Two scales of geopdfs for Shaanáx Tlein watershed.

Shaanáx Tlein, big valley (Lemon Creek valley) & Eix‘gul’héen, warm springs creek (Switzer Creek)

Switzer Creek is tributary to the larger Lemon. Because Dzantiki’ Héeni Middle school sits on Switzer, we’ve treated this as a ‘subsidiary’ watershed in its own right. The majority of Discovery’s educational and research activity in greater Shaanáx Tlein has been in this smaller ‘subshed.’

Charley Switzer, a big-hearted philanthropist that historians remember as a “one-man Glory Hole,” was probably one Important White Guy who deserved to have something named after him. Preferably, though, a street or building, and not this little trout stream precious to the Leeneidí. Jake Cropley told Goldschmidt & Haas (1998):

“Just north of Lemon Creek there is a small creek called Eix’gulhéen. This was a very good stream, especially for a late run of dog salmon, but also for cohos. There were 3 or 4 smokehouses there belonging to the Auk people, but they were crowded out by the road. The fox ranchers have gone up there and fished out this creek. . . The Native people used to go up Lemon Creek to get goat and bear, and to trap mink, marten, wolverine and lynx.”

Although I love Shaanáx Tlein, it’s a little damp for even my mold-tolerant metabolism. Driving from The Valley to Downtown, it’s occurred to me that a clever entrepreneur could market a replacement sleeve for our windshield wiper levers. Instead of “low, medium, high,” it’d say: “Valley, Downtown, Lemon Creek.”

Trails and stream channels near Dzantik'i Heeni Middle School, on 2006 air photos, CBJ. Trails and stream channels near Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School, on 2006 air photos, CBJ.

Stereopair for Shaanáx Tlein in 1926 can be viewed in 3D. North is to the left. Today’s roads are overlaid onto left-side image for reference.

Some of the tallest trees in Áak’w Aaní once grew on alluvial margins of the glacial river entering this scene from upper left—easy to appreciate under the stereoscope. More giant spruce grew on the toe of an alluvial fan that would become Switzer Village. Compare them to the relatively scrubby hemlock forest on Sunny Point, at bottom.

In this section

1996 student publication on forests near Dzantik’i Héeni

Forests of Eix̱’gul’héen In the early days of Dzantik’i Héeni Middle School, I was asked to assist with a poetry-and-art…

1996: updated 2023 | ROPES House students | 19 pages

Shaanáx̱ Tlein, (Lemon Creek watershed)

Tides, toads & topography: Natural & cultural history of big valley In 2003 I had the privilege of directing a…

2003 | Alder House students | 27 pages

1997 Summer newsletter: Wild watershed

There is no free lunch Life-and-death adventures with middle schoolers on the mountain above Dzantik’i Héeni Middle School. Tracking birds…

Summer 1997 | Richard Carstensen | 4 pages

GeoPDFs Shaanáx Tlein-Til’héeni (Lemon-Salmon)

Medium-resolution GeoPDF pair for field navigation in Shaanáx Tlein, big valley (Lemon) and Til’héeni, dog salmon creek (Salmon) valleys. In…

2018 | Richard Carstensen | 2 GeoPDFs

GeoPDFs Shaanáx Tlein (Lemon Creek)

High-resolution GeoPDF pair for field navigation on trails in lower Shaanáx Tlein, big valley (lower Lemon Creek watershed). All of…

2018 | Richard Carstensen | 2 geoPDFs

Supplement to the CBJ wetlands surveys, 2016

In summer 2014, Koren Bosworth, Cathy Pohl, Andrew Allison and I surveyed wetlands throughout the CBJ. Although we were not…

2016 | Richard Carstensen | 31 page excerpt (of 512p)

Area descriptions for CBJ wetlands surveys, 2014

Supplement to the 2016 Juneau Wetlands Management Plan In summer 2014, Koren Bosworth, Cathy Pohl, Andrew Allison and I surveyed…

2018 | Richard Carstensen | 8 separate pdfs, 2 to 5 MB

Dzantik’i Héeni Middle School signs

In 2010, on contract with CBJ Parks and Recreation, Discovery designed 3-panel sign arrays for 10 trailheads on (or leading…

Richard Carstensen | 1 page

Dzantik’i Héeni Loop Trail brochure

Four-fold brochure created for the CBJ Natural History Project describes 14 interpretive stations along the loop trail above Dzantik’i Héeni…

2013 | Richard Carstensen | 2 pages

Switzer/Marriott brochure

In 2004, with Kristen Romanoff of ADF&G, Discovery Southeast coached a student writing & art team that created an interpretive…

2004 | 2 pages, 1 MB

About bears: Juneau bears, and their relationship with people

This 42-page booklet, About Bears, was written during construction of Dzantik’i Héeni Middle School by Richard Carstensen, Steve Merli, and…

1997 | Richard Carstensen, Steve Merli, Ronalda Cadiente | 42 pages