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Arriving at midnight, our plane still above the clouds, it appeared to be broad daylight. When we descended beneath the cloud cover it was practically pitch black, but I couldn't get a good photo of that. The runway is... probably a standard length, but the locals like to joke that you've got to make a quick stop before your plane falls off the island. The middle of downtown greets you with the old Russian church. I tried for an Alan Moore Providence/From Hell thing here.    It's really not that imposing. Behold, the big city:  The dowtown totem pole:  Tried to get this guy to pose for a picture but as you can see, he's kind of over it.  It's hard to capture the size and apparent weight of the ravens. They're like small to medium size dogs. Many of the calls they make are practically monkey-like. Perhaps eery to visitors, background noise to the locals.
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Jul 27, 2023 23:27
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| # ? May 5, 2024 13:33 |
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A trip to the totem pole park and museum. A couple brand new ones under construction:  As you enter the heavily wooded footpath, you should heed the warnings...     
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Jul 28, 2023 01:21
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Trickster god Raven peaks through the treeline: The figure at the very top is known as "Lying White Man"  This is the big one they put up in, iirc, 2001 to celebrate burying the hatchet with the Russians:  I am not certain of the meaning of this image:  https://i.imgur.com/7SnqgEQ.mp4
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Jul 28, 2023 02:52
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Inside the museum,   Unlike the replicas out in the park, these totem poles are about 120 years old:   Nobody's certain how old this one is. When they tried to build a replica, they realized they couldn't find a tree big enough to do it justice.   
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Jul 28, 2023 03:16
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Went to the Raptor Rehab Center, where they fix up injured birds. Some of the ones who remain flightless stay. This eagle is probably thirty something years old. BRLBBRLLRBRLBBRLLLLBBRLLL  Sorry, nervous tic.  The ravens were not on display, unfortunately, due to concerns about avian flu. https://i.imgur.com/GxoXuyd.mp4 This woodpecker didn't live there, but he was, indeed, a bird. https://i.imgur.com/e2bJ0nV.mp4
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Jul 28, 2023 04:04
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Fortress of the Bear. Black bears are not native to the island, but three live at the Fortress.  The brown bears get upset if you call them grizzlies. "We are NOT grizzlies," they insist, "we have polar bear DNA."  It's true, they actually do. That distinctive hump on the ABC brown bear (Admiralty, Baranof, and Chichagof Islands) comes from that.  "Yeah, I'm lookin' right at you, pal."   https://i.imgur.com/3EIF6vU.mp4
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Jul 28, 2023 05:22
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My amateur hour photography couldn't possibly do the place justice. Every vista is too big to capture in a picture. Well, my pictures anyway.     It was hidden by the clouds my whole trip, but the local volcano is in the middle of this picture: 
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Jul 28, 2023 05:26
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One of the marinas. You're gonna need a bigger boat. A little buddy who didn't mind holding still for a photo.  Spotted above the bar at the saloon. "At Great Personal Risk" 
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Jul 28, 2023 05:30
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A moderately (I guess) size cruise ship. Sitka is a popular cruise destination. A fuckoff huge size cruise ship in what seems like impossibly shallow water.  On the way home, stopped by Seattle on a good day to see a mountain.  Cheers. 
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Jul 28, 2023 05:34
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Oh wow, these are fantastic, especially the raptors and the totem poles. Thank you for sharing!
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Jul 28, 2023 18:30
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Me too buddy, me too. Fun trip! What brought you there?
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Sep 1, 2023 23:07
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| # ? May 5, 2024 13:33 |
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I used to live there. Wouldn't recommend it now.
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Sep 13, 2023 17:43
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