Two Weeks in Homer, AK--Part One

Our original plan was to stop at Hidden Lake in Skilak National Wildlife Preserve, but wildfires had the road to the campground closed. Plan B involved a stop at Fred Meyer in Soldotna. We thought we might stay there and tour the area, but when we arrived at lunchtime, we decided to eat at Taco Bell and move on to Homer. Once we arrived in Homer we knew we would stay through the holiday---Independence Day--so we wouldn't have to worry about finding a campsite at the last minute. It was a good plan!

Larry and Connie arrived first on Homer Spit. They set up, drove down the spit to make sure we had the best spot, and then they waited for us to arrive. They camped at Mariner Campground, facing the water of Kachemack Bay.

Bob and I pulled in, parked and drove down the spit to see about the place we stayed in 2010. A marine vessel--Polar Bear-- was dry docked on half of what used to be the campground! The Fishing Hole  campground was packed. It was good that Larry and Connie found us the sites at Mariner.

After a rest, Bob and I went down to the business area on the spit and looked around. These boats were unloading and loading at the commercial pier.

 The next day we packed a picnic lunch and drove up to the overlook on Skyline Drive. The overlook offers a fantastic view of the spit. This picture was taken at high tide.

 From the overlook we drove to Eveline Alpine Meadows Trail. Connie and I had a good time photographing the wildflowers in the meadow as we hiked the area.

 Bob and I turned the corner before Larry and Connie.

 After our hike, we retrieved our lunches from our vehicles and returned to the picnic table to eat and enjoy the view. It is hard to see, but we had a fantastic view of the glaciers across the bay.

 

 On our way back to The Spit, we decided to stop at Bear Creek Winery to sample their products. They were just as good as I remembered. The base for the wine comes from other places and the winery adds local fruits to the base to create their wines.

 On Friday, the weather was questionable so Bob and I went to the Alaska Islands and Oceans Center. There are informative displays, a movie, hands on items, and a trail around Beluga Slough. Bob and I walked the trail, even though it was beginning to mist a bit. There were some black birds giving an eagle a hard time. The eagle seemed to tolerate them as long as possible before flying off.

 Sunday we drove to Anchor Point and watched the tractors launch and retrieve boats.  The tractor would back the trailer into the water, then give the signal to the incoming boat who would hit the throttle and approach at full speed, cutting the engine only after the tractor began moving forward and the boat was on the trailer. The young man on the back of the tractor then secured the boat on the trailer as the tractor pulled it from the water.

 Larry drove his Jeep along the beach for us to see the tractors and we started seeing more eagles. This young eagle was watching the action of the boats and tractor.

  From Anchor Point we drove to a small Russian settlement to see their Russian Orthodox Church. The area was settled in 1967.

 

 There is not much in Nikolaevsk (pop. 312), except the church. There used to be an RV park, a cafe, and a gift shop.

 Monday, Bob and I wanted to hike so we drove up Skyline Drive to the Carl Wynn Nature Center. It has five miles of hiking trails. Of course, there was a geocache hidden at the entrance sign.

Our first stop was the Marsh Overlook. The footprints in the mud are from moose. There were low bush blueberries and cranberries growing along the marsh trail.

Then we made a stop at the Elliot Fischer Overlook. We found a geocache nearby.

From there we took the Lynx Connector to Moose Meander. The trail meandered through a meadow and over a bridge.

From the bridge we walked the trail to Skyline Drive, crossed the road and headed toward the Toby Tyler benches.

There was a geocache near the benches, but we couldn't find this one.

From the benches, we got a spectacular view of The Spit and our campsite!

Tuesday we had another Boomerang--a Boomer get together--at Fat Olives, a popular pizza place in Homer. A total of ten Boomers attended. They were all staying somewhere on The Spit. We enjoyed the camaraderie and the food. We had the get together at lunch as Connie and I knew we needed to get to bed early as we were going halibut fishing EARLY Wednesday morning.