Alaska State Troopers said Thursday they have called off a search for missing Talkeetna musher Melanie Gould, who was last seen nine days ago. Troopers will continue to investigate the disappearance, a spokeswoman said.
Searchers had been scouring an area off the Denali Highway near Gould's abandoned truck, which was spotted on Saturday. Troopers found no additional clues in the following days, agency spokeswoman Megan Peters said in a written statement.
Friends started looking for Gould, 34, on Friday after she failed to show up at work two days in a row. She left her dogs behind and apparently didn't tell anyone where she was going, friends said.
Gould's many friends, including some who were caring for her dogs, gathered late Thursday to plan another search effort of their own.
Troopers said Gould's last confirmed location was near Talkeetna, where she used her credit card to put gas in her truck. Friends said they had reason to believe she stopped at the Tangle River Inn, about 114 miles east of Cantwell on the Denali Highway.
A wildlife trooper flying a helicopter Saturday located her light blue truck about 18 miles from Cantwell. The truck was about a quarter-mile off the highway on an old mining trail. It was undamaged, troopers said.
Between 25 and 30 ground searchers combed the area around Gould's truck each day from Sunday through Wednesday, Peters said. Twenty trained dogs were used, as well as several state and private aircraft, which logged a total of 100 flight hours, Peters said.
Searchers on four ATVs each drove as many as 100 miles on nearby trails, Peters said.
"Despite the immense search, no signs of Ms. Gould were discovered after her vehicle was recovered," Peters said "Until evidence or credible information regarding Ms. Gould's whereabouts becomes available to determine a more defined search area, an active search cannot proceed as the risk to (search and rescue) personnel is unjustifiable."
Amanda Randles, who had been helping gather information for a Facebook page dedicated to finding the missing musher, said many of Gould's friends were confused about why troopers had stopped searching for her.
"What I'm getting is bafflement, and then 'OK, now what can I do?' " Randles said.
"(They're) not understanding what the troopers' criteria for the decision-making was, but I'm not getting anger, dismay, anything really solid like that," she said. "Everyone's like, 'OK, now it's our turn.' "
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Obama commits disaster funds for flooded Kuskokwim villages
President Obama has declared a major disaster in the villages of Crooked Creek and Red Devil.
The declaration means that the two villages on the Kuskokwim River will be eligible for federal funding for emergency work, and to repair and replace facilities damaged in spring flooding.
The flooding was caused by an ice jam the second week in May.
Gov. Sean Parnell sought the federal disaster declaration after declaring the flooding a state disaster. Parnell says half the homes in Crooked Creek were damaged or destroyed by flooding. The declaration means that federal funds as well as state funds can be used to help the villages.
Park Service official apologizes in Eagle for rangers' actions
Two rangers on the Yukon River should not have handcuffed a man and held him for two hours, said the head of the National Park Service in Alaska, while issuing an apology.
Regional Director Sue Masica visited the town of Eagle last week to offer her apologies for the actions of the agency's two rangers last summer.
The apology was not connected to the highly publicized arrest and trial of 71-year-old Jim Wilde of Central. Masica's visit was in response to a run-in the same two rangers had a month earlier with Tim Henry of Eagle. The rangers handcuffed and detained Henry for about two hours for allegedly refusing to identify himself.
"It was wrong. It shouldn't have happened," Masica told about 35 residents who attended the June 2 meeting in the gym at the Eagle school. "It hurt this community, and we do apologize, and we need to extend an apology to him personally."
Her words drew a round of applause from the crowd. However, it remains to be seen whether her visit to Eagle will help mend strained relations between the park service and some of the 125 residents in the town that borders the Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve.
Masica said the park service is committed to repairing relations with residents in the remote community, many of whom use the preserve for subsistence. The park service director said that mistakes were made last summer and that neither of the two rangers involved in the incidents will be back in the preserve.
Residents in the town near the Canada border said Masica's appearance and apology were a start.
"We're skeptically optimistic," said local subsistence hunter and fisherman Don Woodruff of the local sentiment. "We're moving in a positive direction, but change with the government is pretty slow."
Subsistence fisherman Andy Bassich was less optimistic.
"Our lifestyle is going away because of regulations made by the entity supposedly set up to protect it," he said.
Relations between the park service and Eagle residents have been strained the last few years by what some in the community claim is heavy-handed treatment by rangers working in the preserve.
The situation came to a head last summer after rangers detained Henry in August and arrested Wilde a month later in a dramatic confrontation on the Yukon River in which rangers pointed guns at Wilde and his two passengers. The latter incident galvanized Alaskans who dispute the park service's authority to enforce laws on state waterways such as the Yukon River. Wilde, meanwhile, ended up in federal court in April to fight three of the four misdemeanor charges against him. The four-day trial ended April 8, and a federal judge is still deliberating the case.
Regional Director Sue Masica visited the town of Eagle last week to offer her apologies for the actions of the agency's two rangers last summer.
The apology was not connected to the highly publicized arrest and trial of 71-year-old Jim Wilde of Central. Masica's visit was in response to a run-in the same two rangers had a month earlier with Tim Henry of Eagle. The rangers handcuffed and detained Henry for about two hours for allegedly refusing to identify himself.
"It was wrong. It shouldn't have happened," Masica told about 35 residents who attended the June 2 meeting in the gym at the Eagle school. "It hurt this community, and we do apologize, and we need to extend an apology to him personally."
Her words drew a round of applause from the crowd. However, it remains to be seen whether her visit to Eagle will help mend strained relations between the park service and some of the 125 residents in the town that borders the Yukon Charley Rivers National Preserve.
Masica said the park service is committed to repairing relations with residents in the remote community, many of whom use the preserve for subsistence. The park service director said that mistakes were made last summer and that neither of the two rangers involved in the incidents will be back in the preserve.
Residents in the town near the Canada border said Masica's appearance and apology were a start.
"We're skeptically optimistic," said local subsistence hunter and fisherman Don Woodruff of the local sentiment. "We're moving in a positive direction, but change with the government is pretty slow."
Subsistence fisherman Andy Bassich was less optimistic.
"Our lifestyle is going away because of regulations made by the entity supposedly set up to protect it," he said.
Relations between the park service and Eagle residents have been strained the last few years by what some in the community claim is heavy-handed treatment by rangers working in the preserve.
The situation came to a head last summer after rangers detained Henry in August and arrested Wilde a month later in a dramatic confrontation on the Yukon River in which rangers pointed guns at Wilde and his two passengers. The latter incident galvanized Alaskans who dispute the park service's authority to enforce laws on state waterways such as the Yukon River. Wilde, meanwhile, ended up in federal court in April to fight three of the four misdemeanor charges against him. The four-day trial ended April 8, and a federal judge is still deliberating the case.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Chugiak plane crash kills all five members of family aboard CESSNA 180: Family was headed to Seldovia for Memorial Day weekend.
Five members of a family, including three children, were killed Friday when a small plane crashed and burned on railroad tracks near the Birchwood Airport in Chugiak, officials said.
Anchorage police said those killed were pilot Lonn Greiner, 46, from Eagle River; three of his children, Glory, 13, Nathan, 11, and Grace, 10; and his 69-year-old mother, Carolyn Greiner.
Police said they were headed to Seldovia, where they planned to overnight for the start of the Memorial Day weekend. A family friend said they were building a cabin there.
Witnesses said the engine of the green Cessna 180 sounded strong as it took off about 10:15 a.m., but then its nose pitched up sharply, it banked left and dropped out of the sky.
"It just looked like he couldn't push the nose down," said Brad Bartlett, a fellow pilot and friend of Lonn Greiner. "I watched it, but it's hard to say what happened. The engine was running fine; there was nothing wrong with the engine."
The plane was loaded with aviation gas that exploded when it struck the ground. Its fuselage and cockpit were badly burned.
"We went running over there, but they were dead on impact; it was engulfed in flames," Bartlett said.
The wreckage was oriented in a way that suggested the pilot was attempting to return to the airport, but that could not be confirmed.
Bartlett said Greiner did maintenance on jets at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport and was known for his work with youth hockey. He had coached Bartlett's son, Bartlett said.
"He was a real stand-up guy," Bartlett said. "His whole family. His mom. His kids were good kids."
National Transportation Safety Board investigator Chris Shaver said in an early afternoon interview that the investigation had not yet uncovered a cause for the crash.
"Right now we can't speculate on anything with regards to circumstances," Shaver said. "We'll be looking at all aspects -- man, machine and environment."
Shaver said the plane is listed as a four-seater, but the fact that it held five doesn't necessarily mean it was overloaded, Shaver said.
The three children would likely have been sitting on a bench seat, with the two adults in front of them, Bartlett said. Greiner was new to the Cessna, which was likely carrying a full load of supplies, Bartlett said.
One of the witnesses, Joe Rinehart of Spenard Builders Supply, which operates a facility near the crash, said he was alerted by the fire.
"I didn't hear the crash, but I saw the flames shoot up," Rinehart said. He smelled fuel and ran over to look.
"All it was was wingtips, a tail and a smashed engine. There was nothing left -- there was no way to survive that."
At first, a gate blocked access to the Alaska Railroad property where the crash occurred, but Rinehart directed emergency crews through the SBS yard nearby so they could reach the wreckage.
The Alaska Railroad was asked to shut down rail traffic. By around noon, the line reopened with a freight train of hopper cars passing the crash scene.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
Guide identified as one of the fatalities on Mount McKinley RARE OCCURRENCE: Other victim was from Shanghai, China.
A mountaineering guide from Seattle was one of two people killed on Mount McKinley this week, marking only the third time in history a guide leading clients on North America's tallest peak has died while on a climb.
Suzanne Allen of Alpine Ascents, a Seattle-based guiding company that has taken clients to Denali for more than two decades, was killed in a fall late Wednesday night while attempting to traverse Denali Pass, the National Park Service said Friday.
Allen, 34, and three others were roped together when they fell.
Also killed was Peter Bullard, 45, of Shanghai, China.
Two others were injured -- Gary Burke, 31, of Dallas, Texas, and James Mohr, 30, of Camp Pendleton, Calif. Burke is reportedly in stable condition with a broken leg and head injury; Mohr is non-responsive, parks spokeswoman Kris Fister said.
Details of the fall, which happened around 18,000 feet on a 45-degree pitch, remain unknown.
"We would like to speak with Mr. Burke, who is the only person who can give us more information," Fister said.
Guides rarely die on the 20,320-foot McKinley. Since record-keeping began in 1932, only three have died while leading groups of paying customers, according to park service records. Terrance "Mugs" Stump, one of mountaineering's most famous climbers, died on McKinley in 1992 and Chris Hooyman died on a 1998 climb.
Bullard is the 10th climber in history to die while on a guided McKinley expedition, and the second this year. Last year, 38 percent of the 1,222 people who made an attempt at scaling McKinley were either guides or clients on a guided trip, Fister said. The rest of the fatalities occurred on unguided trips.
Allen's team originally had seven members, including another guide. The other guide and two of the clients had already descended by the time of Wednesday night's fall, the park service said.
Allen was in her seventh or eight year with Alpine Ascents, said Gordon Janow, director of programs for the company, whose lineup of guides includes legend Vern Tejas. Her bio on the company website says she summited McKinley three times as a guide.
"She was a stellar guide from Day One," Janow said. "She was very education-oriented. She was teaching constantly what she knew about the mountains."
Janow said Allen is the first U.S.-based guide to die while working for Alpine Ascents, which according to its website has other teams currently on McKinley, including one led by Tejas.
"It's very difficult," Janow said, "but we all understand what it's like to love something so much you want to be involved in it, even if it comes with risks." The deaths of Allen and Bullard bring to 112 the number of people who have died on Denali since 1932. So far this season, seven climbers have died in the Alaska Range, including four on McKinley.
Suzanne Allen of Alpine Ascents, a Seattle-based guiding company that has taken clients to Denali for more than two decades, was killed in a fall late Wednesday night while attempting to traverse Denali Pass, the National Park Service said Friday.
Allen, 34, and three others were roped together when they fell.
Also killed was Peter Bullard, 45, of Shanghai, China.
Two others were injured -- Gary Burke, 31, of Dallas, Texas, and James Mohr, 30, of Camp Pendleton, Calif. Burke is reportedly in stable condition with a broken leg and head injury; Mohr is non-responsive, parks spokeswoman Kris Fister said.
Details of the fall, which happened around 18,000 feet on a 45-degree pitch, remain unknown.
"We would like to speak with Mr. Burke, who is the only person who can give us more information," Fister said.
Guides rarely die on the 20,320-foot McKinley. Since record-keeping began in 1932, only three have died while leading groups of paying customers, according to park service records. Terrance "Mugs" Stump, one of mountaineering's most famous climbers, died on McKinley in 1992 and Chris Hooyman died on a 1998 climb.
Bullard is the 10th climber in history to die while on a guided McKinley expedition, and the second this year. Last year, 38 percent of the 1,222 people who made an attempt at scaling McKinley were either guides or clients on a guided trip, Fister said. The rest of the fatalities occurred on unguided trips.
Allen's team originally had seven members, including another guide. The other guide and two of the clients had already descended by the time of Wednesday night's fall, the park service said.
Allen was in her seventh or eight year with Alpine Ascents, said Gordon Janow, director of programs for the company, whose lineup of guides includes legend Vern Tejas. Her bio on the company website says she summited McKinley three times as a guide.
"She was a stellar guide from Day One," Janow said. "She was very education-oriented. She was teaching constantly what she knew about the mountains."
Janow said Allen is the first U.S.-based guide to die while working for Alpine Ascents, which according to its website has other teams currently on McKinley, including one led by Tejas.
"It's very difficult," Janow said, "but we all understand what it's like to love something so much you want to be involved in it, even if it comes with risks." The deaths of Allen and Bullard bring to 112 the number of people who have died on Denali since 1932. So far this season, seven climbers have died in the Alaska Range, including four on McKinley.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Fishing boat loses anchor, grounds in Togiak Bay
The Coast Guard and the state Department of Environmental Conservation are monitoring a grounded fishing vessel in Togiak Bay.
The Coast Guard says the 102-foot Nor'Quest grounded early Wednesday morning after it lost an anchor. Neither crew member was injured and they are remaining on board in efforts to refloat the boat.
The Nor'Quest is carrying up to 18,800 gallons of diesel fuel. It also has 200 gallons of gasoline, 200 gallons of lube oil, 300 gallons of hydraulic oil, and 110 gallons of waste oil on board.
A Coast Guard overflight found no pollution. A commercial salvage company is working with the boat owners and operators to lighter it before attempts are made to refloat the Nor'Quest.
The Coast Guard says the 102-foot Nor'Quest grounded early Wednesday morning after it lost an anchor. Neither crew member was injured and they are remaining on board in efforts to refloat the boat.
The Nor'Quest is carrying up to 18,800 gallons of diesel fuel. It also has 200 gallons of gasoline, 200 gallons of lube oil, 300 gallons of hydraulic oil, and 110 gallons of waste oil on board.
A Coast Guard overflight found no pollution. A commercial salvage company is working with the boat owners and operators to lighter it before attempts are made to refloat the Nor'Quest.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Throw fresh fish on the grill HOLIDAY WEEKEND: Copper River salmon is sailing into stores.
Memorial Day Weekend seems like the official start of summertime in Alaska.
For many, it means a chance to hook their own king salmon. For others, it's a time to fire up the grill. Those in the latter category should be happy that commercial fishermen are landing plenty of Copper River salmon.
Here are a couple reports:
Dannon Southall at 10th & M Seafoods: "Copper River is still the talk of the seafood world. Looks like fishing for sockeyes has been good to say the least over the past few openers. The fishermen have been catching a good number of sockeyes with a few kings mixed in."
John Jackson at New Sagaya Markets: "The initial news we are hearing from the opener yesterday that over a million pounds were caught on the reds out of the Copper River. This has brought down the pricing quite a bit and this will translate to good prices for our customers. ... Copper River kings have been another matter, catches have been low and pricing is staying steady, if you can find any. This brings up the fresh Alaskan troll kings as a great value, the fish have been getting bigger and the quality has been top notch and pricing is quite a bit lower than the Coppers."
There you have it -- get some fresh fish and get it on the grill.
Southall says 10th & M will have fresh headed and gutted Copper River sockeye salmon for $6.95 per pound, with the fillets at $9.95 per pound. Additionally, they will have Prince William Sound side-stripe shrimp for $9.95 per pound.
"There is no better way to celebrate this long weekend and the beginning of summer than by pairing these two amazing Alaska seafood products on your grill," he says.
The Copper River kings are $23.95 per pound for fillets. They also have troll kings from Southeast for $12.95 per pound for head-on fish and $16.95 per pound for the fillets. Other seafood options include fresh rockfish, cod and Dover sole fillets.
Jackson says New Sagaya also will have fresh Alaska ling cod in the store. Whole headed and gutted fish will be $4.99 per pound. "When it is fresh it is some of the best eating white fish in Alaska," he says.
Other seafood options at New Sagaya include cod ($5.99 per pound), side-stripe shrimp ($10.99 per pound) and fresh Southeast oysters.
Farmers markets
Fresh seafood can also be tracked down at the South Anchorage Farmers Market on Saturday.
Arctic Choice will have fresh Copper River king and sockeye salmon fillets, along with plenty of their other fresh seafood options: halibut fillets and cheeks, troll-caught king salmon fillets, sablefish fillets, cod fillets, rockfish fillets and side-stripe shrimp.
Some of the other vendors at the market this week include:
South Fork Jams and Jellies: A large variety of heirloom tomato plants will be available at the market, along with a growing expert to explain the needs of heirloom plants. Also available will be early jams and jellies.
Glacier Valley Farm: Hanging strawberry baskets and hanging tumbling tomato planters.
County Garden Farms: They will have 100 percent nugget Kentucky bluegrass sod in easy-to-handle 2-foot-by-5-foot rolls, ready for small or large landscaping projects. Customers can shop online at www.countrygardenfarms.com, call them at 344-2088 to reserve sod or pick it up at the market.
Bearsden Gardens: A large variety of herb plants, including: Genovese, lemon, cinnamon, Thai and globe basil; dill; parsley; cilantro; tarragon; spearmint; and peppermint; along with artichoke, pepper and tomato starts.
Gray Owl Farm: A huge variety of plants for baskets or planters, including exotics and hard to find elements.
Heart of the Mountain Organics: They will have lots of starts and items that can be used right away, including: red and green lettuces, arugula, herbs, Cherokee purple tomatoes, kale, collards, large pots of rhubarb and fresh herbs (thyme, oregano and chervil).
Matanuska Creamery: They will have cheese, cheese curds, ice cream and home-churned butter, including lemon butter.
The big news this week for the Center Market is a new location. While still in Midtown, the market is moving from University Center mall to the Mall at Sears. The market will set up at the corner of Benson Boulevard and Denali Street. According to market organizer Alex Davis, the new location may result in more vendors: "Our hours of operation will be the same, and it looks like we are going to pick up several new vendors due to the change."
Davis says Fat Boy Ribs plans to be at the new location Saturday. And marketgoers can plan on a hearty lunch. "We are hoping to introduce an Alaska burger with Alaska-grown beef and Matanuska Creamery cheese, all on a bun baked by French Oven Bakery. My mouth is watering just over the thought of it," Davis says.
Davis will have certified organic vegetable starts, including broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and lettuce, along with pork products, jams, goat cheese, and duck and chicken eggs. He also has a 73-pound barbecue pig available and he continues to take reservations on fall-butcher pigs.
Duane Clark will be at the market with grass-fed local beef, frozen Alaska seafood, French Oven Bakery products and information about locally constructed outdoor furniture. Clark says Matanuska Creamery and the Coffee Roastery will be joining the market this week.
The Anchorage Market and Festival has a new farm booth featuring products from the Whittier Community School. Market organizer Bill Webb says "the school kids have built and operate a hydroponic garden ... we were amazed at the quality and variety last weekend." The money raised at the booth goes back to the project and the school. The booth should have parsley, cilantro, spinach, kale, snap peas and green beans this weekend.
The Anchorage Farmers Market will have many of the same vendors as previous weeks, including Arctic Organics, Seldovitsch Family Farm, Persistent Farmer, Matanuska Creamery, Bushes Bunches, Alaska Community Action on Toxics, Turkey Red Cafe, Three Bears Farm, Matanuska Gardens, Arctic Sun Gardening and Floriponics.
Arctic Organics will have the season premiere of greens mix and wild arugula, along with fresh basil from the greenhouse. They also will have overwintered German butterball, yellow Finn and russet potatoes. They also will have plenty of vegetable and flower seedlings, along with tomato plants in gallon pots for $13.50, including Siberian types bred for growing outdoors and classic greenhouse varieties too.
The Spenard Farmers Market is highlighting garden starts and tree seedlings Saturday.
Many vendors will have Alaska-appropriate plant and vegetable starts. Additionally, the market is featuring TREErific Anchorage, a volunteer group with the goal to enrich the community through the planting, caring and promotion of trees. Volunteers will be handing out information about tree planting. There also will be an opportunity to purchase native tree seedlings, sponsored with the Society of American Foresters, with proceeds going toward scholarships for University of Alaska Forestry students.
A couple of vendors to look for this week include: Babbling Brook Farm with herb starts, organic vegetable starts, flowers and hanging baskets; and Haiku Heritage City Farm with baby chickens and organic plant starts.
Salad greens are getting easier to find at the local markets, so try this simple dressing.
Basil vinaigrette
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (about 1 cup packed leaves)
4 large shallots, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil
Whisk together the first seven ingredients in a small bowl until blended. Gradually add olive oil, whisking continually until blended.
Source: "Farmers Market Cookbook: A Fresh Look at Local Flavor" by Southern Living magazine (Oxmoor House, $29.95)
Steve Edwards lives and writes in Anchorage. If you have a suggestion for a future Market Fresh column, please contact him at sedwards@adn.com.
Local farmers markets
Today: Center Market, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street
Friday: Palmer Friday Fling, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Pavilion across from Visitor’s Center
Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 15th and Cordova in the Central Lutheran Church parking lot; Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Subway/Cellular One Sports Center at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O’Malley Road; Spenard Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Spenard Road and 26th Avenue
Sunday: Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets
For many, it means a chance to hook their own king salmon. For others, it's a time to fire up the grill. Those in the latter category should be happy that commercial fishermen are landing plenty of Copper River salmon.
Here are a couple reports:
Dannon Southall at 10th & M Seafoods: "Copper River is still the talk of the seafood world. Looks like fishing for sockeyes has been good to say the least over the past few openers. The fishermen have been catching a good number of sockeyes with a few kings mixed in."
John Jackson at New Sagaya Markets: "The initial news we are hearing from the opener yesterday that over a million pounds were caught on the reds out of the Copper River. This has brought down the pricing quite a bit and this will translate to good prices for our customers. ... Copper River kings have been another matter, catches have been low and pricing is staying steady, if you can find any. This brings up the fresh Alaskan troll kings as a great value, the fish have been getting bigger and the quality has been top notch and pricing is quite a bit lower than the Coppers."
There you have it -- get some fresh fish and get it on the grill.
Southall says 10th & M will have fresh headed and gutted Copper River sockeye salmon for $6.95 per pound, with the fillets at $9.95 per pound. Additionally, they will have Prince William Sound side-stripe shrimp for $9.95 per pound.
"There is no better way to celebrate this long weekend and the beginning of summer than by pairing these two amazing Alaska seafood products on your grill," he says.
The Copper River kings are $23.95 per pound for fillets. They also have troll kings from Southeast for $12.95 per pound for head-on fish and $16.95 per pound for the fillets. Other seafood options include fresh rockfish, cod and Dover sole fillets.
Jackson says New Sagaya also will have fresh Alaska ling cod in the store. Whole headed and gutted fish will be $4.99 per pound. "When it is fresh it is some of the best eating white fish in Alaska," he says.
Other seafood options at New Sagaya include cod ($5.99 per pound), side-stripe shrimp ($10.99 per pound) and fresh Southeast oysters.
Farmers markets
Fresh seafood can also be tracked down at the South Anchorage Farmers Market on Saturday.
Arctic Choice will have fresh Copper River king and sockeye salmon fillets, along with plenty of their other fresh seafood options: halibut fillets and cheeks, troll-caught king salmon fillets, sablefish fillets, cod fillets, rockfish fillets and side-stripe shrimp.
Some of the other vendors at the market this week include:
South Fork Jams and Jellies: A large variety of heirloom tomato plants will be available at the market, along with a growing expert to explain the needs of heirloom plants. Also available will be early jams and jellies.
Glacier Valley Farm: Hanging strawberry baskets and hanging tumbling tomato planters.
County Garden Farms: They will have 100 percent nugget Kentucky bluegrass sod in easy-to-handle 2-foot-by-5-foot rolls, ready for small or large landscaping projects. Customers can shop online at www.countrygardenfarms.com, call them at 344-2088 to reserve sod or pick it up at the market.
Bearsden Gardens: A large variety of herb plants, including: Genovese, lemon, cinnamon, Thai and globe basil; dill; parsley; cilantro; tarragon; spearmint; and peppermint; along with artichoke, pepper and tomato starts.
Gray Owl Farm: A huge variety of plants for baskets or planters, including exotics and hard to find elements.
Heart of the Mountain Organics: They will have lots of starts and items that can be used right away, including: red and green lettuces, arugula, herbs, Cherokee purple tomatoes, kale, collards, large pots of rhubarb and fresh herbs (thyme, oregano and chervil).
Matanuska Creamery: They will have cheese, cheese curds, ice cream and home-churned butter, including lemon butter.
The big news this week for the Center Market is a new location. While still in Midtown, the market is moving from University Center mall to the Mall at Sears. The market will set up at the corner of Benson Boulevard and Denali Street. According to market organizer Alex Davis, the new location may result in more vendors: "Our hours of operation will be the same, and it looks like we are going to pick up several new vendors due to the change."
Davis says Fat Boy Ribs plans to be at the new location Saturday. And marketgoers can plan on a hearty lunch. "We are hoping to introduce an Alaska burger with Alaska-grown beef and Matanuska Creamery cheese, all on a bun baked by French Oven Bakery. My mouth is watering just over the thought of it," Davis says.
Davis will have certified organic vegetable starts, including broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and lettuce, along with pork products, jams, goat cheese, and duck and chicken eggs. He also has a 73-pound barbecue pig available and he continues to take reservations on fall-butcher pigs.
Duane Clark will be at the market with grass-fed local beef, frozen Alaska seafood, French Oven Bakery products and information about locally constructed outdoor furniture. Clark says Matanuska Creamery and the Coffee Roastery will be joining the market this week.
The Anchorage Market and Festival has a new farm booth featuring products from the Whittier Community School. Market organizer Bill Webb says "the school kids have built and operate a hydroponic garden ... we were amazed at the quality and variety last weekend." The money raised at the booth goes back to the project and the school. The booth should have parsley, cilantro, spinach, kale, snap peas and green beans this weekend.
The Anchorage Farmers Market will have many of the same vendors as previous weeks, including Arctic Organics, Seldovitsch Family Farm, Persistent Farmer, Matanuska Creamery, Bushes Bunches, Alaska Community Action on Toxics, Turkey Red Cafe, Three Bears Farm, Matanuska Gardens, Arctic Sun Gardening and Floriponics.
Arctic Organics will have the season premiere of greens mix and wild arugula, along with fresh basil from the greenhouse. They also will have overwintered German butterball, yellow Finn and russet potatoes. They also will have plenty of vegetable and flower seedlings, along with tomato plants in gallon pots for $13.50, including Siberian types bred for growing outdoors and classic greenhouse varieties too.
The Spenard Farmers Market is highlighting garden starts and tree seedlings Saturday.
Many vendors will have Alaska-appropriate plant and vegetable starts. Additionally, the market is featuring TREErific Anchorage, a volunteer group with the goal to enrich the community through the planting, caring and promotion of trees. Volunteers will be handing out information about tree planting. There also will be an opportunity to purchase native tree seedlings, sponsored with the Society of American Foresters, with proceeds going toward scholarships for University of Alaska Forestry students.
A couple of vendors to look for this week include: Babbling Brook Farm with herb starts, organic vegetable starts, flowers and hanging baskets; and Haiku Heritage City Farm with baby chickens and organic plant starts.
Salad greens are getting easier to find at the local markets, so try this simple dressing.
Basil vinaigrette
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (about 1 cup packed leaves)
4 large shallots, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil
Whisk together the first seven ingredients in a small bowl until blended. Gradually add olive oil, whisking continually until blended.
Source: "Farmers Market Cookbook: A Fresh Look at Local Flavor" by Southern Living magazine (Oxmoor House, $29.95)
Steve Edwards lives and writes in Anchorage. If you have a suggestion for a future Market Fresh column, please contact him at sedwards@adn.com.
Local farmers markets
Today: Center Market, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street
Friday: Palmer Friday Fling, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Pavilion across from Visitor’s Center
Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 15th and Cordova in the Central Lutheran Church parking lot; Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mall at Sears, Benson Boulevard and Denali Street; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Subway/Cellular One Sports Center at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O’Malley Road; Spenard Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Spenard Road and 26th Avenue
Sunday: Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets
Monday, May 23, 2011
Today's oil, gas, gold, zinc prices
North Slope oil: $109.50 per barrel, down $2.24
U.S. natural gas (Henry Hub): $4.29 per million BTU, up $0.24
Gold (N.Y. Mercantile): $1,515.30 per ounce, up $6.50
Zinc: $0.9692 per pound, down 0.46 cents
U.S. natural gas (Henry Hub): $4.29 per million BTU, up $0.24
Gold (N.Y. Mercantile): $1,515.30 per ounce, up $6.50
Zinc: $0.9692 per pound, down 0.46 cents
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Fishermen make strong showing in Copper River opener
VALDEZ -- The Alaska Department of Fish and Game says the Copper River salmon catch is off to a strong start.
KCHU-radio in Valdez reports 105,300 sockeyes were caught during the first 12 hours of fishing Monday. The department had projected a catch of 41,000 sockeyes.
Commercial fishermen also report catching 1,700 king salmon and 6,000 chum salmon during the 12-hour opener.
The price of Copper River sockeye has been running at about $4 per pound and kings are fetching at least $6.50 per pound, with chums garnering at least 20 cents per pound.
The next opener is scheduled for 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday.
KCHU-radio in Valdez reports 105,300 sockeyes were caught during the first 12 hours of fishing Monday. The department had projected a catch of 41,000 sockeyes.
Commercial fishermen also report catching 1,700 king salmon and 6,000 chum salmon during the 12-hour opener.
The price of Copper River sockeye has been running at about $4 per pound and kings are fetching at least $6.50 per pound, with chums garnering at least 20 cents per pound.
The next opener is scheduled for 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday.
Man cited after shooting, wounding pregnant musk ox
A Western Alaska man repeatedly shot a musk ox in the head with a small-caliber rifle last month and left the animal wounded, according to Alaska Wildlife Troopers who charged the man with a pair of misdemeanors on Tuesday.
The shooting occurred April 11 just outside the Kuskokwim Bay village of Kwigillingok. At the request of a public safety officer, another villager killed the animal.
The musk ox later turned out to be pregnant, troopers said.
"It's doubly tragic," said wildlife trooper Michael Cresswell, by phone from Bethel. "It's really two musk ox that were killed."
Kwigillingok resident Jonathan Friend, 27, faces two misdemeanors: hunting in a closed area and using an illegal method, troopers said.
The bullets from Friend's gun -- a .22-caliber rifle -- were too small to legally hunt musk ox, Cresswell said.
Some villagers on snowmachines were watching and taking pictures of two groups of musk ox when Friend opened fire, Cresswell said.
"There was a large amount of blood, and (the animal) went to the ground and didn't die. But it didn't get back up," Cresswell said.
Three days later, Cresswell and a wildlife biologist performed a necropsy on the animal and found an unborn musk ox inside.
"It was about five days from being born," Cresswell said.
The musk ox meat was donated to charity, troopers said.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
The shooting occurred April 11 just outside the Kuskokwim Bay village of Kwigillingok. At the request of a public safety officer, another villager killed the animal.
The musk ox later turned out to be pregnant, troopers said.
"It's doubly tragic," said wildlife trooper Michael Cresswell, by phone from Bethel. "It's really two musk ox that were killed."
Kwigillingok resident Jonathan Friend, 27, faces two misdemeanors: hunting in a closed area and using an illegal method, troopers said.
The bullets from Friend's gun -- a .22-caliber rifle -- were too small to legally hunt musk ox, Cresswell said.
Some villagers on snowmachines were watching and taking pictures of two groups of musk ox when Friend opened fire, Cresswell said.
"There was a large amount of blood, and (the animal) went to the ground and didn't die. But it didn't get back up," Cresswell said.
Three days later, Cresswell and a wildlife biologist performed a necropsy on the animal and found an unborn musk ox inside.
"It was about five days from being born," Cresswell said.
The musk ox meat was donated to charity, troopers said.
Reach Casey Grove at casey.grove@adn.com or 257-4589.
Clam diggers who died were from Calif., Oregon, company says
All five men killed in a boating accident in Cook Inlet this week are from outside of Alaska, and the seafood company they worked for is still trying to determine how they died, the company president says.
The men were aboard a 20-foot skiff that was first reported missing Tuesday afternoon. Co-workers soon found a body washed ashore. By 11 a.m. Wednesday, all five members of the group had been found dead in the area of a commercial clamming camp on the west side of the inlet.
Three of the men were from Oregon and two were from California, said Frank Dulcich, president and chief executive for Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group.
Pacific Seafood is the parent company of Pacific Alaska Shellfish, which runs a Nikiski processing plant that prepares the razor clams for market. The five dead men worked as contractors for the seafood company.
Dulcich declined to name the men “out of respect for the families,” he said. State troopers also had not publicly identified the men as of this morning, pending notification of their next of kin.
Dulcich, however, said a company representative has met with each man’s family to offer condolences and assistance.
The company declined to name the men’s hometowns.
It was also unclear if all five men are United States citizens.
“To my knowledge, three are and two have work permits,” Dulcich said.
“As of this time we believe that they had work visa permits. That’s our understanding right now. That’s still part of the whole discovery of what and who,” he said.
The clam diggers were paid by the pound for razor clams they dug by hand from a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island. It’s back-breaking work with beautiful scenery, one employee wrote in 2010. Last year, diggers were paid about 60 cents a pound for harvested clams, a state biologist said.
Workers at the Polly Creek camp regularly use rafts to access the shore and transport clams.
Asked what safety policies the firm has in place to avoid boating accidents, Dulcich said the workers are supplied with life vests, flares and whistles.
Three of the dead men were discovered wearing life vests, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Two were not.
The seafood company provides water-safety training, Dulcich said. He didn’t know if the men on the skiff had received that training. That would have been the responsibility of the contractor who hired them, he said.
“We’ve never had a fatality around the water over 70 years in business and that’s why all this is very disconcerting,” Dulcich said.
The workers had varying levels of experience — one had worked for the clamming operation for nine years, while another may have been working his first or second year at the camp, Dulcich said.
The company president talked with reporters at a news conference in Oregon Thursday and in a brief phone interview with the Daily News.
Of the 25 people who hold commercial razor clam fishing permits with the state, 10 are from Oregon, eight are from California and six are from Washington state, according to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission. The sole Alaskan lists a Soldotna address.
Dulcich declined to comment on how exactly the accident may have occurred.
“Right now, we don’t know what caused this tragedy and until we have the facts, it would be irresponsible to speculate,” he told reporters in Oregon, according to a copy of the remarks.
The Coast Guard and troopers are investigating the cause of the accident, said Coast Guard Petty Officer David Mosley.
Meantime, the aluminum skiff reappeared Wednesday on the mudflats as tides receded, he said. Read The Village, the ADN's blog about rural Alaska, at adn.com/thevillage. Twitter updates: twitter.com/adnvillage. Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334.
The men were aboard a 20-foot skiff that was first reported missing Tuesday afternoon. Co-workers soon found a body washed ashore. By 11 a.m. Wednesday, all five members of the group had been found dead in the area of a commercial clamming camp on the west side of the inlet.
Three of the men were from Oregon and two were from California, said Frank Dulcich, president and chief executive for Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group.
Pacific Seafood is the parent company of Pacific Alaska Shellfish, which runs a Nikiski processing plant that prepares the razor clams for market. The five dead men worked as contractors for the seafood company.
Dulcich declined to name the men “out of respect for the families,” he said. State troopers also had not publicly identified the men as of this morning, pending notification of their next of kin.
Dulcich, however, said a company representative has met with each man’s family to offer condolences and assistance.
The company declined to name the men’s hometowns.
It was also unclear if all five men are United States citizens.
“To my knowledge, three are and two have work permits,” Dulcich said.
“As of this time we believe that they had work visa permits. That’s our understanding right now. That’s still part of the whole discovery of what and who,” he said.
The clam diggers were paid by the pound for razor clams they dug by hand from a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island. It’s back-breaking work with beautiful scenery, one employee wrote in 2010. Last year, diggers were paid about 60 cents a pound for harvested clams, a state biologist said.
Workers at the Polly Creek camp regularly use rafts to access the shore and transport clams.
Asked what safety policies the firm has in place to avoid boating accidents, Dulcich said the workers are supplied with life vests, flares and whistles.
Three of the dead men were discovered wearing life vests, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Two were not.
The seafood company provides water-safety training, Dulcich said. He didn’t know if the men on the skiff had received that training. That would have been the responsibility of the contractor who hired them, he said.
“We’ve never had a fatality around the water over 70 years in business and that’s why all this is very disconcerting,” Dulcich said.
The workers had varying levels of experience — one had worked for the clamming operation for nine years, while another may have been working his first or second year at the camp, Dulcich said.
The company president talked with reporters at a news conference in Oregon Thursday and in a brief phone interview with the Daily News.
Of the 25 people who hold commercial razor clam fishing permits with the state, 10 are from Oregon, eight are from California and six are from Washington state, according to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission. The sole Alaskan lists a Soldotna address.
Dulcich declined to comment on how exactly the accident may have occurred.
“Right now, we don’t know what caused this tragedy and until we have the facts, it would be irresponsible to speculate,” he told reporters in Oregon, according to a copy of the remarks.
The Coast Guard and troopers are investigating the cause of the accident, said Coast Guard Petty Officer David Mosley.
Meantime, the aluminum skiff reappeared Wednesday on the mudflats as tides receded, he said. Read The Village, the ADN's blog about rural Alaska, at adn.com/thevillage. Twitter updates: twitter.com/adnvillage. Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334.
Five clam harvesters perish in Cook Inlet SKIFF VANISHES: Seasonal workers arrived at camp last week.
The U.S. Coast Guard found the bodies of two missing clam diggers Wednesday near a beach on the west side of Cook Inlet, raising the death toll to five after a commercial clamming skiff disappeared.
The men had arrived last week at a nearby camp where they are paid by the pound for digging razor clams along a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island. The job is back-breaking work performed against a beautiful backdrop, one employee wrote, and is the only clamming operation of its kind on Cook Inlet, according to a state biologist.
A plant manager for Pacific Alaska Shellfish reported the crew's 20-foot aluminum skiff overdue at 3:46 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Coast Guard.
Co-workers found the body of one of the clam diggers washed ashore, the Coast Guard said. Searchers in a helicopter soon spotted two more bodies in the water, about a mile from the beach at Polly Creek, across the Inlet from the Kenai Peninsula.
Four Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters took turns blanketing the shoreline and Inlet overnight in search of the remaining men, with the last two bodies discovered around 11 a.m.
The three men discovered Tuesday were wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard said. The two men found Wednesday, less than a mile away, were not.
Coast Guard and company officials had not publicly identified the five dead men as of Wednesday evening.
"They were using the skiffs to move people around -- as well the clams that they would dig up. ... It was reported that they were going from the Polly Creek area back to the camp when they did not arrive," Petty Officer David Mosley said.
The razor clams are harvested with shovels and buckets between Polly Creek and Crescent River, according to the company website. The clam diggers had been at the camp -- reachable by plane or boat -- since May 12, according to a company spokesman. There were 23 people at the camp before the accident, a spokesman said.
The state manages the commercial clamming operation with a harvest goal of fewer than 400,000 pounds of razor clams in the shell each year, said Pat Shields, a state assistant area management biologist for Fish and Game's commercial fisheries division.
Many of the workers are from out of state, he said. The plant manager has told them many come from California, he said. "They stay in tents and they dig the clams from about mid-May to about mid-August."
When tides allow, the clam diggers walk to the beaches or take a skiff or raft to harvest clams, returning to camp when their buckets are full, said acting spokesman Jason Moore of public relations firm MSI Communications.
Individual workers can harvest about 200 to 250 pounds a day, Shields said. "Some even more." He said he didn't how much the workers made. "The last time I looked (sometime last year) it was about 62 cents a pound."
The eastern shore of Cook Inlet has been set aside for sport harvest of razor clams, with the only commercial digging approved for the western shore, where virtually all of up to 400,000 pounds allowed each year are dug by hand, according to Fish and Game.
Nearly 380,000 pounds of razor clams were harvested on Upper Cook Inlet in 2010, the agency says. Much of it goes to restaurant markets in the Lower 48, Shields said.
An eight-page newsletter titled "Razor Review," provided by the company, describes the Polly Creek operation.
"Each man is paid for what he digs. Two to four guys share a raft. The raft brings out the empty buckets and is filled with a tide's worth of razors," the report says. "The scenery is hard to beat."
Pacific Alaska Shellfish, a subsidiary of Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group, flies the clams in a small plane from the camp to a seasonal processing plant in Nikiski, where they are shucked, cleaned and vacuum-packed for sale, according to the company website.
A company-owned plane makes several trips a day, Shields said, and workers dig as many as 22 days a month as tides allow.
The packaged clams are sold in Alaska, Washington and Oregon, Moore said.
Pacific Seafood chief executive Frank Dulcich was traveling Wednesday and unavailable for comment, Moore said.
In a prepared statement distributed to media and posted on the Pacific Seafood website, Dulcich said the company is heartbroken by the accident.
"This is the most tragic event in the history of our company. These hard-working and experienced individuals have contracted with our company for many years and are considered close friends and family," Dulcich said.
The crew members killed in the accident are supervised by a longtime contractor for Pacific Alaska Shellfish, the company said. That supervisor was not on board the skiff, Moore said.
"They're not direct employees of the company and so what happens is these guys sort of set their (hours) on when they're going to fish and when they're not going to fish," he said.
The company "will do everything within our power to comfort the family members ... and learn the facts behind this terrible tragedy," Dulcich said in a prepared statement.
The clam diggers held licenses and permit from the state Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Fish and Game, the company said.
The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers are investigating to determine the cause of the accident.
The men had arrived last week at a nearby camp where they are paid by the pound for digging razor clams along a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island. The job is back-breaking work performed against a beautiful backdrop, one employee wrote, and is the only clamming operation of its kind on Cook Inlet, according to a state biologist.
A plant manager for Pacific Alaska Shellfish reported the crew's 20-foot aluminum skiff overdue at 3:46 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Coast Guard.
Co-workers found the body of one of the clam diggers washed ashore, the Coast Guard said. Searchers in a helicopter soon spotted two more bodies in the water, about a mile from the beach at Polly Creek, across the Inlet from the Kenai Peninsula.
Four Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters took turns blanketing the shoreline and Inlet overnight in search of the remaining men, with the last two bodies discovered around 11 a.m.
The three men discovered Tuesday were wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard said. The two men found Wednesday, less than a mile away, were not.
Coast Guard and company officials had not publicly identified the five dead men as of Wednesday evening.
"They were using the skiffs to move people around -- as well the clams that they would dig up. ... It was reported that they were going from the Polly Creek area back to the camp when they did not arrive," Petty Officer David Mosley said.
The razor clams are harvested with shovels and buckets between Polly Creek and Crescent River, according to the company website. The clam diggers had been at the camp -- reachable by plane or boat -- since May 12, according to a company spokesman. There were 23 people at the camp before the accident, a spokesman said.
The state manages the commercial clamming operation with a harvest goal of fewer than 400,000 pounds of razor clams in the shell each year, said Pat Shields, a state assistant area management biologist for Fish and Game's commercial fisheries division.
Many of the workers are from out of state, he said. The plant manager has told them many come from California, he said. "They stay in tents and they dig the clams from about mid-May to about mid-August."
When tides allow, the clam diggers walk to the beaches or take a skiff or raft to harvest clams, returning to camp when their buckets are full, said acting spokesman Jason Moore of public relations firm MSI Communications.
Individual workers can harvest about 200 to 250 pounds a day, Shields said. "Some even more." He said he didn't how much the workers made. "The last time I looked (sometime last year) it was about 62 cents a pound."
The eastern shore of Cook Inlet has been set aside for sport harvest of razor clams, with the only commercial digging approved for the western shore, where virtually all of up to 400,000 pounds allowed each year are dug by hand, according to Fish and Game.
Nearly 380,000 pounds of razor clams were harvested on Upper Cook Inlet in 2010, the agency says. Much of it goes to restaurant markets in the Lower 48, Shields said.
An eight-page newsletter titled "Razor Review," provided by the company, describes the Polly Creek operation.
"Each man is paid for what he digs. Two to four guys share a raft. The raft brings out the empty buckets and is filled with a tide's worth of razors," the report says. "The scenery is hard to beat."
Pacific Alaska Shellfish, a subsidiary of Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group, flies the clams in a small plane from the camp to a seasonal processing plant in Nikiski, where they are shucked, cleaned and vacuum-packed for sale, according to the company website.
A company-owned plane makes several trips a day, Shields said, and workers dig as many as 22 days a month as tides allow.
The packaged clams are sold in Alaska, Washington and Oregon, Moore said.
Pacific Seafood chief executive Frank Dulcich was traveling Wednesday and unavailable for comment, Moore said.
In a prepared statement distributed to media and posted on the Pacific Seafood website, Dulcich said the company is heartbroken by the accident.
"This is the most tragic event in the history of our company. These hard-working and experienced individuals have contracted with our company for many years and are considered close friends and family," Dulcich said.
The crew members killed in the accident are supervised by a longtime contractor for Pacific Alaska Shellfish, the company said. That supervisor was not on board the skiff, Moore said.
"They're not direct employees of the company and so what happens is these guys sort of set their (hours) on when they're going to fish and when they're not going to fish," he said.
The company "will do everything within our power to comfort the family members ... and learn the facts behind this terrible tragedy," Dulcich said in a prepared statement.
The clam diggers held licenses and permit from the state Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Fish and Game, the company said.
The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers are investigating to determine the cause of the accident.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Today's oil, gas, gold, zinc prices
North Slope oil: Not yet available
U.S. natural gas (Henry Hub): $4.15 per million BTU, down $0.10
Gold (N.Y. Mercantile): $1,495.60 per ounce, up $15.80 Zinc: $0.9602 per pound, up 0.84 cents
U.S. natural gas (Henry Hub): $4.15 per million BTU, down $0.10
Gold (N.Y. Mercantile): $1,495.60 per ounce, up $15.80 Zinc: $0.9602 per pound, up 0.84 cents
Kelly Cup series at 2-1 as K-Wings down Aces 4-1
KALAMAZOO, MICH.: Kalamazoo scored twice in the third period for a 4-1 win Wednesday.
After one period in game 3 of the ECHL Championship series, the Alaska Aces and Kalamazoo Wings are knotted-up at 1-1.
The K-Wings struck first with a goal from Mitch Versteeg. The Aces' Dan Kissel tied it up with a goal near the end of the first period.
Kalamazoo's Andrew Fournier scored in the second period to give the K-Wings a 2-1 lead. Check back for more score updates.
After one period in game 3 of the ECHL Championship series, the Alaska Aces and Kalamazoo Wings are knotted-up at 1-1.
The K-Wings struck first with a goal from Mitch Versteeg. The Aces' Dan Kissel tied it up with a goal near the end of the first period.
Kalamazoo's Andrew Fournier scored in the second period to give the K-Wings a 2-1 lead. Check back for more score updates.
State capital budget targets $500 million for Anchorage
Anchorage came out well in the Legislature's capital budget, with about $500 million in state and federal money designated to be spent in the city, Mayor Dan Sullivan said Wednesday.
That counts money for municipal projects as well as the university, school district, state construction and grants to specific organizations. It includes about $350 million in state money and $150 million in federal money. The projects range from $37.5 million for the beleaguered Port of Anchorage expansion to around $20,000 for a Mountain View Elementary School technology upgrade.
Sullivan said the city's priorities -- for example, the port money, and nearly $10 million for renovations to city buildings such as the library, Sullivan Arena, museum and Alaska Center for the Performing Arts -- were covered.
Moreover, Sullivan said he had talked to Gov. Sean Parnell Wednesday, and the governor assured him he supports the $10 million for city buildings.
The Legislature passed a huge capital budget, nearly $4 billion statewide, much more than Parnell has said he would accept. He has said he'd support a capital budget of about $2.8 billion. The governor gets 20 days to decide on vetoes, after the Legislature formally sends the budget to him.
Sullivan said the city will help the governor's office sort through Anchorage projects, for example, by figuring out which road projects are ready to go this year and which can wait.
One of Sullivan's priorities that didn't get through was $4 million to develop the South Anchorage Sports Park at C Street and Klatt Road. Sullivan said the project changed when the city learned the park had too much peat to support a building he had envisioned. He still wants to put in a water system for ball parks, and build a fenced dog park, among other amenities. "I think we can make a better case next year."
Here's a sampling of projects the Legislature funded in Anchorage, in addition to the port work and city building renovations:
• $34 million for a new University of Alaska Anchorage sports arena.
• $20 million in state funds to the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium for a long-term care facility in Anchorage.
• $8 million to expand the Blood Bank of Alaska.
• $6 million for pavement rehabilitation on Anchorage streets.
• $5 million for drainage projects.
• $4.2 million to upgrade the Chugiak-Eagle River Senior Center.
• $3.6 million to continue reconstruction of Ninth Avenue.
• $3 million for a Cook Inlet Tribal Council demonstration project.
• $3 million for a Covenant House Alaska facility.
• $3 million to help renovate West Anchorage High School and Romig Middle School, plus about another half-million dollars for furniture, technology and the like at West.
• $2 million to the Dimond High School Alumni Projects, Inc., to replace the Dimond track.
• $1.5 million for a law enforcement shooting range and $1.4 million for digital video recorders in Anchorage police cars.
• $1.5 million for Muldoon Community Park.
• $715,000 to expand the often over-filled Glen Alps trail head, used to get to Flattop and other areas of Chugach State Park.
Reach Rosemary Shinohara at rshinohara@adn.com or 257-4340.
That counts money for municipal projects as well as the university, school district, state construction and grants to specific organizations. It includes about $350 million in state money and $150 million in federal money. The projects range from $37.5 million for the beleaguered Port of Anchorage expansion to around $20,000 for a Mountain View Elementary School technology upgrade.
Sullivan said the city's priorities -- for example, the port money, and nearly $10 million for renovations to city buildings such as the library, Sullivan Arena, museum and Alaska Center for the Performing Arts -- were covered.
Moreover, Sullivan said he had talked to Gov. Sean Parnell Wednesday, and the governor assured him he supports the $10 million for city buildings.
The Legislature passed a huge capital budget, nearly $4 billion statewide, much more than Parnell has said he would accept. He has said he'd support a capital budget of about $2.8 billion. The governor gets 20 days to decide on vetoes, after the Legislature formally sends the budget to him.
Sullivan said the city will help the governor's office sort through Anchorage projects, for example, by figuring out which road projects are ready to go this year and which can wait.
One of Sullivan's priorities that didn't get through was $4 million to develop the South Anchorage Sports Park at C Street and Klatt Road. Sullivan said the project changed when the city learned the park had too much peat to support a building he had envisioned. He still wants to put in a water system for ball parks, and build a fenced dog park, among other amenities. "I think we can make a better case next year."
Here's a sampling of projects the Legislature funded in Anchorage, in addition to the port work and city building renovations:
• $34 million for a new University of Alaska Anchorage sports arena.
• $20 million in state funds to the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium for a long-term care facility in Anchorage.
• $8 million to expand the Blood Bank of Alaska.
• $6 million for pavement rehabilitation on Anchorage streets.
• $5 million for drainage projects.
• $4.2 million to upgrade the Chugiak-Eagle River Senior Center.
• $3.6 million to continue reconstruction of Ninth Avenue.
• $3 million for a Cook Inlet Tribal Council demonstration project.
• $3 million for a Covenant House Alaska facility.
• $3 million to help renovate West Anchorage High School and Romig Middle School, plus about another half-million dollars for furniture, technology and the like at West.
• $2 million to the Dimond High School Alumni Projects, Inc., to replace the Dimond track.
• $1.5 million for a law enforcement shooting range and $1.4 million for digital video recorders in Anchorage police cars.
• $1.5 million for Muldoon Community Park.
• $715,000 to expand the often over-filled Glen Alps trail head, used to get to Flattop and other areas of Chugach State Park.
Reach Rosemary Shinohara at rshinohara@adn.com or 257-4340.
Bodies of 2 missing clammers found
The U.S. Coast Guard found the bodies of two missing clam diggers today near a Cook Inlet beach, raising the death toll to five after a commercial clamming skiff disappeared Tuesday.
The men had arrived less than a week earlier at a nearby camp where they are paid by the pound for digging razor clams along a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island.
A plant manager for Pacific Alaska Shellfish reported the crew's 20-foot aluminum skiff overdue at 3:46 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Coast Guard. Co-workers had found the body of one of the clam diggers washed ashore, the Coast Guard said.
A helicopter soon spotted two more bodies in the water, about a mile from the beach at Polly Creek, on the western shore of the inlet.
Four Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters took turns blanketing 800 square miles of the shoreline and inlet overnight in search of the remaining men, with the last two bodies discovered at 11 a.m.
The three men discovered Tuesday were wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard said. The two men found today, less than a mile away, were not.
Coast Guard and company officials had not publicly identified the five dead men as of this afternoon.
"They were using the skiffs to move people around -- as well the clams that they would dig up. ... It was reported that they were going from the Polly Creek area back to the camp when they did not arrive," Petty Officer David Mosley said.
The razor clams are harvested with shovels and buckets between Polly Creek and Crescent River, according to the company website. The area is only accessible between May and August, the website says.
The clam diggers had been at the camp -- which can only be reached by plane or boat -- since May 12, according to a spokesman for the company. There were 23 people at the camp before the accident, a spokesman said.
When the tides allow, the clam diggers walk to the beaches or take a skiff or raft to harvest clams. When their buckets are full, they walk or boat back to camp, said Jason Moore, of Marketing Solutions Inc., an acting spokesman for the company.
The job is back-breaking work in a beautiful setting, according to an eight-page report titled "Razor Review," provided by the company, that describes the Polly Creek operation.
"Each man is paid for what he digs. Two to four guys share a raft. The raft brings out the empty buckets and is filled with a tide's worth of razors," the report says. "The scenery is hard to beat."
Pacific Alaska Shellfish, a subsidiary of Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group, flies the clams in a small plane from the camp to a seasonal Nikiski processing plant where they are shucked, cleaned and vacuum-packed for sale, according to the company website.
Nikiski is about nine miles north of Kenai. The packaged clams are sold in Alaska, Washington and Oregon, Moore said.
Pacific Seafood chief executive Frank Dulcich was traveling Wednesday and unavailable for comment, Moore said.
In a prepared statement distributed to media and posted on the Pacific Seafood website, Dulcich said the company is heartbroken by the accident.
"This is the most tragic event in the history of our company. These hard-working and experienced individuals have contracted with our company for many years and are considered close friends and family," Dulcich said.
The crew members killed in the accident are supervised by a longtime contractor for Pacific Alaska Shellfish, the company said. That supervisor was not on board the skiff, Moore said.
"They're not direct employees of the company and so what happens is these guys sort of set their (hours) on when they're going to fish and when they're not going to fish," he said.
The company "will do everything within our power to comfort the family members, support ongoing search and rescue operations and learn the facts behind this terrible tragedy," Dulcich said in a prepared statement.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the deceased, the missing and their families," he said.
The missing aluminum skiff was owned by the seafood company, according to the Coast Guard.
The clam diggers held licenses and permit from the state Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Fish and Game, the company said.
The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers are investigating to determine the cause of the accident.
Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334 or e-mail khopkins@adn.com.
The men had arrived less than a week earlier at a nearby camp where they are paid by the pound for digging razor clams along a six-mile stretch of shore southwest of Kalgin Island.
A plant manager for Pacific Alaska Shellfish reported the crew's 20-foot aluminum skiff overdue at 3:46 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Coast Guard. Co-workers had found the body of one of the clam diggers washed ashore, the Coast Guard said.
A helicopter soon spotted two more bodies in the water, about a mile from the beach at Polly Creek, on the western shore of the inlet.
Four Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters took turns blanketing 800 square miles of the shoreline and inlet overnight in search of the remaining men, with the last two bodies discovered at 11 a.m.
The three men discovered Tuesday were wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard said. The two men found today, less than a mile away, were not.
Coast Guard and company officials had not publicly identified the five dead men as of this afternoon.
"They were using the skiffs to move people around -- as well the clams that they would dig up. ... It was reported that they were going from the Polly Creek area back to the camp when they did not arrive," Petty Officer David Mosley said.
The razor clams are harvested with shovels and buckets between Polly Creek and Crescent River, according to the company website. The area is only accessible between May and August, the website says.
The clam diggers had been at the camp -- which can only be reached by plane or boat -- since May 12, according to a spokesman for the company. There were 23 people at the camp before the accident, a spokesman said.
When the tides allow, the clam diggers walk to the beaches or take a skiff or raft to harvest clams. When their buckets are full, they walk or boat back to camp, said Jason Moore, of Marketing Solutions Inc., an acting spokesman for the company.
The job is back-breaking work in a beautiful setting, according to an eight-page report titled "Razor Review," provided by the company, that describes the Polly Creek operation.
"Each man is paid for what he digs. Two to four guys share a raft. The raft brings out the empty buckets and is filled with a tide's worth of razors," the report says. "The scenery is hard to beat."
Pacific Alaska Shellfish, a subsidiary of Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group, flies the clams in a small plane from the camp to a seasonal Nikiski processing plant where they are shucked, cleaned and vacuum-packed for sale, according to the company website.
Nikiski is about nine miles north of Kenai. The packaged clams are sold in Alaska, Washington and Oregon, Moore said.
Pacific Seafood chief executive Frank Dulcich was traveling Wednesday and unavailable for comment, Moore said.
In a prepared statement distributed to media and posted on the Pacific Seafood website, Dulcich said the company is heartbroken by the accident.
"This is the most tragic event in the history of our company. These hard-working and experienced individuals have contracted with our company for many years and are considered close friends and family," Dulcich said.
The crew members killed in the accident are supervised by a longtime contractor for Pacific Alaska Shellfish, the company said. That supervisor was not on board the skiff, Moore said.
"They're not direct employees of the company and so what happens is these guys sort of set their (hours) on when they're going to fish and when they're not going to fish," he said.
The company "will do everything within our power to comfort the family members, support ongoing search and rescue operations and learn the facts behind this terrible tragedy," Dulcich said in a prepared statement.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the deceased, the missing and their families," he said.
The missing aluminum skiff was owned by the seafood company, according to the Coast Guard.
The clam diggers held licenses and permit from the state Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Fish and Game, the company said.
The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers are investigating to determine the cause of the accident.
Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334 or e-mail khopkins@adn.com.
Copper River salmon should arrive soon IN STORES: Fish could be at 10th & M Seafoods and New Sagaya markets today.
When the salmon start returning to the Copper River, you know it's a good week. Throw in an extra local farmers market opening up, and it gets even better.
The Copper River salmon fishery opened Monday and both John Jackson at New Sagaya Markets and Dannon Southall from 10th & M Seafoods say fish should be in the stores by today. (While fresh salmon needs no adornment, check out the recipe at the end of the story for a new twist.)
"Sounds like fishing was good yesterday with a fair amount of fish hitting the docks," Southall says. "The fishermen were able to get a good number of sockeyes with a few kings mixed in with them."
Both New Sagaya and 10th & M should have both sockeye and kings in the store today.
Jackson says the kings aren't coming on as strong as the sockeyes: "Kings are starting out slow again and availability is very limited, but the season is just starting so we will see what happens this year."
While the first of the year Copper River salmon are getting plenty of attention, Southall reminds shoppers to not forget the "other amazing Alaskan seafood available too." That includes: fresh halibut for $19.95 per pound for fillets and $18.95/pound for cheeks; fresh Prince William Sound spot shrimp for $16.95/pound and side-stripes for $10.95/pound; Gulf of Alaska we have fresh cod and rockfish fillets going for $5.95/pound and $8.95/pound respectively. Another salmon option is Southeast troll-caught kings for $14.95/pound for head-on fish and $18.95/pound for fillets.
While everyone is excited about fresh salmon, Jackson reminds shoppers that other options are plentiful. "The halibut is looking good this season, a lot of small fish, but great eating and easy to work with," he says. New Sagaya has fresh halibut in 10- to 20-pound sizes for $8.99/pound. They also have cod, rockfish and side-stripe shrimp. And they also have a supply of fish from other waters: cherrystone clams, squid, scallops, scups, and fresh big eye and yellow fin tuna from Hawaii.
Farmers markets
The Spenard Farmers Market joins the roundup Saturday, expecting a full market of 40 vendors along with live music.
Spokesperson Shannon Kuhn says the market will feature plenty of plant starts and fresh seafood, while Back Acres will be playing. Among the vendors will be Northern Lights Oysters and Chugach Farm, an off-the-grid homestead farm from Chickaloon with gluten free bread and homemade pestos.
Part of Saturday's kickoff celebration is a birthday bash for Joe Spenard. Special items will include Alaska grown carrot cupcakes and party favors from local Spenard businesses like Bella Boutique, Bear Tooth and Spenard Road House. Marketgoers will have a chance to win party favors.
The Spenard Market will be accepting food stamp Quest cards, one of just two markets in the state doing so during the summer market season.
For more information, visit www.spenardfarmersmarket.org.
There will be plenty going on the south side of town at the South Anchorage Farmers Market. Nancy Lampman says they will have loads of vendors and two special events: the Northrim Purple Plant contest and a Glacier Pilots booth with information and ticket packages for sale.
Among the vendors are plenty offering plant starts, including:
Glacier Valley Farm: Hanging strawberry baskets and hanging Tumbling Tomato planters.
Bearsden Gardens: Loads of herbs including Genovese, lemon, cinnamon, Thai, and globe basil; dill; parsley; cilantro; and tarragon; tomato starts; hanging baskets; and of perennial and annual flowers.
Mountain Organics: Vegetable and herb starter plants, including cilantro, lettuces and arugula. Joining the booth this week is Ellie VandeVisse of the Good Earth Gardening school and author of "Ask Mother Nature."
Gray Owl Farm: Plenty of component plants for filling in planters or boxes, along with hanging baskets and edible and aromatic "gourmet" geraniums. They also will perennials, including several varieties of ornamental grasses.
Other non-plant vendors include: Denali Kettle Corn with multiple varieties, including Parmesan and garlic, and English toffee; Arctic Choice with plenty of seafood including fresh halibut, troll-caught king salmon, sablefish fillets, side-stripe shrimp, cod and rockfish; Matanuska Creamery with cheese curds and other items; French Oven Bakery items including whole wheat cinnamon rolls; and Mat Valley Meats with a variety of meats and sausages.
At the Anchorage Farmers Market, about 10 vendors will gather, including: Arctic Organics, Seldovitsch Family Farm, Persistent Farmer, Matanuska Creamery, Bushes Bunches, Turkey Red Cafe, Three Bears Farm, Matanuska Gardens, Arctic Sun Gardening and Floriponics. Among the items available will be plant starts, hanging baskets, tomato plants, a few early greens, 2010 potatoes, local dairy products and fresh rustic breads.
The Center Market is open today and Saturday.
Duane Clark will be at the market with local beef, frozen Alaska seafood, local honey, popcorn and French Oven Bakery breads and sweets. Alex Davis of A.D. Farm will have plenty of pork cuts, including chops, roasts, steaks and sausage; chicken and duck eggs; jams; and storage parsnips.
Salmon with
maple-lemon glaze
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon canola oil
4 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
Preheat broiler.
Combine first four ingredients in a large zip-top bag. Add fish to bag; seal. Refrigerate 10 minutes, turning bag once.
Remove fish from bag, reserving marinade. Place marinade in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute.
Heat a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle fish evenly with salt and pepper. Coat fry pan with cooking spray. Add fish to pan; cook 3 minutes. Turn fish over. Brush marinade evenly over fish. Broil 3 minutes, or until fish flakes easily.
Yield: 4 servings.
Note: 287 calories, 14 g fat.
Source: "Mix and Match Low-Calorie Cookbook: 1,500 Calories a Day" by Cooking Light magazine (Oxmoor House, $24.95)
Steve Edwards lives and writes in Anchorage. If you have a suggestion for a future Market Fresh column, please contact him at sedwards@adn.com.
Local farmers markets
Today: Center Market, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., University Center mall
Friday: Palmer Friday Fling, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Pavilion across from Visitor’s Center
Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 10 a.m to 2 p.m. at 15th and Cordova in the Central Lutheran Church parking lot; Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., University Center mall; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Subway/Cellular One Sports Center at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O’Malley Road; Spenard Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Spenard Road and 26th Avenue
Sunday: Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets
The Copper River salmon fishery opened Monday and both John Jackson at New Sagaya Markets and Dannon Southall from 10th & M Seafoods say fish should be in the stores by today. (While fresh salmon needs no adornment, check out the recipe at the end of the story for a new twist.)
"Sounds like fishing was good yesterday with a fair amount of fish hitting the docks," Southall says. "The fishermen were able to get a good number of sockeyes with a few kings mixed in with them."
Both New Sagaya and 10th & M should have both sockeye and kings in the store today.
Jackson says the kings aren't coming on as strong as the sockeyes: "Kings are starting out slow again and availability is very limited, but the season is just starting so we will see what happens this year."
While the first of the year Copper River salmon are getting plenty of attention, Southall reminds shoppers to not forget the "other amazing Alaskan seafood available too." That includes: fresh halibut for $19.95 per pound for fillets and $18.95/pound for cheeks; fresh Prince William Sound spot shrimp for $16.95/pound and side-stripes for $10.95/pound; Gulf of Alaska we have fresh cod and rockfish fillets going for $5.95/pound and $8.95/pound respectively. Another salmon option is Southeast troll-caught kings for $14.95/pound for head-on fish and $18.95/pound for fillets.
While everyone is excited about fresh salmon, Jackson reminds shoppers that other options are plentiful. "The halibut is looking good this season, a lot of small fish, but great eating and easy to work with," he says. New Sagaya has fresh halibut in 10- to 20-pound sizes for $8.99/pound. They also have cod, rockfish and side-stripe shrimp. And they also have a supply of fish from other waters: cherrystone clams, squid, scallops, scups, and fresh big eye and yellow fin tuna from Hawaii.
Farmers markets
The Spenard Farmers Market joins the roundup Saturday, expecting a full market of 40 vendors along with live music.
Spokesperson Shannon Kuhn says the market will feature plenty of plant starts and fresh seafood, while Back Acres will be playing. Among the vendors will be Northern Lights Oysters and Chugach Farm, an off-the-grid homestead farm from Chickaloon with gluten free bread and homemade pestos.
Part of Saturday's kickoff celebration is a birthday bash for Joe Spenard. Special items will include Alaska grown carrot cupcakes and party favors from local Spenard businesses like Bella Boutique, Bear Tooth and Spenard Road House. Marketgoers will have a chance to win party favors.
The Spenard Market will be accepting food stamp Quest cards, one of just two markets in the state doing so during the summer market season.
For more information, visit www.spenardfarmersmarket.org.
There will be plenty going on the south side of town at the South Anchorage Farmers Market. Nancy Lampman says they will have loads of vendors and two special events: the Northrim Purple Plant contest and a Glacier Pilots booth with information and ticket packages for sale.
Among the vendors are plenty offering plant starts, including:
Glacier Valley Farm: Hanging strawberry baskets and hanging Tumbling Tomato planters.
Bearsden Gardens: Loads of herbs including Genovese, lemon, cinnamon, Thai, and globe basil; dill; parsley; cilantro; and tarragon; tomato starts; hanging baskets; and of perennial and annual flowers.
Mountain Organics: Vegetable and herb starter plants, including cilantro, lettuces and arugula. Joining the booth this week is Ellie VandeVisse of the Good Earth Gardening school and author of "Ask Mother Nature."
Gray Owl Farm: Plenty of component plants for filling in planters or boxes, along with hanging baskets and edible and aromatic "gourmet" geraniums. They also will perennials, including several varieties of ornamental grasses.
Other non-plant vendors include: Denali Kettle Corn with multiple varieties, including Parmesan and garlic, and English toffee; Arctic Choice with plenty of seafood including fresh halibut, troll-caught king salmon, sablefish fillets, side-stripe shrimp, cod and rockfish; Matanuska Creamery with cheese curds and other items; French Oven Bakery items including whole wheat cinnamon rolls; and Mat Valley Meats with a variety of meats and sausages.
At the Anchorage Farmers Market, about 10 vendors will gather, including: Arctic Organics, Seldovitsch Family Farm, Persistent Farmer, Matanuska Creamery, Bushes Bunches, Turkey Red Cafe, Three Bears Farm, Matanuska Gardens, Arctic Sun Gardening and Floriponics. Among the items available will be plant starts, hanging baskets, tomato plants, a few early greens, 2010 potatoes, local dairy products and fresh rustic breads.
The Center Market is open today and Saturday.
Duane Clark will be at the market with local beef, frozen Alaska seafood, local honey, popcorn and French Oven Bakery breads and sweets. Alex Davis of A.D. Farm will have plenty of pork cuts, including chops, roasts, steaks and sausage; chicken and duck eggs; jams; and storage parsnips.
Salmon with
maple-lemon glaze
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon canola oil
4 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
Preheat broiler.
Combine first four ingredients in a large zip-top bag. Add fish to bag; seal. Refrigerate 10 minutes, turning bag once.
Remove fish from bag, reserving marinade. Place marinade in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute.
Heat a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle fish evenly with salt and pepper. Coat fry pan with cooking spray. Add fish to pan; cook 3 minutes. Turn fish over. Brush marinade evenly over fish. Broil 3 minutes, or until fish flakes easily.
Yield: 4 servings.
Note: 287 calories, 14 g fat.
Source: "Mix and Match Low-Calorie Cookbook: 1,500 Calories a Day" by Cooking Light magazine (Oxmoor House, $24.95)
Steve Edwards lives and writes in Anchorage. If you have a suggestion for a future Market Fresh column, please contact him at sedwards@adn.com.
Local farmers markets
Today: Center Market, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., University Center mall
Friday: Palmer Friday Fling, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Pavilion across from Visitor’s Center
Saturday: Anchorage Farmers Market, 10 a.m to 2 p.m. at 15th and Cordova in the Central Lutheran Church parking lot; Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets; Center Market, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., University Center mall; South Anchorage Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Subway/Cellular One Sports Center at the corner of Old Seward Highway and O’Malley Road; Spenard Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Spenard Road and 26th Avenue
Sunday: Anchorage Market and Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Third Avenue between C and E streets
3 clam diggers found dead in Cook Inlet
The U.S. Coast Guard says three clam diggers have been found dead in Cook Inlet after reports that their skiff had run into trouble.
Petty Officer David Mosley said a Coast Guard rescue crew was responding to a report Tuesday of five missing clam diggers southwest of Kalgin Island in Cook Inlet. The crew quickly discovered two men dead about 1,700 yards from the shore. Workers from Pacific Alaska Shellfish, where the clam diggers worked, found a third man dead.
It's not clear what took down the men's 20-foot aluminum skiff. The company said the men were in transit after a day digging for clams. The Coast Guard received a distress signal around 4 p.m.The Coast Guard is still looking for the other two missing men.
Petty Officer David Mosley said a Coast Guard rescue crew was responding to a report Tuesday of five missing clam diggers southwest of Kalgin Island in Cook Inlet. The crew quickly discovered two men dead about 1,700 yards from the shore. Workers from Pacific Alaska Shellfish, where the clam diggers worked, found a third man dead.
It's not clear what took down the men's 20-foot aluminum skiff. The company said the men were in transit after a day digging for clams. The Coast Guard received a distress signal around 4 p.m.The Coast Guard is still looking for the other two missing men.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Busted, then grounded: Alaska skipper has 'year from hell' so far
First Fred Rodolf lost his handguns. Now he may have lost his tour boat and his livelihood. The longtime Valdez tour captain and his wife headed north from their winter home in Washington this month and almost immediately got into trouble: Rodolf, 72, was busted by Canadian authorities for having handguns aboard his boat, the Lu-Lu Belle. After Rodolf posted $2,000 bail, they continued their journey north, reports The Peninsula Daily News of Port Angeles, Wash.
But things got worse: They ran the Lu-Lu Belle aground in Prince William Sound on Saturday and had to be rescued by the Coast Guard. They weren't hurt in the grounding, and no fuel was spilled. "We were tired, and we grounded the boat," Megan Rodolf said.
The Lu-Lu Belle is being towed to Valdez today, the Coast Guard says. Meanwhile, Fred Rodolf could be facing a year in jail or more on the Canadian gun charges, which include making a false statement to customs officers. It's well known among Alaska travelers that Canadians don't like handguns crossing their borders, but the Rodolfs say they were simply in a hurry to get to Valdez and forgot they had the loaded guns aboard.
From The Peninsula Daily News:
Rodolf called Customs Canada upon his arrival in the Gulf Islands. A Canada Border Services officer asked if he had any weapons aboard. Rodolf said that he had a shotgun, [his Canadian lawyer Tom] Morino said.
Officers boarded the vessel and noticed a box of .38 caliber bullets beside a box of shotgun shells.
Rodolf first denied having any other weapons aboard, but within five minutes he admitted having three loaded handguns aboard and showed them to the officers, Morino said.
"He forgot about them, and then he remembered about them," Megan Rodolf said Sunday. "It was a bad mistake to make - forgetting that he had them."
... "He does not belong there [in jail]," Megan Rodolf said. "He does not have a criminal bone in his body."
A spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police told the Victoria Times Colonist that Americans regularly violate Canadian handgun laws. Some know the law and think they'll get away with it; others are clueless. "They carry handguns around in the pockets like Smarties. To them, owning guns is commonplace. It's a fundamental right and their beliefs are deep-rooted. But we're very different," she said.
Read more at The Peninsula Daily News and at the Victoria (B.C.) Times Colonist.
But things got worse: They ran the Lu-Lu Belle aground in Prince William Sound on Saturday and had to be rescued by the Coast Guard. They weren't hurt in the grounding, and no fuel was spilled. "We were tired, and we grounded the boat," Megan Rodolf said.
The Lu-Lu Belle is being towed to Valdez today, the Coast Guard says. Meanwhile, Fred Rodolf could be facing a year in jail or more on the Canadian gun charges, which include making a false statement to customs officers. It's well known among Alaska travelers that Canadians don't like handguns crossing their borders, but the Rodolfs say they were simply in a hurry to get to Valdez and forgot they had the loaded guns aboard.
From The Peninsula Daily News:
Rodolf called Customs Canada upon his arrival in the Gulf Islands. A Canada Border Services officer asked if he had any weapons aboard. Rodolf said that he had a shotgun, [his Canadian lawyer Tom] Morino said.
Officers boarded the vessel and noticed a box of .38 caliber bullets beside a box of shotgun shells.
Rodolf first denied having any other weapons aboard, but within five minutes he admitted having three loaded handguns aboard and showed them to the officers, Morino said.
"He forgot about them, and then he remembered about them," Megan Rodolf said Sunday. "It was a bad mistake to make - forgetting that he had them."
... "He does not belong there [in jail]," Megan Rodolf said. "He does not have a criminal bone in his body."
A spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police told the Victoria Times Colonist that Americans regularly violate Canadian handgun laws. Some know the law and think they'll get away with it; others are clueless. "They carry handguns around in the pockets like Smarties. To them, owning guns is commonplace. It's a fundamental right and their beliefs are deep-rooted. But we're very different," she said.
Read more at The Peninsula Daily News and at the Victoria (B.C.) Times Colonist.
3 hurt in early-morning medevac crash near Atqasuk
BARROW -- Only minor injuries have been reported after a medevac plane crashed near Barrow early Monday morning.
North Slope Borough Police Department Chief Leon Boyea says a Beechcraft King Air was going to Atqasuk on the medevac mission when it went down about seven miles from the village.
KTUU reports there were three people aboard, all North Slope Borough employees.
Boyea says he doesn't know the extent of the injuries but they are reportedly minor in nature. All three were transported back to Barrow.
The airplane was operated by North Slope Borough Search and Rescue. The crash was reported about 3 a.m.
North Slope Borough Police Department Chief Leon Boyea says a Beechcraft King Air was going to Atqasuk on the medevac mission when it went down about seven miles from the village.
KTUU reports there were three people aboard, all North Slope Borough employees.
Boyea says he doesn't know the extent of the injuries but they are reportedly minor in nature. All three were transported back to Barrow.
The airplane was operated by North Slope Borough Search and Rescue. The crash was reported about 3 a.m.
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- With over 30 years experience as Alaska salmon fishing guides, Ray Blodgett and his Coast Guard licensed crew are privileged to know the Alaska rivers and their hot spots and have the boats and river savvy to get you there. With 3 rivers to choose from, our Alaska salmon fishing guides have over 300 miles of the hottest salmon and trout fishing waters in the world at their disposal giving our clients a great success rate! Give us a call and LET'S GO FISHING!! 907-892-8707