AUGUST 28

Been neglecting this blog a bit lately but I suppose it is because our lives have been full and brimming over. Harvest season is in full swing and working on a farm means there is always plenty to do. Lately we've been harvesting carrots which is always very fun! My favorites are the deep purple and red carrots because they always seem to have fantastic names like "purple haze" and "atomic red. If I ever have a CSA farm of my own you can bet that the shares would be full of rainbow roots!

Our hike on the Chilkoot was so wonderful. It was an important reminder how beneficial a little time away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life can be for a marriage. It was nice to have a few days away from it all. On the trail there were many miles to talk about the future, remember the past and try to be more--present.

Blueberry Bonanza

Yesterday we picked up new hiking boots for the trip. They are very lovely and comfy and I cannot wait to begin our hike. I've been trying to wear them as much as possible to break them in before we start the heavy hiking so yesterday we went for a long walk out behind our cabin and came back with another half gallon of blueberries. These were some of the biggest ones I have seen all summer! The alaska blueberries that we generally pick are pretty small but packed full of flavor. These seemed monstrous by comparison and still had the delicious flavor we love.

Half of the harvest was vacuum sealed and thrown in the freezer, not to be opened until February 14th 2013! We will open up the bag to make some spelt blueberry waffles on Valentines. The other half is being dried right now. Walking back to our cabin the weight of the blueberries reminded me again how blessed we are to live in this place. The pink of the fireweed, the white birches, scraggly black spruce, rolling green hills and patches of wild berries are the essence of home to me.
 

Have a good weekend! 

XO Kyla

August

I cannot believe how quickly this summer is flying by. D has completed his bar exam and my summer job has ended so slowly but surely our lives seem to be falling back into a pre-law school rhythm. Now we are beginning to prepare for our 1st Anniversary trip! We will be hiking the Chilkoot trail and spending a couple of evenings in Juneau, Alaska at the Capital Inn B&B. It is very hard to believe that in six short days we will have been married for a year! It has been a very stressful year in many ways and both of us are really looking forward to having a relaxing week of backpacking and some time to check out Juneau. My sister was born there but we moved away when I was about 4 and D has never visited so it should be fun to go explore.

For snacks on the hike we've picked about a gallon of wild alaskan blueberries which we have dried in our food dehydrator. We will mix those in with nuts and sprinkle them on top of oatmeal in the morning. We are also going to dehydrate some smoked salmon to snack on or to mix into Lundberg Farms Organic Risotto. I've also harvested a bunch of Kale that I plan to make kale chips with!

I plan to do a good cleaning in the cabin today and take Kluane for a run this evening and in the in-between-times continue reading Melissa Coleman's book This Life is In Your Hands. I am really enjoying it so far. I have loved reading several of Eliot Coleman's books on farming and it has been really interesting to learn about what first drew him towards the lifestyle in his youth. I definitely recommend giving it a read. 

Happy August!
Kyla