Remote Alaskan Art Retreat Summer 2015

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Every summer I make my annual summer trip up to Alaska where I grew up, in one of the most remote places you can imagine.  I think of it as an artist's retreat to step away from all the hustle and bustle of living in Florida and just get back in touch with the untouched beauty of nature.  The mind is free to absorb all of the quietness that comes from being so far away from cities, roads, cars, etc., it's a moment to reflect and just enjoy life in it's most raw state.

My husband and I have a cabin there, as he also commercial dives in the fall for Sea Cucumbers, an Asian delicacy.  Most of my family still lives in the area, so it's also a time for me to get to visit with my parents and siblings and reminisce about our crazy childhood!  If you want to read some of those stories and learn more about what it is really like to live in the Alaskan Bush, check out my sister's blog www.alaskaforreal.com it is some of the best reading you will find on Alaska, and it's the "REAL" deal, she's lived that lifestyle for almost 40 years!

Here are some of the photos from the trip, one of the best parts about it were the over abundance of whales, they were everywhere!  And I am completely and totally obsessed with whales, dolphins, and any and all sea life, they are all amazing creatures to me and I could just sit and watch them all day.  The humpbacks were particularly busy this summer, bubble feeding everywhere, it is such an incredible sight. You can spot a very large ring of bubbles in the water moments before they rocket out of the water with their mouths wide open after having circled the small krill under the water and then filling their open mouths as they surge upwards, it's incredible!!

In this first picture you can clearly see the ring of bubbles near the shoreline, this is just moments before the whale burst out of the water.

Alaska Whale Bubble Feeding

Alaska Whale Bubble Feeding

Alaska Whale Bubble Feeding

Alaska Whale Bubble Feeding

Whale Tail

Close up of Whale Tail

We of course did LOT's of fishing, one of the things we do every summer is stock up on our winter supply of salmon, halibut, yellow eye, ling cod, and lot's of other delicious Alaskan seafood, and of course shrimp and crab too :)  I myself only eat a little seafood every now and then, not really much of a meat eater, but my husband and daughter are serious seafood lovers!  This summer my husbands Jamaican mom and her brother came and stayed with us for several days, their first trip to Alaska and needless to say they were in complete awe at all that Alaska has to offer, a trip of a lifetime...and they too went home with their fair share of seafood.

Wild Alaskan Seafood!!

My Mother in law with the biggest catch of the trip, halibut!

Besides fishing and whale watching, there is so many other fun things to do, beachcombing, cliff jumping, I stay in the boat, there is NO WAY I'm getting in that cold water, smores, bird watching, you name it, there is something to always do while in Alaska.  And the view from our cabin, which sits over the beach, is constantly changing and always has something to enjoy from sailboats, whales, birds, seals, and so much more...a true look into the raw beauty of Alaska.

Cliff Jumping

Beachcombing

My favorite bird, the Alaskan hummingbird

"Lovers" perched on the island in front of our cabin

Back Deck/smores area

View from our cabin deck

One of the neat things in the area to see is the sea lions perched on one of the "cans" (the cans mark shallow rocks), they are always there and it's amazing they can even get up on the cans to begin with!

Sea Lions on the "Can"

Sea Lions on the "Can"

I hope you enjoy this little peak into my Alaskan sojourn I take every summer, and highly recommend everyone visit Alaska at least once in their lifetime, you won't regret it!!