It wasn’t all bad
■■ In a normal year, Alaska’s bays would be filled with 65 whalewatching boats each summer day. This year, instead of the hum of boat motors, the ocean is filled with whale songs. In the absence of human activity, humpback whales are calling more, resting more, and socializing more. With tourism at near-zero during the pandemic, “it’s the first time in human history that we’ve had the technological ability to listen to these whales” without human interference, said researcher Michelle Fournet.
■■ Sasha Tinning and her 5-year-old grandson, Carver, wanted to give something unique to the firefighters battling wildfires in their home state of Oregon. “Thank you, firefighters,” read the note they dropped off at a nearby donation tent. “Here is a friend for you, in case you get lonely. Love, Carver.” A Baby Yoda doll—a popular character from the Mandalorian TV series—accompanied the note. The gift brought big smiles, and soon “Baby Yoda was out there traveling the universe,” says volunteer Tyler Eubanks. He has accompanied fire crews throughout Oregon and Colorado, and may visit Canada and Australia next. “He’s a free agent,” said Eubanks.
■■ Before this summer, Brittney “Bert” Woodrum had never climbed a “Fourteener”—one of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks. But after moving to Denver last year, the 27-year-old graduate student set her mind to hiking all 58 of them. She aimed to raise $1,400 for charity for each mountain. Last month, just 80 days after her first summit, Woodrum reached the final peak, raising $85,000 for Covid relief. Woodrum said she never expected the project would gain “a huge community that would rally behind this.” She says she feels “astonishment, joy, and lots and lots of gratitude.”