A tree seen at the Solstice Tree Tour at Kincais park. Photo by Paull Twardock. 
An illuminited van at the Alaska Botanical Garden. Photo by Paul Twardock. 
A tree lit up at the Alaska Botanical Garden. Photo by Paul Twardock. 
Illuminated ice candles at the Alaska Botanical Garden. Photo by Paul Twardock. 
The Solstice Tree Tour map from the NSAA.
As the year 2021 comes to a close we feature two traditions in Anchorage: The Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage’s Solstice Tree Tour at Kincaid Park and the Alaska Botanical Garden’s Holiday Lights. Sara Miller with NSAA and Patrick Ryan with the Botanical Garden will explain their winter programs and how to get involved. Host Paul Twardock will take you on an audio postcard of NSAA’s 2020 Solstice Tree Tour. We’ll also have co-host Lisa Keller and a few college students elaborate on their holiday wishes, from wishes for a better world to ideas for stocking stuffers.
HOST: Paul Twardock
GUESTS:
- Sara Miller with the Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage
- Patrick Ryan with the Alaska Botanical Garden
- Well wishers: Chloe Khokhar, Abby Jones, Toshio Matsuoka, and Lisa Keller
LINKS:
Holiday Lights at Alaska Botanical Garden
Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage
BROADCAST: Thursday, December 16th, 2021. 10:00 am – 11:00 a.m. AKT
REPEAT BROADCAST: Thursday, December 16th, 2021. 8:00 – 9:00 p.m. AKT
SUBSCRIBE: Receive Outdoor Explorer automatically every week via:
Eric Bork, or you can just call him “Bork” because everybody else does, is the FM Operations Manager for KSKA-FM. He oversees the day-to-day operations of the FM broadcast. He produces and edits episodes of Outdoor Explorer, the Alaska-focused outdoors program. He also maintains the web posts for that show. You may have heard him filling in for Morning Edition or hosting All Things Considered and can still find him operating the soundboard for any of the live broadcast programs.
After escaping the Detroit area when he was 18, Bork made it up to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where he earned a degree in Communications/Radio Broadcasting from Northern Michigan University. He spent time managing the college radio station, working for the local NPR affiliate, and then in top 40 radio in Michigan before coming to Alaska to work his first few summers. After then moving to Chicago, it only took five years to convince him to move back to Alaska in 2010. When not involved in great radio programming he’s probably riding a bicycle, thinking about riding bicycles, dreaming about bikes, reading a book, or planning the next place he’ll travel to. Only two continents left to conquer!
