More Maintenance As Fall Closes In

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       With temperatures starting to reach freezing points on the North Slope, the great North American bird migration is already underway. Signs on the delta are prevalent: flocks of green-winged teal and northern shovelers line the banks of Alaganik Slough, yellowlegs call their call and try and outrace the airboat, trumpeter swan cygnets are fledged and turning their grey/juvenile color, and Duskies are starting to gain and regain flight over the rain-filled Copper River. Sunshine has been few and far between here in Cordova lately, but maintenance trips still provide some excitement. Recently, we had a bull moose run along side the airboat for a good while, providing for some good shots. Even with my camera in my drybag, I had enough time to get it out and get a few shots. Over the last few weeks, avian life has started to emerge again after a hiatus of birds secretly rearing their young. Many more are still to come out, but it's obvious the migration is building. 


We eventually caught up to this moose, and even passed it. Won't be long before he'll start to lose the velvet on his antlers. 

A group of green-winged teal

80 percent of the global population of Western Sandpiper rely on the Copper River Delta


Yellowlegs frequent Pete Dahl Cutoff

Shellhorn's Cabin. Time and Tide, by Dick Shellhorn, contains many waterfowling stories that go back generations, even before the 1964 earthquake. 

One of the last cameras we pulled data off of while doing maintenance had a bear that destroyed a nest



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