Geology, Fishing Lesson, and the End of the Road (Really)

Homer is a lot of fun with lots of things to do.  The 'city' has Farmer's Markets on Saturdays with real farmers that actually grew the items they are selling.  Today we collected parsley for 'Poor Man's Lobster' and radishes to just snack on.  They look delish!  Salad greens looked good as did the fresh herbs.  On my list for next week since I'll be stocking up for the month long stay in Ninilchik.  It's only 30-40 miles up the highway, but who wants to travel back to where you've been?  I'm guessing we'll make a run or two down here since we do like it here ;).

We took the advice of ML from Lowe's Travels and took the scenic drive into the mountain area around Homer.  Very easy to do, get on the main road and keep going til you reach this sign...

The views were amazing of the icefield across the way.  There were really big nice homes and lots of rustic cabins.  Well worth the drive.

This bay is home to 3,000 sea otters they say.  A flotilla swam by the other day taking turns diving down, grabbing a mussel or clam and swimming on their back enjoying their dinner.  They were too far out for my camera to get a clear shot, but you get the idea...

'Homeriadians' are concerned that the otters are eating all the clams and crabs and think perhaps the population may be too much for the bay.  They don't know how many were here before since no one kept count of the otters trapped for their fur.  It would not surprise me to hear that they try to get rid of the otters in the bay.  Seems the sea animals always lose the battles and Alaska is very prohunter.  It's a little shocking for a city girl at times.  

Have you ever heard of 'mead'?  I hadn't.  It is an alcoholic beverage of fermented honey and fruits or spices.  The Ring of Fire Meadery offers tastings, so off we went.  Very sweet of course, with a honey flavor.  Very good, so of course we bought a bottle.  

Next stop was the Bear Creek Winery.  For a $5.00 fee you can taste up to 6 of their wines.  All are made locally and they had tons of yummy wines.  We bought a few bottles...Peach Apricot, Kiwi Pear, Strawberry Rhubarb, Alaska Port, Black Currant, and Blueberry Mirlo.  Listen to this description "Intricate layers of caramel, chocolate, vanilla, raspberry and deep wine complexities".  Sounds delightful doesn't it?  I do believe we will be making another visit to the Bear Creek Winery....

We took a tour with the Pratt Museum on the spit that offered the history of Homer, some of the landmarks and fishing boats.  It was a bargain at $5.00 for 1.5 hours.  So now a little history...

Homer was previously called Coal Point due to the amount of coal, particularly out on the spit.  There is still coal on the beach.  The early pioneers to the area were gold miners that were disappointed to find only coal.  They needed a post office, which required the town to have a name so they named it after their boss Homer Penneck.  He was kind of a conman and left the area when he realized there was no money to be made.  

The Spit was formed by the receding glacier that formed Kachemak Bay.  The Spit formed from the remains of the pushing deposits as the glacier receded.  All of Alaska glaciers are receding according to our guide. The glaciers we see across the bay have receded 1/4 to 1/2 mile in the past 25-30 years.

A little bit more history about the Salty Dawg.  The small front building was the first building to be built (around 1898) on the Spit.  It was originally at the end of the Spit and was moved to its present location mid century.  The lighthouse attached was built in the early 60's and used to signal when it was open.  While we were waiting for the tour, we noticed a mannequin in the window ala Norman Bates.

After the Salty Dawg, the tour took us down to the marina.  The marina was built in 1964 and then promptly destroyed in 1964 from the Anchorage Earthquake.  It was rebuilt shortly afterward.  The docks themselves must accommodate the extreme tides the Spit experiences.  The sea can rise 28 feet during an extreme tide cycle, with 15 feet minimum tide.  

We saw Seiner's, longliners, a gold dredger destined for Nome, and Gillnetters.  It was interesting see the charter boats offloading and filleting their catch from the day.  There were no really big Halibut caught.  Makes you wonder if you keep catching the little guys, they will never grow to the be 350 pound monsters caught in the past.  I guess you can tell that I prefer to think my Fish & Chips and grilled Salmon jumped into the boat willingly and committed suicide.   

The days catch

Fillet o Fish

Our guide explains the Purse Seiner

GilNetter

Gold Dredger

Pleasure boats and water taxi's

 Mowgli got up real early this morning.  He didn't want us to miss this sunrise....

He and Gidget have a new favorite thing to do and that is beachcombing!  They have a blast running on their long leash and looking for the barnacles that make noises on the rocks.

Guess what time it is?  Yep it is Happy Hour!  Til next time....

Nighty Night Patrick!  

The Homer Spit, end of the road and our midway point

We made the leisurely drive down the Sterling Highway, leaving late on Monday.  It was such a pretty scenic drive with the Cook Inlet on the right, and the volcano's just past the Inlet.  I followed Eric to the gas station and watched the bikes jiggle jiggle in their rack.  Hmmm, no wonder they are getting scratched up.

The flowers around the Kasilof campground were very pretty and Gidget liked them too!  

We arrived at Heritage RV Park on the spit early in the afternoon.  We have been asked "What the heck is a 'spit'?"  The Homer Spit is a very mini peninsula about 4.5 miles long and under a mile wide.  All along are campgrounds, most with no hookups.  We opted for full hookups, including cable tv.  The only channels we get are Fox News and the History Channel.  Hmm, maybe its the age of the clientele.  haha.  This is the mecca for Halibut fishing.  Everyone is here to fish except us it seems.  The beach is also known for its mussels.  Lots of folks are out there at low tide gathering them up.  Since we are not fans, we have left them alone on our stretch of beach.  Gidget picked one up, but she was not impressed.  Mowgli found a little dead crab leg which he thought he might like but promptly dropped it when told to do so.  Good dogs!

The view from the front of the beast is amazing!  The glaciers on the other side of Katchemak Bay are amazing to look at with the binoculars.

This guy would rather have fish than our pups

Taken from the front seat of the beast towards the glaciers

There are lots of fun eclectic shops here in Homer and on the Spit.  We have been looking forward to a beer at the Salty Dawg a funny little bar on the spit.  It is a very small place with no beer on tap, just bottled, and cash only.  Only snacks are bags of potato chips, but you just gotta go there!  The inside is filled with dollar bills with folks names on them, pinned to the walls and ceiling.  It is crazy.  We met a nice group from Lincoln Nebraska who were Red Sox fans.  They go to Spring Training every March.  We enjoyed the conversation.  One of the group had dove in Palau in 1989 before it got overrun.  We enjoyed talking about that area and diving the wrecks.  We never did catch their names.  

  We located a bike store called Cycle Logical to find a better solution for the bikes.  Derrick the owner worked all morning with us.  It's complicated because we have the suzuki with a spare tire in the rear with a 1.5 inch hitch, a motorhome with a 2 inch hitch and fat beach cruiser bikes.  Finally a solution!  get a three bike carrier to make room for the fat bikes for the motorhome.  Problem solved.  I love shop owners who enjoy a challenge.  A shout out to Derrick, great job!

We have pretty much goofed off, which seems to be the mantra now days.  We enjoyed awesome Halibut fish n chips and rock fish tacos at Fresh Catch Cafe for lunch.  We couldn't decide which to get so we got one of each and split it.  Very good and we'll go back.

We are fans of the Deadliest Catch and have watched them drop pots, pull pots and offload pots every season for 9 years.  So guess where we went today and spent our allowance?  The Time Bandit Store off course!  I generally don't buy t-shirts, but I liked the designs and got two.  Eric found a jacket and off course some long sleeve t-shirts.  He picked up a sticker that says "Don't make me go all Captain on you!"  Wonder who that is for?  He's the Captain of this vessel, so I think he's talking about me.  I'm the cook and 'nagivator'.

Well it is happy hour time and the rain is pattering on the roof.  Open windows with cool ocean breezes.  Sorry Las Vegans, but I had to say it.

Nighty night Patrick!  

BRR! It's Chilly!

The cool down is here!

I forgot to mention that on our last day in Cooper Landing we were hiking on the path down to the turquoise Kenai River and I mentioned that it was a perfect spot for moose with all the little plants growing like crazy.  No sooner had I said that and I looked out and saw two little skinny legs in the bush.  Right there was a momma moose and her little baby.  They really paid us no mind and the pups didn't see them.  I liked Cooper Landing with the Kenai Lake and Kenai River.

The weather has cooled down considerably and is very comfy with a little jacket and jeans.  The mosquito's are bad, just not as much.  The other morning Gidget growled a little as she was on her spot on the dash.  Eric looked and there was a moose right in the campground.  

Objects are closer than they appear

We have enjoyed our stay in Kasilof.  They town of Soldotna is nearby, an awesome little sandwich spot to get Philly Cheese steak (the best I have ever had!) is across the highway and a fun bakery called the Moose is Loose!

The Fritters are the best! 

We have been out on the lake in the kayak most days.  

Gidget wondering what the lilypads are

Mowgli before he dove in.  He likes birds....

Mowgli was the first to get wet.  I'm not sure what he was thinking, but off he went into the drink.  Good thing they have vests, he is not the most coordinated dog.  We cut the paddling short since it was a little chilly to be wet.  Afterwards, everyone got a bath.  

The flowers in the lake

A common Loon

Arctic Tern

Leech,  eeww

I was surprised and grossed out to find a leech on the kayak.  yuck.  There were kids playing in the water earlier.  No swimming for me!  

On Friday evening we headed to the Solstice festival in Kenai.  Not sure what we expected, but it was a very quick walk around and then out.  Three different groups handing out bibles, jam booths, renaissance costumes and rolls of linoleum for sale.  Weird combination.  A not so bad band was playing and that was drawing the crowd.  The longest day of the year in Alaska is just not the same as in the lower 48.  Sunrise is at 4:30 every day, Sunset at 11:30, but it does not get dark.  There is no supermoon here today, only sunshine!

 

We have seen baby terns, a duck family with 10 ducklings trailing behind, the loons, eagles and of course the moose.  We liked this place with all the wildlife.  Surprisingly, we have pretty much had the campground to ourselves.  We are told that everything is pretty dead until July, then its crazy.

Speaking of crazy, tomorrow we head to the Homer Spit for two weeks.  The skies are grey and it is a lazy day so far.  Made dog food, made a stew in the slow cooker and we'll venture out on the lake for one last trip around.  Then we'll get everything ready for the very short trip of 60 miles to Homer.  Life is Good!

Kasilof and Johnson Lake

We packed up the bikes, the kayak, the toad, the pups and the beast and off we went on a very short drive to Kasilof RV Park in Kasilof.  The drive took us through the Kenai Peninsula Wildlife Refuge, past the Russian River fishing mayhem and just past Solodtna.  After missing the turnoff to the RV park, we had to keep going until we could find a turnoff where we could turn around.  This requires lots of space and unhooking the toad.  We took the first little road which was one lane.  Wouldn't you know it, here comes a car.  I went to the window and the driver said no problem, it happens all the time.  I explained we would be a minute as we need to unhook the car and she said hey you can follow me, this road will take you a short distance and out on the same road.  That sounded like a great idea to us...until....you realize it is all dirt, winding, narrow and seemed to go forever into the backwoods.  I thought I was headed to the sausage factory.  Then viola, onto a two lane paved road and she bid us goodbye and have a nice stay!

This is what my bright red bike looks like after a dirt road

The toad was clean

After a quick spraying off, all was right again in the world.  We headed back to Soldotna (14 miles) to visit Fred Meyer's and grab some groceries.  You can buy anything you want in a Fred Meyer's from Groceries to Gas, Fishing Licenses, camping gear, automotive and clothes.  We ventured over to the camping aisle for mosquito stuff.  Empty!  Not a bug killer in sight.  We asked an employee where we could find bug spray and she replied "Nowhere on the peninsula.  All out."  Hmm, odd, this is Alaska where everyone knows there are mosquito's the size of chikadees.  Wouldn't they always have bug spray?  Reading the paper the next morning the aha moment comes.  Seems the Mosquitos are especially bad this year, so bad even the Alaskans are complaining and spraying up.  http://www.adn.com/2013/06/17/2943159/mosquito-invasion-in-southcentral.html

We will have to ration out the bug stuff we have I guess.  Or maybe I will mix up the natural repellent I use on the dogs and set up a table in the park.  haha.  The park sells these tennis racket things that have bug zappers in the woven part.  They work like a charm, zapping anything that you hit.  We have committed murder just for fun, looking very much like Andre Agassi.  Maybe I'll take a video and post it, we've had lots of laughs with them.  This park is right next to Johnson Lake which recently overflowed and the skeeters are swarmy.  Not complaining, mind you since the view is awesome!

The view from the front windshield

This park is in moose country.  We watched a couple of movies on Monday afternoon and when I opened the front curtains when we were done, I saw this....

The moose is loose!

We just sat and watched her for awhile wander up and down the side of the road and into the lake swampy area.  She went behind the trees and we lost sight of her.  In those same trees are a pair of nesting eagles we can see flying around.  They are awesome!  I can't get a good photo with my iphone so the memory is in our heads.  This is a really nice place.  Eric took Mowgli out on the kayak today and he had fun licking the water lilies.  Gidget and I will join them tomorrow.

Let's talk about the weather shall we?  Remember I complained about the late snow and how this year set records for the latest ice breakup?  All my lake pictures on the way up were all iced over?  Well it is official-Alaska has broken their high temperature records this week.  NBC news had an article today about Ice to Fire-Alaska weather.  The Anchorage Daily news reported that Talkeetna had a high of 94 and records were set in the coastal areas with 74 in Homer.  The all time record in Anchorage was 86.  It was only 81.  The folks here are roasting with no air conditioning.  The stores are out of fans in addition to the bug repellents.  All in all, we've had a lot of fun even with the snow, ice, sweltering temps, bug swarms and earthquakes.

We took a ride to Kenai yesterday and ended up booking a week at a park there for our return from Homer in August.  We got out of the car and the cool ocean air hit us and ahhh!  This is nice!  We found a nice little restaurant nearby that serves lunch only with yummy sandwiches, salads, quiches and soups.  We made a pact to eat there a few times, but only when we ride our bikes or walk over.  I really wanted the croissant bread pudding with amaretto caramel sauce, but I was too full.  I've been yearning ever since.  Friday night is the summer solstice celebration in Kanai, maybe I can con a stop there before they close on the way to the festival.  

This little bird followed us around on our walk.  Must be the bugs we are zapping!

The clouds are coming!

This morning I awoke to the little pitter pat of sprinkles on the roof.  The hot spell is over and the cool breezes felt great!  A lazy day for me, just goofing off.  Eric got some exercise on the lake, I worked on my cross stitch and enjoyed a day with no air conditioning.

An Alaskan Heat Wave, Earthquakes and oh those Mosquito's!

The post title sounds like the end of times!  There has been almost two weeks of steady blue skies, sunshine and record temps in a region usually enjoying a little rain and moderate temps.  The newscasters are warning everyone to remember to use sunscreen since they don't see this many days in a row of no clouds.  Add the long days (sunrise at 4:30 am, sunset at 11:31 pm) and you have lots of sunshine.  It has been in the high sixties to low seventies since we got here.  Sunday and Monday the high will be 77.  Don't be too envious all you Vegas friends!  We still have to run the air conditioner!  Overnight the Lupines grew and bloomed!  We can sit and watch the pine trees at our site get new buds.  Its been a wonderful week!

The bad part of all this wonderful weather is the red flag warnings for fires in the area.  Hopefully they will get some rain soon.  The forecast in Cooper Landing calls for rain next weekend, let's hope it comes.  

I felt an earthquake the other morning while still in bed.  Come to find out, they have dozens of earthquakes every day.  All fairly small.  This region is pretty amazing with the volcanos, glaciers and earthquakes.  It is pretty spectacular!

The mosquito's have come out in full force!  Their bites are mean and the welts left behind are large and itchy.  We've only been hit a few times so far.  The pups not at all.  I mixed up some natural repellant for them and it seems to work.  The pests like to buzz around their big ears.  We try to limit our outside time to daytime, but even then they are vicious.  We put up the screen room so we can enjoy happy hour outside.  

It's been kind of a lazy week, the beast got a much needed washing off, we did lots of paddling around Kenai Lake in the Kayak, hikes around the resort and at Russian River (at least until fishing season started, then bam! the fishermen lined the banks) and general goofing off.  

Russian River

Russian River

The pups are ready 

Russian River

Mowgli in his lifevest for Kayaking

Gidget in her lifevest

The Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge

Just floating on the lake

Kenai Lake

Kayaking on the Kenai Lake

Miniature sled dogs in training

We will be leaving here on Monday, heading for Kasilof.  We need to replenish some fruits and veggies in Soldotna, then a week of seeing what's around.  After Kasilof it's on to Homer Spit, the end of the road!