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| The Clarks reunited with Verstovia |
We have been in Sitka now about three weeks and the sun has only
rarely stopped shining on us.
The weather has been incredible and will go down in Sitka’s record
books. I can already hear the
conversation that will take place in years to come during a typical rainy
summer day….. “Remember that one REALLY amazing summer back in 2013?” and
everyone will smile and shake their heads at the fond memory and recount their
amazing adventure tales.
In addition to the spectacular weather, Ben and I have been showered
with warmth and love from our friends and fellow community members.
Numerous people that we have run into
on the street have phrased our return perfectly by shouting out to us, ”Welcome
back home!”
It truly does feel
like a homecoming to us.
Finding housing has been very difficult, especially because
of our sweet dog Chena having entered our life. It turns out, you really shouldn’t adopt a dog until you
have your own house because people are not keen on renting their places to dog
owners. Thankfully, our friends have
taken care of us. The Routons
welcomed us to their beautiful home and treated us like family for nearly a
full week. Delicious meals
appeared daily and we were supplied with any piece of gear we may have left in
the interior. Chena was united
with Puffin (who is the reason we how have Chena if you recall Chena “Puff”
Clark’s adoption story). They have
become fast friends who love to run the trails together and wrestle on the
foof. We have also been blessed
with a month-long house-sitting gig for our friends Dave and Shelley (and now
Lucas too!) who are traveling abroad.
Having their place as our home base while we continue to search the
housing front has been nothing short of a miracle. Sitkans truly open their doors for people in need!
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| Chaichis Beach on one of the hottest days in Sitka |
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Potentially one of the prettiest beaches in the world--and Kristin and I had it all to ourselves
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The adventures here have already been too many to tell. Chena thinks she died and went straight
to Southeast Heaven. She has
already climbed 5 mountain tops, runs on the cross trail daily- zipping through
the forest and learning about muskegs (the hard way), and has met so many new
dog friends! She loves Sitka!
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A beautiful dog in a beautiful place
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St. Lazaria with Baranof Island in the background
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Another view of St. Lazaria
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We have camped on Starrigavan ridge with the Routons, boated
out to St. Lazaria to see the puffins with Aaron and Patrick, and kayaked to
the magical Chaichis just to name a few of the adventures. We really couldn’t be happier to be back
in Sitka, especially during this epic summer of 2013!
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Ben's alpine lake cannonball
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Mad dash out of the frozen lake for me...
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Aaron jumping in--Puffin decided to stay on the snow
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Even Baby Bump Routon took a quick dip (but still not Puffin)!
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Flying Puffin (not the Routon's dog)!
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All of those black and white shapes on this cliff are nesting Murres--seabirds that look like little penguins. There were thousands of them....noisy little community
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One of the 2 whale sightings on the way back from St. Lazaria
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Arriving at Chaichis. Oh how I have missed Spouty Blue (my kayak seen above)
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Kristin, the recent Sitka bride, being surronded by three porpoises on our kayak to the Chaichis
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Enjoying the view of Edgecumbe and the gorgeous turquoise ocean
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Not too many days a year is it warm enough to swim in the ocean!
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In addition to the spectacular weather, Ben and I have been showered
with warmth and love from our friends and fellow community members. Numerous people that we have run into
on the street have phrased our return perfectly by shouting out to us, ”Welcome
back home!” It truly does feel
like a homecoming to us. 
