Hi All!
Living in the shadow of Mt. Redoubt…..It’s a way of life here in most of Alaska and the arctic! The weather – volcanos, earthquakes, avalanches, at times bitter cold, and short summers – can be interesting, challenging, awesome to witness, and frustrating! After 43 years in Alaska, one comes to accept certain weather related events, in exchange for the incredible beauty and wilderness experience Alaska has to offer, as well as the unmatched long summer days!
As for the volcano, Mt. Redoubt……what a restless “creature” she is! Redoubt has been erupting all week and has forced the cancellation of many flights into and out of Alaska, affecting residents, travelers, our mail and cargo, not to mention the economic impact. According to an Anchorage Daily News online report Friday 3.27.09, not one FedEx or UPS aircraft remained on the ground. (more specifics in later posts)
Mt. Redoubt just erupted again not quite one hour ago (Sat. 3.28.09) at 1:40 pm Alaska Daylight Time (AKDT) sending a cloud to 25,00 feet, according to the Alaska Volcanic Observatory and the NWS. (AVO) No word yet on ash emission or wind direction/ash fallout.
My plan and hope, is to update this as often as my time permits. Have a good day/evening all! 
1arctic-home
Hi, Just chanced upon your blog, and am most interested. Am planning to drive up to Alaska in May / June, after visiting my son and his family in Boston.
Do you actually live in Anchorage, or near there? Would you know if Homer and Seward are affected?
My visit to Alaska in 2004 was affected by wildfires, often completely blotting out the view.
Lifey who wanted to subscribe to your blog, but can’t work out how
By: lifemagician on April 3, 2009
at 6:20 am
Hi there,
Thanks for your comment! Yes I am in Anchorage and have been here 40 years. If I remember correctly, Homer did get a light dusting of ash from one of the eruptions. There have been 19 eruptions since about Mar, 22nd. I can’t recall Seward getting any ash, but it could in any future eruptions. It just depends on the wind direction at any given altitude, and the height of any plume Redoubt sends up.
The Alaska Volcanic Observatory expects Redoubt to be unstable for a time but they can’t predict how long. When it erupted in Dec. 1989 it was active for 4 1/2 months or so. I have family spread out, outside Alaska so I am trying to keep this blog updated several times a day to keep them up to speed about the volcano. I’m new to this site – not quite a week yet, so I don’t know how to subscribe to blog posts either…yet! I suppose you could just bookmark my blog and check back as often as possible. Happy to answer any questions.
http://www.avo.alaska.edu/activity/Redoubt.php
By: 1arctichome on April 3, 2009
at 7:01 am
Hi…You might want to check out today’s (4.4.09) post. I have posted the info about today’s eruption, and included a satellite image showing the ash cloud affecting Homer, Alaska.
1arctic-home
By: 1arctichome on April 4, 2009
at 7:04 pm