ICE CAVES • BUTTERFLY PEA FLOWER • DEVIL'S CLUB

MENDENHALL ICE CAVES

38 glaciers emerge from the1500 square mile Juneau Ice Field. It runs 13 miles long. While you might only see white from the exterior of the glacier, all glaciers are inherently a bright blue on the inside. This color, affectionately known as glacier blue, is the result of air being squeezed from the frozen ice and snow. Over time the ice absorbs every other color except blue.

BUTTERFLY PEA FLOWER

Latin: Clitoria ternatea

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This flower is the reason that the tea is blue and is used as a natural food coloring. It ranges in color from blue, green, pink and purple depending on the other ingredients. Within traditional Chinese medicine, the plant has been ascribed properties affecting female libido. 

 

CLICK HERE  to find out what happens when you add citrus!

DEVIL'S CLUB

Latin: Oplopanax horridus

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Devil’s club, also called devil's walking stick, is a perennial shrub that occurs naturally in the damp woodlands of the Pacific Northwest. It is particularly at home in Alaska's Tongass National Forest and plays an important role both spiritually and medicinally in Native American tribe societies such as Haida and Tlingit. The herb is a member of the ivy family and related to American ginseng, the latter fact giving rise to the nickname “Alaskan ginseng.” Devil’s club is challenging to harvest because the entire plant is covered with relentless thorns, but once the root and root bark are obtained it can be made into a tea and used to produce ointments and salves, traditionally used for pain relief and skin conditions.