Homer Alaska At Last

We finally made it to Homer. We have heard about Homer and the Homer Spit for many years from many of our RV travelers.  Several months ago,  I read a novel “The Great Alone” by Kristin Hanna,  It was a good read, but I’m now re-reading it because part of the story refers to this area of Alaska, I can relate to some of the locations.

Fishing Capital of the World? Hmm, we have seen that statement somewhere before… Like Chokoloskee Florida. Wonder which one is the actual capital.

As we dropped down the last hill into Homer, we saw the whole playground ahead of us.  YIPEE Let the adventure begin.

We stopped at the Visitor Center Kiosk at the top of the hill to have a look at the view and pick up some brochures for the area.  Beautiful flowers and a crazy blue bird day greeted us. Blue sky has not been gracing us much on this trip, so we welcome it with open arms while we search for our sunglasses.

We didn’t have any reservations anywhere and thought we should go to The Spit to park, but at the last minute, we decided to go to the Elks Lodge for at least one night to check things out.  When we were at the Wasilla/Palmer Elks, one of the member’s said to be sure to check out the Homer Elks, so we did.

The parking area had spaces for 8 RVs here.  $20.00 for a dry camp and $25.00 if you wanted to hook up to electricity.  Freshwater and the dump is available just over a mile away at the City Dump station. $5.00 on the honor system. Excellent AT&T and Verizon Cell and Wifi and the Elks had free WIFI in the lodge.  On the spit, the fee is now $24.00 for dry camping at all the city campgrounds.

 

We are parked here with several other lower 48 travelers. We enjoyed exchanging adventures and tips from places we have all visited.

 

The bartender’s name is Matt, and he was very willing to share a local’s critique of shops and restaurants.

Our view from the motorhome was quite impressive, you could see the water and the spot was convenient to the spit, as well as Homer old town, so we decided to stay right here for our 5-day visit.

Spoiler Alert, I took this photo of the lodge and the parking area from the air, so you now know I had a flight to somewhere!!

We headed to the Spit first thing to see what all our RV friends had talked about.  Fishing, Shopping, Birdwatching, Boats, tide pools, and Restaurants were all there just as they had told us.

Our first stop was the Salty Dawg Saloon and Salty Girl’s Gift Store.  I had to go to the Salty Girl’s shop to purchase some shirts, and a onesie for my niece who is having her first child in Sept.  This one has polka dots and features the Salty Girl logo. I better get it in the mail before she outgrows it. I think those things are good for about a week and that’s it.

 

 

This is a MUST STOP on the Spit.  Iconic Salty Dawg. Thousands of dollar bills posted on the ceiling, walls, and anything that will accept a Pushpin. (pins are complimentary upon request)

You must leave one and have one…

a dollar bill for good luck.

and a beer or libation of choice

We did both and also posted one for my cousin’s son and wife who were married in Nevada City CA, today.  So it is an Alaskan Amber Ale toast to you Russell and Allie at the Salty Dawg.

 

The UPS Office in Homer caught Mark’s eye.  He had never seen such a modern looking center, but the best part was at the end of their building was a brewery.  A Perfect Blend!

 

The spit goes for miles, and it is an ever-changing coastal treasure hunt.

 

The view of the spit from up off East End Road.

The second day we were on the spit we happened into this little joint because the sign said fish tacos.  Little did we know this would be the first of MANY stops here for lunch.  I had the shrimp taco, and Mark had the halibut taco.  Both were cooked perfectly, FOB, fresh off the boat.  It is the first building on the right as you go down the spit. Be sure to stop and have a taco!  For those who aren’t into fish, the Glacier burgers are reportedly very good.

 

Yes, Glacier D’s is firmly planted into our lunch routine for the next four days.  The Halibut was swimming the night before. The Best Fish Tacos in all of Alaska.  We enjoyed our brief but fun conversations with the Owner/Chef named Lee. He runs a tight ship and a clean restaurant with a great view.   We even convinced several of the RVers parked at the Elks Lodge to check out lunch here.

 

While we were in the area of the marina, Mark spotted an Otter trying to take a nap between the boats.  These critters are so cute.

 

 

One person on the dock with me said “ya know these are just big mice that can swim”  I’d say they are cuddly bears that float. Love them!  How many can I fit on this page?   🙂

 

We are told there was an eagle nest near the marina, so we set out to find it.

Mama or Papa was nearby

On a different platform, the Seagulls were raising their babies in very cramped quarters.

There were plenty of happy fishermen here on the spit today!

Also very different beach activities;

Homer has a small but very nice Farmers Market a couple of times a week.  We found lots of fresh produce and bread to purchase. The mushrooms were excellent. They looked like porcelain sculptures.

 

Each time we passed by Beluga Lake at the North end of the spit, I would see this cute little red Cessna float plane parked at the dock.  It looked like it would be fun to hop in it and go for a flight-seeing trip.  But we weren’t going to be in Homer long enough to do that.   The next morning Mark said he wanted me to go on the trip to Brooks Falls to see the bears if I could get a seat.  I was somewhat reluctant. I had encouragement from my friend Sue and had seen photos of Pam’s pics as well…

SO, we stopped in at Beluga Air in Homer to inquire about a trip to Brooks Falls.  They were completely booked up for about a week.  While we were in the office, I spoke with one of their guides that take you to other parts of Katmai Nat’l Park where the bears tend to move at the end of the Salmon run. He was knowledgeable about those trips.  Interesting but we won’t be around in August. This was just research.

In the meantime, Angela, the pilot’s wife, was on the phone to a nearby Float plane service and low and behold there was a seat available.  Guess which plane it was on…. Yes, it was the little red Cessna that I had looked at every day for three days. I had about an hour and a half to get things together. Especially my head and camera equipment! YIKES.

Brooks Falls is located about an hour and 10 minutes flight over the Cook Inlet to a spot in Katmai National Park. This time of year when the salmon are running your chances of seeing bears is probably 100%.  It is the park’s 100th year this year.  A little history about Katmai:

In 1912 Novarupta Volcano on the Alaska Peninsula violently erupted and rocked the area now known as Katmai National Park and Preserve. The wilderness was turned into a dynamic landscape of smoking valleys, ash-covered mountains and small holes and cracks fuming with steam and gas. Only one other eruption in historic times, on the Greek island of Santorini in 1500 BC, displaced more ash and pumice. Four years later explorer Robert Grigg climbed Katmai Pass and became the first person to see the valley floor with its thousands of steam vents. He named it the Valley of 10,000 Smokes and led the effort that turned Katmai into a national monument.