It’s only 93 miles to Soldotna from Seward but we decided to take a break here for the night. We arrived late afternoon, and the town was packed with cars and RVs bumper to bumper. The Fred Meyer store was bursting with people and getting low on groceries. We were told this town could get busy when the fish are running, but according to the fish count, that wasn’t in its prime yet either. We fueled up, gathered supplies from Mr. Fred Myer and he graciously let us stay in the parking lot for the night. A very noisy experience and trying to get out of the parking lot in the morning was more than an unpleasant experience.
Before we left town, however, we made a stop at a bakery we were advised not to miss. “THE MOOSE IS LOOSE”. After a long wait in a line out the door, we placed our order. There was actually a bakery “drill sergeant” attempting to let just a few people in and then getting others out. She told us ” you’ve heard of combat fishing here… well this is Combat bakery and I’m in charge” Hilarious. We headed to the riverfront park to check out the fishing conditions and eat our breakfast.
While checking out the fishermen on the river, I noticed a very modern version of the Salmon Fisherman on the Kenai River. Jimmy Buffett is right, “Everybody’s on the Phone”
Fishing was reported as good but not great at this time. We knew we were coming back to spend a few days after our trip to Homer. Hopefully, the timing will be good on our return trip.
Without a plan as to where to camp, we ended up for two nights in the Deep Creek North Camp area while we explored around Ninilchik. We were the only ones camped there next to the river. It is just a parking lot surrounded by beautiful trees and the salmon stream on two sides. This area is legendary for its king salmon runs. Bald eagles soared overhead daily. This is a State Recreation site, and camping is $15.00 per night. They have dumpsters and pit toilets.
The fishing seemed to be good in this stream based on the number of fishermen coming and going with fish.
The second day we were here, Mark was out walking Lily, and he heard someone say “Is that Lily?, I’m sure that is Lily” turned out it was our rv friend, Ellie who adores Lily and had met her a year ago January at Quartzsite. We met up again this year in B’ville just a few hours before we were leaving. Here we were way up here in Alaska, and we happened to run into each other at this campground. She and Milke were fishing with friends who live in the area.
We had a brief visit and then the next day we were off to Homer. However, I noticed on FB, the next day she was lucky to catch a beautiful King salmon in the same area. So I stole the photo to share here.
The Ninilchik area was originally inhabited by the semi-nomadic Dena’ina people; tribes of both the Kenai and Kachemak regions came together to fish in this resource-rich area, creating a rich blend of traditions and language. People of Russian lineage began settling the area in the 1840s, hoping that Ninilchik would serve as a retirement community of sorts for elderly workers that couldn’t handle the long journey back to Russia. Those workers were to run an agricultural community that would, in turn, support fur trading efforts.
One of most spectacular sights along the Sterling Highway is the Holy Transfiguration of our Lord Russian Orthodox Church. Built in 1901, the historic bluff-top structure sports five golden onion-domes and commands an unbelievable view of Cook Inlet and the volcanoes on the west side of Cook Inlet. Adjoining it is a Russian Orthodox cemetery.
This church is surrounded by a beautiful wildflower garden enclosed by a white picket fence.
The church is a reflection of the Russian fur-trading village this town used to be, and there is still a Russian community here.
On three different occasions, we saw what I would describe as Boat Launch Ballet and sometimes it looked like wet and wild launching going on at the Deep Creek Campground. They launch all fishing boats with an old rusty John Deere skidder. We were entertained for quite some time watching the crew. Especially the guy who jumped on and off the skidder to disconnect or hook up the boats. We came back each evening for happy hour just to watch the entertainment.
You are probably thinking about now, what’s so exciting about this launch situation? Believe me, it can get really crazy here. If you were to look on youtube and search Deep Creek Boat Launch you’ll see what I mean. I did take a few videos of the launches but Missed the ones that were “OMG moments”. Here’s someone else’s video – you can see how crazy it can be there at times.
There were plenty of Bald eagles in this area feeding on fish.
Across the Cook Inlet, you can see four active volcanoes—including Mount Redoubt and Mount Iliamna.
I’ve heard a few tales about this Fireweed plant. One is since the plant blooms upward, like the lupine, when the last flower at the top blooms the travelers in Alaska better be crossing the border because that means winter is not far away. I would agree with others that just say when the last flower blooms, it goes to seed! I have to admit, however, I tend to keep an eye on the blooms just in case.
I thought perhaps the Fireweed would have to be the State Flower – they are everywhere this time of year. But when I looked it up I found that the official Alaska State flower is the Forget Me Not. It was chosen as the State flower in 1949 says one source and then another says it is the Alpine Forget Me Not and was chosen in 1917, forty-two years before Alaska was officially admitted as the 49th state. So the bottom line is I know for sure it is NOT the Fireweed 🙂
Alaskan Angler RV Resort just outside of Anchor Point looked like a cool place to park your RV and go out on a Charter with AFISHHUNT. Especially if you wanted to meet up with a friend who might want to fly into Anchorage and stay a week in the cabins here.
Off to Homer now, Halibut, Float Planes and Bears. oh my
