Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Kodiak Island

Kodiak Island. Known for Native Eskimo peoples, Russians, Fishing, the earthquake and tsunami of I believe 1964 and Kodiak Bears. Some people dont leave the island...alive. It is referred to as the Emerald Island by the locals because of its lush and green appearance.

I was just waiting for a big bear to come rushing out of the brush when I was taking this photo. This road is one of a few paved roads on the island. It is the main road.



Funny, the rental cars there offer no coverage for damaged tires to their vehicles. All vehicles must be returned with either new tires or repaired tires. They require a patch on the tire, and will charge you if there is a plug. Oh yes, and there is a $300 cleaning fee for any vehicle that smells of fish or has animal remains of any kind left in it. There must have been problems with this... Yeck. Gasoline on the Island was a sight too - almost $3.50/ gallon. I mean, its not like people can really use a whole tank, or half a tank in a day there, but its so "out there" that I guess everything has to be expensive because of the freight costs. The boat ride from Anchorage to Kodiak would be a 9 hour travel feat. It is a little over an hour to fly.

On the Island was a little Russian Orthodox Church. A student of the monastery sits inside a small gift shop which has small things made by the local monks. The proceeds help to support the church. This was the first Russian church that I saw in Alaska.

Toward the end of our daily tour, the storm clouds began to rush in, and the air got thicker. Our flight off of the island was delayed by an hour, but was glad that there were no cancellations. I had enough of a fish scent to last me a lifetime. Was beautiful though.

Definately a fishing town. There were hurds of men with thier fishing gear and ice chests in the airport waiting to leave on our flight out. There were a few coast guard men as well. Apparently Kodiak is home to the largest Coast Guard base in the United States.

1 comment:

** Terramia ** said...

You take lovely photos, and your posts are a delight to read!