Kerry MacLane

by

Date changed to May 26 for spring garden class about raising trees

There is one spring garden class left on this year’s schedule, but the date has been changed. The “Everything You Need To Know About Trees” class taught by Jud Kirkness now will take place from 6:30-8 p.m. on Friday, May 26, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street).

The class is free, but donations to the Sitka Local Foods Network will be accepted.

For more information about the class, contact Jennifer Carter at 747-0520. Other classes may be added at a later date if we find volunteers to teach them.

by

Sitka Local Foods Network education committee announces its 2017 spring garden classes

Want to learn how to grow your own food? Are you new to Sitka and want to learn what veggies grow in our town? The Sitka Local Foods Network education committee has a list of free 2017 spring garden classes that can help you learn what to do and when to do it so you have a healthy garden.

This spring, all of our classes except one will take place from 6:30-8 p.m. on Thursdays at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street). Each week will feature a different topic, and all classes are free (donations to the Sitka Local Foods Network will be accepted).

The class schedule is as follows:

  • Gardening in Sitka 101 — March 30, taught by Michelle Putz
  • Cottage Foods Business Basics — April 6, 6-8 p.m., Room 106, University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus, taught by Sarah Lewis and Nina Vizcarrondo, in partnership with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service
  • Growing Potatoes in Sitka — April 13, taught by Kathy Kyle
  • Extending Your Garden Season — April 20, taught by Kerry MacLane
  • Container Gardening — April 27, taught by Joshua Andresky
  • Raising Chickens — May 4, taught by Joshua Andresky, Nina Vizcarrondo and Brinnen Carter
  • Everything You Need To Know About Trees — Friday, May 19, taught by Jud Kirkness
  • Growing Garlic in Sitka — Date TBA (toward the end of the summer), taught by Jennifer Carter

For more information about the classes, contact Jennifer Carter at 747-0520. Other classes may be added at a later date if we find volunteers to teach them.

by

Scenes from the 22nd annual Running of the Boots held on Sept. 17

jumborunningbootsbychurch

Angie and Ryan Hutchins make for a jumbo-sized pair of XtraTufs as they run past St. Michael The Archangel Russian Orthodox Cathedral during the Running of the Boots on Sept. 17, 2016, in Sitka.

It was rainy in Sitka on Saturday, Sept. 17 (stop the presses), but the rain abated long enough for us to hold the 22nd annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network.

racestartThis year there was a new start-finish line and course, as our big tent was set up in Totem Square park and runners ran along Lincoln Street from Totem Square to the stoplight and back. We had a shark and fisherman, a jumbo-sized pair of XtraTufs, a young lad as Captain America, a young lady as Strawberry Shortcake, and more in the costume contest.

The Running of the Boots is an annual fundraising event for the Sitka Local Foods Network, whose mission is to increase the amount of locally produced and harvested food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans. The Sitka Local Foods Network operates the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden, the Sitka Farmers Market, and hosts an education program that includes the family garden mentoring project.

The Running of the Boots is part of the Season’s-End Celebration festivities hosted downtown by the Greater Sitka Chamber of Commerce and the Alaska Cruise Line Association, where Sitka residents were served hamburgers, hot dogs, salmon and cole slaw to celebrate the end of the summer.

The Sitka Local Foods Network also hosted a produce booth at the Running of the Boots, with produce from the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden. By the way, St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm lead gardener Laura Schmidt said we still have enough produce growing that she can sell 5-10 weekly boxes of produce through the next month. She said the boxes will run $30, and will likely contain about four pounds of carrots, two pounds of potatoes, two pounds of beets, one bundle of chard, one head of lettuce, with other possibilities such as cucumbers, basil, a half-dozen eggs, etc. She also has an excess of zucchini. To learn more, contact Laura at ljschmidt835@hotmail.com.

A slideshow of scenes from the 22nd annual Running of the Boots is posted below. Click this link for a story on KCAW-Raven Radio about the event.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

22nd annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run raises funds for Sitka Local Foods Network

RunningOfTheBoots2016Flier

It’s time to dig your XtraTufs out of the closet and gussy them up. The 22nd annual Running of the Boots begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17, at the big tent near Totem Square park on Lincoln Street. (NOTE: This is a change from last year’s meeting place and what was previously announced for this year’s event.)

While the meeting place is different this year, the actual race course will be roughly the same as the past three races but with a different start-finish line. This change allows the race to be a bigger part of the Season’s-End Celebration festivities hosted downtown by the Greater Sitka Chamber of Commerce and the Alaska Cruise Line Association. In addition to the Running of the Boots, the Season’s-End Celebration includes a lunch from noon to 3 p.m. for Sitka residents featuring hamburgers, hot dogs, and fish. Instead of being free, this year people are asked to make a $2 donation to the activities funds at Sitka and Mount Edgecumbe high schools when they get their lunch.

“We’re going to have a blast this year under a huge tent right at Totem Square park, across from City Hall,” race organizer Kerry MacLane said. “This isn’t just for kids. Some of our most memorable entries have been adults. This is a chance to accessorize your boots, or go all out and come as your most wearable art creature from outer space. We’ll have great live music, hot chocolate, and there is even a great local lunch after oodles of prizes have been awarded.”

So what is the Running of the Boots? It’s Southeast Alaska’s answer to Spain’s “Running of the Bulls.” Sitkans wear zany costumes and XtraTufs — Southeast Alaska’s distinctive rubber boots (aka, Sitka Sneakers). The Running of the Boots raises funds for the Sitka Local Foods Network, a nonprofit organization that hosts the Sitka Farmers Market and advocates for community gardens, a community greenhouse, sustainable uses of traditional subsistence foods and education for Sitka gardeners.

The Running of the Boots is a short race for fun and not for speed, even though one of the many prize categories is for the fastest boots. Other prize categories include best-dressed boots, zaniest costume, best couple, best kids group and more. The new course starts by Totem Square park, and heads down Harbor Drive and up Maksoutov Street before cutting by St. Michael’s Cathedral and finishing down Lincoln Street toward City Hall and the start-finish line.

The entry fee for the Running of the Boots is $5 per person and $20 per family, and people can register for the race starting at 10 a.m. Costume judging starts about 10:30 a.m., and runners hit the streets at 11 a.m. As usual, local merchants have donated bushels of prizes for the costume contest. The Sitka Local Foods Network will host a Sitka Farmers Market booth with fresh veggies for sale. The booth takes debit cards, WIC vouchers and Alaska Quest electronic benefit cards.

“Not only is the Running of the Boots a blast, it supports the local foods movement,” MacLane said. “This is a must-see annual change-of-the season tradition in Sitka.”

To learn more about the Running of the Boots, contact Kerry MacLane at 752-0654 or 747-7888, or by email at maclanekerry@yahoo.com. We also need several volunteers to help set up and take down the race (two needed) and to judge the costumes (two needed). Contact MacLane to learn how to volunteer.

Historical information about the race (through 2005) can be found online at http://www.runningoftheboots.org/. Info about the Sitka Local Foods Network and more recent Running of the Boots events (2008-15) is online at http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/ (type Running of the Boots into the search bar at the top of the page). Click this link to see a slideshow of scenes from the 2015 Running of the Boots.

Also, don’t forget to like our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork and follow our Twitter page at https://www.twitter.com/SitkaLocalFoods (@SitkaLocalFoods) to stay updated on Sitka Local Foods Network activities.

by

• It’s time to … learn how to grow your own food this spring with the Sitka Local Foods Network

 

SLFNSpringGardenClasses2016B

Thinking about your garden, especially with our warm winter weather? It’s time to mark your calendars with several upcoming Spring 2016 garden classes offered by the Sitka Local Foods Network Education Committee.

GreensInHoopHouseStPetersThese classes will cover a variety of topics, from gardening basics and choosing what veggies to grow in Sitka to extending your gardening season, composting and seed-starting. But wait, there’s more. There’s also a class on abundant landscaping, plus classes on growing rhubarb and potatoes. Some of the classes have limited space and require preregistration, so sign up early. Most of the classes are free, but we accept donations. There is one class on starting seeds with a minimal materials fee, but you’ll take some plant starts home.

We already hosted two classes (on vegetable gardening 101 and choosing what veggies to grow in Sitka), but there still are several classes coming up this spring. We will be adding more classes to this list as they become available, so check the website for updates. We plan to post individual class announcements as we get closer to the actual class dates.

And now, here’s the list of classes so far:

  • Extending Your Gardening Season — 10 a.m., Saturday, March 19, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof Way), teacher Kerry MacLane, the class will explore various methods for protecting your plants and lengthening the growing season, no preregistration required. (NOTE: THE DATE AND TIME OF THIS CLASS HAS BEEN CHANGED FROM WHAT ORIGINALLY WAS ANNOUNCED.)
  • Starting Vegetable Seedlings Workshop — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, March 23, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn how to start seedlings and go home with a tray of planted seeds, space limited, $10 materials fee, preregistration required.
  • Abundant Landscaping — 2 p.m., Saturday, April 2,  at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Jud Kirkness, a hands-on approach to the “nine-layer forest garden” methodology, no preregistration required.
  • Growing and Fertilizing Rhubarb — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 9, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.
  • Everyone Can Compost — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, April 20, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn the basics of composting your own soil, no preregistration required.
  • Growing Potatoes In Sitka — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 23,  at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.

In addition, we’ll be launching our new downtown teaching garden as we get closer to growing season and all of those classes will be open to the public. Feel free to help the Sitka Local Foods Network education committee plan new programming at its next monthly meeting, from 6:30-8 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street).

For more information or to sign up for classes requiring preregistration, contact Jennifer Carter at 747-0520 or 1-850-491-2666 (cell).

• Spring 2016 garden education classes from the Sitka Local Foods Network (opens as PDF)

by

• It’s time … get ready for spring vegetable gardening with classes from the Sitka Local Foods Network

SLFNSpringGardenClasses2016

Thinking about your garden, especially with our warm winter weather? It’s time to mark your calendars with several upcoming Spring 2016 garden classes offered by the Sitka Local Foods Network Education Committee.

GreensInHoopHouseStPetersThese classes will cover a variety of topics, from gardening basics and choosing what veggies to grow in Sitka to extending your gardening season, composting and seed-starting. But wait, there’s more. There’s also a class on abundant landscaping, plus classes on growing rhubarb and potatoes. Some of the classes have limited space and require preregistration, so sign up early. Most of the classes are free, but we accept donations. There is one class with a minimal materials fee.

We will be adding more classes to this list as they become available, so check the website for updates. We plan to post individual class announcements as we get closer to the actual class dates.

And now, here’s the list of classes so far:

  • Vegetable Gardening 101 — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 27, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Michelle Putz, class tailored for beginning gardeners, no preregistration required.
  • Choosing What Veggies to Grow in Sitka — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 10, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Lori Adams, class tailored for beginning gardeners or gardeners new to Sitka, no preregistration required.
  • Extending Your Gardening Season — 2 p.m., Saturday, March 12, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof Way), teacher Kerry MacLane, the class will explore various methods for protecting your plants and lengthening the growing season, no preregistration required.
  • Starting Vegetable Seedlings Workshop — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, March 23, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn how to start seedlings and go home with a tray of planted seeds, space limited, $10 materials fee, preregistration required.
  • Abundant Landscaping — 2 p.m., Saturday, April 2,  at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce St.), teacher Jud Kirkness, a hands-on approach to the “9-layer forest garden” methodology, no preregistration required.
  • Growing and Fertilizing Rhubarb — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 9, at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.
  • Everyone Can Compost — 6:30-8 p.m., Wednesday, April 20, at Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine St., parking off Spruce Street), teacher Jennifer Carter, learn the basics of composting your own soil, no preregistration required.
  • Growing Potatoes In Sitka — 9 a.m., Saturday, April 23,  at the Perry Edwards/Michelle Putz home (131 Shelikof), teacher Michelle Putz, no preregistration required.

In addition, we’ll be launching our new downtown teaching garden as we get closer to growing season and all of those classes will be open to the public. Feel free to help the Sitka Local Foods Network education committee plan new programming at its next monthly meeting, from 6:30-8 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 28, at the Sitka Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Hall (408 Marine Street, parking off Spruce Street).

For more information or to sign up for classes requiring preregistration, contact Jennifer Carter at 747-0520 or 1-850-491-2666 (cell).

• Spring 2016 garden education classes from the Sitka Local Foods Network (opens as PDF)

by

• Scenes from the 21st annual Running of the Boots held on Sept. 26

RaceStart

It was rainy in Sitka on Saturday, Sept. 26 (stop the presses), but we still had a good turnout for the 21st annual Running of the Boots fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network.

We had a great big #SitkaStron XtraTuf, and a lady wearing a half-dozen pairs of XtraTufs. We also had a rainbow and cloud, some itsy bitsy spiders, and a family of Ghostbusters entered into the costume contest.

The Running of the Boots is an annual fundraising event for the Sitka Local Foods Network, whose mission is to increase the amount of locally produced and harvested food in the diets of Southeast Alaskans. The Sitka Local Foods Network operates the St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden, the Sitka Farmers Market, and hosts an education program that includes the family garden mentoring project. The Sitka Local Foods Network hosted a produce booth at the Running of the Boots, too.

A slideshow of scenes from the 21st annual Running of the Boots is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

• Scenes from the sixth and final Sitka Farmers Market of the 2015 summer

Sitka Farmers Market Assistant Manager Francis Wegman-Lawless, left, and Sitka Farmers Market Manager Debe Brincefield, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Kerry MacLane, second from left, and his Sitka's Blackcod Collars helpers Autumn Mayo, center, and Ilona Mayo, second from right, at the sixth and final Sitka Farmers Market of the 2015 summer on Saturday, Sept. 12, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall in Sitka. MacLane is a regular participant at the Sitka Farmers Market with his grilled blackcod collars/tips served over rice with beach asparagus, kale, and other greens for a garnish. This was the eighth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. While the Sitka Farmers Markets are over for 2015, the Sitka Local Foods Network will host a produce booth at the Running of the Boots on Saturday, Sept. 26, near St. Michael's Russian Orthodox Church. The Running of the Boots is a costumed fun run fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network, where people run a short race in their XtraTufs (aka Sitka Sneakers). Registration opens at 10 a.m., with costume judging about 10:30 a.m. and the race start at 11 a.m. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets, Running of the Boots, and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/, check out our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork, or follow us on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/SitkaLocalFoods. (PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK)

Sitka Farmers Market Assistant Manager Francis Wegman-Lawless, left, and Sitka Farmers Market Manager Debe Brincefield, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Kerry MacLane, second from left, and his Sitka’s Blackcod Collars helpers Autumn Mayo, center, and Ilona Mayo, second from right, at the sixth and final Sitka Farmers Market of the 2015 summer on Saturday, Sept. 12, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall in Sitka. MacLane is a regular participant at the Sitka Farmers Market with his grilled blackcod collars/tips served over rice with beach asparagus, kale, and other greens for a garnish. This was the eighth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. While the Sitka Farmers Markets are over for 2015, the Sitka Local Foods Network will host a produce booth at the Running of the Boots on Saturday, Sept. 26, near St. Michael’s Russian Orthodox Church. The Running of the Boots is a costumed fun run fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network, where people run a short race in their XtraTufs (aka Sitka Sneakers). Registration opens at 10 a.m., with costume judging about 10:30 a.m. and the race start at 11 a.m. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets, Running of the Boots, and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/, check out our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork, or follow us on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/SitkaLocalFoods. (PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK)

For our final Sitka Farmers Market of the 2015 season we had our usual fall Sitka weather — if you don’t like it right now wait 15 minutes and it will change.

We had torrential downpours early in the morning as we were setting up the market, but the rains stopped in time for the market to open and the sun even came out for a bit. We had more rainfall about halfway through the market, but it cleared up and was partly sunny for the end of the market and we even had a brief but large rainbow overhead.

While Saturday’s Sitka Farmers Market was the last one of the summer, there will be another chance to get some local veggies. The Sitka Local Foods Network will host a produce stand at its annual Running of the Boots costume run fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 26, near St. Michael’s Russian Orthodox Cathedral. Running of the Boots registration and the produce booth open at 10 a.m., with costume judging about 10:30 a.m. and the fun run at 11 a.m. Dress up your XtraTufs and come on down for the fun.

A slideshow from the sixth Sitka Farmers Market of 2015 is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

• 21st annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run raises funds for Sitka Local Foods Network

RunningOfTheBoots2015

It’s time to dig your XtraTufs out of the closet and gussy them up. The 21st annual Running of the Boots begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26, at the big tent near St. Michael of the Archangel Russian Orthodox Cathedral on Lincoln Street.

This will be the third year featuring a new meeting point and course, allowing the race to be a bigger part of the End-of-Season Celebration festivities hosted downtown by the Greater Sitka Chamber of Commerce and the Alaska Cruise Line Association. In addition to the Running of the Boots, the End-of-Season Celebration includes a lunch from noon to 3 p.m. for Sitka residents featuring hamburgers, hot dogs, and fish. Instead of being free, this year people are asked to make a $2 donation to the activities funds at Sitka and Mount Edgecumbe high schools when they get their lunch.

“We’re going to have a blast this year under a huge tent right in the middle of Lincoln Street,” race organizer Kerry MacLane said. “This isn’t just for kids. Some of our most memorable entries have been adults. This is a chance to accessorize your boots, or go all out and come as your most wearable art creature from outer space. We’ll have great live music, hot chocolate, and there is even a great local lunch after oodles of prizes have been awarded.”

So what is the Running of the Boots? It’s Southeast Alaska’s answer to Spain’s “Running of the Bulls.” Sitkans wear zany costumes and XtraTufs — Southeast Alaska’s distinctive rubber boots (aka, Sitka Sneakers). The Running of the Boots raises funds for the Sitka Local Foods Network, a nonprofit organization that hosts the Sitka Farmers Market and advocates for community gardens, a community greenhouse, sustainable uses of traditional subsistence foods and education for Sitka gardeners.

The Running of the Boots is a short race for fun and not for speed, even though one of the many prize categories is for the fastest boots. Other prize categories include best-dressed boots, zaniest costume, best couple, best kids group and more. The new course starts by St. Michael’s Cathedral, and heads down Lincoln Street toward City Hall, takes a left on Harbor Drive and loops up Maksoutov Street and back to the starting line.

The entry fee for the Running of the Boots is $5 per person and $20 per family, and people can register for the race starting at 10 a.m. Costume judging starts about 10:30 a.m., and runners hit the streets at 11 a.m. As usual, local merchants have donated bushels of prizes for the costume contest. The Sitka Local Foods Network will host a Sitka Farmers Market booth with fresh veggies for sale. The booth takes debit cards, WIC vouchers and Alaska Quest electronic benefit cards.

“Not only is the Running of the Boots a blast, it supports the local foods movement,” MacLane said. “This is a must-see annual change-of-the season tradition in Sitka.”

To learn more about the Running of the Boots, contact Kerry MacLane at 752-0654 or 747-7888, or by email at maclanekerry@yahoo.com. We also need several volunteers to help set up and take down the race (two needed) and to judge the costumes (two needed). Contact Kerry MacLane to learn how to volunteer.

Historical information about the race (through 2005) can be found online at http://www.runningoftheboots.org/. Info about the Sitka Local Foods Network and more recent Running of the Boots events (2008-14) is online at http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/ (type Running of the Boots into the search bar at the top of the page).

Also, don’t forget to like our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork and follow our Twitter page at https://www.twitter.com/SitkaLocalFoods (@SitkaLocalFoods) to stay updated on Sitka Local Foods Network activities.

And now, here’s a slideshow of scenes from the 2014 Running of the Boots.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

by

• New street food vendors add a taste of seafood to the Sitka summer

AshmosAshleyMooreServing

AshmosSalmonTacosAndFriesOver the past decade there have been a handful of summer pop-up street food options in Sitka. This year there are several new food trucks/carts in town, and locally sourced seafood is featured on the menu.

In past years some of the bigger street food options included Reindeer Red Hots (which this year will only do special events like the Sitka Farmers Market and Sitka Seafood Festival instead of holding its regular street corner), the Ludvig’s Bistro Chowder Cart (still serving lunch of clam chowder and salmon or prosciutto baguettes in the Mill Building by the Sitka Sound Science Center) and the short-lived Two Chicks and a Kabob Stick (which closed a couple of years ago, though you can still get the Inga’s Spice Blend fish rub developed for the food cart).

AshmosSalmonMacAndCheeseThe most mobile of the new group of street food stands is Ashmo’s, a food truck owned by Ashley Moore specializing in Alaska seafood dishes. Ashmo’s has been parked out in front of the Coliseum movie theater on Lincoln Street for much of the summer. But the truck also has been available this summer at Baranof Island Brewing Company on Tuesday nights and for other special events (including the BIBCO community benefit night May 27 for the Sitka Local Foods Network), with occasional trips to the Old Sitka Docks, and by Eliason and New Thompson harbors.

AshmosFishAndChipsAshmo’s serves a variety of seafood dishes, with a menu that does change through the week. Among the mainstays are salmon mac and cheese, rockfish tacos, BIBCO beer-battered halibut, fish (cod) and chips, blackcod collars and rice, grilled king salmon and rice, and more. Salmon sliders and salmon tacos also have been on the menu on some days. Ashmo’s is usually open during the day in front of the Coliseum, and it also has been open late nights on weekends. Ashley usually posts a weekly schedule on her Facebook site.

BarnacleBayKitchenHeidiMorrisonOn Harbor Drive next to Yellow Jersey Cycle Shop is Barnacle Bay Kitchen, owned by Heidi Morrison. Barnacle Bay Kitchen is open for lunch on cruise ship days and sells halibut and chips, cod and chips, rockfish lumpia (egg rolls), bacon-wrapped halibut kabobs, reindeer hot dogs, beef hotdogs, and pulled pork sandwiches.

BarnacleBayKitchenCodAndChipsIn addition, Heidi has a variety of chowders available (clam, seafood, or smoked salmon, depending on the day). For more information, call Heidi at 738-8504.

The Ráns Net pelmeni (Russian dumpling) stand actually came onto the scene in Sitka last summer, but this year owner Ayla Stromquist has a new building tucked into an alley on Lincoln Street across from Old Harbor Books and between Wintersong Soaps and the Cellar. PelmeniShe also has a couple of new flavors of pelmenis. Last year she had two flavors — meat (beef and pork mixed) and potato. This year she’s added chicken, smoked salmon and cream cheese, and sautéed onions.

The pelmeni stand is noted for being a late-night option on weekends, but it will be open for some lunches from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, for dinner from 5-8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Ayla also said she has a new machine on order to help press the pelmenis. The stand is closed until June 11, but people can watch the Facebook page or call Ayla at 738-5804 to get updated hours.

BlackcodCollarsKerryMacLaneWardEldridgeKerry MacLane and his blackcod (sablefish) collars have been a mainstay at the Sitka Farmers Market for several years. But this year he has a tent from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on cruise ship days in the front lawn at Sitka Rose Gallery on Lincoln Street. Kerry just sells one item, his BBQ grilled blackcod collars (aka blackcod tips) over rice. Kerry will reopen his stand on June 1. For more information, contact Kerry at 752-0654.

BlackCodTipsAndRice