to the President,Mainella also thanked Mrs. Bush,who serves as honorary chair of theNational Park Foundation and has“demonstrated her commitment toboth national parks and to children.She is helping young people discov-er their national parks and teachingthem how to protect and enjoythem.”

Mainella garnered accolades forher leadership from NPS career em-ployees as well as conservation lead-ers.

“Career National Park Serviceemployees admire Fran’s love forthe national parks,” said Steve Mar-tin, NPS Deputy Director. “We re-spect her energy, enthusiasm andcommitment to our mission. Werespect the decision she has madeand will miss her when she leaves.”

“It was a great pleasure workingwith Fran Mainella during all of hernearly six-year period of service,”said conservationist and business-man David Rockefeller. “Fran putthe welcome mat out at nationalparks for millions of Americans. Asformer Citizen Chair of the NationalPark Foundation, I worked veryclosely and happily with her.”

“Fran is famous for her commit-ment to creating partnerships andpreserving the natural and culturalresources within the national parks.She has been a terrific leader of theNational Park Service, and we Amer-icans owe Director Mainella a debtof gratitude for all she has done,”said Patrick Noonan, ChairmanEmeritus of The Conservation Fund.

Mainella will continue to serveas Director through the planningand celebration of the 90th anniver-sary of the National Park Serviceand through the completion of the2006 National Park Service Manage-ment Policies and other importantprojects.

Before becoming the 16th Di-rector of the National Park Servicein 2001, Mainella served 12 years asDirector of Florida's Division of Rec-reation and Parks. During her ten-ure, Florida State Parks were votedthe best in the nation, achieving theGold Medal Award given jointly bythe National Sporting Goods Associ-ation and the National Recreationand Park Association. Before as-suming her State post, she was Ex-ecutive Director of the FloridaRecreation and Park Association, astatewide professional organizationfor those working in public and pri-vate park and recreation programsand facilities. Mainella has servedterms as President of both the Na-tional Recreation and Park Associa-tion (1996-97) and the NationalAssociation of State Park Directors(1997-99).

NPS Director Fran Mainella Announces Resignation


Y ellowstone National Park,Wyo. — In a special mes-sage and a memorandum

issued recently, President GeorgeW. Bush directed Interior SecretaryDirk Kempthorne to establish spe-cific performance goals to help pre-pare the national parks for anothercentury of conservation, preserva-tion and enjoyment. In honor of the90th Anniversary of the NationalPark Service (NPS), and with an eyeon the upcoming centennial in2016, President Bush called on theNPS to continue the cooperationnecessary for the national parks toflourish for the next 100 years andbeyond.

In addition, the President’s spe-cial memorandum directed the Sec-retary to identify signature projectsand programs that are consistentwith these goals and that continuethe NPS legacy of leveraging philan-thropic, partnership, and govern-ment investments for the benefit ofthe national parks and their visitors.

Secretary Kempthorne sharedthe President’s vision at YellowstoneNational Park at the 90th Anniversa-ry celebration and the opening ofthe new Canyon Visitor EducationCenter at the Park.

“At Yellowstone and Yosemite,Denali and Dinosaur, Grand Canyonand Grand Teton, Shiloh, Shenando-ah and other parks, the NationalPark Service each year welcomes270 million visitors as they discoverAmerica the beautiful, the histori-cal, the cultural,” Kempthorne said.“America’s national parks were thefirst in the world to set aside large-scale landscapes.”

Kempthorne continued,“National parks preserve majesticnatural wonders. They keep watchover battlefields hallowed by red

badges of courage. They keep cul-ture alive at sites dedicated to theperforming arts, poetry and music.Parks offer recreation and discoverythrough spectacular backcountryhiking and climbing. They honorgreat leaders like Thomas Jefferson,Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Doug-lass, Chief Joseph, John Muir, Elea-nor Roosevelt and Martin LutherKing, Jr. As havens of enjoyment,recreation, learning and personalrenewal, national parks must en-dure.”

In his message, the Presidentwrote:

“Americans take great pride inour country’s natural and historictreasures, and the National ParkService plays an important role inensuring our rich heritage is pre-served and enjoyed for generationsto come.”

The President continued, “I callon all Americans to help in theseefforts and to enhance our parks aswe get ready for the National ParkServices’ centennial celebration.”He further encouraged the NPS toinvite and receive suggestions fromthose who desire to preserve thescenic, cultural, historical, geologi-cal and recreational values of ournational parks.

“We are calling this effort theNational Park Centennial Chal-lenge,” said Kempthorne.

To implement the President’svision, Kempthorne has asked theDirector of the National Park Ser-vice, Fran Mainella, to recommendoutstanding candidates to lead theCentennial Challenge effort. TheSecretary will select the candidatewho has the most passion for theparks and for this new effort.

During the last five years underthe leadership of President Bush,

the NPS has built a strong founda-tion of improving parks, with 6,000park improvements completed orunderway. The President requestedthat the NPS further improve na-tional parks during the next decadeleading up to the 2016 centennialcelebration. He requested that inthe development of performancegoals, the NPS integrate the assess-ments of the past five years used inmonitoring natural resources andimproving the condition of park fa-cilities.

At Yellowstone, the grand open-ing of the new facility marked thefirst major visitor center develop-ment in the park in three decades.Its state-of-the-art, interactive ex-hibits will help visitors learn aboutand understand the geology of Yel-lowstone and the “Supervolcano”which lies beneath.

Kempthorne described Yellow-stone as a natural cathedral, a beau-tiful place but with fascinatinggeological and volcanic activity. Hepraised the new Canyon Visitor Edu-cation Center as one that, “…willenable visitors to research the larg-est and most violent volcanoes onearth, learn about geysers and hotsprings and mud pots, and experi-ence the incredible and diverse eco-system this geology supports.”

The exhibits will include a large,unique globe that rotates on a filmof water showing the location of vol-canic hot spots around the world, aroom-sized, fiber optic and LED ani-mated topographic relief map of thegeologic history of park, and life-size dioramas of wildlife found inHayden Valley.

The Center will serve more than600,000 visitors a year. Some $8.6million of the $10.5 million used tofund the project came from en-

The future of America’s National ParksCelebrating the 90th anniversary and looking forward to theCentennial and beyond


trance fees collected from the 20million people who visited the parkbetween 1997 and 2005. That isabout 43 cents a person.

More than $1 million was donat-ed by the Yellowstone Association.Other important contributors to theproject include the Buffalo Bill His-

torical Center, National Aeronauticsand Space Administration, the Na-tional Science Foundation and Can-on U.S.A., Inc.

On July 25, 2006, Nation-al Park Service (NPS)Alaska Regional Direc-

tor Marcia Blaszak announced thecompletion and release of the“Alaska Region Science Strategy:2006 and Beyond.” The NPS pres-ents this science strategy to meetthe intention of the 1998 NationalParks Omnibus Management Actthat set the course for implement-ing proactive scientific investiga-tions. “Implementation of thisstrategy will help us to better under-stand and effectively respond tochanges affecting Alaska’s nationalparks over the next few decades andbeyond,” said Blaszak.

The strategy addresses the firstof five regional priority focus areasrecently identified by Alaska parkmanagers, that being to protect theintegrity of each park’s natural andcultural resource values. The strat-egy was developed cooperativelywith the U.S. Environmental Protec-tion Agency and with support fromthe National Park Foundation. Itsynthesizes existing documents andinput from NPS leadership and tech-

nical staff, partner agency staff, re-search scientists and otherinterested parties.

National parks provide the set-ting for many scientific and scholar-ly studies with broad benefit forsociety. Science is also essential forinformed management of natural,cultural, subsistence and recreationresources, resource interpretation,and educational programs. Thestrategy identifies major challengesthe NPS faces in Alaska, in terms ofscience, information needs and or-ganizational structure. In the com-ing months natural and culturalresource leaders in Alaska’s nationalparks and regional office will reviewthe strategy to determine plans forimplementation. “This strategy is afirst for us, in that it crosses multi-ple scientific disciplines,” said Re-gional Science Advisor RobertWinfree. “We are committed to us-ing science to help identify andachieve goals for natural, culturaland subsistence resources as well asthe visitor experience in parks.”

The Alaska Region ScienceStrategy is organized in three parts.

Part I puts the strategy in context.Part II, the framework, details“ends” and “ways” of achieving itsgoals. Part III, the implementationplan, focuses on the strategic“means,” to accomplish goals. Thisincludes integrating existing assets,encouraging more science in parks,nurturing selected partnerships andusing science more effectively. TheRegional Science Strategy containsa number of rather specific sugges-tions to help accomplish thesegoals.

You can view a copy of the Alas-ka Region Science Strategy: 2006and Beyond on-line at:http://www.nps.gov/alaska/strategy.pdf

Alaska has 17 national park ar-eas and is home to two-thirds of theland in the entire National Park Sys-tem. Alaska’s parklands hold vastmountain ranges and a broad arrayof wildlife. They preserve America’shistory and offer visitors a variety ofrecreational activities. To learnmore about Alaska’s national parksvisit: http://www.nps.gov/alaska

National Park Service Alaska Region Science Strategy Released

NPS goes solarMcCarthy— The National Park

Service West Side Support Facility hasa new solar system. The 7KW solar ar-ray is fed into an Absolyte GNB2800AH @ 24V battery bank through5 Outback 60A, 72V controllers.

The system cost $72,000 and wasinstalled by 9 students from the S. Da-kota State University, led by AssociateProfessor Mike Ropp.

It will supply power during thesummer months to contractors andNPS personnel who stay at the facility.


On July 2, 2006, Jo-seph Faithful Haleand Tilaundia Love

Buckingham were married atLazy Mountain, Palmer, Alaska,in a romantic and stunning set-ting in the broad meadow behindtheir future home with the ma-jestic Talkeetna Mountains asbackdrop.

Family members weredressed in summery ginghams ofcornflower blue. The unmarriedHale and Buckingham childrensat on the grass, boys on oneside, girls on the other, and sanggospel songs as guests were seat-ed on outdoor log benches. Near-ly four hundred people gatheredto share in this blessed event. Aswe sang together, our assemblyso small compared to the gran-deur surrounding us, magnifi-cent clouds rolled out frombehind the mountains to form awedding canopy over us. Howawesome a sight! What a privi-lege to be a witness to this!

The bride’s father, Jim Buck-ingham, spoke to us about God’slove, mercy, and grace and Hisspecial expression of it throughmarriage. He shared that Josephand Lolly are committed to eachother for life, knowing that theirrelationship is God's will andthat He had put His love in eachof their hearts for the other. Toexpress their purpose to be cleanand pure before God and man,

Joseph and Lolly chose to haveno physical contact before mar-riage. To be above reproach,they invited chaperoning, a role

that delighted the Hale andBuckingham children.

As Jim completed his words,the children began to sing,“Peaceful Harbor” and we hadour first sight of the bride andgroom. Joseph entered from adistant stage left from one endof the meadow and Lolly from farto the right. They began walkingtowards each other while thechildren continued to sing, all ofus sharing in the electricity ofanticipation as they approachedone another. Lolly was dressed inwhite crepe with a wreath of palewild roses and mountain bluegentians in her hair. Joseph woreshirt matching the bride’s gown,brown pants and vest, Stetsonhat and boots and carried a sin-

gle flower. As they met, Josephkissed the flower then handed itto Lolly ever so sweetly. ThenJoseph dropped his hat and, as ifon cue, the sun burst throughthe clouds we all gazed trans-fixed as they shared their firstembrace. Wow!

Arm in arm, the couple ap-proached Lolly’s father and hecounseled them on their rolesand responsibilities as husbandand wife. They solemnly ex-changed vows, declaring theircommitment to God as firstabove all, and Jim pronouncedthem man and wife.

The ceremony was followedby a covered dish buffet until thecouple was ready to depart. Atthat time, Lolly & Joseph cutthe wedding cake, a beautifultraditional three-tiered whitecake with icing the same butterywhite as Lolly’s dress. Followingcake, we were each handed awhite or blue balloon and ar-ranged ourselves in a giant circlein the meadow. Joseph and Lolly,both in cowboy hats, appeared ina pretty little carriage pulled byReuben, a magnificent dappledgrey Percheron stallion. As Jo-seph guided the horse and buggyaround our circle, we let our bal-loons fly up and away. As wewatched the balloons sailing un-til they were out of sight, Josephand Lolly cantered off to theirnew home.

Joseph Hale & Tilaundia Buckingham Wedding


Arctic Bicycle Club's 21st

Fat Tire Festival tookplace on August 5th & 6th.

The main event, a Chitina to McCa-rthy race, was won by Brian Bonneywith a time of 3:16.02.02. Secondplace winner Josh Yeaton was lessthan a second behind at 3:16.02.90!

Sheryl Loan was the fastest fe-male with a time of 3:23.27, fol-lowed by Heather Best at 3:51.55.

In past years one of the funevents was a “chain-off” race down

the hill from Kennecott to McCa-rthy, but this year the NPS decidedto require a Special Use Permit, orCUS, in order to use either the oldWagon Road or the Kennecott Sub-division roads. A CUS requires a$200 administrative fee and proof ofadequate insurance.

According to acting superinten-dent Will Tipton, the decision toprohibit the race unless a CUS wasobtained was made by Chief RangerMarshall Neeck.

“While the wagon road is clearlywithin our jurisdiction and wouldrequire a SUP, activities that occuron NPS lands within the Kennecottsubdivision may or may not requirean SUP,” said Tipton. “This is a newissue for us and we are consultingwith our lands specialists and ourRegional Solicitor for further clarifi-cation.”

Race organizer Reggie Parks didnot return our requests for com-ments.

Bicycle race Kennecott event canceled for lack of permit

Kennecott—The NationalPark Service has releasedfor public review an Envi-

ronmental Assessment on the Ken-necott Mines Support Facility Planfor the national historic landmarkand McCarthy area in Wrangell-St.Elias National Park and Preserve.

The public review period is Au-gust 10 through September 30,2006. The NPS preferred alternativewould implement a plan for protect-ing park resources and enhancingthe park visitor experience in theKennecott-McCarthy area.

The plan addresses mainly infra-structure for NPS personnel, butdoes include “visitor amenities”—apotential foot trail from the foot-bridge to Kennecott and welcomesigns on the west side of the Kenni-cott River.

Areas of planning include NPShousing, construction materialsstorage, power generation, powerdistribution, sanitary sewer system,fire suppression, water storage, wa-ter treatment, water distribution,local transportation, and utilities.

The NPS held a public meetingon the EA on Thursday, August 31,2006, at the Recreation Hall in Ken-necott, Alaska. About a dozen localresidents attended, and about a doz-en NPS employees. The meeting wasfacilitated by Chris Beck and TheaAgnew.

Acting Superintendent Will Tip-ton said that although the Kenne-cott Support plan is a multi-milliondollar proposal, it is not likely to befunded in the near future.

Several people asked about theforecast growth of the area that wastaken into consideration in the EA.

Park Planner Vicki Snitzler saidthey had no data other than thatfrom the McCarthy Road Roundta-ble project.

The document may be obtainedby contacting Wrangell-St. Elias Na-tional Park and Preserve at 907-822-5234, Post Office Box 439, CopperCenter, Alaska 99573. Copies willalso be available at the mail shackin McCarthy, Alaska. Comments onthe EA may be sent by mail to thepark at the above address duringthe public comment period.

Interested parties may also re-view and comment on the EA on-line. Go to the NPS website athttp://parkplanning.nps.gov to re-trieve the EA and provide your com-ments online.

If you have any questions, con-tact Vicki Snitzler, Park Planner, at907-822-7206.

Kennecott Mines Support Facility Plan EA released for review


As winter changes tospring, spring to sum-mer and summer to fall,

many of the creatures around uschange. Through the remarkableprocess of metamorphosis, crea-tures like the butterfly change inways that defy evolutionary expla-nation.

The mystery of the butterflybegins with a tiny egg, less than amillimeter in length laid on theunderside of a leaf. A leaf that justhappens to be the specific plantthat the young caterpillar needs tofeed on.

Inside the small nucleus ofthis tiny egg lies all the informa-tion for not only where, when andhow to lay its eggs, but also forbuilding and operating a caterpil-lar. That’s not all. The informationneeded for developing the pupaand the operation and develop-ment of the butterfly, all at pre-cisely the proper time and in thecorrect sequence, are contained inthe tiny nucleus. All threestages—caterpillar, pupa and but-terfly —have very different forms,functions, behaviors and exacttimings.

Caterpillar’s leaf-cutting jawsare developed along with intesti-nal digestive systems suited for aspecific plant species. In compari-son, the butterfly, without chew-ing jaws, is equipped with aproboscis, a specially-coiled feed-ing tube, and digestive and intesti-nal system enabling it to feed onnectar.

Precise amounts of protein-building substances combine inprecise order and time, inside theegg, to form all the complex struc-tures of the caterpillar. The bodyforms, pre-programmed to begingrowing a new skin at precisely

the right time to allow the oldskin to shed away as the caterpil-lar grows too large for the old one.Plant-chewing jaws and small eyes,along with all the infrastructureon how and when to use them.Smell and taste organs, tuned to aspecific plant, are made, alongwith breastplates and short, stub-by legs. The legs are equippedwith soft, bristly feet that enablethem to climb vertically upsmooth surfaces like glass.

Complex breathing tubes areformed on its flanks that open andclose, containing miniature dust-filtering sleeves.

As if all this is not enough toimpress an observer, consider thenext few tricks that this humble“bug” can do.

The caterpillar, at the propertime, spins a silk anchor fastenedto a twig and sheds its skin onelast time into a pupa. Inside thismotionless, seemingly lifeless shellwithout head or legs, somethingamazing is happening. All thecaterpillar’s organs except thenervous system begin to dissolveinto small groups of cells, thenreorganize into very different or-gans. This “metamorphosis” isplayed out as a precisely, inge-nious, programmed plan.

Without central direction andprogrammed goal, a random re-combination of these million pluscells could never amount to any-thing viable or capable of survival.But, with the central programmedplan contained within the littlenucleus, a beautiful awe-inspiringand very different creature isformed—a butterfly. Wow!

A new creature, beautiful inspecific coloration, able to fly al-most immediately (took me 2months!), with new large, facetedcompound eyes, retractable feed-

ing tube, and all the know-how touse them.

Equipped with long feelersacting as highly sensitive smellingorgans, they are able to locateblossoms from remarkable dis-tances. Their long, finely-jointedlegs allow them to land and clingtightly to the blossoms in thewind.

To further realize the degreeof organization involved in thistransformation of a creeping cat-erpillar to a flying beauty, we canlook to just another small part—the color pattern in its wings.These patterns are mosaic pic-tures made up of thousands of in-dividual, colored dermal scales.One square millimeter of wingsurface contains as many as 600scales, arranged in straight linesand systematically overlappinglike roof shingles. Not only this,but, each scale contains just theright amount and color of sub-stance necessary for a specific spe-cies pattern. And, all of this isaccomplished in a crowded,cramped compartment with thewings crumpled in the pupal case.

Oh, one other small detailthat is worth mentioning. Thisplane/pilot combo is also capableof mating, then making many ofthese miracle eggs, that are laidon just the right leaf with a specialglue holding them tight!

I encourage you to researchthese fascinating creatures in de-tail. I could write hundreds of pag-es on the detailed wonders of thisoften unappreciated insect.

One thing seems obvious, con-sidering this extraordinary com-plex hierarchy of super programs.This marvelous creature was notput together by a “blind watch-maker” as many evolutionistsclaim.

The world around us


This creature, I and thousandsof scientists assert, has been de-signed by an awesome and intelli-gent designer. I hope that as youwatch the beautiful butterfly thissummer, you get a glimpse of thebeauty and majesty of its creator.

In the beginning was the word,and the word was with God, and

the word was God. He was withGod in the beginning. Through himall things were made; without himnothing was made that has beenmade. In him was life, and that lifewas the light of men. The lightshines in the darkness, but thedarkness has not understood it.John 1:1-5.

References:World Book Encyclopedia; Vol.

2, Butterflies, pgs. 622-629.Creation; 15(1):10-13, Dec.

1992.Butterflies & Moths; David

Carter, DK Publishers 1992.

McCarthy: —On July27th approximately 16folks gathered at the

Blackburn Center for a townmeeting called by Janet Brown,Engineering Manager for the De-partment of Transportation(DOT). The purpose of the meet-ing was to update McCarthy arearesidents of the status of the Mc-Carthy Road Improvement Proj-ect.

On hand to address questionsand provide up-to-date informa-tion, was Dave Miller and TimHaah of Juneau and Mike Coffeyand Janet Brown of Fairbanks, allof DOT.

Brown assured the attendeesthat in spite of nearly a dozen oth-er projects on her desk, the McCa-rthy Road project was still a highpriority. Progress on the environ-mental impact statement (EIS) isproceeding slowly. However, dur-ing the last year the following ac-tivities have taken place: 2005visitor survey results have been

tabulated and compared to thesurvey done in 1995; archeologicaland historical consultation withtribal organizations and the Na-tional Park Service took place inMay; a wetland delineation reportwas completed; a realignment atMile 57 has been added; and alter-natives have been refined.

The alternatives now read: NoBuild; 35 mph, 40 mph, 50 mphdesign speeds; or stay within theexisting right-of-way. According toBrown each alternative has its ownsurface option.

Brown stated that every alter-native except the “no build,” islooking at “total reconstruction,not just maintenance bandages”and that the EIS design is for ayear-round road. One goal is toimprove safety and chances ofreaching one’s destination withoutflat tires in summer and gettingstuck in winter. Improving main-tainability of the roadway, provid-ing a park-like driving experience,supporting the social and econom-ic objectives of the surroundingcommunities and minimizing im-

pacts to the natural and humanenvironment are other goals of theMcCarthy Road improvement proj-ect.

At the present time, DOT isprogressing towards completingsupport resource documents, pre-liminary engineering and realign-ments and developing criteria forevaluating the alternatives withagencies and the public.

With supporting resource doc-uments and preliminary engineer-ing a draft EIS will be written forpublic review. Although it hadbeen set to be completed by fall of2007, Brown commented that “itis not going to happen by then.”Expecting to be promoted, Browninformed us that there would be anew manager of the project butshe would be its supervisor.

Any comments or questionscan be directed to Janet Brown,Engineering Manager, State ofAlaska, DOT/PF, 2301 PegerRoad, Fairbanks, AK. 99709.Phone: (907) 451-2276. Email:[email protected]

McCarthy Road improvement project update


THE CHITINA LEADERSeptember 1914 October

OF GENERAL INTERESTThe members of the Cordova Rod

and Gun Club donned their slickersthis afternoon and participated in thelaunching of their new house raft,which was later towed to the CopperRiver flats. Everything is being madeready for the hunting season whichopens on Tuesday next for the duckshave begun to fly and the mighty hunt-ers have the correct eye for distances.

After enjoying an automobile ridefrom Chitina to Valdez Oscar Fishcame over from the court headquar-ters on the steamer Northwestern yes-terday. He will return on Thursdaymorning to Chitina, the metropolis ofthe interior, where he is one of theleading and progressive boosters.

Sept. 1OF GENERAL INFORMATIONBryson Brothers pack train of 30

horses are loading for return trip toShushanna having arrived here fourdays ago. Andy Taylor’s pack train of25 head is due tomorrow. S. O.Breedman’s big pack train leaves onthe 10th of September with supplies forhis Shushanna store.

The school at Chitina is again inrunning order, presided over by thenew teacher, Miss Smith, daughter ofP. F. Smith, of the Orr Stage Line, andwho recently arrived from Seattle. Af-ter enrollment, it was found that 10pupils would start with the schoolterm, others expected later.

In a report made by the grand jurylast month at the placer camp on theKuskokwim, it was stated that Iditarodwas the only incorporated town in Alas-ka that lived without taxation.

Sept. 8Cordova, September 9

Len Gates, one of the party whomade the original discoveries in theChisana, died in that country on Au-gust 31. He had been afflicted withconsumption and it finally got the bet-

ter of him. He was buried with appro-priate ceremonies in the Chisana.Gates originally went there from Daw-son. He was in Cordova last spring, asone of the litigants of the mining casesthat were tried here before JudgeBrown.

A special train went out this morn-ing as far as Mile 67 returning thisafternoon. It took out P. F. Hunt, theofficial photographer for the AlaskaEngineering Commission who tooksome views of that section.

Sept. 15OF GENERAL INFORMATIONM. Finkelstein will be a passenger

on the morning train to Chitina, wherehe will arrange to start the sale of thegoods in the Finkelstein & Sapirostore, as it is the intention to close outthere as soon as possible. In order todo this some great bargains will beoffered.

Summer S. Smith, mining inspec-tor for Alaska returned on Saturdayfrom a trip to the camps contiguous tothe railroad. He went out as far asKennecott and from McCarthy wentover the Nizina to the Dan Creek andChittitu districts. He reports that bothMr. Birch and Mr. Esterley are washinga lot of good paying dirt this season,and that their clean-ups will be excep-tionally large. Coming back he went upthe Kuskulana and inspected the vari-ous operations in copper mining inthat district. The assessment work wasbeing done on the property of theGreat Northern Development Co. byJohn Amber, Ole Berg and other oldtimers.

Sept. 22The first snow of the season fell at

Chitina yesterday morning. It was lightand did not last very long. There wasalso some snow farther out the line.

H. J. Watkins, Jr., was a passengerdown from Kennecott yesterday. Hismultitudinous duties of postmaster,

express agent, railroad agent, miningcompany clerk, etc., will be assumedby his brother, while Henry goes out-side and enjoys a few months leave ofabsence.

Cordova, September 28Quite an excitement was caused at

the athletic park yesterday afternoonshortly after 3 o’clock when Dr. Coun-cil, one of the players, was summonedto attend a man who had been shot.The unfortunate fellow had been foundon the hillside in a clump of trees, hismoans and cries having attracted theattention of passersby. They immedi-ately gave the alarm and Charles Good-all and three others started after himwith a stretcher and took him to thehospital. His name is Milt AngeloVelisaris, and he comes from Koumi,Greece, having been in this countrythree or four years. He charges that hehad been shot and robbed by a com-panion, Toni Papas, as he was knownwhen he recently worked at Juneau, orToni Lithetakis, which was the namehe gave while working at the Jumbomine, at Kennecott. He is from KritaIsland.

These two men left Kennecott aweek or more ago, the injured manhaving $600 and the other about $300,with a gold watch and gun. Theyworked a few days at one of the rail-road stations, reaching Cordova onFriday afternoon and later going toSmith’s Lodging House. Here they metother Greeks, and to Chris George theinjured man told his story this morn-ing. He says that he and Toni hadtrouble once at Kennecott when Tonithreatened to shoot him, but that thedifferences were fixed up and they af-terwards became friends. On Saturdayafternoon Toni suggested that they goout and practice target shooting. Theywent over on the hillside beyond theball ground and after shooting awhileToni finally struck him across the headwith the gun and demanded his money.


Reprinted from The Chitina Leader September and October 1914 issues

They grappled and the gun went offshooting Velisaris in the hand. ThenToni fired another shot which tookeffect in his side and affected his spine.Toni rifled his pocket and grabbing themoney started on a run across the hill.

It is believed that this occurredbetween 4 and 5 o’clock, and thewounded man lie there all night anduntil nearly 3 o’clock Sunday after-noon suffering intense pain. He thinksthat Toni was under the impressionthat he had killed him and thoughtthat the body would not be found forsome months, and that in the mean-time he would get away possibly goingtowards Fairbanks. The matter wasreported by Deputy Marshal Brightwellto the authorities at Valdez and effortsare now being made to apprehend theman who committed the deed, who isbut 23 years of age and who has onlybeen in this country a year past andwho cannot speak English.

Velisaris is only 22 years of age butis hardy and has a strong constitution,otherwise he might have died from theloss of blood and exhaustion during hisexposure of nearly 24 hours.

Supt. Corser and General AgentTracey returned last evening from asuccessful and pleasant hunting expe-dition to the interior. They went toChitina where James Rockefellerjoined them with a horse and buggy.They went out over the trail as far asWillow Creek and then on to CopperCenter, hunting in the nearby woods.They found good game but poor roads.

The people of Chitina have a goodview of an eruptive mountain thesedays. Mr. Wrangell has been throwingout lava for several days, at times astream being seen that is 2,000 feet inheight.

Within the past three days, fourautos and trucks arrived at Chitinabringing passengers from the interiormost of whom will come to Cordova onthe train tomorrow. Bob Sheldonbrought several, while the Kelly truckhas seven passengers. Buck Hoyt start-ed from Gulkana but his machinebroke down and he was compelled tolay up for repairs at Copper Center.

Sept. 29

OF GENERAL INFORMATIONToni Papas, the Turkish Greek

who shot and robbed his partner MiltAngelo Velisaris, was arraigned thismorning before U. S. CommissionerAdams and bound over to court. Thecharge was shooting with attempt tokill. By reason of failure to furnish$5,000 bail bond, he remains in jail. Atthe hearing he admitted both theshooting and robbery, but contendedthat the shooting was done in self de-fense, claiming that Velisaris first shotat him twice. The arrest was made atMile 27 yesterday morning about 8o’clock. It appears that Tom Teets wasfirst on the scene and found the mansleeping in a cabin. After he securedhim, Russian Pete came along andboth men had the prisoner underguard when Deputy Marshal Brightwellarrived on the motor car and broughtthe prisoner back to Cordova. Thewounded man lies at the hospital in aprecarious state, with but little hopefor his recovery. In case of his deaththe prisoner would be remanded tojail, providing he should in the mean-time be able to give bail, which is notlikely. Papas had $800 on his person.He contends that $320 is his own mon-ey and that he took the rest, $480,from Velisaris.

Tom Holland is making a tour tothe westward and reports indicate thathe is meeting with favor wherever hegoes. A recent issue of the Valdez Pros-pector says:

“Tom Holland, the miner and pros-pector, who is running as the Demo-cratic candidate for representativefrom the Third division, arrived in Val-dez on the Admiral Watson and willremain here until the Northwesterngoes to Seward. Mr. Holland is a pio-neer of Chitina and located a home-stead and townsite in opposition to theGuggenheims at the junction of thegovernment road and the Guggenheimrailroad. He spends much of his time inthe hills and was prospecting at thetime he received the nomination andknew nothing of it for ten days. Mr.Holland is well known in Valdez as hewas a mail carrier here ten years agoand operated out of Valdez. He hasmany friends who have promised himsupport.”

Oct 6.MOTHER LODE MINE

James J. Godfrey, president of theMother Lode Copper Mines Companyaccompanied by his wife, arrived onthe steamer Alameda from Seattle, andleft on the train this morning forShushanna Junction, going from thereto the company’s mines. PresidentGodfrey states that work will be con-tinued through the winter with about40 men, notwithstanding the effect ofthe European war on the copper mar-ket and the stringency of the moneymarket. He further states that it is theintention to get out about 1,000 tonsof copper ore and to sled it out to therailroad for shipment to the smelter.Before his departure for the interiorPresident Godfrey said:

“Since arriving here I have re-ceived a telegram from Superinten-dent Parks, stating that our Pittsburgcross-cut has intersected the mainvein, giving us 380-feet of verticaldepth on the Mother Lode fissure. Theuncovering of this new ore body notonly proves the Mother Lode to be agreat mine but it also proves the per-manency of the chalcocite deposit ofthe Chitina watershed. It further affir-matively answers the question whichhas agitated mining engineers sincethe discovery of this camp, namely, willthe phenomenally rich outcroppings ofchalcocite or copper glance in thisdistrict continue at depth? The resultof our recent work practically assuresthe future of the Copper River valley asthe greatest high-grade copper pro-ducing section in the world.”

Oct 20Cordova, October 23

Parties returning this afternoonfrom the interior say that DelegateWickersham held well attended meet-ings at Blackburn, McCarthy and Chi-tina. He left yesterday morning withBob Sheldon in an automobile andexpects to reach Fairbanks on Mondaynext.

Mrs. Lillian A. Damon, who hasbeen at Blackburn for the past sixmonths came into town this after-noon and will leave for Seattle on thesteamer tomorrow.


By this time each spring,snow machine ridershave developed miniature

networks of temporary trails acrossthe Alaskan landscape, stretchingmiles and miles into vast, unpopu-lated environments.

Until recently, few people paidmuch attention.

Maybe some of our four-footedfriends have.

Howard Golden, regional fur-bearer biologist for the Alaska De-partment of Fish and Game(ADF&G) South Central Region, haslooked at the wolf population foryears in the Nelchina area of thegreater Copper River Basin, just eastof Eureka. Wolves were collared anddata started to come back showingthat wolves were using snowmachinetrails. Researchers began asking, towhat extent are wolves using trails?When? Are wolves increasing theirchances of finding moose or caribouby using trails? Are they saving ener-gy by using trails?

These questions led to a cooper-ative study by Golden, ADF&G biolo-gist Todd Rinaldi, and Dr. KatherineParker, an associate professor withthe University of Northern BritishColumbia. Their study, Winter Move-ment Strategies of Wolves in Rela-tion to Human Activity and ResourceAbundance, funded by BLM andADF&G, is now in its second and fi-nal season. The study is looking atseveral factors that may affect preda-tion of moose by wolves, with a spe-cific look at human trail systems.

“Most Alaskans know that sever-al passes by a snow machine can cre-ate a trail sturdy enough to holdhumans,” says Rinaldi, the lead re-searcher on the project. “This re-search asks whether these hardpacked trails have any impacts onwolves, their distribution, or a wolfpack’s ability to search for prey.”

“Studies have found wolves totravel linearly along establishedroutes in low vegetation areas and

along windswept ridges or frozenwaterways to facilitate their ease oftravel,” Rinaldi explains. “We alsoknow that wolves prefer to travelthrough shallow snow in single file,creating a hard-packed network oftrails that conserves energy acrossthe entire pack. As snow depth in-creases, wolves have been known toalter travel routes to find hardpacked snow to increase travel effi-ciency.”

This study established two areasfor analyzing trails and wolf activityin order to look at wolf behaviorwhere very little snow machine activ-ity occurs as well as an area wherevarying degrees of human activityoccur. Originally the two study areasextended north of the Glenn High-way all the way to the Susitna drain-ages in the Alphabet Hills. But, inresponse to state-sponsored same-day airborne predator management,the control area had to be movedsouth of the Glenn Highway. “Wewere losing too many collared wolvesin Game Management Unit 13,” re-marks Rinaldi. “However, very littlesnow machine traffic occurs south ofthe highway, so it actually makes anexcellent location to compare thedifference in trails on these sys-tems.”

Snow machine trails weremapped and identified for their typeof use. Counters are placed on someof the most prominent trails to de-termine the extent of use and to es-tablish which trails receive high,medium or low amounts of trafficeach year. This data is then mapped.

The alpha male and femalewolves of packs within the study areaare collared each season allowingtheir locations to be recorded every15 minutes via global positioningsystem technology. This data helpsidentify wolf travel routes and pat-terns of use on routes such as timeof day traveled, number of days on aparticular route and also allows thedetection of any seasonal or weeklypatterns of use by wolves at a highlydetailed resolution.

Predation events along theseroutes are mapped as well. In latespring, a blood sample is taken fromeach wolf to get a signature of whatit has been eating. These results canbe matched with predation events todevelop a better understanding ofthe seasonal variations in wolves’diets.

Snow characteristics, such asdepth, density and hardness, are re-corded to determine what may factorinto a wolf’s ability to move acrossunpacked snow or its decision to usea trail. Hardness on trails is com-pared to the hardness of off-trailsnow.

All data is layered on top to seeif any correlations exist. These datasets could help identify some impor-tant behavioral patterns of wolvesthat biologists can utilize in futureresearch and in making managementdecisions.

“Subsequent research is neededto further determine the complexrelationships at play between humanactivity and the predator/prey rela-tionship between wolves and moose,”cautions Rinaldi. “Presently we arelooking at how moose fit in, but nothow moose are using trails. Use oftrails by moose, particularly in latewinter when they tend to be mostphysically stressed, should be re-searched.”

“Moose may be using trails moreto escape predators or they may beavoiding trails to escape both preda-tors and human activity,” Rinaldihypothesizes. “If moose avoid trailsin deep snow years, this could bene-fit wolves. Deep snow precludesmoose movement, but deep snowusually acts as an aid for wolves whencapturing moose for prey.”

The U.S. Forest Service, in coop-eration with ADF&G, will formallybegin a similar study on the north-ern Kenai Peninsula within theChugach National Forest next fall.

Reprinted from BLM Frontiers AlaskaWinter 2006.

The Food Lines


A Land Gone Lonesome, byAlaskan author Dan O’Neill, is atimely read as we consider the sec-ond draft of the National Park Ser-vice access manual and the future ofresidents and private landownerswithin all of Alaska’s federal lands,including Wrangell-St. Elias Nation-al Park.

O’Neill writes of his canoe jour-ney from Dawson to Circle via theYukon River, chronicling the experi-ences of its inhabitants, the riverpeople, who are a living archive ofNorth American pioneer values.

Congress mandated that subsis-tence lifestyles along the Yukon beprotected and even encouraged.However, O’Neill records, the com-plicated regulations adopted by theNational Park Service have all buteliminated such lifestyles in the Yu-kon Charley National Preserve.That, he maintains — and docu-ments through interviews with past

and present Park Service employees— was the objective all along. “ThePark Service has a ‘no subsistence’attitude,” remarked one of the ParkService’s chief planners in Alaska.

Some of the Park Service em-ployees predict the same thing willhappen in Alaska as in parks in theLower 48, that after all of the peo-ple have been driven out, actors willbe brought in to entertain the parkvisitors. “The day is not so distant,when all the river people will begone from the river and the ParkService will put GS-5 summer hiresin their cabins. They'll be drama ma-jors from colleges in the States.They'll wear red flannel shirts andspit snoose. They'll hang a few fishso the floaters can see people livingthe old-time way. And come the firstfrost, they'll head back to school.”

O’Neill poignantly concludes,“These stories of the river peopleare their own kind of argument.

They suggest that it is a thing ofvalue when frontiersmen-women areliving out in the country – of valueto the people themselves, as theygrow in courage and competence; ofvalue to the land, as their deep localknowledge informs our stewardship;of value to our culture, as their resi-dency conserves nearly extinct pio-neering ideals. For now, the land islonesome by decree, artificiallyempty as if, to enshrine the trees,we banished the birds.”

O’Neill’s book should be re-quired reading for both those beingoverburdened with bureaucraticprocesses and artificial impedi-ments to their access guaranteedunder ANILCA and subsistence life-styles, and those trying to imple-ment them. Perhaps learning fromthe mistakes of the past, we can asyet save Alaska’s most endangeredspecies – its wilderness people.

by Dan O'Neill

McCarthy: —On June30th McCarthy AreaCouncil (MAC) held a

meeting at the Blackburn Center.There were 17 in attendance.

A treasurer’s report was pre-sented with a reminder to the mem-bership that annual fees were dueSeptember 1st.

According to Jeremy Keller,president, MAC intends to provide aforum for discussion about potentialprojects that benefit the communi-ty. If a project team needs assis-tance, the group is available as aforum and will aid in any way appro-priate. Possible projects include:McCarthy zip code and contractpostal station, a transfer station,and an educational day about whatis involved in becoming a second-class city.

The most recent MAC meetingwas held on August 18th. Approxi-mately 23 were in attendance. Anupdate on the McCarthy Creek tramproject was given by Jeremy. TheDepartment of Transportation(DOT) has agreed to take on own-ership of the tram project that wasbegun 6 years ago by Bob Cook andFred Dure. The funds for the projecthave been released and DOT expectsto send engineers this fall so that adesign and estimate of total costcan be finished by next spring. DOTis also going to work out any and allaccess issues between the museumand the point at which the tramwould land on the south side of Mc-Carthy Creek. At that point, DOTwill submit their findings to a newcommunity group created to takeon the responsibility of raising addi-tional funding necessary and for ac-

cepting ownership and maintenanceof the tram once it is built.

A draft MAC letter commentingon the National Park Service User’sGuide to Access (Draft #2) was theprimary agenda item. A lengthy dis-cussion and helpful input from vari-ous members helped tweak thewording of the letter and brought itto nearer to finalization.

The annual meeting is sched-uled for Friday noon, September29th at the Blackburn Center (TonyZak’s place). On the agenda will bea vote for board members and offi-cers. Possible guests from DOT andthe regional office of the NationalPark Service may be on hand to ad-dress the membership. All are wel-come to attend.

For further information and up-dates, please call Jeremy Keller at907-554-4407.

McCarthy Area Council update


W ASHINGTON –InteriorSecretary DirkKempthorne praised

President Bush’s nomination ofMary A. Bomar to be Director of theNational Park Service. Her nomina-tion is subject to confirmation bythe U.S. Senate.

Upon confirmation, Bomarwould replace Fran Mainella, whoannounced in July that she will soonbe resigning as National Park Ser-vice Director.

Since July 2005, Bomar, a ca-reer National Park Service employ-ee, has served as director of the NPSNortheast Region, which covers 13states.

“I greatly admire the passionthat Mary brings to her work in the

Northeast Region,” Kempthornesaid.

From 2003 to 2005, she servedas superintendent of IndependenceNational Historical Park in Philadel-phia. During her tenure, both theLiberty Bell Center and the NationalConstitution Center opened in thepark on Independence Mall as partof the largest urban revitalizationproject in the nation. Also duringher tenure, the NPS reopened thepark’s Second Bank of the UnitedStates after a two-year utilities proj-ect and installed a new exhibit, “ThePeople of Independence.” Concur-rently, the park managed a $5.2million rehabilitation of Indepen-dence Square, the site of Indepen-dence Hall. Spurred by the newconstruction, park visitation surgedby 35 percent.

Previously, Bomar served as thefirst superintendent at the Oklaho-ma City National Memorial, the firstNPS Oklahoma State Coordinator,acting superintendent at RockyMountain National Park and assis-tant superintendent at the San An-tonio Missions National HistoricalPark.

Bomar’s National Park Servicecareer began in the financial arenaat Amistad National Recreation Ar-ea in Texas where she served aschief of administration.

Prior to joining the NationalPark Service, Bomar worked in amanagerial capacity at the Depart-ment of Defense.

Raised in Leicester, England,Bomar became a U.S. citizen in1977.

Mary A. Bomar nominated Director of NPS

Federal subsistence regis-tration permits for permithunts in Wrangell-St. Elias

National Park and Preserve are avail-able at the park’s Visitor Center inCopper Center and at the SlanaRanger Station. The Visitor Centeris open seven days a week duringthe summer from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.;the Slana Ranger Station is openseven days a week through Septem-ber, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. In theMcCarthy-Kennecott area, contactthe Kennecott Ranger Office at 554-4437 for permit information.

Please bring your State of Alas-ka resident hunting license, a photoID (such as driver’s license), andproof of local address (for your phys-ical address) when you come to geta permit.

Permit applicants must be fed-erally qualified subsistence usersand meet special eligibility require-ments for lands managed by the Na-tional Park Service. They must havetheir primary permanent residencein rural Alaska, and their communi-ty must be listed in the

“Species/Customary & TraditionalUse Determination” column of theFederal Subsistence ManagementRegulations Booklet for Wildlife forthe intended species and location.Individuals wanting to hunt on Na-tional Park lands (as opposed to inthe National Preserve) must addi-tionally have their primary resi-dence in one of the park’s 23resident zone communities.

For more information, contactthe park headquarters at (907) 822-5234.

Subsistence hunting permits for WRST available

maining in Alaska’s national parks.Many of these are in critical loca-tions for both natural and culturalresources and it would be in thebest interest of the Park Service tosecure them, if possible. Many in-holdings in Alaska’s parks are avail-able from willing sellers.... Oneexample of a national park in Alaska

in need of significant LWCF ( Landand Water Conservation Fund) fund-ing is Wrangell-St. Elias NationalPark and Preserve... Nearly $5 mil-lion in LWCF appropriations havebeen secured over the last threeyears ($2.5 million in Fiscal Year2004, $1.5 million in Fiscal Year2005, and $750,000 in Fiscal Year2006) toward the acquisition of in-holdings at Wrangell to provide forincreased public access and protec-

tion of lands. However, future fund-ing needs are estimated at $175million to acquire over 730,000acres within the boundary ofWrangell-St. Elias. (Editors note:There are only 720,000 acres ofnon-federal land within the bound-aries of the park)

Testimonies in full can be foundat the following web site:http://kreig.net/ProBono/ROW/ComGvtReform060814.htm

Congress calls(continued from page 8)

http://kreig.net/ProBono/ROW/ComGvtReform060814.htm.



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Service Oil & Gas

Service sometimesmeans going more than

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For the First Name In Service, CallSERVICE OIL & GAS

PHONE:822-3375Mile 188.5 Glenn HighwayBox 276Glennallen, AK 99588

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Getting tired?Stop at the Caribou Hotel!The coffee pot’s always on!

Warm atmosphere — Hot Tubs — Satellite TVFull Menu Restaurant

Mile 187 Glenn Hwy. 822-3302 Glennallen, AK


McCarthyBuildingServicesOwners John & Carmen

907-554-4433Local bonded and insured busi-

ness specializing in frame cabinbuilding.

Contact us for your buildingneeds.

McCarthyBed & BreakfastCozy, quiet cabins, all with private

bathrooms & showers. Pull into ourconveniently located homestead on theMcCarthy Road, ½ mile from the KennicottRiver footbridge. Continental breakfast & fresh coffee Private baths Gazebo kitchen Picnic area

· Tire repair

[email protected] Box MXY Glennallen, AK 99588-8998

(907) 554-4433

McCarthy KennicottCommunity ChurchAn inter-denominational church

All faiths welcome“The church on the island”

Sunday morning service10 a.m.

Jesus is Lord!

Community Newspaperfor the Copper Valley

Subscribe * Advertise * Contribute!P.O. Box 277 Glennallen, AK 99588

907-822-3727 phone and [email protected]

RECORDCOPPER RIVER

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ALLEN MINISH, PE PLSMile 32.1 Edgerton Hwy

P. O. Box 118, Chitina, AK 99566

907-823-2280


McCarthy CommercialView Lots

2 lots in downtown McCarthy includeoriginal structures for J.B. O’Neill

General Store and attached two story logstructure.

Both are “restorable” and lend them-selves to many uses. Incredible viewslooking up 3 beautiful valleys. Includes

hundreds of original artifacts.A new septic system has been installed.

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Land for saleFor Sale: Two parcels of land. 2-3

miles south-west of McCarthy.Swift Creek Bluffs Subdivision Add. #1.

—Tract L, 10.02 acres $70,000.—Tract T plus Lot 1, 11.39 acres $81,000.

Terms available.

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We handle BUSH ORDERSWith SPECIAL CARE!

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We take VISAMaster Charge

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w Private cabins for 2 to 4.w Convenient access by automobile.w Historic homestead setting. Enjoy Alaskan bush living.w Quiet location away from the crowds!Phone (907)554-4454 or Email [email protected] us on the WEB at http://mccarthy-kennicott.com/WSENBB.htm

Wrangell St. Elias News B&B


Valdez Realty“The Dirt Merchant”

WALTER M. WOODBROKER(907)835-2408Fax (907)835-5462

Cor. EGAN & HAZLETP.O. BOX 868VALDEZ, AK [email protected]

Recreational lots at Chokosna River Tracts—approx.Mi. 27 McCarthy Hwy. 1 ¼ acre and up—some / hwy

frontage, some / Chokosna River frontage.

www.PropertyRightsResearch.orgJulie Smithson, Researcher

213 Thorn Locust LaneLondon, Ohio 43140-8844

[email protected] (voice/no fax)

The recipe Laurie and Hannahwant to share is one that as soon asyou mention it to friends and neigh-bors, everyone tells you how won-derful it is. The Rowland favoriteway of eating it is hot out of the ovenwith a scoop of freshly-cranked icecream on top!

(or "Rebar Crunch" according tothe boys)

Mix until crumbly:

1 ½ cup flour1 ½ cup brown sugar1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon1 ½ cup oats3/4 cup melted butter1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Press half the crumbs into a 9" x13" pan. Cover with 5 cups rhubarb(chopped). Combine in saucepan:1 cup sugar2 tablespoon cornstarch1 cup water1 teaspoon vanilla

Cook until thick and clear. Pourevenly over rhubarb. Top with re-maining crumbs. Bake at 350 de-grees for 50-60 min., or until "rebar"is tender.

Please watch for more McCarthyrecipes next issue. We'll have anoth-er from Nancy Rowland, one frommy granddaughter, Anna Wallin,and if there's room, one for Halibutcakes that Jim and I love. Happyfall, everyone.

(Cooking continued from page 33


DAN’S TIRE AND AUTO REPAIRHome of the Happy Hooker Two

Used tires Flats fixed Brake repair Auto repair Oil changes Takes in used oil for Fire Dept. Lock Outs Towing available - Fully insured and bondedü Pickup service for cars that need to go to Anchorage

Located behind Chitina Trading Post - look for the radio antennas and towers823-2251 Fax: 823-2291

PO Box 53, Chitina, Alaska 99566


Scheduled Air Service from Anchorage to McCarthywith stopover in Gulkana!

Phone 822-3368800-478-3368

Gulkana Airfield Box 106, Glennallen, AK 99588

Ellis Air Taxi, Inc.

Now you can leave Anchorage at 8:30 on Wednesday or Friday morning and arrive in Gulkanaat 9:45, McCarthy at 11:00. Or, you can leave McCarthy at 11:15 and be back in Anchorage by2:00pm the same day! (Leaves Gulkana at 12:45) This service is year around.

http://www.ellisair.com

RESPONSIBILITY FOR DEPARTURES, ARRIVALS, CONNECTIONS.

Ellis Air will not be responsible for damages resulting from the failure of flights to departor arrive at times stated in this timetable, nor for errors herein, nor for failure to make connectionsto other airlines or of this company. Schedules are subject to change without notice. Schedulesshown are based on expected flying times. Because weather and other factors may affect operat-ing conditions, departures and arrivals cannot be guaranteed.

1-800-478-3987or

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Lumber, building materials and hardware deliveredto the McCarthy area at Anchorage prices!

Give us a call or come in and browse our new ACEHardware store.

NEW! Greenhouse and potting supplies!


Long-time Wrangell St.Elias News readers willremember that the cover

price, as well as the cost of a sub-scription, has remained unchangedover a number of years. (Did youknow that WSEN is now the longest-running newspaper in the history ofthe McCarthy area?)

Alas, rising costs of ink, toner,postage and paper have passed ourability to continue to absorb them.

The cover price, starting this issue,has risen half-a-buck to $2.50. Oneyear subscriptions rose three dollarsfrom $11 to $14. For the budgetminded, we will offer a two-year sub-scription for $25, which saves thesubscriber three dollars and saves usadded billing expense.

Canadian subscribers will pay$16 per year or $28 if they sign upfor two years.

Other countries require consid-erably more postage. One year ofWSEN for them is now $23.

WSEN advertisers will noticetheir next billing will reflect a smallincrease in advertising rates.

Bonnie and I appreciate yourpast and continued support. Let usknow how we are doing and whatimprovements you would like to seein future issues!

WSEN rate increase announced

The International Pet Own-ers Club is proud to an-nounce that over $10,000

in cash and prizes will be awarded inthe 2006 Fall Cutest Pet Photo Con-test.

Pet owners from southcentralAlaska are welcome to win theirshare of the prizes. The deadline forthe contest is October 15th. Thecontest is open to everyone and en-try is free. Dogs, cats, rabbits,etc...are welcome.

“Every pet owner has at leastone photo that shows just how cutetheir pet is,” stated Rosa Bonbeur,contest chairman. “When peoplelearn about the contest, they getexcited about the chance at winningand the potential for national atten-tion,” continued Bonbeur.

To enter, send one photograph(full color or black and white) size8" X 10" or smaller. All photo en-tries must include thephotographer’s name and addresson the back. Photographs should besent to: 2006 Fall Photo Contest,c/o The International Pet Owners

Club, P.O. Box 1908, Pittsburg, KS66762. Entries must be postmarkedby October 15, 2006. You may alsosubmit your photo directly onlineat: www.cutestpetcontest.com

The International Pet OwnersClub is an organization dedicated tobringing pet owners from aroundthe world together for fun and fel-lowship. Membership in the club isnot necessary to participate. To re-ceive a free copy of the club news-letter via postal mail visitwww.IntPetClub.com or send us aletter by mail.

2006 Cutest Pet Photo Contest

McCarthy—Several re-cent bear-human inci-dents below Donoho

Peak, near the confluence of theKennicott and Root Glaciers, haveled Wrangell-St. Elias to close thearea to camping. The strip of landbetween the Root and KennicottGlaciers holds two sparkling lakes,and is a popular destination forclimbers of Donoho Peak.

In the first incident, a group ofcampers lost a 2-pound block ofcheese to a black bear. Later; an-other group lost food includingstring cheese stored in a Kevlarbear-resistant-food-container(BRFC) to the same bear. In a thirdinstance, a camper left food at theentrance to his tent, and after aface-to-face moment, the bear leftwith a granola bar; this group of 15people attempted unsuccessfully to

haze the bear out of camp. The onesuccess was a group of hikers whothwarted the bear's attempts to getat their food as they lunched in thearea. In the face of the repeatedfood rewards and increasing bold-ness of the bear, the area is closedto camping for the remainder of theseason, with the hope that the bearswill return to their normal wild for-aging habits.

Donoho area closed to camping


Cooking with Peggy

Hi again all you Food Lov-ers! Here I am in McCa-rthy and as I promised, I

have some great recipes from someof the folks here.

First, I’m sure you've heardabout our wonderful new McCarthyMercantile which is owned and oper-ated by Peggy and Kurt Smith and13- year old daughter, Kelsey. Theybecame full-time residents of the Mc-Carthy area about five years agowhen they moved here from NorthPole, Alaska. It is so wonderful to beable to run into town, go to the Mer-cantile and pick up some homemadebread, fresh tomatoes and other gro-ceries, then sit on the porch with thecoffee drinkers while I'm eating alarge double-scoop ice cream cone!Both Peggy and Kelsey contributed arecipe for us this time. Enjoy! FromPeggy:

Salmon BreadBread Dough:3 cups all-purpose flour1 cup whole wheat flour2 tablespoons sugar½ teaspoon salt2 tablespoons yeast1 teaspoon garlic powder2 tablespoons olive oil1 1/4 cup water

Filling:2 cups smoked salmon, drained and

flaked1(8- oz.) pkg. of cream cheese, soft-

ened1 cup pepper jack cheese½ cup chopped dill pickles½ cup chopped onion1/4 cup chopped green olives1 beaten egg (for outside of loaf)

Mix the dry ingredients fordough together, using all but 1 cupof all-purpose flour. Heat water andoil to 125-130 degrees, and thenmix thoroughly into the dry ingredi-ents. Add the remaining flour to

make soft dough and knead for 5minutes.

Mix all filling ingredients to-gether in a bowl.

Grease a large baking sheet androll dough out approximately 12 x14 inches. Put filling mixture downthe lengthwise center of the dough.Bring the opposite sides togetheron top of the filling and pinch thedough firmly to close the edges.Roll loaf over onto pan, so that thepinched edge is on the bottom.

Let the dough rise about 20 to30 minutes.

Brush the dough with the beat-en egg and bake at 375 degrees for35-40 minutes. Slice like bread andserve while warm. Makes 1 loaf.

Kelsey's Pumpkin Custardsounds wonderful. If it's even half asgood as her Kranana jam I bought atthe McCarthy Farmer's Market, we'llall put it on our "must have" list. Iasked Kelsey what her favoritethings to do are and she replied,"Sled-dog mushing, skiing, and read-ing." A girl after my own heart—thereading part! Here is her custardrecipe:

Beat the following ingredientstogether until smooth:1 29- oz. can of pumpkin1 teaspoon salt2 12- oz. cans of evaporated milk1 teaspoon ginger½ teaspoon ground cloves1 teaspoon nutmeg4 large eggs1 ½ cups of sugar2 teaspoons cinnamon

Pour into a lightly sprayed pan(7x9). Put this pan into an 8 x13pan filled about ½ full of warm wa-ter. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 min.Reduce to 350 degrees for approxi-mately 45 min. more, or until aknife comes out clean. The centerwill set up as it cools. Remove frompan of water; cool on wire rack.Serve warm or cold.

As many of you know, Natalieand Kelly Bay, along with their 13-year old daughter, Tessa, own andoperate Wrangell Mountain Air —one of the two flightseeing companiesin McCarthy. The Bays have livedand worked in McCarthy for morethan 20 years. When the summerrush ends and they have some freetime, Kelly and Natalie like to spendit skiing, flying and reading and Tes-sa, skiing, skijoring and reading. Isthe word skijoring unfamiliar toyou? It’s cross-country skiing behindone or more dogs. Tessa has submit-ted two recipes that are family favor-ites. Hope you like them, too.

Pesto3 cups fresh basil2 large cloves of garlic½ cup pine nuts, walnuts or al-

monds3/4 cup of chopped parsley3/4 cup Parmesan cheese½ cup olive oil1/4 cup melted butterGenerous pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients into afood processor or blender - mix intoa thick paste. Serve on pasta orcrackers.

1 cup soft butter½ cup powdered sugar1 teaspoon vanilla2 cups un-sifted white flour4 eggs2 cups granulated sugarGrated rind of 1 lemon6 tablespoons lemon juice

Cream the butter, the powderedsugar, and the vanilla in a mediumsize bowl until fluffy. Mix in flouruntil well-blended. Spread evenly ina well buttered 13" x 9" baking dish.Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.In another bowl combine eggs,granulated sugar, lemon rind andlemon juice. Pour egg mixture overbaked layer. Bake 16-22 minutes, or


So far the summer of 2006has been good, weather-wise, with June and July

temperatures about average andprecipitation above average. Thehigh temperature for June was 81on the 14th (82 on June 17, '05 and89 on June 19, '04). The low was 29on June 5th, 8th and 24th (27 onJune 2, '05 and 29 on June 3, '04).The average temperature for Junewas 53.2. This compares to 55.2 inJune 2005 and 57.7 in June 2004.There was only 1 day with a high of80 or above and 3 days with a low of32 or lower. The total precipitationwas 2.14 inches (1.49 inches inJune 2005 and 0.62 inches in June2004). Silver Lake had a high of 78on June 15th (83 on June 18, '05 and88 on June 20, '04) and a low of 30on June 7th (31 on June 2, '05 and30 on June 3, '04). The average Junetemperature at Silver Lake was 53.1(56.1 in 2005 and 57.5 in 2004)and the total precipitation was 1.00inches (0.78 inches in 2005 and0.30 inches in 2004).

July was warm, with less thanaverage precipitation. The high forJuly was 80 on the 6th (80 on July15, '05 and 82 on July 16, '04). Thelow was 35 on July 17th (35 on July22, '05 and 32 on July 26, '04). TheJuly average temperature was 57.1,compared to 56.1 in 2005 and 58.3in 2004. There was only 1 day with ahigh of 80 or above and 1 day with alow of 35 or lower. The total Julyprecipitation was 1.21 inches (5.34inches in 2005 and 1.65 inches in2004). Silver Lake recorded a highof 80 on the 13th (76 on July 16, '05and 83 on July 13, '04) and a low of38 on the 25th (42 on July 24, '05and 40 on July 26 '04). The averageJuly temperature at Silver Lake was57.0, compared to 56.9. in 2005 and59.3 in 2004. The total precipitationrecorded at Silver Lake for July was1.35 inches (3.88 inches in 2005and 1.76 inches in 2004).

Hidden Creek Lake began re-leasing its water on July 4th (June19, '05, July 10, ' 04, July 3, '03,Aug 2, '02, July 2, '01 and July 26,'00). The water in the Kennicott Riv-er began to rise during the morning

of July 4th and crested at 10:00 pmon July 5th. The crest was 31.50 ft.The increase was 6.85 feet in 41hours. The crest was the highestsince 1997 crest of 31.25 ft. Therewas only minor flooding, but majorbank erosion. The river was back toits normal level by the morning ofJuly 8th, but remained around 5 feetlower than before the flood becauseof 26 feet for the rest of June.

The first week of August sawcool and wet weather with morethan 2 inches of rain. The secondweek was sunny and hot with highsin the low to mid 80s. Then thesmoke from the wild fires to theNorth moved into the area. It'sabout time to think about coveringthe plants in the garden. The firstfrost usually occurs in mid Augustand lows below 32 are not far be-hind.

Freezing temperatures will be-gin to appear by early Septemberand the first snow should arrive bythe end of September. Summer isjust about over and winter aroundthe next corner.

until top is set and lightly browned.While warm, sprinkle with powderedsugar. Cut into squares and serve.

NOTE: Both Kelsey and Tessareceived winning ribbons this sum-mer at the county fair for their en-tries of different kinds of jam.

Next from the Rowland family.First, Nancy. She and her husbandKen have been part-time residents ofMcCarthy since the late 70s. Nancyis not only a wonderful cook but abeautifully talented quilter. Many ofher Alaskan quilting projects are forsale up in Terry and Dee's gift shopin Kennicott and many, having al-ready been purchased, are gracinghomes somewhere in the world. Iwould like to share several of Nan-cy's recipes with you over the nextseveral issues. This time I'd like togive you one for a cake I baked last

night for a company dessert and al-so ate with coffee this morning. It'sdelicious and her grandchildren loveit.

½ cup shortening1½ cup white sugar½ teaspoon salt1 teaspoon soda in 1 cup sour milk2 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour3 cups rhubarb, cut fine1/4 cup colored candy sprinkle —

non pareil type rather than thecolored sugarCream shortening, add sugar and

mix well. Add salt and beat in egg.Add soda and milk mixture and theflour alternately. Stir in candy sprin-kles and rhubarb and pour into 9" x13" metal cake pan. Mix topping in-gredients and sprinkle over cake bat-ter. Bake 45 min. at 350 degrees.

Topping:1/3 cup sugar1/3 cup nuts1 teaspoon cinnamon

Next is one from her daughter-in-law Laurie and her granddaughterHannah. Laurie, her husband, Keith,and their five children are permanentresidents of McCarthy. As well as help-ing Keith with their business, RowconServices, Laurie homeschools the chil-dren, hunts and traps with the familyand in her "spare time" plays her pianothat Keith had carefully delivered sev-eral years ago. Her daughter Hannahis ten years old and you will either findher riding the 4-wheelers with herbrothers, skiing, reading, or knittingand sewing. This winter Hannah hadmisplaced her knitting needles andused pens instead. Now that’s re-sourceful!

(Continued on page 28)


FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Environmental groups aresuing to stop recreationalATV use on the few trails

in Wrangell-St. Elias where it is cur-rently allowed. They are suing toblock the long-awaited access roadfrom Juneau. Farther north, they’resuing to prohibit leasing certainprospective lands in the NationalPetroleum Reserve-Alaska which,along with the Arctic National Wild-life Refuge coastal plain, was specifi-cally set aside for its petroleumpotential.

Come to think of it, there’shardly an activity anywhere off thebeaten track these groups haven’tsued to stop. One might wonder,“how they can afford the attorneysto file all these lawsuits?”

Wonder no more. We the peoplebankroll them through the “citizensuit” provisions of major federal en-vironmental laws. The environmentdoesn’t even have to be endangered.Earthjustice recently deposited acheck for $625,600, courtesy of tax-payers, on grounds that a federalagency failed to consult with twoothers under Endangered SpeciesAct regulations. The settlement waschicken feed. In 1999 alone Earth-justice collected nearly $3 millionfor similar efforts.

Between 1995 and 2002, underthe Clean Water Act, 1,371 citizensuits were filed. In a study releasedlast month, author Bruce L. Bensonconcluded financial reward justmight be the primary motivation.1

“Bounty hunters” he wrote, “nolonger hound innocent people todeath as some did in England in the

mid-18th century, but environmen-tal groups such as the Natural Re-sources Defense Council havemodified the tactic. They use‘citizen suits’ to reap rich rewardsfor themselves with little positiveimpact on the environment.”

Professor Benson documented4,438 notices of intent to sue dur-ing the study period under four fed-eral environmental statutes, 6.6times more than federal court deci-sions in citizen suits. Most are set-tled out of court. Small wonder thecitizen-suit provisions have beencalled “the engine that propels thefield of environmental law.”

Prosecutions are easiest underthe CWA and Resource Conserva-tion Recovery Act because the lawsrequire regulated entities to keepdetailed records of their activities.Earthjustice or another group’sclerk scouts the government reportsfor some technical violation andwhen he finds it, the “gotcha” lettergoes out. If you, the “violator,”faced penalties of up to $25,000 aday for even a trivial error, you toowould settle to avoid the litigationnightmare.

Under both the CWA and RCRA,plaintiffs can craft settlements thatcompensate them well above actualcosts and even get money for“supplemental environmental proj-ects,” Benson said. Interestingly,very few lawsuits were filed underthe Clean Air Act during the period(143), which makes one think envi-ronmental groups don’t care asmuch about clean air as they doclean water. The truth is the CleanAir Act doesn’t require the detailed

reporting and doesn’t mandate thehuge fines.

The Fish and Wildlife Servicetestified before Congress some timeago that two-thirds of its budget forsaving species was spent defendingitself against lawsuits. It bemoanedthe relentless litigation over listingsand critical habitat designations.The primary thorn in its side, theCenter for Biological Diversity,brags about suing the agency atleast weekly, with a 95 percent suc-cess rate. When lawsuits keep biolo-gists buried, they can’t possiblymeet regulatory deadlines.

Most would agree nuisance law-suits damage legitimate environ-mental advocacy, but that hasn’tslowed the onslaught. How sad thatthese unfair provisions, meant tohelp citizens hold companies’ andgovernments’ feet to the fire, havelargely become obstruction toolsthat hurt everyone. Yet the groupsclogging the legal system bear noresponsibility for the consequencesof their actions.

Unless influential people andorganizations press Congress tochange the rules, numerous proj-ects critical to Alaska’s—andAmerica’s—future will continue tosuffer.

1Unnatural Bounty: Distortingthe Incentives of Major Environmen-tal Groups; see at www.perc.org

Paula Easley, an Anchoragepublic policy consultant, serves onthe board of the Resource Develop-ment Council. Her e-mail address [email protected] .

mailto:[email protected].


LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Free Service for*the rest of 2006

Free ActivationFree Call Waiting Free Call Forwarding

Free 3-Way Calling

Sign up for our wireless serviceand get:

e Hr’ ee reW .

www.cvtc.org

*Free service offer applies to monthly recurring access charges incurredbetween September 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006. Airtime coverageroamer, toll, taxes, and surcharges may apply. Offer conditional uponsigning a two year service agreement. Offer expires December 31, 2006.Subject to credit approval. Certain rate plans apply.

Copper Valley Telephone CooperativeMile 188.8 Glenn Hwy.Glennallen, AK 99588

907 822-3551

WIRELESS INTERNET LOCAL LONG DISTANCE TELEVISION

$29.95 NOKIA CDMA SpeakerphonePerfect for Digital Service coming to McCarthy in 2007

Dear Editor,My wife, Robin (sister of Laurie

Rowland) and I came to McCarthy re-cently to visit McCarthy Kennicott Com-munity Church and see family. I wantthe McCarthy community to know howwonderful we think this church and theRowlands are for the fantastic receptionwe received. They made us feel so wel-come (it was my first time meeting thefolks at the church); we were treatedvery hospitably in every way. Your com-munity church really understands howto make people feel valued; to someonenew to McCarthy, it felt to me like the

sort of place anyone could come andfind a sincere welcome.

We've been serving as missionariesin Siberia, Russia for some years now, sowhen the Rowlands learned we wantedto come visit, Laurie made sure we wereintroduced to Albina, the Russian galwho's been working in McCarthy allsummer. Albina has been coming to thechurch and was so happy to finally beable to speak to someone in her ownlanguage. I know the people in thechurch were really pleased to finallyhear her story, too!

The church supports our work andon top of everything gave us a huge gift

to help us remember our time in McCa-rthy-a flight seeing trip with WrangellMountain Air! Martin was our pilot anddid a super job making sure we had amemorable experience. The mountainsand glaciers around McCarthy are justincredible, a silent testimony to themajesty of God's creativity. You are tru-ly blessed to live among such beauty!

Robin and I want McCarthy to knowhow grateful we are for your communi-ty's loving church and for the friendli-ness of everyone we met. Please passalong our appreciation for making ourtime in McCarthy so refreshing!

Bill and Robin Harris

mailto:[email protected].


MOTHER LODE COPPER MINES COMPANY OF ALASKA LLC

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