News

Sea otters have the thickest fur of any mammal, which makes it a valuable commodity. But there are strict regulations surrounding how to market that fur. Coastal Alaska Natives have the right to sell just the pelts, but only to each other. Non-Natives cannot legally buy pelts, but they can purchase sea otter handicraft. On a recent rainy evening in Hydaburg, local Natives gathered for a sea otter sewing class to expand their marketing potential. Download Audio

For the first time last month, Hoonah hosted an 8.3-mile footrace called J’eet’s Challenge. The course begins near sea level, runs through town and then up a mountain to the finish line. The race winners lit mountaintop signal fires, echoing events from a Tlingit story. From there, runners hopped into harnesses and ziplined back down to Icy Strait Point, which is Huna Totem Corp.’s salmon cannery turned tourist attraction. Download Audio

APD police chief Mark Mew says the department had to buy new equipment, such as cement barricades to surround the Captain Cook Hotel, where the president stayed. Officers also had to undergo additional training, which included motorcade protection and riot control.

Smithsonian Magazine has listed Juneau’s Mendenhall Glacier ice caves on a list of “25 Great New Places to See.” It’s number six on the “life list” or “bucket list,” beaten out by the largest cave located in Vietnam, gorilla trekking in East Africa and the Alma Telescope in Chile.

As the Arctic opens, several countries are eyeing what may be a virgin commercial fishery in the central Arctic Ocean. How to regulate those new potential fishing grounds was on the table for discussion at the State Department’s GLACIER conference in Anchorage last week. Several nations urged caution and the need for more science before opening the fishery. Download Audio:

A group of scientists from around the country are on a three-week expedition studying volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands. As part of that project, Tobias Fischer with the University of New Mexico is using instruments on helicopters to measure the gas composition of volcanic plumes. The work is aimed at improving volcano monitoring. Download Audio:

Throughout President Obama’s tour of Alaska last week, he spoke at length about efforts to reduce the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. He spoke very little about his support for Arctic Ocean drilling. The drilling policy could affect the global climate much more than any of Obama’s climate-friendly initiatives. Download Audio:

At Farragut Farm, Bo Varsano and Marja Smets live off the grid, 4 hours by slow boat from Petersburg. It’s a good life but it’s hard to make money especially when there is only one market to sell too in the summer and it’s only once every two weeks. So they’re moving into another type of business that seems to be taking off in Alaska right now. Nope….not marijuana. Gourmet garlic. Download Audio:

The LeConte state ferry recently rescued six men that were stranded in the water.