IRIGAK II Maverick Seizes the Land (A book Review)

Purchase from Amazon

Local writer Amber Cunningham has released her second book in her series Irigak - Land of the Little People in May (2018).  I purchased a copy yesterday at our Saturday Market here in the village.  I had a very enjoyable read as I stepped into the mysterious land of the Irigaks.

Amber captures the reader's attention with an action-packed read.  IRIGAK II has the added bonus of artwork by Bulgarian illustrator: Ralica Mladenova!  The combination of an intriguing storyline and creative illustrations will draw in young readers from far and near.  Irigak - Land of Little People has a few activities on the author's blog to help enhance discussion and comprehension.

Posted below are photos from my tundra walks.  I get out daily on the tundra as I am fascinated by the vegetation and expanse.  Tundra walking may look smooth, but it is rough, full of holes, water, lichen, mosses, and berries.  I find tundra walking is an excellent workout!


I am sure there is a hidden world that shows itself to those who believe in the Little People!

I often think of the Irigaks' and their magical world.  I have always been intrigued by the folklore of Native cultures.  Amber R. Cunningham now shares this mysterious world and adventures with her readers!

Knitting: Lopi and odds-n-ends in Wool

First thing Alaska Fans!  I know many of you visitors to my blog are Alaska fans and if you have not checked out some of the blogs I follow you should certainly follow this one: livingthedream-kathy.blogspot.com  Kathy is a very talented writer and her writing is a joy to read.  If you are taken by Alaska and just want to know what people do, how they make a living off the grid for the most part work---get a nice cup of coffee or tea and sit down for an enjoyable read!

Knitting & the Fall Knit Along (KAL)

I start a fall KAL with The Woolly Thistle on Ravelry  I am working with Léttlopi yarn which is an Icelandic wool and yarn.  I have always been taken by the Lopi sweaters colorful yoke designs.  There is a wonderful designer whose work has caught my eye, Jenn Steingass.  It was a great opportunity to order yarn from a new store, The Wooly Thistle (which has a podcast as well) and join the KAL.  I am knitting Jenn's Telja.  I am making a few small modifications tot he pattern which is pretty normal to me.  I love the yoke in this sweater design!

The blue is the main color for the sweater and the other 4 colors will be the yoke and the details on the lower body and sleeves.  

One of the great things about technology is being able to work off my iPad and write notes on the pattern.  It is just so slick!  At this point, I am thinking I will knit a hem for the sweater cuff and body as I did a professional cast on.   This is still up in the air and I have plenty of time to think this out a bit.

Selling Knitted Items

Now that I am retired from full-time teaching I am knitting and selling some of my work.  I have a lot of yarn that needs to be used up, none of the yarn is enough for a sweater, and why not knit up some smaller items and sell them? Well, why not!?  Over the summer I knitted a few pieces and thought I will just give this "Saturday Market" thing a try.  This is the equivalent of a "Farmers Market."  I sold everything but one pair of fingerless mitts!  I was thrilled as the yarn is only sitting around taking up space, and most of the yarn was bought on sale but is very high-quality yarn.  This way I can charge a reasonable price for my work.

That was the first batch of knitting that went to the market.  I am now working on a few hats and felted baby booties.  I hope to knit up a few more pairs of fingerless mitts but that may be over ambitious for this upcoming weekend.

One more very fun hat The Coming Home in PDS yarn as well.  This is a stunning hat and fun to knit!

I don't plan on making a living from selling my knitting at all!  I do plan on using up the odds-n-ends of my yarn stash!  I never want my knitting to feel like it is something I have to do.  I jokingly call myself a Shetlander knitting away to earn some funds.  I do think of these women, men, and children who had to knit and keep their hands working at all times to earn money for their families. How hard this must have been for them all!  Knitting was work and not something to enjoy while sipping tea.  It makes me appreciate these fine artists and their skills even more.  If you follow Shetland Wool Week then you are up on this event and what it offers knitters around the world.  I know I speak for us fiber folks when I say that the Shetland Isle knitters have helped immensely to save and preserve knitting heritage and traditions for all the world--THANK YOU!

MIGRATION---NORTH!

Home!  We made it back to Alaska just fine and dandy.  The drive was very relaxed and easy which makes for a nice time.  Since I was not recovering from knee surgery like last year it was a comfortable drive north.  We started off crossing the border with a fire ban for BC which is a bummer as camping and a campfire go hand in hand.  It was hot and dry as well so a fire ban was a good thing despite our feelings about having a campfire each night.

Cooling off at a nice little creek we have been enjoying for years on our 1st day north.  Crystal clear water, cool, refreshing and easy to access. Our first night, camping was in a campground we have used before in southern BC.  It was really buggy but we survived by using incense to keep those bugs away!  Morning came bright and early as it should. Off we went over the pass and down to the Lake Louise.

 As we started to drive north from Lake Louise we made a few stops to cool off and to enjoy the drive.  I love the drive up or down the Icefields Parkway.  The drive is slower and often you get to see people doing stupid things as they watch/photograph wildlife.  Outside of Jasper, there was a group running towards a rather large Grizz on the side of the road to get photos.  UGH! We drove on!

This was our lunch stop along a creek a great view up into the ice fields. Once again Christian never takes a shortcut and puts out a great spread for lunch picnic.

 A place we enjoy camping at is Mount Robson.  We had a nice walk down to the creek to cool off and to just enjoy the water, rocks, and views through the thick forest.

 At Mount Robson, we could have a campfire which we savored! My favorite, of course, is the early morning light, a cup of coffee and relaxing by the fire.  We are still using our Helinox chairs.  I have a newer one that I will write about in another post.

 There is the massive Mount Robson in the side view mirror as we drive north.  It really is a beautiful mountain.

Heading onto the Cassiar Highway.  This area we could not have a fire as the burn notice was moving north as we drove.  The Cassiar is a narrow two-lane road with great views and wonderful BC campgrounds.

 One of the single lane wooden bridges on the Cassiar.  These are in great shape and make the wonderful clapping noise as you drive across.

Always time for a swim to cool off the dogs.  Sadie just wades about and swims some and Tally is all about the stick, and airtime as she sails into the water.

 Intense---Tally waiting for the "get it" command!

 The wonderful Kinaskan Campground which sits right on this lake.  I would love to get our kayaks up here for some paddling!

 

Lightning strike fires along a ridge as we drove north on the Cassiar Highway.

Another favorite campground is Boya Lake.  Great swimming and the water was pretty warm.  The lake looks like Carribean waters due to the mineral content.

Ol Miss Happy Tally with a stick and a lake to enjoy!

Camp!  Pretty amazing all of our stuff fits into the 1995 4-Runner but master packer Christian gets the job done!

Miss Sadie enjoying tailgate view!

Kluane Lake in the Yukon is a great place to stretch out your legs and to give the dogs yet another chance to swim.  I love the Yukon it is HUGE, & STUNNING!

I am not sure of this flower actually!?

Besides swimming, Tally's next favorite place on the drive north or south is the TENT!

Sadie Loves the tent as well since it is a bug-free zone!

This campground was a rec site and off the road a bit.  Silverthorne is also a cross-country ski center.  The terrain looked great for skiing!  One must remember these campgrounds at not managed and can be party spots for the locals.  Once they were done for the evening we enjoyed the lonely call of the loon and stunning views.

Morning in camp!  My time of the day, up early, making coffee, stunning light, the loon calling out, fairly bug-free and a nice small fire!

Hauling water for fire safety. Look at the mirror reflection in this lake!

Camp!

This outhouse was really clean considering its location!  I was pleasantly surprised by this humble little structure.

A nice view out of the outhouse.  The remoteness of this campground one could leave the door wide open!

Now we are back in the village set up for another year.  I am retired from the classroom but will be subbing and coaching the ski/biathlon team once again.

All our travel went smoothly, we are home, and had an awesome 1st night sleep back in our AK bed!  Now onto the morning routine which I have been craving!  Ski erg, PT for my knee, yoga, sit-ups and then my day can carry on from this point.

Good Morning from the north!

Evening Beach Walk

This time of the year, I switch from skiing to walking.  It is always a bit of a tough transition as I would much rather ski than walk!  However, one must be outside no matter what and walking is just another way to enjoy the outside.  Last night, I was able to take the girls for a walk down the beach. This time of the year there is a lot of beach activity.  Due to the low amount of snow this year, the sea ice is already gone from close to shore. The ice in the mouth of the river emptied out yesterday. The Sound has some nice chunks of ice floating around.  The shore line has ice but some of that has now melted away.  People are out setting crab pots, and hunting for seal.  Boats are hauled down to the beach and left there until the river ice completely moves out. Then the boats will be moved over to the slough later for the rest of the ice free year.  We are all enjoying the warmer than normal weather.

Fire season starts early in Alaska compared to the lower 48.  I think Alaska will really have some serious fire issues this season because of our lack of snow.

Looking north toward Blueberry Hills.

Parts . . . nothing like a nice caribou head to greet you as you start your beach walk.  Our dogs love the wonderful variety of parts that litter the beach!

The last of the remaining winter ice along the shore line.

Old but whole starfish 

Yes that is a wonderful qiviut headband I have on my head!

Little Miss Tally with a wonderful spinal column.  Nothing like a good chew while on a beach walk!  She is so proud of it and really wants to bring it home . . . NO WAY!

Looking south and you can see more of the river ice that has made its way into Norton Sound. Boats which will be going out to set crab pots or for a seal hunt.