Tom Arrives in Bethel

Behtel

I talked to Tom yesterday morning. He arrived in Bethel at 8:30 PM Alaska time. He was greeted at the airport by the refuge staff. They gave him a tour of the town. I asked him what his first impression of Bethel was. He said it was a like giant Kakagon Slough. He was amazed at all the boats he saw.

I caught him at 6:30 AM before he was leaving for his first day at the YK Refuge. He mentioned that they were packing up the plane for a 16 day stint at duck camp. Not sure if Tom is going or not yet. Stay tuned for more details. ( you can check out more photos at http://www.lksd.org/sped/photos.html courtesy of the school district)

Local Newspaper

The Delta Discovery is the local paper in Bethel. It great to see that they are online too. Browsing thru the site you can find out more about the town and businesses. There is a recent article that announce the break up of the Kuskokwim river on May 3rd. One of the residence took hom a couple thousand dollars for guessing the right day you can read more here.

Several folks who have lived in Alaska have mentioned that we have to read the police reports.

Steller’s jay 7759


Steller’s jay 7759

Originally uploaded by Yukon White Light.

One of the exciting things to look forward to is the bird life in Alaska. The Yukon delta is one a of the richest ares in Alaska for nesting waterfowl and shore birds. We will also get to see new birds like this Stellar’s Jay. Here are some links to entice others to visit and help us plan for new birding experiences.

Researching Educational Opportunities

We’ve been investigating the educational programs available in Bethel as the move get’s closer. The Lower Kuskokwim School District has a great web site that describes the district. The site also has links to the schools in the outlying villages. Reading these sites has given us more of an idea what the area is like.

The Alaska Teacher Placement Web Site has a lot of great information. Especially the link to rural shopping tips. The Alaska Department of Education is in Juneau.

Moravian Book Store, Bethel


Moravian Book Store, Bethel

Originally uploaded by Gruscana.

Just in case you were wondering were the Moravian Book Store is in Bethel. I found a photo on flickr pointing it out. The city was named Bethel by the Moravian Missionaries who settled in the area in the 1884. The village was originally called Mumtrekhlogamute, or Smoke house people.  The main economy in the region is fishing and subsistence hunting.  Bethel is largest village in western Alaska with 6,000 people. The ninth largest city in Alaska.