Tag Archives: moose

Critters of St. Paul Island

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Living 4,000 miles away from your hometown exposes you to a variety of new experiences.  One of the biggest differences between St. Paul Island and my home sweet home of Lansing, Michigan is the wildlife.  Granted you’ll never find anything as classy as Gracie in Alaska, but they tend to grow their animals a little bigger and badder in Alaska.

So if Gracie isn’t a native of Alaska, what are some of the animals native to St. Paul Island?

Let me start by letting you know what you WON’T find on the island (this is in response to many many many questions)

1. Moose

Aren’t moose so dopey?  Love em!  Dear Hubby and I have had three almost-run-ins with them on busy roadways.  They’re worse than deer because they don’t run across the road; they lope.

2. Bears

3. Polar Bears

4. Penguins

That’s the lists of the “Wont’s” and here’s a list of the “Will’s.”

1. BIRDS BIRDS BIRDS!

St. Paul Island is known as the Galapagos of the North because the number of bird species that reside here at various points of the year.  In fact, our own TDX Tours’ website has weekly Rare Bird Alerts.

2. Foxes

The fox on the island would be similar to a raccoon or opossum from the “Lower 48:” they are little pests that get into the garbage, and tend to leave little messes on front porches.  They’re harmless, but absolutely adorable – from afar.

3. Seals

4. Reindeer

Question: Have you ever gone bird watching?

Not on purpose, but there was that one time I cut off someone while changing lanes on the expressway.  Alotta birds!

Question: Any “conversation piece” animals in your neck of the woods?

The fur seals are pretty awesome.

Island Life

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One thing that naturally comes along with moving to an Alaskan island is being asked a thousand questions.  They range from the traditional ones about the weather and culture to somewhat rude ones, such as “What do you even do up there?” or “How big is your igloo?”   True, there are some things that Dear Hubby and I have had to sacrifice for our lives here, but they are well worth what we get in return.  I hope that this post clears up all the confusion.

The Weather

People automatically assume that because we’re talking about Alaska that the entire state is one giant blizzard.  True, there are areas on the interior of the state that reach mega negative number temps, but that is not the case on our island.  Right now, at the end of August, it averages about 50 degrees on a daily basis.  In the dead of winter, the temperatures range between 10 and 25 degrees, and might drop even more after the norther ice pack shows up.  We do not get a lot of snow, but the winds get quite lively at times, usually between 10-25 mph.  A few times last year, the winds got up to 100 miles an hour.

(Photo Source)

But what might be left to be desired about the weather, we have charm.

Food

I’ve made mention in the past about what it’s like getting food from it’s source to my mouth.  First, there are no restaurants here.  Everything is homemade or cooked at home.  You can definitely buy and be satisfied by what is offered at the A.C. store on the island, but there is a price to pay for it.  1/2 gallon of milk costs $7.00 and the fresh fruits and vegetables are not always available.  We do have a bypass shopping system that Dear Hubby and I utilize as much as possible; buying items in bulk and it comes every other week.  Again this doesn’t provide all the necessities or wants, but it sure does help.  A final option is having food shipped.  Depending on what it is and its availability from local retailers in Anchorage, we may buy from the following sources: Amazon.com, Fred Meyer, or Target.  Most of the time, an email home will secure a care package pretty easily =)

(Photo Source)

So sure, fresh strawberries and Almond Breeze milk isn’t in my kitchen here, we have picturesque views that fill me up instead.

Entertainment

Another question that I get a lot is what is it we do up here since there are no malls, no movie theaters, no sporting arenas, no stores.  It definitely did take awhile to get used to having all this “free time” on our hands.  Dear Hubby has his XBOX that keeps him busy, and I now have my blog.  Another thing that we do that keeps us busy is reading.  Now you can laugh if you want to, but it’s one of those things like, “you’re going to make fun of me for being healthy and not drinking the night away so that I can run my 16 miles tomorrow?”  It’s a healthy and cheaper alternative than retail therapy.

(Photo Source)

I would prefer to look at this everyday than another cookie cutter strip mall:

Wild Life

Alaska is known for it’s crazy-dangerous animal population: bears, moose, wolves, and other creepers hiding in the forrest.

(Photo Source)

Thankfully, this is not a concern for us on the island.  The biggest issue we have, animal-wise, is with the foxes and stray cats that wander into our garbage bins, looking for an easy meal.  There are no wolves, bears, or moose here.  We do however have fur seals, a herd of reindeer, and a bazillion different species of birds.  And they all live somewhere out there: