Mud Bay

Smoke from Canadian wildfires is drifting into Southeast Alaska’s Chilkat Valley, prompting an air quality advisory for Haines and Skagway as hazy conditions persist.

Tom McGuire, a 79-year-old Haines author and backcountry adventurer, fell through the ice while skating alone on Chilkoot Lake, triggering an extensive search by local volunteers and state officials.

Residents along the Lynn Canal experienced a jolting event on Monday afternoon that was later confirmed to be a magnitude 3 earthquake, which initially went undetected by seismic systems due to its location on the edge of the network.

Over the past few months, several headless seals have washed ashore along Chilkat Valley, prompting local marine expert Tim Ackerman to suggest that killer whale predation may be involved, although a bullet-hole found on one seal hints at potential human involvement.

A mass die-off of egg-laying hens due to avian flu has caused an egg shortage in Haines, Alaska, affecting local grocers and causing a surge in egg prices.

A headless harbor seal was discovered at Letnikof Cove, raising questions as scientists from NOAA investigate the cause of death and post-mortem scavenging.

A bald eagle rescued in Haines, Alaska, tested positive for avian flu after being taken to the Alaska Raptor Center. The flu, affecting birds across the state, also raises concerns for domestic poultry and public health.

In this case, the weather models were showing a strong push of cold air coming out of the Yukon, a push of warm air coming up from the south and a low spinning up from the Gulf of Alaska.  

Alpine permafrost is thawing, according to an article by the National Science Foundation. This is bad news because thawing releases carbon dioxide and methane and because it can cause destabilization of the land, as a couple of northbound drivers found out last week when their car was buried in the slide at 23 miles, as reported in a Chilkat Valley News article.

Heavy snow followed by rain last week damaged homes around town. Shori Heaton awoke on Sunday to find that her woodshed had collapsed under a wet

The Skagway Traditional Council is asking harvesters to avoid blue mussels until the population rebounds.

Reports of groups of up to 10 mule deer in Southeast Alaska near Skagway have been received by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and there is evidence that fawns are being born here. Studies show that nearby populations harbor a variety of diseases that have biologists concerned.

"The first wave of dead mussels washed ashore on July 14th, possibly earlier but this was the first report we received. I took the pictures included in my LEO observation on July 16th, and the temperatures were only just then beginning to climb into the upper 70s and lower 80s."

Fearing that runoff from the December rains might have carried contamination to Henderson Farm in Haines, the American Bald Eagle Foundation has told its renters they won't be able to farm their plots this year.

An unknown substance near the Chilkoot River made dogs sick twice this month. The pet owners had to make their animals vomit and the dogs needed

When he heard something had bitten his sister, Erik Stevens grabbed a light and went to investigate. "I shined the headlamp and opened the lid, and right there at the level of the toilet seat was a cinnamon-colored bear face, big enough to fill the hole."

The man pretended to play dead during the attack and the bear ran away, a wildlife biologist said. He sustained injuries to his head and arms but troopers said he was in stable condition Monday.

The man was injured on his face and hands. Two members in the skiers party assisted with his injuries and communicate for help in 15 degree temperatures with sunset approaching. It was not immediately clear what triggered the mauling about 10 miles northwest of Haines.

The Haines Borough Assembly’s Commerce Committee began chipping away at a plan to address the borough’s bear problem at a meeting Tuesday. Proposals ranged from stronger enforcement of bear-attractant laws, to the development of education and grant programs to help people secure their attractants, to a complete overhaul of the community’s solid waste management system.

Dozens more homes in Haines were evacuated Thursday night as rain continued to saturate the mountainsides near residential neighborhoods.