One additional reason to dislike Tom Cruise! Reportedly, this is a mold of the baby Cruises first poop which has been bronzed in gold and will be available for auction on E-Bay next month. I take great delight in people who think that their poop does not stink and evidently Tom Cruise is one of those. Perhaps it is just his movies that stink! It is also evident to me that he or the mother of his child also have difficulty in truth and reality. Now I am no expert when it comes to fine specimens of poop, however, I have raised four children and in my time have changed thousands of diapers, I can guarantee you that this is not babies first poop. If you are going to bronze it, at least work with the liquid mass the confronts you the first six months of a babies ability to have a bowel movement. The art work, if you want to stoop that low, is not authentic. Perhaps this art work should be preserved and presented to Tom Cruise at the next Academy Awards Banquet for the last movie that Cruise made, it would seem more appropriate.

As a youngster growing up on a little ranch in Colorado, my father always had several corral full of horses. A big portion of these horses came to us unbroken. Fortunately for myself, I was the youngest of the boys so I escaped those horses that had never been ridden. This right was reserved for my oldest brother, Tad, who was a very good hand around horses and got a lot of experience in riding broncs. Once he had them where you could ride without getting buck off, the horse would then be turned over to my other two brothers, Larry and Don, who would then finish breaking them. Once they were neck reining good, they were then turned over to me where it was my responsibility to ride each horse every evening after school just to keep them smoothed out. It should not come as a surprise, but occasionally a "sleeper" would be slipped to me and I would find myself on a horse that Tad had not quite finished breaking so I learned at a young age, how hard a horse can buck and what the alternative is if he or she is successful in dumping you on your head or worse your butt.
As a side note, I am now 61 years of age and have never ridden a bicycle, motorcycle, three wheeler or a four wheeler. You might ask yourself, how can anyone escape this long without enjoying these modes of transportation? I am very smart! However, yesterday, my record ended and at the same time, after riding all those green broke horses, I think I can now qualify for the National Rodeo Finals in December for the bare back or saddle bronc event. I let Papa Bear talk me into riding one of his four wheelers into his cabin. It bucked, snorted, and my butt cleared the saddle more times than I care to remember, but I rode her into the ground without getting buck off.
Golden Granny and myself had never been to Shane's cabin, being that it was a sunny day and he was on vacation from work, we decided that we would experience the trip to see his cabin.
Reaching the end of the road and after unloading the four wheelers, Shane took the time to explain how to start and ride the machine, the indoctrination period lasted all of two minutes. He must have thought I was a quick learner, because we saddled up and rode off into the bush with Golden Granny riding doubles with me. Dutch and Ginger ran alongside with Shane leading the way. I kept looking for a trail, all I could see was muddy tracks, mud holes and swamp but Shane knew the way. Things were going well, at least for the first one hundred yards when I bogged my trusty steed down to the axles and was stuck in a bog. With a little winch help using Shane's machine for a deadman, we were once again underway. Oh, there is another bog hole, just a hundred yards away from my first sinking. Once we got pulled out of this one, Golden Granny quickly determined that riding doubles with Shane was a lot safer than with me. From that point, things went very smoothly as I started getting the hang of going into the holes slow, hitting the gas and popping out the other side. It was after the trip that Shane just happened to mention that you go in slow, move through the bad spots slow and out the other side. My technique worked most of the time, I only got stuck two additional times going in. Now this trip normally takes Shane forty five minutes or less, today we spent a leisurely two hours winding through the bogs and muddy trails but the end of the trip was well worth the effort to get there.



This is the Bear Den, a remote cabin on a high ridge overlooking Caribou Lake. You have to give the Bear Clan a lot of credit on this feat. They transported all of the building materials into the site by snow machine and four wheelers and completed all of the construction. It is situated at the peak of the ridge with a panoramic view of the area. The inside is very nice, all the comforts of home with sleeping capacity of at least a dozen people including the master bedroom suite. They definitely took advantage of the best location to build.



Finally, Mother Eagle got to be in a picture of herself and Papa Bear standing on the deck of the Bear Den, note the running water system which is located behind them, fresh, cold running water as long as it rains. There has been no problem in keeping up with he water demand this season.
Dutch had a great time, although the run across country and trying to keep up with a one year old yellow lab was a little tough on him, especially on the return trip. Following the four wheelers and running circles around them, he was coated with mud, but loved the jaunt and a good swim in the Anchor River upon our return to clean himself off.



After a picnic lunch and with the rain clouds looming on the other ridges, it was decided that it was time to return to civilization. It was then we discovered that the Bear knew of yet another trail, a little further but somewhat easier to travel. Had no mishaps, until the Bear decided to cut across country to get to the good trail faster - anytime Bear or Moose talks about a short cut - beware! The shortcut went well, at least until I high centered my steed a top of a small tree stump - who would have ever thought that there was a stump anywhere close to that dead tree on the ground! After winching a couple of times, we were once again moving to the good trail! Surprise, the trail was a board walk eight feet wide across all the swamps. The remainder of the trail stayed on the high ground, wide enough and smooth enough that I am sure that I could get my Ford F-150 within two miles of the cabin. This route was a little further, but once we cleared the short cut, my butt never left the saddle. Keeping up pace with Dutch, we came in a little behind the Bear and Mama Eagle, in fact they had their machine loaded on the trailer when we finally completed the trip. It was a great trip and we had a good time, but I cannot not picture Blonde Bear or Mama Bear wheeling through Papa Bear's favorite trail! He should have the machine that I was riding repaired and ready to go for the Labor Day Weekend outing that they have planned.
While wandering around the den site, I did discover two things. One is that they built their den a top of one of the largest gravel disposits on the Kenai Peninsula. Being very adapt at living off the land and knowing what is edible and those things to stay away from, I did discover something that most people do not know exists in Alaska. You have no doubt heard of the world famous Kona Coffee Bean, they grown on the slopes of the volcano in rocky terrain and one of the finest beans available on the market. At the altitude of the Bear Den and the rocky soil, there are several very large plants of wild Coffee Beans growing on the south slopes of the ridge. They are not quite ripe enough to harvest, although I did gather a few and used rocks to grind them up so we enjoyed a fresh cup of Bear Ridge Coffee before we left the quietness of the wilderness.

Fishing for silver Salmon within the pristine tidal zone of the Anchor River on August 13, 2006. While fishing in this secret spot, I found very little angler effort while other members of the various clans preferred to fish the more popular areas on the river. This was the day of the 2nd Annual Silver Salmon Tournament in which we compete each year on my fathers date of birth. The Papa Bear fished, while the remainder of the Bear Clan slept in, the upper part of the river, not knowing the kind of fishing that I had been having within the tidal zone of the river. Typical of the Moose he was wandering between Deep Creek and Anchor River, knowing where the fish were but not having any great success. The remainder of the Clans were somewhere, I did hear that two of the those, Little Buff and the Alpha Male Wolf were fishing the mud hole in Ship Creek while Big Buffy slept in. They were hoping to snag a silver and then enter it into the tournament as a Anchor River Fish.



After having turned lose a dozen prime Silver Salmon this particular morning, I decided to put this one on the beach and retain him for my single entry into the tournament. This particular fish was smaller than several that I turned loose, but the spirit and his fighting ability impressed me so much that I thought he was worthy of the recognition that he would receive.



This particular Silver Salmon weighing in at 15.6 pounds was the winner of the 2006 Tournament, once again the Grand Eagle has captured the top place with the largest fish being taken by members of the Clan. The 72 pound King Salmon that adorns the wall of the lodge and now the 15.6 Silver Salmon to reclaim the Golden Coins from Papa Bear, who won this tournament in 2005. In all likelihood, the coins will remain in my vault until the rivers no longer run and the Silvers return to the rivers no more. But, as Little Moose likes to tell everyone what he calls my fly rod, the "Master's Rod", he is a wise youngster, no wonder he was selected as leader of the Little Clan.

Regardless of the sporting event, I personally feel that the contestants be as equal as possible in order to provide fair competition. Any time one team or competitor makes an attempt to unbalance the equality it undermines the game as a sport. Unfortunately, this is not a cardinal rule followed by all teams or competitors, the predominant focus is on winning regardless on unfair competition. Unfortunately, we see this situation arise in a lot of our sports that are designated for our young people to enjoy. If you have ever participated in Little League Baseball, you know what I mean. At times, the coaches and even parents can distract from the game in their quest for winning.

Currently, the Little League World Series is being played in Pennsylvania, the Anchorage team of Diamond missed playing in this world series by one point. But, how fair is the competition in this Little League World Series. You can base your opinion from the picture that follows:




The following is the news article that accompanied the photo; Associated Press, Tuesday, August 22: "Saudi Arabia first baseman 6 feet 8 inch Aaron Durley, left watches a pitch as Venezuela's 4 feet 8 inch base runner Ermision Arellano gets ready to take a lead during the fourth inning in their game of the Little League World Series. Durley is the tallest player to ever play at the Little League World Series"

Now, to me the name "Durley" is not the typical name that you will find in the region of Saudi Arabia. Perhaps a little recruiting is going on and the Saudi's scouts got Basketball and Baseball confused. I would also like to know who is checking Birth Certificates, there is age limit restriction in these games and it appears to me that this guy could use a good shave. I am sure he is a very good ball player, but let's move him up a couple of Leagues like to the Major Leagues, I am sure the Chicago Cubs could use a good first baseman.

During the Memorial Day Week Clan gathering, I had to go to the Little Hamlet By the Sea. Hunter asked if he could go with me, not seeing any problem with that, I was happy to take him with me. He was a big hit at the bank, he is a "chick magnet" and before we left the bank, he had a whole bag of suckers and two pounds of doggy treats for Dutch. Our next stop was Safeway, to pick up some camp food. I was not aware that Hunter had taken one of his new found pets in the form of a Frog and had housed in his pants pocket. My first indication of the stowaway came when Hunter started yelling "my frog got away", within three minutes I could here a lady screaming at the top of her lungs on the next isle. After several women screamed, half of the store employees were on their hands and knees looking for the frog that was scaring all of the little old senior citizens. Unfortunately, Froggy was never found. Last week, the store was closed down for two days while the Health Inspectors checked all of the produce, it appears that "Froggy" was found by an unsuspecting consumer.

Being that it is rainy morning, decided to invite the "Clans" over for a coffee and sticky roll brunch. Unfortunately, everyone was busy but the Buffalo showed up.

Remember the posting that I made one week ago today, August 6, 2006 pertaining to the Co-Ed Softball team, called the Anglers? It is a team that I have sponsored for several years, they won the Homer City Championship in 2005. This season, they once again proved their team effort by placing 2nd in the Firecracker Tournament in Kenai against teams from throughout the state. Some of the other teams perhaps looked at this win and previous Championship as a fluke from a small town team, that just happened to get lucky. They completed their season with a record of 14 wins and 2 losses, but once again returned to the field of play by winning a consecutive City Championship one week ago today. One of the local printed news media in the "Little Hamlet By the Sea" wrote a very bias sports article that did not complement the team, the only pictures that they used were pictures of the team that the Anglers beat for the City Championship.
Winning the City Championships placed them in line for a berth at the State Championship in Wasilla this weekend comprised of the best teams from around the state. There is no better way to put it other than:

"THE ANGLERS ARE THE 2006 ALASKA STATE CHAMPIONS"

The impressive records that this team has maintained over the years is not a fluke, they are an awesome team, they play the game because they love the game and that is what makes them winners. The state tournament is a double elimination tournament, but the Anglers did not take the chance of dropping one game, they swept the tournament with six wins. If you are wondering, the team that the local media thought so much about also went to the state tournament, they played two games and came home. Looking forward to his next sports article. The news is still filtering in, it is not known who was selected as the Most Valuable Players, but each player on this team could be chosen for this honor. My personal congratulations to Shane and Dana, they basically started this team and have been instrumental in background and foreground of the team. Job Well Done, Way To Go Anglers!

Today, is the birth date of my father, Henry Laverne (Vern) Harrington. Reportedly, he was born on August 13, 1912 in Silver Creek, Nebraska and passed away in Montrose, Colorado on September 9, 1990. Only recently, in my research of our family history, I discovered that he was actually born on August 12, 1912 but given that we always celebrated his birthday on August 13th, we will give him that day in remembrance. As a child growing up, each August 13th we would fish Silver Salmon together, then have a picture taken of the birthday catch. In those days we always considered his birthday as the peak of the Silver Salmon run on Anchor River. Dad was a ruthless salmon fisherman, once hooked, no salmon ever stood a chance of escaping unless he did it in less than thirty seconds, but we spent many hours together on the Anchor River fishing and hunting moose at the headwaters of the river. This day and age, we complain about how crowded our fisheries have become due to the many visitors that arrive in Alaska each summer to experience a wilderness adventure. These complaints are not new, I remember as a "kid" we would drive out to the Anchor River from our home in the "Little Hamlet By The Sea" on the Old Sterling Highway, as there was no "New" Sterling Highway. The Silver King Lodge was across the road from where the Anchor Angler is today, the lodge had several small, slab wood sided guest cabins next to the Beach Road with a very small campground. As we topped the hill, where our home is located now, Dad would shift into neutral and turn out the headlights. The downhill momentum provided enough speed for us to coast past the cabins and campground. Dad would always make the same comment when accomplishing this task in the dark, "don't want to wake up any of them damm tourists". Evidently it worked, because there was never more than three other fishermen on the river and they would be local friends. On any given day there may have been three visitors from LA on the river.
Last year, the "Clans" held the 1st Annual Vern Harrington Memorial Silver Salmon Tournament. Papa Bear of the Bear Clan won the tournament with a very small Silver Salmon and was awarded a box full of Golden Tokens to equal the weight of the fish. The only other fish entered into the tournament was by the Alpha Male of the Wolf Clan, typical of the Wolf the only salmon he could steal was a spawned out Humpy that he found laying on the bank. The wiser members of the other Clans chose not to fish due to the river conditions.
This year, as the Grand Poopa it is my honor to announce the winner of the 2nd Annual Tournament in honor of dad. The results are as follows:
1st Place: Grand Poopa, Head of the Eagle Clan, Silver Salmon weighing 11.4 Pounds
2nd Place: Papa Bear of the Bear Clan, Silver Salmon weighing 10.1 pounds
Tied for Last Place: Moose Clan, Buffalo Clan, Wolf Clan, Raven Clan, Woodpecker Clan, and the High Priest or whichever title you prefer.
Special Prize: Most Silver Salmon landed, a choice of Free Trip to Mexico or Hawaii and the deserving winner is the Grand Poopa, Exalted Leader of the Clans after landing seven Silver Salmon and releasing five.
It was a great tournament, a lot of fun and it is hope that all of you enjoyed a morning on the Anchor River. The Eagle Clan will look forward to the honors bestowed upon them at the next meeting of the Clans.

On numerous occasions, I have seen several postings published that took great delight in bashing the little "village by the river". The majority of these postings came from individuals that have very close ties to this wonderful little community, a community "that is what Alaska use to be". Anchor Point and the Anchor River is recognized throughout the world for some world class fishing, in both the Anchor River and our marine fisheries. The Anchor River is a destination point for those fishermen, that enjoy fishing for the sake of fishing.
This weekend was a historic weekend for Anchor Point, your choice of recreational opportunities abound. The Anchor River Silver Salmon fishery is just short of excellent, however, this weekend you can also enjoy playing or simply being a spectator at the First Annual Fireweed Meadows Invitational Golf Tournament. Remember that golf course that someone posted pictures and made some snide remarks about, the fairways look good and the greens are professional. The driving range has also been very popular for those that just want to practice their dressing techniques. If golf is not your bag, on this weekend, you can drive down the road one half mile from the golf course and river to enjoy the Alaska State Championship Motor Cross races. Race teams from throughout the state have converged on this little community for this event.
Why is this happening in Anchor Point? Well, it is easy to analyze, the "little hamlet by the sea" does not have a river in which you can find great Silver Salmon fishing. However, they do have a abandon gravel pit out on Coney Island that you can fish shoulder to shoulder and hopefully snag a salmon if you have properly rigged up the way the local tackle shop across the street has demonstrated to you. The Lions Club of this little hamlet sponsors the Motor Cross races, but not within the City Limits of Homer - to much noise and pollution! Don't even think about a Jet Ski on Kachemak Bay, that is a felony charge but they do allow jet boats access to the same water. Although the climate is more susceptible to golf courses and there is a small 9 hole course available for your use, but it is similar to playing
"wacky golf" in a pasture. Now don't get me wrong, I am not putting the little hamlet down, I was raised in this fine community, my children grew up in this same community, but the landscape, although beautiful has changed over the years. Perhaps, you have to be "territorial" to appreciate what has actually occurred to some of our smaller communities and especially our larger cities like LA. To analyze this, I have set up a simple standard of profiling Alaskan's. "Territorial" is those of us that remember the qualities of Alaska prior to Statehood. "Earthquakers" are those Alaskan's that arrived in Alaska prior to the great earthquake of 1964. "Pre-pipeliners" are those individuals that arrived within the state prior to the development of the North Slope. "Pipeliners" are those that arrived in Alaska to make their fortune during the construction of the pipeline. "Pre-Zobels are those that arrived in Alaska prior to the passage of the Permanent Dividend Fund". "Ron and Penny Alaskans" are those that came to Alaska after the Supreme Court decision that ruled the dividend payments could not be made based on the length of residence in Alaska (the longer you lived here the greater the amount of the dividend). "Dividenders" are those that moved to Alaska to take advantage of the dividend that we all now receive on a equal basis, regardless of length of residence. "Carpetbaggers" these are those that come to Alaska with a small handbag and head south to live and spend the money they made in Alaska, this group would include fishing guides, commercial fishermen, lodge owners, tour companies, and oil field workers that commute to and from Alaska to work, earn their bucks and head south to enjoy the "good life".
What affect has this had on Alaska, in 1960 the population of Alaska was 226,167 people, which is less than the current population of LA. By the year of 2004 the population increased to 655,435. In 1960, a total of 236 violent crimes occurred in Alaska, by the year 2004 that same crime rate rose to 4,159. In 1960, a total of 47 rapes occurred by 2004 this statistic rose to 558. Anchor Point may be a sleepy little village, but the great thing about it is that it is what Alaska use to be. The only murder that we have had here occurred last spring, but it does not really count because she was killed in LA and then dumped on our beach! How fortunate we are, those of us that live in the little village by the river.

The "Duckling House" which is a smaller version of the "Duck House" is a tremendous success! The reason, I have not been blogging as of late is that I have been awful busy chasing Silver Salmon up and down the Anchor River. When you are up at 0400 and fish until 0800, then process fish until 1300 the day is gone. Have been finding some great fishing, multiple fish each time that I go out. It has been some great fishing with some big fish showing up. All of this is well and good, however, the run has not even started yet so I am anxious to see it when the run develops, I can see some ten to twenty fish days in the near future.
Since you last saw the "Duckling House", I have converted it to gas and it has helped tremendously, I can now have a full stream of smoke in less than five minutes. Been producing some great product and now have the recipe for the brine and timing down to a science. Today, to further reduce cost, a bag of alder chips run at $3.29 per bag. Just so happens, we have several acres of alders on the property, a little peeling and running them through the chop saw, I can now produce little alder logs to stoke the fire, they last longer and are free! The "Little Clan" do not have to worry about their alder forest, it is protected and no harvesting allowed in that area. Don't know what I will do with all this smoked salmon, currently we have about forty pounds completed, to bad there is no one down here to enjoy it with us. By the way, how is the Silver Salmon fishing in Muddy Creek in downtown LA?

I am always on watch for new concepts to making your camping more enjoyable. Having had the opportunity to sit around the campfire on many occasions, I noticed that there was always a lot of turmoil and confusion when it came to roasting hot dogs and marsh mellows. With all the adults and many grandchildren trying to share six roasting forks, I said to myself, "self, there has to be a better way to get all these dogs cooked safely". I think I have found the concept that will work. Not only can you roast enough dogs for everyone, but you can also warm or toast the buns at the same time by aligning them on top as it makes an ideal grill. I did do a field trial on it, I was able to roast 17 hot dogs at one time and when it came to marshmallows, I stopped counting after the second bag was placed onto the roaster. I do not recommend that the plastic style of this device be used but the old fashion metal one works great.

"I am all shook up", I am so sorry but Mabel has succumbed to a tragic end. Mabel is a stuffed Teddy Bear that was on exhibit in a British Museum. She was made in 1909 by German manufacturer Steiff and valued at $75,000! She was to be the center piece in a collection at the Wookey Hole Caves in Southwest England.

Security Guard Greg West was on patrol in the museum during closed hours with his trusty guard dog, Barney, a Doberman Pinscher. Guard West stopped by to visit Mabel and was stroking her, telling her what a nice bear she was. Perhaps it was jealousy, but Barney attacked Mabel! Poor Mabel was disembowled of her soft stuffing and had her head severed. The damage is believed to be irreparable.

Sir Benjamin Slade had purchased Mabel at an auction, upon hearing of the demise of Mabel, he was quoted as say "I am not very pleased"! Guard West was quoted as saying "Barney has been a model guard dog for more then six years. I still cannot believe what happened!" I am assuming that Barney and Guard West are no longing patrolling the museum. The auction in which Mabel was purchased was in Memphis, Tennessee, if you have not guessed by now Mabel was the cherished teddy bear of "The King", Elvis Presley who was not available for a comment pertaining to demise of Mabel. In memory, the next time you hear Elvis singing "I Wanna Be Your Teddy Bear", think of Mabel and her untimely demise.

Paradise, Colorado: "A Place of Peace", this is a picture of your Uncle Don's Cabin taken from a ridge overlooking Paradise Valley. The picture was taken by your Uncle Bill in July. The family gathered here in July to spread the ashes of Don. The cabin is located on the slopes of the Little Cimerron River valley between Montrose, and Sapenario, Colorado.

A close up of Don's cabin, which he built with the assistance of your grandmother from logs that he cut on the property. This is the private range land that belongs to the Nicholas Brothers, whom Don worked with for many years.

Don's Marker which Donnie and Dee Dee put in the yard of the cabin, his ashes were spread on the ridge over looking the valley.
Although, I only had the opportunity to visit his cabin twice, both times provided wonderful memories and realization why he named it, Paradise, Colorado.