I always presumed the "stake holder" was the one who financed the "grub stake" for the "stake-ee" who "staked the claim" ...

Really nice, Jim... reminds me of the gentle gradations in much of Weston's work- and coincidently- also of Cunningham's "Two Calas". Very nice.

WOW! That's a really cool shot, jaredjacobson; nice job!!

THANKS!!! topcat!

Thank you Don- always a pleasure to hear from you- THANKS!!

That's pretty big expectation from me, Dan... in truth, even "GRIT" turned me down!! https://www.grit.com/grit-history/ but I do say THANKS! for taking the time to comment!

You're always kind, Bubalola- THANKS!!

Much appreciated, dreff- THANKS!

Thank you Dennis- lots of beautiful country around you, too... the Clark's Fork and Bitterroot Rivers around Missoula got my head pointed in the right direction...

I spent many hours in Fairbanks at "The Big I" bar, near where the train station once was, and watched hundreds of folks- mostly elderly- parade past with their faces pasted against the glass of a bus window all excited to "see" Alaska... and I always felt sorry for them; they could have watched a video instead. That's a bit harsh... what I mean is "looking" at Alaska isn't "experiencing" Alaska where it's advantageous to recognize the smell of birch, willow and spruce; either as alive or heating your house or smoking your salmon, to feel the difference between sun and shade, to get glacier dust in your shoes, to know silence when you see it... You did it right, be top gun, you had experience, not just exposure... Lots of folks won't understand what I just said because some things must be lived to be understood. I used to read alot of John Haines poetry- he lived, wrote, trapped and hunted at Tenderfoot (notice it's "at" not "in" because Tenderfoot doesn't exist except by habit on maps) in that green, squat cabin beside the highway about a mile from where you took a photo from the overlook above the Tanana River. The longer I lived in Alaska, the more I appreciated Haines' words because I learned what they really meant- how he meant them- words with Alaskan connotation, opposed to a denotation found outside the boreal and sub-arctic world. In your heart, be top gun, you may be an Alaskan...

Double thumbzup! THANKS Karin!!

Thumbz and starry eyes!! Thanks, sippy!!

Glad you think so, Ken- THANKS!

THANKS!! nimbushopper!!

That's a good idea, DougS!