2010 so far

We have been in AK since just before the new year. Last week it finally snowed! Which was great because it was getting pretty close to bare ground and where it wasn't it was just icy. We have spent a great deal of time reading up on the CDT, looking into our grea options, and deciding what we want to take on our South America adventure. There have been a lot of decisions made.
We also have been getting in some outdoor fun.
Lou and I did a snowshoe trip with Josiah, Bo and Leah. The snow was really well packed in most places. On the hike out the weather was wonderful, no wind, nice views, and a porcupine. Bo was really enjoying his first snowshoe trek, look at him run.
Below Lou is post holing through the partially covered alders, he put his snow shoes on shortly after this photo.

We started a little later in the day than we had planned, but we made pretty good time albeit in the dark. When we got to the cabin Ben and Rachel had a fire going and snacks ready, we feasted on burritos and cookies. Before heading out the next morning Lia and Bo made some belly feeling flapjacks. There were some incredible views on the hike out clear skies all the way around the peninsula. Unfortunately our camera battery froze. It was a cold day for trekking.

This picture was taken at 2pm on top of a ~1,000 ft hill. The is on the right just above Lou's head. But we gain light quickly, so the days are already noticeably longer.
Just after new years Bear Creek Winery sent out their first shipment to their distributor. There are 240 cases of wine in this picture!
It is incredible how much my parents have accomplished in the last 6 years.

More recently we have had a visitor from CA. Shaara and I presented at a conference in Anchorage last week. She flew up a few days early to check out Homer. Although she was only here for a few days we managed to fit a lot in. Her first day we spent exploring the shops and looking at eagles on the spit. We fit in a mid-day hottub while it was snowing. Dad made bacon wrapped scallops and BBQ copper river reds for dinner.
Sunday we got the day started with a few hours on the ski trails. Shaara had never xc-skied before.

Once she got the feel for having sticks attached to her feet she was cruising right along. I was very impressed. Look'in good Shaara!
The trail we were on passes by the dump, there are loads of eagles that hang out here. All the birds in the tree behind Shaara are eagles, some mature and some immature. Of course no visit is complete without a wind tasting. Shaara was able to pick put several wines that suited her taste. I did a little wine tasting too, there is always something new at the winery. Dinner Sunday was quite a show, we decided to make tempura and sushi rolls. The whole Fry/Arseneau/Geragotelis/Maurer Homer family unit was present. The tempura was easier than I thought it would be, yummy too. Keeping up with demand was a challenge.
Everyone got involved in filling and rolling the sushi. The platter of rolls was nearly emptied by the group. Grant scooped up the last 10 pieces to take for lunch the next day.
Happy 2010 everyone!