There is a moose who traipses through my backyard on a regular basis. He/she leaves a calling card of "moose nuggets", but never shows him/herself when I'm awake and watching.

I had another bout of insomnia, and was up until midnight. I opened the back door to let Sedona out one last time before heading to bed. At that time of the evening, I don't leash her - despite our unfenced yard - because she never goes more than a few feet from the back door. I happened to glance to the right and toward the trees along the back of my yard, and saw a huge black shadow under the streetlights. I quickly coaxed Sedona back into the house before she spotted the midnight marauder. It's not the best photo, due to extreme low light conditions and distance. But you can see how he/she kneels to get closer to the grass for grazing.

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In May, with rising temperatures, the ice which spans the Chena River all winter, thaws and breaks up into pieces. We call this "break up". Up and down the river, solid sheets of ice split apart, until finally the ice lets go and is swept downstream by the river's current. This is an awesome phenomenon, and occurs very quickly - the bulk of the ice moving by in only a few hours! The sound of the ice floes crashing into bridges and moving against itself is very exciting, and is one more sign of the arrival of spring.

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On Saturday, I got up early and drove around Fort Wainwright with Rachael and Susan browsing people's offerings at the post-wide yard sale. I only parted with $11, but picked up a few bargains. One man's junk is another man's treasure!

After walking what seemed like miles, Rachael and I went off to the Alaska Railroad Open House. This is a yearly tradition, and is the railroad's way of ushering in summer. There were free train rides (short trips - maybe a mile or two), popcorn and soda, and lots of fun things for the kids to pick up (hats, balloons, buttons, etc.). We went last year too, and thought it would be a nice way to pass a few hours.

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I can't believe it's been a week since I updated this journal. I apologize for the delay. It has been so incredibly gorgeous here in Fairbanks - 50s and 60s during the day - and we're now up to 24 hours of visible daylight. These long days just make me want to run, run, run. Rachael and I try to keep as busy as possible and the days have been flying by quickly.

Last Thursday (the 18th), Rachael and I drove into Denali Park. We would go everyday if possible (and if gas wasn't so darn expensive!), but Thursday was our last chance to drive into Teklanika in our private vehicle. It is now officially tourist season, and the buses are running. I do plan to take a shuttle into the park (a la tourist) this summer with my sister-in-law when she comes to visit. It will be my first time, and I know that there is even more splendor to experience further in the park.

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