Spring in Petersburg

Spring in Petersburg is signaled by the steady stream of boats unloading halibut.  It’s amazing to see how big some of them are (note that there are two in this photo)…20150503 4864 2 big halibut 2 r…and not to be out-done, the annual Memorial Day King Salmon Derby didn’t disappoint with some good sized beasties.  This was the winning fish – 50.9 lbs and 47 inches long, which I happened to see as I was walking back to the harbor.0523151100a big fish r20150523 6020 salmon derby winner 47 inches rWith all the good weather I was able to work on some outside boat chores, and for about 2 weeks we had dozens of Bonaparte gulls in the harbor, often “dancing” on the surface of the water, delicately grabbing tiny fish at the surface.20150504 4905 bonaparte gull dancing 3 rI was also able to take a little time in between coats of paint to run across the Narrows to look for spring blossoms in the muskeg.  Muskeg is very acidic so the types of flowers that grow in the peat can be unusual.  Some of the buds hadn’t opened yet, but I found some buckbean – one of my favorites.  It’s such a strange-looking flower with all the little tendrils on each petal.20150514 5118 buckbean closeup 1 rThe skunk cabbage in the forest shed their yellow flowers and were unfurling their huge leaves.  20150514 5141 skunk cabbage closeup rThe Devil’s Club was still relatively small, but it’s already taller than the surrounding brush.  As the summer wears on it’s leaves will grow larger than the span of both my splayed hands, but you must be careful around it – those thorns are not to be trifled with.20150514 5162 devils club r20150505 5117 aml barge and tug rThe view of Petersburg as I headed back across the Narrows was pretty in the bright sunshine, and as I got to the other side I watched the tug and barge heading north. The barge is a very important service, stopping in town twice a week with stock for the grocery stores, hardware stores, as well as trucks, boats, heavy equipment – just about anything.  Friends who do major shopping “down south” (in Seattle or elsewhere in the Lower 48) often pack up their non-perishables on a pallet and send them up on the barge – it’s a much less expensive way to get things here.20150505 5116 aml barge boats bus and house rIn the photo above you can see a bus, boats, part of a building, , as well as many containers.  In the one below you can see a dump truck, pickup truck, boat, Jersey barriers, and another piece of a building.  The arrival of the barge means restocked shelves in the stores – always a good thing.20150505 5113 aml barge dump truck car boat barriers r

One thought on “Spring in Petersburg

  1. Don’t you love seeing what’s stacked on the barges?! Can you tell I’m catching up on your blogs, been busy with boat chores?!

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