Information - Apps We Use

Several people have asked up how we develop our blog.  One of the most common questions is what apps do we use.  We’re Apple, iPad, and iPhone junkies so we’re working through the iTunes App store. 

And mainly we use only two apps.  One for recording the map for the hike which is Motion GPS.  The other is AyeTides (iPad)  or AyeTide XL (iPad) to check the tides for our beach hikes or trying to time our arrival with the Turnagain Arm bore tide or the rush of water at the Homer Spit Fishing hole.  AyeTides also provides the sunrise/sunset times which helps us pick depart times for the best photos. 

We also use a number of weather apps but there is no real front-runner.  The weather in Alaska seems to be hard to forecast and we are constantly cross checking them.  But we’re always prepared on our hikes for inclement weather.

Information - Do aluminum art prints survive sun and weather? IDK but am going to find out

    

6 Jan 14                                               4 May 14

4 May 14

How did it do after the first winter?  Very well.  It wasn't that hard a winter but we did get a lot of wind and a fair amount of snow.  Our biggest problem was hanging it on the wall.  A normal indoor hanger just doesn't cut it.  And it was blown off the wall at least four times.  Now we have it leaning on the house instead of hanging.

So far as we can tell there isn't any change in the color after five months outside.  There was some damage from falling off the wall.  The bottom was dented from the fall.  Also, there is one small scratch; you have to use a finger nail to find it and you can't see the base metal.  It's also a bit dirty from the dust, water spots, and pollen, but the dirt just wipes off.  The metal print we have used an infusion method where the ink is pulled into the metal and it goes a far way in.  Next update will be towards the end of September.

6 Jan 14

After many people asking "Do aluminun art prints survive sun and weather?" I remember my dad saying "I don't know" wasn't an acceptable answer unless followed with "but I will find out."   So, we decided to take one of our aluminun art prints that failed our quality assurance check and hang it outside and check on it about every six months or so.


It is facing basically due south in a full sun location.  It is, also, on the corner of the house where the wind gets funneled between the house and a line of alder.   So, for the next four months, it's going to get live outside during an Alaska winter, and, then, it will get more sun that most could every want from an Alaskan summer--all 19 hours a day in June.

We can't decide if it is going to enjoy the fresh air or fade away to nothing.  But based on ancient coke cans we're found, we're betting on no effects.  However, we do thing the untreated wood frame will probably fail first.

Why you ask am I posting about this? Well, we're basically doing this blog to document our hikes on where we're going to take pictures for our gallery.  The online gallery, by the way, can be reached from the changing pictures on the lower left of the page.

If you're wondering what a aluminum prints, where a couple of vendors that can make them.  Please, NOTE, I'm providing the links as references only as I haven't used either as a vendor yet.

http://www.adoramapix.com/app/products/metalprints
http://www.bayphoto.com/metalprints/

Winter Time Posts

Now, that, the temperature has fallen below freezing in Homer, we're going to start posting about having fun in the winter in Alaska.  We're not going to talk about arctic man or extreme snow machining or skiing.  Instead, we're going to write about the differences in the hiking trails between using a boot versus a snowshoe.  Or how a marsh provides dramatic scenes in the middle of winter.

Current Available are:

- Winter sunrises
- Potter Marsh below freezing

- Turnagain Arm iceflow

- Turnagain Arm ice falls
- The Spit in winter

Coming Soon:
- Snowshoeing Eveline Trail
- Snowshoeing Homestead Trail

We are also, weather permitting, going to try walking over the frozen lakes to the the face of Portage and/or Grewingk glaciers.  Some years this is very doable and some years the weather never clears enough during our time off.

Information - Post Template Update

A couple of friends pointed out Google Map and Earth was choking their computers when they tried to load this blog.  In response, we moved the maps to under the cut line.  So instead of trying to load every map in the blog you'll only get the one set that you're interested in.

If you like something or don't, please let us know, so we can improve the usefulness of our blog!

About the Authors

We, Chris and Carol, retired from the Air Force in 2012 and moved to Homer, Alaska to start a second career as photographers.  While searching the local area for hikes, kayaking sites, and other activities, we were disappointed by random nature of the descriptions we could find on-line.

Chris suggested we start a blog to cover every activity we do as we discover them.  Carol agreed and this blog was formed.  As we explore the activities across Alaska we will continue to add them to this blog, so check back regularly.

We will not be stopping for the winter either.  We have discovered there are many interesting winter activities as well.  Alaska is gorgeous at any time of the year; there is no reason to limit your visit or your outdoor activities just because it isn’t summer.

This blog is based solely on our own experiences on these trips.  We do not get paid to do these reviews and we are not an advertising agency.

As a side note: if you are interested you can find the best of the photos we’ve taken on these trips at http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/latitude-59.html?tab=artwork, or, if you happen to be in Homer, AK, you can see them on the wall at the Ptarmigan Co-op Art Gallery.