Channel Islands is a cluster of 14 small islands stretching from Auke Bay to Amalga Harbor near Juneau, Alaska. These islands provide an important habitat for nesting shorebirds, a haul out for Stellar sea lions, and an amazing recreational area for kayakers, campers, boaters, and geocachers. Thanks to the efforts of former State Senator Kim Elton and State Representative Beth Kerttula, these islands became part of the marine park system in 2005, and were expanded with additional islands in 2008.

On May 2, 2009, a Juneau-based non-profit organization Turning The Tides organized its second annual Channel Islands marine debris cleanup. Spearheaded by Carol Anderson, Turning The Tides received a grant from the Marine Conservation Alliance to cover gas for boats willing tohelp us. We had five boats ferrying crews to the islands and the sixth State Park boat in charge of picking up the collected trash. About 40 volunteers were recruited to spend the day cleaning up the beaches of these islands.

The crew of my team went to Portland Island, a brisk half-hour ride from Auke Bay. Besides the usual assortment of plastic bottles and cans, pieces of Styrofoam, ropes, and buckets, mostly plastic trash, which is sadly ubiquitous on exposed beaches, we also came across a few more unusual finds. A large red Coast Guard rescue inflatable raft was recovered from the north point of the island. The year it was last serviced, recorded in large black letters on it, was 1981! We also found a life-size headless deer shooting target made out of Styrofoam, a number of hunting bird decoys, buoys,  car wheels, and diesel containers with leftover diesel. All in all, we collected about 400 pounds of trash, leaving the large car wheel where we found it as it was too heavy to carry.

Of course, trash is not the only reason we ventured to these islands on that day. It was a warm, sunny, calm day, just perfect to be out on the water. Humpback whales were feeding on small fish, probably herring or capelin. Oystercatchers were busy staking out spots on the rocky beach for their so-called nests. Arctic tern were resting and feeding for their own egg-rearing. A better day could have hardly been picked.

One of the most anticipated events in Juneau, Alaska is the annual Wearable Art Extravaganza. A fashion show of extravagant dresses and costumes made from the most ingenious materials, it pushes the envelope of many of the artists’ creative thinking and abilities. Now in its 8th year, the theme for this year’s show was “Altered State”, a twist on Alaska’s 50th anniversary since becoming a state in the union. Due to its popularity as a fundraiser for an arts scholarship program and for the renovations of the Juneau Arts and Culture Center, the show has also been expanded to two days to accommodate everyone wanting to experience it.

This year’s Wearable Art had 33 entrants,  two from as far as Ketchikan and Homer. The idea for the event in Juneau was borrowed from the popular namesake event in Ketchikan and has taken a solid root since. However, the original wearable art was actually started as a fundraiser for a small art gallery in New Zealand and has since become a large international event there, drawing tens of thousands of visitors each year.

But let’s get back to Juneau. The materials used in this year’s show ranged from porcupine quills, moss, bark, and mahogany to mirrors, salvaged metals, phone books, prescription bottles, Skittles wrappers and shower curtains. People of all ages created wearable art and modeled it. Third place on both Saturday and Sunday was awarded to “Goldeneyespy”. Made of brass, fabric, styrofoam, working light bulbs, and many “hidden” objects that could only be noticed upon close inspection – like little toy birds in a cage or a large golden ant – it was truly a creative masterpiece.

“Pieces of Peace” took second place on Saturday and first place on Sunday. Created out of silk, bark chips, porcupine quills, spruce and pine needles, moss and lykens – it was literally a breathing piece of art. The bark for the dress was sent from countries in South America, Africa, Europe and Asia and most pieces had the word “peace” written on them in many different languages.

Finally, the piece that took first place on Saturday and second place on Sunday was made entirely out of solid and striped mahogany, ceder, and lace wood maple veneers. “Lady of the Wood” was created to resemble an 18th Century dress as closely as the all-wood materials allowed. This piece is heading to New Zealand to compete in the International Wearable Art Extravaganza.

Many other pieces were very imaginative and innovative, and it’s only the lack of space that holds me back from describing them. If you’re convinced it’s an event you don’t want to miss, the dates for next year’s show have already been set – February 13 and 14, 2010!

To see highlights of the show, click here.