A rainy day was great to take a scenic drive out to the parking area at the end of Power Creek. The gray overcast atmosphere made the new spring greens glow along the road. A good motivator to taking your time getting there is the over-abundance of potholes that haven't yet been graded for the summer. A pair of kingfishers were flying along the road and are fairly common to encounter on the route. When the road begins to enter the heavily wooded area towards the end, there are spectacular old trees with various colors of moss clustered on and hanging from their branches. In the rain the moss was extra enchanting with dewdrops sparkling all over. New skunk cabbages line the road, and the last remnants of snow piles are still holding out back there, pushing summer off for as long as they can. There are a few spots along the creek to wander down and watch the turquoise water swirling past. This becomes a popular bear spot later in the summer when the fish show up, but it was all quiet today.

Even on a wet and windy day an hour walk around Cordova is a great way to see things.  Looking at the harbor will tell you if fishing is happening, if there are many empty stalls, most likely there is a fishing opener going on and fresh fish will be arriving to the processors within 12 - 24 hours or so.  From the Reluctant Fisherman Inn walk down toward the Science Center to the City Dock ant take a closer look at Spike Island.  While your are there don't forget to look down Orca Inlet to see Mummy Island and Little Mummy Island, or to the North toward Observation Island and Nelson Bay.  Look back at town and up the hill to see the Ski Hill on Mt Eyak.  From there if you walk toward the North you will see more of the industrial and shipping area and a boat ramp at the edge of the fill area, take a right and another right to walk up the hill to Observation Loop where this photo was taken. Continue on around the look past Cordova Gear and you are back on 1st Street or Main St.

​ All in all any short walk about in Cordova is interesting and offers some wonderful views..... and most likely you'll meet someone who will want to chat!

Wow, it is getting so green.  What a view on the way back from the airport!

This short trail is always worth the view! It is a short walk of approximately 3/4 mil to Sheridan Lake,  It is gravel covered with a few small hilly sections and a downhill to the lake.  There is a bridge that gets covered by water about a 1/4 mile in, but if you take a right at the top of the hill the alternate route will bypass the water.  Today during a quick run to the lake I saw two piles of bear scat, but by making noise and talking, I alerted any wildlife that I was passing through and did not see any bears. 

It was raining less here than it was in Cordova when I left town, and a little chilly, so I wore my Arcteryx Shell and Atom Lt. Vest.  For footwear my Brooks Adrenaline running shoes worked great! I did see several Varied Thrush and a few smaller birds that were too quick and far away to identify. This is a great family outing as it is short and has the reward of the lake and maybe a piece of glacier ice for an evening cocktail!  

Out the road past Alaganik on the left side you will see the sign for Muskeg Meander and it is exactly that a beautiful peaceful meandering trail!  Either wear rubber boots or don't care if your feet get wet.  I just plan on getting my footwear muddy and wet.  We walked about a mile in and a mile out for a quick morning activity.  The grass is still not green, green, but is changing fast.  Varied Thrush were calling and other small birds could be heard as we walked.  We found devils club buds while walking through a stand of spruce trees to bring home for an addition to our dinner!  Yum!

We looked for sundews at the beginning of the trail but forgot to look for the carnivorous plants again near the little pond. This puppy could not resist a quick swim!  I plan to bring a fat tire bike out here soon to see if this will be a good trail to ride, it seems like it might be a fun short ride.

While most people head upwards from the ski hill parking lot, a more relaxing option is to explore the meadows to the left of the ski lift. While vestiges of an old trail system are visible, it has not been maintained, and has mostly become absorbed into the marshy ground cover. The walking is wet, and you will either want waterproof boots, or if it's a nice day and you aren't squeamish, sandals. I watched a handful of ducks paddling around on one of the small ponds, and minnows swimming around a half-submerged plastic bucket in another. A somewhat tame robin darted to and fro, grabbing worms and making more than a half-hearted attempt to grab a monarch butterfly. Luckily for the butterfly it was the more agile of the two and flew off into the sunny evening, leaving the robin to its terrestrial pursuits.

The weather was beautiful and we did see some birds, but the shorebirds were at Hartney Bay while we were biking on the Copper River Highway.  We saw Sparrows, Eagles, Swans, Geese, Gulls, Yellow Legs and Crows.  At twenty seven mile the water was so clear you could see the contours of the silt very clearly.  The views of the mountains and surrounding area are a joy to see, especially with the colors just beginning to change.  Yellows and light green patches of color are beginning to glow and grow!

Fat tire bikes rented from Cordova Gear are super fun to ride on any Cordova Trail or road!

A beautiful 8 mile bike ride last night along Eyak Lake on Power Creek Road was a mix of weather with intermittent showers and unsettled breezes and rewarded us with warm sunshine and a view of Mt. Eyak and Alice Cut Off Trail Ridgeline and a tiny glimpse in the center of the photo of Eyak Lake.   The end of the road before the Cordova Electric Coop power generation site still has some snow on either side of the road and offers natural air conditioning!

The hummingbirds have moved in and are flitting around like little fairies, this guy stands guard and chases everyone away from his perch.  

There was a rumor that a coffee shop was opening out at Orca Cannery.  An 8 am walk on Orca road with a mission to see if there really was coffee available seemed like a nice way to start the day.  On the way this Oyster Catcher caught my eye.  It looks like she wanted some coffee too!  We had a nice chat with Wendy Rainy once we got to Orca Adventure Lodge and she gave us a tour of the place.  The new beams in the cookhouse are really beautiful and the new coffee shop that will be open in June and it is going to be a perfect destination for a bike ride from town.  

Every day there is something interesting to see on this route.  Listening the the Sea Lions on the buoys is always fun too! On the way back to town the view of Mummy Island was a pleasure to look at.