Each spring in March, something remarkable happens in the waters surrounding Sitka. Long before calendars catch up, the Pacific herring arrive—and with them comes one of Southeast Alaska’s most powerful and awe-inspiring natural events.

Across from my office window, a stand of trees regularly fills with bald eagles—sometimes a few, sometimes a dozen and even closer to sixteen—perched, watching, rotating through the branches.

The blue and red Ward Air planes sit steady at the dock, floats rocking gently as weather, tide, and light are quietly assessed.

Out here, nothing happens on a strict schedule. Alaska decides first.

These eagles are sentinels of the harbor, patient and precise. They follow in from the open water, waiting for scraps from the day’s catch… an Auke Bay homecoming.

The sea was restless that morning — gray skies, heavy wind, and waves breaking against the bow. And then, without warning, a humpback whale exploded from the water.

Many of these images exist because of one thing: access. My husband, Ed, is both pilot and partner in this work — flying us to remote coastlines…

The summer salmon run is a season of abundance — and urgency.