Dave Kiffer - Alaskan Poet, Historian, Humorist

  SOUTHEAST LOG 6-25-22 Sewage may need disinfection HAINES - The community is one of nine Alaskan towns facing a possibly expensive change to how it handles its sewage. Haines currently has a federal waiver, but in the future may have to add disinfection to the process that could cost millions of dollars. THE CHILKAT VALLEY NEWS Historic items returned WRANGELL - A killer whale hat and other items have been returned to the community after a lengthy repatriation process. Negotiations with the Portland Art Museum began in 2002 and concluded in 2019 but COVID delayed the actual return until this month. THE WRANGELL SENTINEL Rules violated in milk incident JUNEAU - A "sip before serve" rule was reportedly violated by a food service worker who was involved in a situation in which floor sealant was served as "milk" to 14 students at a Juneau school summer program last week. Other rules involving storage of the "white colored...

  SOUTHEAST   LOG   6-18-22 Two swim away from plane crash JUNEAU - Two people are in stable condition following a plane crash near Douglas Island. The Coast Guard says the plane crashed about 100 feet offshore near Outer Point and the pilot and passenger were able to swim to shore. THE JUNEAU EMPIRE Soccer coach on breakaway TERRACE - Terrace's loss is Calgary's gain: Longtime local soccer coach Nik Kollias is moving east. Kollias, 70,  has helmed numerous local soccer teams and taught thousands of kids the rudiments of the game since he came to Terrace in 1976. He has also provided more than $40,000 in scholarships to local students over the years. He is moving to be closer to his grandchildren. THE TERRACE STANDARD Plank's salmon wins Derby SITKA - Savanah Plank's 40.2 king salmon is the winner in the 2022 Sitka Salmon Derby. Plank landed her fish near Middle Island on the first weekend of the derby in May. THE DAILY SITKA...

  SOUTHEAST LOG 6-11-22 Bird flu lands in Southeast HAINES - A worldwide strain of bird flu has been detected in Lynn Canal. Officials say that that a dead bald eagle found near Jones Point a couple of weeks ago was infected. THE CHILKAT VALLEY NEWS Peratrovich bench dedicated SITKA - A bench commemorating Alaskan civil rights leader Elizabeth Peratrovich was installed in the Harrigan Centennial Hall courtyard. The cedar bench, built by Zach LaPerriere, is near the former location of the Alexander Baranov statue. THE DAILY SITKA SENTINEL Solar farm funded HAIDA GWAII -A solar panel farm project on Haida Gwaii has received more than $3 million in Canadian federal funding. The project, proposed for land near the Masset airport, is sponsored by the Skidegate Band Council, the Old Massett Village Council and the Council of Haida Nations. THE PRINCE RUPERT NORTHERN VIEW JD soccer bends it like Beckham JUNEAU - Juneau Douglas High School continued its domination of Alaska s...

  SOUTHEAST LOG 6-4-22 Hospital finalists named JUNEAU - There are three finalists to be the new CEO at Bartlett Memorial Hospital. They are Emily Dilley of Lakin, Kansas; Matthew Heyn of Delta, Colorado; and Jeffrey Hudson-Covolo of Porterville, California. They will be interviewed in Juneau next week. THE JUNEAU EMPIRE Library celebrates centennial PRINCE RUPERT - The Public Library celebrated its 100 th  birthday late in May. Prior to its establishment in 1922, the community had a members-only "reading room." THE PRINCE RUPERT NORTHERN VIEW Boro bans Mud Bay events HAINES - The long running saga of commercial "events" in Mud Bay took another turn last week as the Borough Assembly voted 4-2 to ban future large scale commercial events. Previously, the assembly had voted to require conditional use permits for events such as weddings in the area, but in light of continued neighborhood opposition reversed course. THE CHILKAT VALLEY NEWS Hasenpfeffer? SITK...

  Ketchikan couple created Disney wilderness films    Al and Elma Milotte won six Academy Awards        It may seem a long way from a small photography studio on Ketchikan's Dock Street to Hollywood and the Academy Awards. But that was exactly the path taken by Alfred and Elma Milotte .    The two-person filmmaking and photography team travelled the world for four decades, winning six Academy Awards for the Walt Disney Company and writing several bestselling nature books. But they got their start in Ketchikan.    Alfred Milotte was born in Appleton, Wisconsin in 1904. Elma Jolley was born in Seattle in 1907. Al Milotte attended Franklin High in Seattle and later studied at the University of Washington. He would also study at Cornish College of the Arts, the Chicago Art Institute and the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts.    When Al was five years old, his family moved to Minot, North Dakota and went into the rest...

  Too big , too small , clearly not 'just right' As I am getting older, I am learning that "Goldilocks" applies to cars as well.     When I was younger, I had a hankering for low to the ground sports cars. Not that there were many of those in Ketchikan when I was growing up. There were a few speedy models, but it was always hard to drive them into and out of the pothole farms that pass as roadway here.    I also liked Big A-- trucks and jeeps too . Back in the day, there were fewer of those around. Now it seems like 4 out of every 3 infernal combustion vehicles in Ketchikan is a Big A—truck. Making every parking lot an exercise in taking your life into your hands. And not successfully.    These days, neither big truck nor small car is a good fit for me.    Neither is "just right" anymore.    For example, my wife has a low to the ground Toyota (not a sports car in anyway shape or form). It's okay to drive, as long...