Like many life-altering ocean odysseys, the one a Haines couple took through the Inside Passage earlier this year began in a shipyard. Well, more precisely, it began in a work space inside Viking Cove in Mud Bay where Liz Landes and Ben Aultman-Moore arranged a work swap so they could build a pair of beefy […]
Posted inLocal News
New planner finishes first month in the job
For Chen Wu, Haines borough planner is his first job out of school. His new office in the borough administration building is thousands of miles from his family in Shenzhen — one of the most populous urban areas in the world — and thousands of miles away from New York State, where Wu spent the […]
Posted inLocal News
Assembly Briefs: Dock frustration, revenue drop, cruise ship proposal, and heliski regulations
Lutak Dock frustration The assembly once again had lengthy discussion on the Lutak Dock rebuild without taking concrete action. The consensus among assembly members who spoke on the issue was that they hope to move forward putting the project out for bid, moving away from current contractor Turnagain Marine. There was no timeline discussed at […]
Posted inLocal News
Assembly asks for tower ban, rejects Jones Point tower lease.
Cell-tower regulations, borne out of health concerns about human proximity to towers, have been slowly inching through the borough lawmaking process. On Tuesday, they took a leap. Originally up for a vote was a set of regulations that would have established a mandatory 1,000-foot buffer between new towers and schools, daycares, playgrounds, and youth centers. […]
Posted inEconomy, Local News
Fishermen frustrated by Fish and Game meeting absence
Frustration among Lynn Canal gillnetters about state fisheries management grew this week after Alaska Department of Fish and Game staff declined to attend a public meeting with the fleet. Local gillnetters have spoken for weeks about decreased numbers of wild-run salmon, including Chilkoot sockeye, whose population, Fish and Game biologists say, will undershoot the state […]
Posted inEducation, Local News
DDF hosting first tournament of the season in Haines
The newest iteration of the Haines High School Debate, Drama and Forensics (DDF) team will be starting its season in Haines this weekend by hosting a tournament. Teams from Metlakatla, Skagway, and Juneau will be competing alongside returning Glacier Bear senior Maddox Rogers and sophomore Talia Hauser. New members Bugg Hunter, Chisel Triezenberg, Walther Jim, […]
Posted inLocal News, Wildlife
Sow and four cubs draw attention, tension to crowded Chilkoot corridor
The unusual sight of a brown bear sow with four cubs in tow is drawing bear watchers, photographers and enthusiasts to the crowded Chilkoot corridor this year. For many, it’s a chance for a glimpse at an extraordinary phenomenon with a stunning backdrop. But the sightseers are also causing traffic jams, ignoring bear safety protocol, […]
Posted inSoutheast News, Economy
Trollers to get third limited king opening
Each Southeast troll fisherman can harvest another 15 chinook salmon during a “limited harvest fishery” opening that’s set to begin Thursday, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Monday. In the ten-day fishery, which is the third limited harvest opening of the summer season, trollers can take about 5,400 chinook that remain in the […]
Posted inNews
The messy reality of feeding Alaska
After Trump threatened Canada, a writer discovers the uncertainty of the state’s food supply chain. It’s hard to remember now — a lot has happened since — but there was a time, back in February and March, when things got rather heated along the traditionally friendly, extremely long and largely unguarded Canada-U.S. border. In response to President […]
Posted inLocal News
Forecasters calling for rain, high-water after stretch of dry weather
The National Weather Service predicts a period of moderate to heavy rain for Klukwan and the Haines Borough beginning mid-week. Two weather systems will be affect the region over the next few days, including one that is a remnant of a tropical storm system in the northern Pacific. Yakutat is expected to bear the brunt […]