September 5, 2015 by Charles Bingham

• First Natural History Seminar of the 2015-16 school year to be about mushrooms

The first Natural History Seminar of the 2015-16 school year will feature guest speaker Noah Siegel giving the talk, “To Live and To Dye For: Edible, Poisonous, and Dye Mushrooms of Alaska,” at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 10, in Room 229 at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus.

Noah Siegel also will lead mushroom forays on the following weekend, with details to be announced at the talk. He also was a featured speaker at this year’s Girdwood Fungus Fair and Cordova Fungus Festival.

Siegel has developed extensive field mycology skills over two decades through photographing and identifying macrofungi across North America and on multiple trips to Australia and New Zealand. His mushroom photographs have won numerous awards from the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) photography contests. His technique and attention to detail are unrivaled, arising from a philosophy of maximizing utility for identification purposes while maintaining a high degree of aesthetic appeal.

The Natural History Seminar series features regular talks (usually monthly) about natural history topics of interest to Sitka. The series is sponsored by the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus and the Sitka Sound Science Center. For more information, contact Kitty LaBounty at 747-9432.

April 11, 2015 by Charles Bingham

• Alaskans Own community-supported fisheries program announces 2015 season subscription prices

Sitka-based Alaskans Own seafood recently announced its subscription prices for its 2015 community-supported fisheries (CSF) program in Sitka, Juneau, Anchorage, and, new this year, Seattle.

Alaskans Own was the first CSF program in the state, modeling its program after the successful community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs that let customers deal directly with harvesters so they can buy subscription shares to the year’s crop/catch. In addition to the CSF program, Alaskans Own usually has a table at the Sitka Farmers Markets during the summer.

This is the sixth year of the Alaskans Own CSF program, and there are four-month and six-month subscriptions available starting in May. The six-month subscriptions allow people to keep receiving freshly caught seafood through October instead of August, when the traditional four-month subscriptions end. Half-subscriptions also are available. Subscriptions include a mix of locally caught black cod (sablefish), halibut, king salmon, coho salmon, lingcod and miscellaneous rockfish, depending on the commercial fishing season and prices.

According to newly hired director Caroline Lester, this year’s price for a six-month full subscription (about 60 pounds, or 10 pounds a month) in Sitka is $886.16 (includes sales tax) and $446.40 for a half subscription (about 30 pounds). The price for a four-month full subscription (about 40 pounds) is $606.32 and $326.46 for a half subscription (about 20 pounds). Prices are slightly higher for the other communities participating in the program. People can use the Alaskans Own online store site to purchase their CSF shares. Deliveries in Sitka will be either the last or second-to-last Thursday of the month at the old mill building next to the Sitka Sound Science Center.

The Alaskans Own program is associated with the Alaska Sustainable Fisheries Trust. The Alaska Sustainable Fisheries Trust’s mission is to strengthen Alaskan fishing communities and marine resources through scientific research, education, and economic opportunity.

For more information, contact Caroline Lester at info@alaskansown.com or 738-2275.

March 7, 2015 by Charles Bingham

• Second annual Sitka Herring Festival kicks off March 16 with month of events

You feel it in the air; you see it in the lengthening days; you smell it with the changing tides. That’s right, herring season (and Spring!) is right around the corner. And with the arrival of the herring comes the Sitka Tribe of Alaska‘s second annual Sitka Herring Festival, a month of fantastic event for adults and kids alike.

First, for the adults. This year, we’ve been able to bring an excellent speaker from Stonybrook University in New York thanks to a generous donation from Sealaska. At the community potluck from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7, at Harrigan Centennial Hall, Dr. Ellen Pikitch will present on herring management and conservation throughout the world. Dr. Pikitch was one of the leading scientists on the Lenfest Forage Fish Task Force, is a pioneer in ocean conservation, and is a leader in ecosystem-based management of fisheries. This event will be a potluck style, so please bring a dish to share. We’re very excited to have her here during the herring season.

In addition to the community potluck, there will be a talk at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus from Dr. Shingo Hamada. Dr. Hamada is an anthropologist at the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature in Kyoto, Japan. His talk will be on Herring Fisheries and Food Culture in Japan. Mark your calendars for 7:30 p.m. on Monday, March 23, in UAS Sitka Campus Room 218. This is a partnership from the Natural History Seminar Series with UAS and the Sitka Sound Science Center. All are welcome, but be sure to bring your questions.

But what would a festival be without fun activities for the kids? This year’s festival will also include Yaa Khusgé Yaaw Woogoo — The Knowledge of Herring Camp, hosted by the Sitka School District and the Outdoor Foundation, in partnership with Sitka Tribe of Alaska and Sitka National Historical Park. This is a free, hands-on spring break camp connecting kids to culture that will take place from March 16-20 at Sitka National Historical Park. Middle school youth (grades 6-8) are welcome and encouraged to participate in this free camp. More information can be found at Sitka National Historical Park. Feel free to or pick up an application at the main office of STA or at the Sitka National Historical Park Visitor Center.

For those who like a little competition, there’s the Herring Derby and the Herring Run. Like last year, the Herring Derby will be a fun event for kids and parents. The Derby starts on Friday, March 20, and continues through Monday, April 6. Weigh your biggest fish every day (from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Monday through Friday and from 5-7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday) at the Sitka Tribe of Alaska Resources Production Office at 429 Katlian Street. May the best (biggest) fish win. Also like last year, Sitka Community Schools will host the Herring Run. The run will start at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 4, at Harrigan Centennial Hall and will wind through the Totem Park trails before returning to Centennial Hall. Herring swim in schools, so bring your friends.

There will be more fun and educational events during the Festival, including a 4-H class through Sitka Conservation Society, Herring in the Hallway at Keet Gooshi Heen Elementary School, Discovery Days at the Sitka Sound Science Center, and the showing of a herring film showing at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 27, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 28, at the Sitka National Historical Park For the dancers among us, there will also be a Herring Hop from 6-11 p.m. on Saturday, March 28, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Fellowship Hall. The Herring Hop is a fundraiser for the Cape Decision Lighthouse Society. The Herring Festival will also feature a Food Web Cruise on Saturday, March 21, as a fundraiser for another fantastic festival, the Sitka Whalefest.

More info for all these events can be found online at http://sitkaherringfestival.wordpress.com or at our Facebook page. Or you can email sitkaherringfestival@gmail.com or call 747-7168.

• 2015 Sitka Herring Fest calendar of events

September 14, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Natural History Seminar Series to feature presentation on Mushrooms of Alaska’s Southern Coasts

The next topic of the Natural History Seminar Series will feature Kate Mohatt presenting “Mushrooms of Alaska’s Southern Coasts.” The presentation is at 7:30 p.m. on Friday Sept. 19, in Room 229 at the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus.

Kate Mohatt is an ecologist for the Chugach National Forest who has been studying fungi in Montana and Alaska for several years. She has been a key organizer in the Girdwood Fungus Fair and a frequent speaker at the Tongass Rainforest Festival in Petersburg. Mohatt is the lead author of the 2013 publication, Mushrooms of the National Forests in Alaska (available at the USDA Forest Service, Sitka Ranger District office in Sitka, 204 Siginaka Way).

Mohatt will talk about the importance of fungi in forests, and about some common and interesting fungi found in Alaska. She also will lead a walk focused on forest fungi on Saturday, Sept. 20, in Sitka, with details shared at the Friday night seminar.

The seminar series is supported by a grant from the Sitka Permanent Charitable Trust to the Sitka Sound Science Center, and by the University of Alaska Southeast Sitka Campus with support from the USDA Forest Service. If you have questions, please contact Kitty LaBounty at 747-9432.

March 25, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Alaskans Own community-supported fisheries program announces 2014 season subscription prices

Sitka-based Alaskans Own seafood recently announced its subscription prices for its 2014 community-supported fisheries (CSF) program in Sitka, Juneau, and Anchorage. The prices appear to have gone down a tiny bit since the 2013 season.

This is the fifth year of the Alaskans Own CSF program, and there are four-month and six-month subscriptions available. The six-month subscriptions allow people to keep receiving freshly caught seafood through October instead of August, when the traditional four-month subscriptions end. Half-subscriptions also are available. Subscriptions include a mix of locally caught black cod (sablefish), halibut, king salmon, coho salmon, lingcod and miscellaneous rockfish, depending on the commercial fishing season and prices.

Here is Alaskans Own CSF program information for 2014 provided in a recent email sent to the program’s past subscribers and other interested folk:

Hello, Sitka!

It’s that time of year again. The days are getting longer, the herring are back, and Alaskans Own CSF is gearing up for our 2014 season.

This summer looks to be another season filled with even better quality seafood than before. We’d love to have you join us and get access to the great local seafood the Sitka has to offer.

It is difficult to tell, at this point, how prices will trend through the season. Please be assured that we will always bring you the very best value, highest quality seafood that we can, meeting or exceeding the total number of pounds for the plan that you choose. We will make adjustments in specific items to preserve this value. Our small staff gratefully receives assistance from a number of volunteers to help keep costs down. Any and all ‘profits’ go to support the scientific work of the Fishery Conservation Networks.

Six months, Full share: $760 (60 pounds, ~ 10 lb. /month)

Six months, Half share: $400 (30 pounds, ~ 5 lb./month)s

Four months, Full share: $520 (40 pounds, ~ 10 lb./month)

Four months, Half share: $280 (20 pounds, ~ 5 lb./month)

To renew your subscription with Alaskans Own, please send me an email, or give me a call on the Alaskans Own phone 907-738-2275(*). Subscriptions can be paid for using cash, check or credit card. You can learn more about what we offer and the work we do on our website: www.alaskansown.com.

Thank you for all your support. I hope you’ll join Alaskans Own again this season to enjoy the best seafood from the finest fishermen in Southeast Alaska.

Cheers,
Erin Fulton, Programs Coordinator, Alaska Sustainable Fisheries Trust

* With the Sitka Sound Science Center under construction, we won’t be in our normal office space — email and the new AO phone will be the best way to reach us, and to schedule an ‘in person’ meeting.

March 12, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Sound Science Center presentation will shed light on impacts of Fukushima radiation in the Pacific Ocean

People living along the Pacific Coast, including in Sitka and Southeast Alaska, have been wondering about the impacts of radiation in the food supply ever since the March 2011 earthquake in Japan and Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant meltdown.

Dr. Lee Cooper of the University of Maryland, a Scientist in Residency Fellow at the Sitka Sound Science Center, will discuss the current state of the science on Fukushima radiation and its likely impact on the Gulf of Alaska during a brown-bag lunch presentation from 12:30-1:30 p.m. on Friday, March 14, at the Sitka Pioneer Home Chapel. Bring your lunch and questions to the presentation, which is sponsored by the Sitka Sound Science Center and the National Science Foundation.

According to the Sitka Sound Science Center:

It is projected that dissolved contaminants, particularly the radioactive isotopes of cesium, 137Cs and 134Cs from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power in Japan, will reach Southeast Alaska this year. Because the amount of radiation released is uncertain and the accident site is still leaking to some extent, it is difficult to know exactly what the peak concentrations of radioactive cesium will be in local waters, but it is not likely to exceed levels that were observed during the bomb fallout era 40 to 50 years ago. Cesium is chemically very similar to potassium, which is a common ionic salt in seawater, so fortunately the concentration of cesium into the foodweb and into seafood harvested for food is comparatively modest.

Nevertheless, it is important to put into perspective the potential risks involved and communicate this to the public. This talk will summarize the newest scientific information that is available on the impacts of the accident, based upon a special session held in late February at the Ocean Science Meeting in Honolulu and attended by scientists studying Fukushima impacts, ranging from Japan and East Asia to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

For more information, contact Tory O’Connell at 747-8878.

March 3, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Tribe of Alaska to host inaugural Sitka Herring Festival on March 17 to April 12

The inaugural Sitka Herring Festival will feature a variety of events from March 17 through April 12, when the herring return to Sitka to spawn. The event is sponsored by the Sitka Tribe of Alaska Resource Protection Department.

“The festival is a collaborative event to promote the importance of Pacific herring on the ecosystem and the culture of Sitka and the North Pacific Ocean,” event coordinator Jessica Gill said. “A few events to note are: kids’ herring derby, herring dip, fish printing, an educational unit in the schools, and a community potluck scheduled for April 4th. I am currently working on bringing in a scientist from Oxford to give a talk on herring for the potluck, but that will be dependent of funding.”

Among the scheduled events include a blessing of herring rock on a day TBA, the Yaa Khusgé Yaaw Woogoo herring camp for middle school students from March 17-21 at Sitka National Historical Park, a herring fishing derby for kids ages 2-17 from March 23-April 4, a herring class for the Alaska Way of Life 4-H club on March 28, a herring splash swimming event on March 29, a community potluck dinner on April 4, the herring community school fun run on April 5, and a Discovery Days event on April 12 at the Sitka Sound Science Center.

To learn more, please contact Jessica Gill at 747-7168 or by email at sitkaherringfestival@gmail.com. In addition to the event’s new website, there is a Facebook page.

November 3, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Alaskans Own to host fish sale on Monday, Nov. 4, in Sitka

Do you need to stock up your freezer with locally caught fish for the winter? Alaskans Own Seafood of Sitka will host a fish sale from 3-6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 4, at the Mill Building (next to the Sitka Sound Science Center).

The sale will feature several types of frozen fish commonly sold at the Alaskans Own Seafood booth at the Sitka Farmers Market or found in the monthly community-supported fisheries subscription boxes — king (chinook) salmon, silver (coho) salmon, halibut, and rockfish. In addition, spot prawns will be available at this sale.

To learn more, contact Erin Fulton at 747-3477 or email her at efulton@thealaskatrust.org.

January 21, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Health Summit presents seed money check to Community Food Assessment for a Food Resilient Sitka project

FOOD ASSESSMENT DOUGH: From left, Sitka Health Summit Steering Committee members Ellen Daly, Elisabeth Crane and Penny Lehmann present a check for project seed money to representatives from the Community Food Assessment for a Food Resilient Sitka community wellness project, Renae Mathson (fourth from left), Sabrina Cimerol, Garrett Bauer and Courtney Bobsin.

Representatives from the Sitka Health Summit recently presented a check for seed money to the Community Food Assessment for a Food Resilient Sitka project. The project is one of three community wellness projects that came out of the 2012 Sitka Health Summit in October, and the food assessment will help Sitka improve its food security.

The food assessment will take various forms, from polling local grocery stores and shipping companies to try and gauge how much food comes into the community to developing a survey for community members and families about how much food they consume. The project will look at the food needs in our community, as well as what’s available. It also will include a survey about how much fish and game is used in Sitka, as well as how many people gather seaweed and berries or raise food in gardens.

The community food assessment recognizes that everybody in Sitka has access to affordable, quality food from stable food systems. The group meets on the second Wednesday each month, and the next meeting is from 5:30-7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 13, at the Sitka Sound Science Center.

For more information, contact Renae Mathson at 966-8797 or renae.mathson@searhc.org, or contact Andrianna Natsoulas at 747-3477 or anatsoulas@thealaskatrust.org. Sitka residents can ask to join the Google Groups e-mail list for the project to keep up to date with what’s happening.

July 9, 2012 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Conservation Society presents another year of Sitka Salmon Tours

Sitka Salmon Tours, presented by the Sitka Conservation Society, returns this summer for its second year, guiding visitors through the journey salmon take from forest to plate. The two-hour tour begins at 1 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays outside the Sitka Sound Science Center and progresses through Sitka National Historical Park, Sheldon Jackson Hatchery, and ends at Crescent Harbor. Tickets cost $20 per person.

The tours mainly draw from tourists visiting Sitka, but also found interest last summer from local residents with family in town, as something fun and unique to do for an afternoon. Personalized and private tours are available upon request.

“People really respond to how we bring the salmon in nature together with the science of the hatchery and the economic and cultural roles salmon play here,” Helen Schnoes, Salmon Tours staff says. “It helps them understand the significance of salmon — and the need to protect, restore, and enhance their habitat — in a new way.”

Tour guests this year and last immensely enjoy this unique perspective on salmon and life in Sitka, as demonstrated by these Trip Advisor reviews — “Great tour: got to see the real life Alaska … really informative and fun,” “Beautiful, Informative, and Entertaining,” and “The most delightful, interesting walking tour … a breath of fresh air.”

In addition to the daily walking tour, Sitka Salmon Tours also organizes events throughout the summer tailored to Sitkans, such as occasional tours of the Seafood Producers Cooperative, specialty community tours, and a salmon bake fundraiser.

We will be sending more details as the summer progresses, but here’s a heads up, too, about some future events:

July 15, “The Rise and Fall of Canned Salmon,” Talk by Nic Mink, 5-6 p.m. at Kettleson Memorial Library. Free and open to the public.
July 19, Community Salmon Bake Fundraiser, $20 per person ($15 for children age 12-younger), 6=8 p.m. at Harrigan Centennial Hall.
Aug. 5, “Fishing for Change,” Talk by Elizabeth Cockrell, 5-6 p.m. at Kettleson Memorial Library. Free and open to the public.
Aug. 7, Seafood Trivia at the Bayview Pub. Sitka Salmon Tours takes over this weekly trivia night with questions about seafood, salmon, and everything fishy. Teams must be entered by 8:45 p.m., trivia begins 9 p.m.
Aug. 9-13, Sitka Seafood Festival walks, including regular Salmon Tour, local seafood tour (includes tastings at some of Sitka’s best restaurants), and SPC processor tour; Events include a processor tour (11 a.m. on Aug. 9, $35 with light meal included, meet at location TBA), at least two Sitka Salmon Tours (one at 1 p.m. on Aug. 10, a second at 9 a.m. on Aug. 11, $20, meet at Sitka Sound Science Center), and a Seafood Walk (11 a.m. on Aug. 12, $45, includes processor tour and tastings at local restaurants)

Contact Helen Schnoes for questions, reservations, or for further information about events planned in Sitka this summer. Helen can be reached at the Sitka Conservation Society office at 747-7509, or by cell at (612) 741-1591 or e-mail at helen@sitkawild.org.