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Our resident muskrat was busy yesterday swimming back and forth in the cove while its mate scratched and dug in the dried grasses and thawing mud along shore. One time he swam straight toward me as I sat on the dock then disappeared underneath. The Mallard duck curiously eyes the feisty muskrat as it stops at nothing to get where it is going, cutting any creature off who might be in the way.

Here he is swimming rapidly toward me just before ducking under the dock.

More tomorrow.

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska artist

Wow, warm temperatures, wind and poof, the ice evaporated! Boats are happily cruising around searching for the glory hole where the biggest fish can be caught. And, I’m content again. This morning I was greeted by a Common Loon majestically swimming in the cove, such a beautiful bird! In a week or two all the trees will be green again. Summer is almost here!

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, landscape paintings

Although the ice pack is melting rapidly, and two-thirds of the lake is now open water, our cove seems to lure ice like bees to honey.  It is like a giant ice magnet attracted every inch of icy slush on the lake into our cove and made a permanent deposit, essentially blocking the ducks, grebes, and boats from reaching shore.  In the distance I can hear the sounds of boat motors roaring up and down, and the calls of waterfowl while our cove is locked into a frigid, surreal, silence.  Tomorrows temperature is forecast to be in the high 50’s to the low 60’s, the conditions might just be warm enough for this winter hangover to evaporate.  It can happen none too soon for me.

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, landscape paintings

After several days of wind the ice pack is congregated more toward the center and west end of the lake, frustrating the drivers of a couple of power boats who have attempted to be the first to circle the island. Today is May 5, 2008, my neighbor who has lived here for thirty years said that this is one of the latest dates for the ice to go out that she can recollect. Meanwhile the ice moves back and forth in the wind, breaking into odd shaped chunks. Sometimes it will return to touch our dock, other times it will have all drifted to the south and the cove will be clear. It is interesting to watch, but I wish it were gone!

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, landscape artist

The morning of May 3, 2008, Bob checked out the shoreline and the open water appears to be about 60′ wide (the dock is 50′ long).  By evening the open water had more than doubled, and the first Red Necked Grebe noisily announced its arrival squawking and calling in a high screechy warbling trill.  All the other ducks clung close to the shore, not wanting to be the target of an underwater dive attack from the Grebe.  The wind blew and the sun shone, just the right combination to cause the ice to evaporate quickly.  Hooray!

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska artist

Photo taken at 8:00PM on April 30, 2008.  About 30′ of shoreline in our cove is open water, the rest of the lake is still locked in ice.  It seems late for break-up.  By this date last year most of the lake was free of ice and was a popular rest stop for hoards of ducks and waterfowl.  This year a lone pair of Barrows Goldeneye and a pair of Mallards share the ice free zone, with a few Bonaparte Gulls who prefer resting and pooping on our dock.  I miss the ducks.

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska landscape artist

Fuzzy out-of-focus photo taken by me (I’m an artist, not a photographer) of the return of the muskrat to the cove on our lake.  After yesterday’s snow melted there is about 20′ of open water along the shore, the rest of the lake is still locked in ice.   This is the first sighting of the resident muskrat, actually I think he mated because TWO muskrats were feeding along the shore together.  I tried to sneak up on them to get a photo, but they both quickly dove under water and I only caught this bad shot just before this one disappeared.  Now, if I were the photographer that my son Ron is, I’d set up a blind and wait hours using a tripod and get clear, crisp, close-up shots of both of them.  I don’t have that kind of patience, that’s why I paint!

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska landscape artist

This morning we woke up to 3″ of fresh snow!  Not much, but better than nothing.  Yahooo!  It is so beautiful.
Gail Niebrugge, Artist of Alaska

9:30AM less than two weeks before the winter solstice (shortest day) with temperatures in the mid 40˚ Fahrenheit, the surface of our lake is once again thawing. One reason I choose to live in Alaska is for the wonderful winter activities. This lack of snow and above freezing temperatures are frustrating. I want to ski, ice skate, ice fish, and gather snow covered landscape research for future paintings. This warm wind condition is called a “chinook”.

More tomorrow,

Gail Niebrugge, Artist of Alaska wilderness

The weather is warm late this year, with the exception of a one week cold snap in early October daytime temperatures were still 40˚ fahrenheit until the first of November. The first thin sheet of ice covered the lake on November 3 but with temperatures back to 38˚ on November 5, most of the lake is open again. Our cove is frozen all the way to the west shore, but open water starts about 200′ south of our dock all the way across the lake to the south shore.

Dozens of Mallard ducks fly in and fly out, sometimes skidding on the ice. Traditionally Thanksgiving marks the time when people can safely play on the ice, but I’m beginning to think that might not happen. We won’t know for sure if the ice is safe until an auger hole is drilled to verify the thickness. At the end of last winter the ice pack was 3 feet thick! I look forward to winter, skating and skiing on the lake.
Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist

As if on cue, the migrating Trumpeter Swans showed up to the delight of our guests attending the annual Open House last weekend. It was the largest group of swans to appear so far, sixteen in number! They stayed just long enough to parade by our windows in single file, then continued on around the peninsula and out of sight. I grabbed the camera and tried to capture the scene, but the swans are hardly visible! You have to use your imagination. This photo proves that I’m a better painter than a photographer.
We had guests from all over the state; Kodiak, Fairbanks, McCarthy, Kenai, as well as visitors from as far as Germany. Quite a few originals found new homes and lots of prints were carried out the door. Early Christmas shopping and planning definitely took place.

For me the best part of the Open House was reuniting with old friends and collectors, sharing our lives, and getting caught up with each other. Today we are exhausted, but happy. It is a lot of work but definitely worth the effort.

Gail Niebrugge, Artist of Alaska

As soon as it was light enough to see we found all six Trumpeter Swans feeding near the shore next to our dock.  They stayed until human activity disturbed them, then swam away to a quieter spot. (more…)

Late in the afternoon the phones were ringing around the lake spreading the news that six Trumpeter Swan landed and were cruising the shoreline.  All eyes were glued to windows watching these gorgeous creatures!  As evening approached the swans settled comfortably in our cove, feeding and resting. (more…)

The other evening while entertaining guests, one of whom is an avid birder and wildlife biologist, I alerted everyone to watch a flight of Trumpeter Swan approaching overhead. Much to our guests delight the magnificent white birds flew across the sky perfectly framed by our big view windows, very low and easy to see. Our birder guest remarked that one of the swans had something unusual in its beak, and then exclaimed excitedly that the bird wasn’t a swan but a white pelican flying in formation with the swans! A very rare sighting, so quick and fleeting, almost as if it were a dream. day. Such a rare moment and none of us had a camera handy, drats! Entertaining guests is easy in Alaska, it seems like something interesting happens almost every day.
Gail Niebrugge, Art of Alaska

Today is gray, blustery, and cloudy, golden leaves are stripped from trees and swirl about piling up in sheltered areas of our yard. Migrating waterfowl seek respite from the pounding gale and are gathered in our cove. Ten Trumpeter Swan arrive seeking protection from wind, four adults and six signets, elegant but cautious during this temporary rest stop during their annual southern migration. A unexpected, but beautiful sight to pause and watch during our busy day.

Gail Niebrugge, Pointillism Artist

This is the view from my studio this morning, the fall colors are nearing their peak. Totally gorgeous!

Gail Niebrugge, Artist of Alaska

A beautiful fall evening at our studio/residence on the lake. Our family all gathered to say “goodbye” to photographer son Ron and wife Janine the night before they flew to the lower forty-eight to tour Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, and other scenic places for their fall photo shoot. Good luck Ron and Janine, stay safe!

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Fine Artist

A sunny afternoon on the lake, Bob peddles with his grandchildren. The last few warm days of summer.

Gail Niebrugge, Art for Alaska

The pair of Rednecked Grebe’s attending the floating nest in our cove are proud parents of two baby chicks!

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist

Our cove on the lake is full of nesting birds; two Rednecked Grebe nests (one is floating about 50 feet from shore), several Mallard Duck nests some with babies along the shore, next to our dock a feisty Bonapart gull regularly attacks guarding a nest somewhere in the woods, and a Magpie nest in the tall lone spruce tree. This does not include the Tree Swallow nests that have been built inside three nesting boxes that we mounted on trees earlier this spring. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game provided a sign cautioning lake users of the nesting area, and we built a contraption to hold the sign that floats in the water on the outside of the cove. It seems to be working, boats slow down when approaching and wake is kept to a minimum.

Gail Niebrugge, Alaska Artist