Umnak Island – Images – David W. Shaw Photo Workshops and Tours

I’ve returned recently from a trip to a new part of Alaska for me. That’s saying something at this point because I’m starting to feel like I’ve experience a pretty high proportion of this state.

Well actually, I take that back. Alaska is a big place, and though I’ve been very fortunate to see a lot of it, there are quite a few places I have yet to go. But I’ll get there… eventually.

Anyway, this particular new place was the Aleutian Islands, and Umnak Island in particular. I was guiding a trip for Arctic Wild, but this isn’t a location on the regular wilderness itinerary. It’s actually, more than a bit off the beaten path. Mention “Umnak Island” to most Alaskans and unless they happen to be a volcanologist, they are likely to give you a quizzical look.

On a map, Umnak is the island just west of Unalaska, where the fishing hub of Dutch Harbor lies (think Deadliest Catch). In person, it is far more than a slightly figure 8 shaped island on the border of the Bering Sea and Pacific Ocean. Rather it’s a volcanic, hilly, green, waterfall infested wonderland. Where the wind blows. Really hard.

We accessed the island by taking a 40 foot renovated fishing boat from Unalaska for 13 hours across the open water of Umnak Pass to a cove on the north side of the Island. There, my clients and I skiffed in in a small zodiac, unloaded a week’s worth of food and camping gear, and then watched as the boat turned it’s bow toward the Bering Sea and motored away.

I’m used to being left behind by small airplanes, but something about seeing the comforts of the boat slowly disappear felt much more serious.

The next day, the wind picked up, but we’d constructed a sturdy camp in the lee of some dunes, and I’d spent hours solidly anchoring the big dome expedition tent that served as our kitchen. That thing was going nowhere if I could help it.

Though the wind blew hard at times, less so at others, we actually had pretty decent weather. It rained a bit, and there was some sun and fog, and everything you would expect from a remote island in the ocean off Alaska. (I mean really, would you want to have it any other way?)

Mostly, during the trip, I was in awe by how green and colorful everything was. Lupines bloomed everywhere, turning entire hillsides purple, and tall grasses grew thickly on every slope and hillside. When the cove wasn’t wind-tossed it was a nearly Caribbean blue. And waterfalls tumbled from every mountainside.

Photographically, it was a bit of a playground. One of the things I really love about making images in wild parts of Alaska, is with every click of the shutter I felt like I was making something new. Below are a few shots. And here is a compilation of video clips I collected during the trip: