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It is no secret that Southeast Alaska is a hot tourist destination. Every year, the region is flooded with nature enthusiasts, retirees, and other tourists. According to a calendar from the Cruise Line Agencies of Alaska, Petersburg will receive a total of 62 cruise ship stops in the 2019 season. Ketchikan, one of the larger cruise ship destinations in Southeast Alaska, is expecting 576 cruise ship stops this year, bringing in a total estimated 1.15 million passengers. The tourist industry is...
Sea otters are considered by many people to be an adorable animal, an important part of the ecosystem, and also a nuisance that is threatening other marine life populations in Southeast Alaska. In Wrangell, many people have talked about the need for better population control when it comes to otters. The Wrangell Borough Assembly talked about loosening restrictions on hunting the creatures last September with Sebastian O'Kelly, a federal lobbyist. Back in May, fifth-grade student Brody Knecht...
Wrangell resident and attorney Michael Nash, 68, passed away in a plane crash near Ketchikan last Thursday. Alaska State Troopers were notified by Ketchikan Flight Service of an overdue aircraft around 3:07 p.m., July 11, according to a dispatch on the department of public safety's website. Nash was flying his plane, a PA-24 Comanche, and was due to land in Ketchikan at 2:15 p.m. "The US Coast Guard, Ketchikan Volunteer Rescue Squad, Alaska Wildlife Troopers and Saxman VPSO responded to the...
Amy Gulick is an acclaimed nature photographer and writer. According to her website, amygulick.com, she has 20 years of experience taking pictures and writing about the great outdoors. She specializes in helping people understand the interconnectedness of nature, her website reads, and why conservation is important. Some of her written works include "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge" and "Salmon in the Trees." Her most recent book, "The Salmon Way: An Alaska State of Mind," looks at the...
With the recent retirement of Doug McCloskey, who has been Wrangell's police chief since 2003, the borough has been working hard to find a suitable replacement. City officials have been considering several candidates. Among these is Heath Scott, the chief of police in Haines. A meet and greet with Scott has been scheduled for Friday, July 19, at 5:30 p.m. at city hall. The public is invited to come meet with the candidate and get to know him better. Scott has over 22 years of "progressively resp...
Alaska Bearfest is a fun half-week of activities and workshops in Wrangell. Running from July 24 to 28, people can look forward to an art workshop, bear safety courses, bear-themed symposiums, and even a marathon. This year, the Wrangell community will also have the opportunity to eat better than even the bears at Anan do, with a special seafood dinner on July 26. The dinner will be hosted at the Stikine Inn, and prepared by Chef Dana Tough of Seattle. According to his website,...
On June 27, according to a press release by the Forest Service, a lightning strike ignited a fire near Southeast Cove on Wrangell Island. The fire is located less than a mile northeast of the cove on public land, according to the press release. Paul Robbins Jr., with the Forest Service, said that the fire is burning on a steep, inaccessible ridge, and the Forest Service has been monitoring it regularly. On July 9, aerial reconnaissance of the area located smoke in the southwest corner of the...
In a special meeting on July 11, the Wrangell School Board adopted various amendments to their FY 2019 budget as well as the recently adopted FY 2020 budget. Superintendent Debbe Lancaster said that the 2019 budget needed to be revised to show the actuals for the end of the year, what money was actually made and what was actually spent. Budgets go through various revisions through the school year, she said, and is more or less a constant process of revision to stay as accurate as possible. “It’s a real dynamic process through the year, unt...
Pulling in a crowd of close to 200 people, according to a guess by volunteer Tawney Crowley, the big wheel races on July 3 were quite a hit. The races were held at the covered basketball court by Evergreen Elementary School, and were open to anyone from age three up. Participants would race big wheels, a tricycle with a large front wheel, around a track on the basketball court. Crowley added that the whole event was pretty competitive. "It's one of those events that you tell yourself you're...
A town hall meeting was held at the Nolan Center last Wednesday evening, July 10, to discuss ongoing water issues in Wrangell and the wider Southeast Alaska region. In short, drought conditions across Southeast Alaska have made conservation necessary for the community. Dry weather has also an impact on Wrangell's supply of electricity, as well. "Part of the reason we're here today is because we, Southern and Southeast Alaska, are experiencing an extreme drought," Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen...
July 17, 1919 The Sentinel reporter spent the weekend at the camp of John T. Towers, who is building a corduroy road from the head of Duncan Canal to the mine of the Duncan Canal Mining company. A crew of men are on the job every day, rain or shine. The most difficult part of the route has been passed and better headway is being made now than at any time since the road building was begun. Several of the men are returned soldiers, and it is interesting to hear them discuss their experiences overseas. These returned soldiers in the To...
July 8, 2019 Illegal burning: Verbal warning given. Citation issued: Duane Ricker, 28. Failure to provide proof of insurance. Came in later and provided proof of insurance and ticket was voided. Agency assist: Fire department. Report of theft: Criminal mischief. Two reports of suspicious circumstance. Report of harassment. July 9, 2019 Motor vehicle accident. Welfare check. Found property. Subpoena service. Fireworks. Agency assist: Petersburg police department. July 10, 2019 Unsecured premise. Subpoena service. Agency assist: Public works....
Carla Louise Abild (Johnson), 53, passed away on April 18, 2019 in Owensville, Missouri. She had great artistic ability, was intelligent, and had a right to the line sense of humor that could get anyone laughing. Carla was preceded in death by her father, Lewis Oliver Johnson. She is survived by her long time friend and partner, Mike Tindall; her mother, Mable McMurren; and three sons, Stephen and Eric Purvis, and Jared Abild. There will be a memorial service and potluck held in Wrangell at the...
When one imagines sports in Southeast Alaska, one might think of sport fishing, golf, basketball, or even baseball. Roller Derby might not be the first thing that comes to someone's mind, but it can be found in several towns across the panhandle. There are the Ragnarok Rollers in Petersburg, the Sitka Sound Slayers, and Ketchikan has the Rainforest Rollers. Wrangell, too, has a team. Wrangell's Garnet Grit Betties held a "fresh meat" event at the roller rink last Thursday afternoon, and are look...
Ottesen’s hosted a series of tournaments at Muskeg Meadows Golf Course last weekend. There were 17 participants in Saturday’s tournament, on July 13. First place went to a team consisting of Dwight Yancey, Drew Eyon, Chris Stewart, and Cody Angerman with a net score of 18 and team handicap of 18. Second place went to a team consisting of Jerry Bakeburg, Frank Roppel, and Eric Kading with a net score of 12 and a team handicap of 20. Randy Littleton had the straightest drive of the day at 10 inches. Sunday’s tournament, saw 19 parti...
The Wrangell Ministerial Association hosted a large Vacation Bible School at the covered basketball court near Evergreen Elementary School last week, July 8 to 12. The program was titled "Hometown Nazareth, Where Jesus Was A Kid." Using costumes, songs, Bible stories, and fun activities, volunteers from a number of churches in Wrangell got to teach kids about Jesus and what life might have been like for him when he was a child. Pictured here is the VBS group opening their final night of the...
Fisheries fare better than most people in terms of Governor Mike Dunleavy’s budget cuts. Just under one million dollars was cut from the commercial fisheries division of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, leaving it with an $85 million budget, half from state general funds. “To give the governor credit, he recognized the return on investment,” said Doug Vincent-Lang, ADF&G Commissioner. “It’s a theme I had all the way through the legislature that we take a $200 million budget of which about $50 million is unrestricted general funds and...