November 17th, 2007 - Community Opening Event

Although the whale skeleton was finished, other odds and ends of the building construction had to be completed before the Community Opening event on November 17th. And what a grand day it was with over 1000 curious Kodiak residents streaming through the new visitor center for the first time. This is the first new building in downtown Kodiak since the reconstruction after the 1964 earthquake and tsunami. Ironically it is situated directly across the street from the oldest building in Kodiak, the Erskine House that was built by the Russian American Company in 1792.

As people funneled through the doors and into the two-story foyer it was fun to watch their heads tilt back, mouths drop open and their faces fill with wonderment and awe as they got their first glimpse of the enormous whale skeleton hanging from the ceiling.

The deep blue walls of the upstairs whale room beautifully complement the ivory-colored bones that seem to glow under the dramatic track lighting. The whale room is just barely big enough for the 37-foot skeleton, which makes it seem even more impressive.

I don't know of any other large whale skeleton that has had the privilege of having part of a building specially designed around it and for it to maximize the visual experience of the visitor. “Gordie” the whale can be viewed from underneath on the ground floor and on three sides from the balcony. At night when he’s lit up, he provides a stunning sight from outside the building through the windows.

A great big thanks to the Alaska Conservation Foundation for the grant that made all of this possible and to the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge for giving “Gordie” such a magnificent home where he’ll inspire countless visitors and be admired for years to come.

Stay tuned for more developments of the Kodiak Gray Whale Project and Bare Bones Education.

Learn more about Gray Whales in the following recommended books:

Eye of the Whale – by Dick Russell
Gray Whales – by James Darling
Whales: Touching the Mystery – by Doug Thompson
Sightings: The Gray Whales’ Mysterious Journey -
by Brenda Peterson and Linda Hogan
Saving the Gray Whale: People, Politics, and Conservation In Baja California - by Serge Dedina