Homer AK

August 26: Today we departed Seward and headed towards Homer. Still no moose. We decided to leave the highway and take the Skilak Lake Loop Road, as we thought there would be more wildlife to see and checkout the campgrounds along the road. It’s a 19 mile gravel road and was very slow going Some pretty views but no moose. Toward the end we did see a couple Spruce Grouse. Would not do this road again as top speed was 12 MPH and campgrounds were popular and full.

Arrived at Soldatna, a nice friendly town with a helpful welcome center. They had fishwalks at several places around town. Fishwalks are along the river banks and are raised graded walkways from which to fish from. These fishwalks protects the banks, limits erosion and encourages the growth of natural bank plants. This helps the salmon. Picked up take-out at “Buckets”. Which was recommended by the welcome center and was very good. Then we headed for a municipal campground, Swift Water Park, and found a campsite along the river. I fished the Kenai River that evening and caught a couple salmon and snagged one, unfortunately none were edible. They had already spawned so the meat would be mushy. Met an interesting guy from West Virginia who used to be a guide here and gave me some tips on fishing. I am going back out in the early morning. It was fun catching them even though I had to throw them back.

August 27: We have been on the road a month. I was fishing at 6:30 Am in the drizzle. Caught more but not keepers. Found out the silvers were not there yet, so that made it easer to hit the road. Also it was rainy and cloudy. Because of the weather we did not linger at any scenic viewpoints. However we did stopped at the welcome to Homer sign. It was an overlook with a view of Kachemak Bay, Homer Spit, Cook Inlet and the mountains across the water.

Islands and Oceans National Wildlife Refuge Center was on our way into town. This was on our not to miss list. It did not disappoint. We have found both the National Wildlife Refuges and the National Parks Welcome Centers do a good job educating the public in an entertaing manner.

We decided to stay at Oceanview RV Park. After having dinner and Edna went to the beach while I worked on the computer. The tide was going out, way out. Edna was picking her way through the rocks to get to the tide pools. Suddenly, 3 large birds flew over head and landed on a little piece of sand beyond a large pool of water. She quickly got off the beach and ran up the cliff trail to get camera and binocs. I begrudgingly went back with her, as I was working on our blog. They were still there when we got back and I got some great pictures of both the cranes and the sunset over the cliffs. When we returned it was about 10 PM. The light just lingers there and casts a golden glow on everything.

August 28: Up early and had our coffee and planned our day. By the time we had that extra cup of coffee the time slips by. We wanted to go to The Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, so we headed up to Carl E Wynn Nature Center. The center opens at 10 AM and we were there at 10 AM. Nice girl greeted us. She didn’t seem to know how to give us a tour as she was the only one there. We said we didn’t need a guide, so with map in hand we were off on a 2 mile hike. The trail was narrow, lots of roots and the grass and brush was as tall as Edna and sometimes as tall as me. We went to the bog overlook. No moose, no birds. Then back to main loop trail. From there we headed for the raised overlook hoping to see birds, moose or something. The girl at the center told us you need keen eyes to see the moose. The brush is so thick, that you could walk right by. Edna is taking pictures of berries, raindrops on leaves. Suddenly, a gorgeous view of the mountains opens up. Edna tells me she is going to take a picture. As she is focusing I say ‘there she is”! Being a lot taller than Edna, I saw the moose and calf just over the plants about 30 feet away. She spotted us and at first just kept munching. I don’t know if she didn’t like the camera clicking, or was just protective with a baby, but she started coming towards us. We started backing up. She came out on the trail and we backed up faster. No close trees to hide behind, so decided to retrace our steps. Never did get to that overlook.

Picture before moose discovery

Now it is rainingagain, but still ok. We stopped at farmers market, and picked up 2 tomatoes (local). They were $5.00 a pound. Also got some awesome fish and chips. They cooked it while you waited.

We’ve read a lot about the Homer Spit, so we headed there next. Walked around a while, but couldn’t get too excited about it. Went to town to the art center, some shops and the Pratt Museum. A very nice local museum. Learned about early pioneering families and the Valdez oil spill. Back to Oceanview and back up the coast tomorrow.


Next post will be 4 otr 5 days

Kenai Fjords National Park

August 25: We spent the day on the Major Marine,s Tour of Kenai Fjords National Park. We walked from our campsite to the loading dock. A ranger was on board and pointed out specific points of interest as well as a commentary on the area. Right away there was an otter floating and sleeping before we even got out of Resurrection Bay.

Passed Bear Glacier and the humpbacked whales put on quite a show. The ranger and crew can identify each whale by the markings on it’s tail. All are different. This whale is named Paintbrush.

Saw calving at Aialik Glacier. It sounds like a large explosion and then the ice falls down into the water. It creates large waves. These tidal glaciers are very important for the seals. They can protect their young from predators by resting on floating ice from these glaciers.

Also observed Steller Sea Lions which are endangered and closely monitored by the park service. We visited numerous bird rookeries and as usual saw fantastic scenery.

Black Legged Kittiwakes

Note the # on the pup from above picture.

Edna says that the cruise had another benefit Dave couldn’t resist. An all you can eat salmon/prime rib buffet. Have no fear, he did us proud! Went back at least 3 or 4 times, but didn’t waste much time on the prime rib. Would you when fresh salmon was available?

Seward

August 24: This morning we has a tour of the gold mine and learned about placer mining. The mine is basically an historical tour. Lots of old buildings and beautiful flowers There are signs that mining is going on, however we think a lot of their income comes from weddings. Out camping was on a gravel lot in the middle of nowhere! The drive alone was worth the trip.

Headed for Seward, our desintation for a few days. In Seward we stopped at the Kenai Fjords National Park Headquarters. The ranger was very helpful. The National Park Service partners with several tour companies. We selected Major Marine Tours and chose the longest tour on a slower boat with a park ranger on board. We then walked the tourist street and headed for Sea Life Center. This lived up to our expectations. Spent hours there and only left because we wanted to find a place to park for the night.

 King Salmon

Cooper Rock Fish

Seward has a municipal park that runs from the boat harbor to the sea life center. It has RV spaces with and without hookups. We will stay here for 2 days. We walked the bike path which goes into town. It is still light about 10 PM. However , we did watch the moon come up over the mountains reflect in the harbor.

Off to the Kenai

August 23 Off to the Kenai, by way of Anchorage. I need to order a battery for my laptop. I can pick it up on our way back through Anchorage. We went to the Musk Ox Farm as Edna wanted to see Qiviut. The yarn that is spun from thie undercoat. The Musk Ox Farm was interesting, but would not recommend it. It is a farm as we are and we are escaping from that.

Stopped at Potters Marsh, but did not see many birds and Edna was disappointed. It was the wrong time of day..

Started driving along Turnagain Arm. The views are stunning with lots of turn offs. Alaska law requires you to pull off if 5 or more vehicles are behind you, so they can pass. This applies even if you are doing the speed limit. We pulled over a few times. The beluga wails come up into this area to feed. We watched a large pod of them on the incoming tide. They are not as showy as the humpbacks, but exciting to see as their numbers are diminishing.

Looking for a place to stop for the night Edna found one of her specials: Crow Creek Mine National Historical Site. It was quite a drive through Chugach National Forest on a gravel road. We saw signs for the Iditarod Trail. When we reached the mine, it was closed so we parked and had dinner. Our adventure will continue tomorrow.

Richardson and Glenn Highway

August 22: Richardson and Glenn Highways. We planned an early start as this was to be a travel day. The weather did not cooperate. It was very cloudy and we could not see across the lake. Set we sat drinking our coffee and discussing plan B. Glancing back at the lake, it was clear! In a matter of seconds the clouds had lifted completely. It was truly amazing! We drove towards Valdez to Bridal Veil and Horsetail Falls. They are spectacular and the names aptly describe them.

Horsetail Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Headed back up the Richardson Highway to Wrangell-St Elias National Park. We wanted to walk the loop trail. It is called the Boreal Forest Trail. Edna called it the mushroom trail. Everywhere you looked were mushrooms. We ran into our first caravan. The parking lot was full of big rigs, but no one was on the trail except us.

On the Glen Highway at Sheep Mountain we saw Dall Sheep. Too far away for a picture. Stopped at Matanuska Glacier. From the highway the photo,ops are everwhere. This section of the road is new and there are pleanty of pull offs. Today is August 22 and the fall colors are coming. We even saw a new dusting of snow on the high peaks.

Stopped at Homestead RV Park in Palmer for the night. Very helpful and nice owners. What a great view from the campground of the evening sun on the mountains.