I got your attention, right?

Did you know that Sitka, our hometown for a week or two, is right in the middle of the largest intact temperate rainforest remaining on earth?

It’s often referred to as the Amazone of Northern America. Brown bear, black bear, wolves, deer and all sorts of birds thrive in this landscape. It is one of the planet's greatest wild salmon nurseries.

Old-growth forests of yellow and red cedar, Sitka spruce and Western hemlock stand like wild cathedrals. People live in communities that rely on the natural wealth of this forest.

But all of this is threatened. Bad political decisions have led to clearcutting of a huge part of the old-growth forest in favor of the logging industry. If this doesn’t stop, it may lead to the destruction of Alaska’s Tongass National Forest.

We were flabbergasted when we learned about this horrible devastation in a documentary we watched yesterday. ‘Understory’ is told through the lens of three women’s personal connections to the Tongass forest and land. The film makes an impressive case for why saving ancient forests is critical to both the resilience of humans and the future of our planet’s climate.

Today Berber planted a tree, in honor of her 6th birthday. A yellow cedar. It was a present from our newly made friends Frances, Krystina and Erik on whose dock Zouterik is currently moored.

They live in this beautiful rainforest. And with their sailboats they have years of experience in exploring this and other remote parts of the world, especially the Arctic part of it. Their ships have offered a home base for many expeditions and research trips.

In their daily work and life they honor the beauty, richness, importance and history of this ancient land.

We all have the duty to preserve it for our children and future generations!

Today, one of these children, Berber the Explore, planted a new tree. It shall never be able to replace a 1000 year old cedar, let alone a whole old-growth rainforest. But we can all contribute.

Today Berber has planted the seed. It’s now up to her children and grandchildren to water it!

Now go watch that documentary! https://www.laststands.org/