SeldoviaGal
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Watch The Chips Fly – Chainsaw Competition 2017!
by Jenny Chissus
Yes, this is ABSOLUTELY my most favorite event in Seldovia each year!
For a small community, Seldovia has an amazing number of great events that happen throughout the year. Activities are sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, Arts Council, Seldovia Village Tribe, Susan B. English school and of course the businesses w
ho bring in live entertainment and host events! We are so fortunate to have such an active group of organizations and community members who host such a wide variety of events, activities and celebrations. These are well attended by our locals as well as visitors who enjoy participating in our small, beautiful and intimate setting.
The Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition is a chance for artists to gather in Seldovia over a 4 day period, and create masterpiece carvings out of our large Stika Spruce logs! Many of these artists are accustomed to working with smaller materials, so being able to carve a 26 -45 inch diameter log is a treat! Amazing creations are brought to life!
Since 2006, the Seldovia Chamber of Commerce has hosted this competition and been honored to place these stunning carvings throughout our community so our locals and visitors are able to enjoy them all year long! The community has raised funds through sponsorships to award $3,000 for our first place winner, $2,000 for second place and $1,000 for our 3rd place recipient each year.
Our outdoor museum of over 45 carvings is the best in Alaska! The joy of seeing the rough logs turned into finished art is palpable in the eyes of the onlookers. All weekend long, folks stop in to monitor the progress, cheer the carvers on with encouraging words, enjoy conversations around the campfire while snacking on smores and roasting hotdogs. It is an outdoor community event that lasts for 4 days and costs nothing to participate. A family friendly activity, witnessing the creation of Alaskan artwork in progress!
Carvers and their assistants are treated like the superstars they are, as we host their trip over from Homer, their lodging while in town, as well as all their meals for the entire stay. We invite families to join them on the trip, so it often is a vacation to remember for their whole family!
Thank you to the many volunteers, sponsors, businesses and individuals who make this event a huge success!
There is a lot going on this weekend as the Blueberry Festival returns to Seldovia, the 5K and 10K run on Saturday and the Guitar Master’s concert on Sunday! So come join us this Labor Day Weekend to Watch the Chips Fly!
Seldovia Featured in Top 20!
by Jenny Chissus
Trip Advisor has featured Seldovia as one of the top best vacation towns in the USA! No doubt… something we knew already! 🙂
Click here or on the image below to go directly to the Trip Advisor Blog to see the other cities in America who share this title, and share with folks – give it a “like” and know that we are the lucky ones, to live, work and play in this fantastic community!
Seldovia Adds a Dessert Contest to Summer Fun
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by Jenny Chissus
The Seldovia Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the 1st Annual Salmonberry Dessert Contest!
Salmonberries are often brand new to folks from outside our area. I know numerous people to come from the Homer side to pick our luscious salmon berries – as I guess there are very few locations to pick over there! We are the fortunate ones, salmonberries are ABUNDANT all around Seldovia!
They look like a raspberry, but they are much bigger, and when ripe, they are very plump, juicy and don’t have the firmness of a raspberry at all! If you are picking and collecting in a deep bucket, they will be mush in the bottom – so pick carefully – you must treat them tenderly! The seeds are much bigger than raspberries and they flavor tends to be more tart.
There are a variety of salmonberries from red, orange and yellow, and I can taste a difference, my favorite are the orange ones – when they are fully ripe!
Mostly – I pick and eat, pick and eat! But, when I am collecting, I most often freeze and store them for shakes – or, because of the large seeds, jelly is the great option, and what you’ll find most folks seem to do!
This year – we’re stretching a little! With this contest we hope to bring out those folks with special family recipes that use this delicious fruit! Bring your dessert to the Boardwalk Hotel by 6:00pm to be entered into our contest! We are leaving the parameters wide open with just these thoughts:
The dessert may NOT be store-bought
You may enter more than once
Have enough for 3 judges to taste
(remaining portions will be available after the judging for the audience to sample!)
If you would like to share your recipe – please bring an index card with ingredients/directions
We are also very thrilled to announce that Kirsten Dixon will be joining us as a Celebrity Judge for the competition! Kirsten is a renowned chef in Alaska and owns Within The Wild Alaska Adventure Lodges including the Winterlake Lodge and Tutka Bay Lodge. Kirsten and her daughter Mandy are quite the team as in addition to the two lodges they are also managing La Belaine Cafe in Homer and the Cooking School at Tutka Bay! We are honored to have Kirsten join us for this special event! We will have two other local judges rounding out the judging panel for the contest!
There will be prizes and awards – and so much fun! Start picking and practicing so that you will bring your “A Game” to the event! If you aren’t interested in submitting an entry – please come to dinner at the Boardwalk Hotel on Saturday night, enjoy a great meal, watch the contest/judging and hopefully have an opportunity to taste some of the entries!
The Summer Solstice Music Festival is Here!
Program Schedule
Thursday, June 22-
The festivities begin with the performers boarding the Seldovia Bay Ferry in Homer at 11:00 am for an hour ride to Seldovia. This will be a great opportunity for the performers to greet and jam with their favorite tunes while getting into the Festival spirit while enjoying the breathtaking views!
The performers will be greeted by the Seldovia Arts Council members and host families who will take them to their housing before the fun begins! There will be time to stroll around to check out the town and the school before the “Meet and Greet” at 5 pm held at the Linwood Bar and Grill where you can catch an early dinner before attending the very popular “Open Mic” at the Susan B. English School at 8 pm. Community members and visitors alike are encouraged to sign up between 7:30 and 8 pm to share a song, poem, story, or tune with everyone. This is always a fun, and often surprising opportunity to have a moment of stardom!!
Friday, June 23-
For the third year we are hosting the very popular “busking” event where the community can enjoy short samples from many of the performers of what’s to come at the Friday and Saturday evening concerts! There will be several places throughout town that will host the performers during the day. Depending on the weather, they may find themselves on a sunny deck, in a restaurant, or playing at our new harbor pavilion. The schedule will be posted for all to enjoy.
The concerts begin at 6:15 pm at the Susan B. English School on Friday and Saturday evenings with the headliners performing each evening and the other groups playing one night or the other. Check out the website or posters for the program schedule.
Saturday, June 24-
Our very popular Yoga hour at 8:30 am at the Sea Otter Community Center will pep up your Saturday followed by the favorite Song Circle with our musicians jamming and sharing tunes over coffee and breakfast at the Boardwalk Hotel deck at 10 am. All are welcome to come and listen.
Saturday afternoon from 1-4:00 pm is a favorite with the performers holding WORKSHOPS for all ages and is open to the community members as well as festival attendees. There will be several choices offered each hour including “how-to”: compose, teach, play, tune, drum, or sing. Pick and choose whatever looks fun and see how the artists inspire the love of their talents!
In between all the happenings, there will be a chance to browse the shops, watch the boats come and go, or take a short walk or hike along our beaches or Otterbahn Trail which is accessed next to the school.
Don’t forget to periodically checkout how our visiting artists with “Higgy’s En Plein Air” are doing creating their masterpieces throughout the town!
At 4:00 pm there will be a dinner for the performers in the school cafeteria with just enough time to get ready for the final concert starting at 6:15 pm. There will be an intermission each eve where you can support the Fine Arts Camp by purchasing a yummy dessert or scooping up a CD of your favorite performers!
Sunday, June 25-
Sadly, Sunday brings a close to a very busy weekend, but not before you get to enjoy “Higgy’s En Plein Air” artists’ paintings and other works. There will be a silent auction of their work from 1:30-3:30 pm at the harbor Pavillion.
There is just enough time to grab your personal belongings and an ice cream cone before saying good-bye to new and old friends and a memorable weekend of fun, music, and fond memories from a very special place by the sea!
THANKS FOR COMING AND SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!
More info at : http://seldoviaartscoundil.net/seldoviamusicfestival/indes.html, or visit us on Facebook: Seldovia Summer Solstice Music Festival.
Tickets at the door:
Festival Pass: Adults – $49.00
Teens – $16.00
Children under 12 – FREE
Single night performance – Adults-$25.00
Teens – $ 8.00
For more information – call (907)-399-7379
Seldovia Time
