I pulled the darn suit coat over my shoulders and fastened the two buttons. Two buttons? Good thing this coat isn't designed for warmth. The neck is open, and I don't think wearing long handles under it would be quite correct. The last time I wore a suit was more than 10 years ago. One rarely needs formal wear to hunt moose or fish for grayling.
Dress isn't the same as it was a decade ago. Instead of wearing holes in the knees of jeans while working, folks buy them from the store complete with the holes. It makes them look like they have been doing something.
"Doing" is the same as it used to be. At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeon, I remember, you know, back when I was a kid … building a birdhouse in the dirt in front of the garage. So much for the clean jeans. The birdhouse didn't get built until the first tree swallow flew by chirping May 17. By then, rainbows were in the creeks. Swallows now show up earlier and we can't fish for rainbows, because they're spawning, until mid-June.
Don't fret, though. There are plenty of ways to be outside and get dirty the next two weeks.
First off, hip boots are a must. Creeks are high with water up in the grass. The lakes in Copper River Basin are also high and fishing requires good boots or a boat. Pack a fishing pole, a camera, boots, tennis shoes and a little food. Bring drinking water too, because run-off water usually tastes bad.
Go light on snacks and food. The old saying -- "hunt and fish hungry" -- still holds, plus it's good to support rural businesses that serve food; traffic from town is sparse. I recently drove 85 miles of the Denali Highway and 50 miles of the Richardson without seeing another vehicle.
That isn't so good if the truck breaks down, but it's great if one is fishing for grayling, hiking trails or taking photographs. The goal is just to get out.
When I think of getting out, I always think back to the NPR broadcast by a dude who hiked the Petrified Forest in Arizona. He thought it was OK but recommended the online virtual tour instead. Said he didn't want to get rained on!
Don't worry about rain. Wildlife is out and about. I spotted a black bear sow with a couple of cubs alongside the parking lot of Bartlett High School (while wearing that suit) on Saturday night. There were sheep on the side of the road Sunday afternoon at the bottom of Caribou Creek hill on the Glenn Highway. Porcupines are feeding on the new shoots along the roadside and the first moose calves should be dropping soon.
Now is the time to get out, even if just for an evening drive. Risk the rain. It makes the cottonwoods smell better. It makes campfires more inviting.
We Alaskans are blessed with the best wild terrain in the nation. Drive for an hour to reach rural Alaska. Spend two hours on the road and you can be remote. Trade the suit coat for a raincoat.
Most are not as fortunate as I. My jeans earn their own holes.
Tomorrow I'll be able to trade my slick shoes for tennis shoes and the suit for a sweatshirt. But tonight I will see how others live and dress in the big city. Though I will likely feel out-of–place, maybe no one will notice? I can stand it for an evening.
John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race.