This & That From Homer, Alaska

Stan . . .

We arrived in Homer on July 23rd and ended up staying through July 30th.  The weather during most of our stay was overcast, raining quite often, but we did end up with three days of decent weather to get out and about to explore the area.  The highway leading into Homer runs along the top of the mountain range right up until you get ready to drop down into Homer and sea level.  I was lucky enough to get Connie to pose for the above picture at the overlook at the top of the highway just before we descended down into Homer.  Homer is also known as "A funny little drinking town with a fishing problem".

The above picture was taken from up on the bluffs above Homer looking out at what is called the Homer Spit (a sliver of land that extends 4.5 miles out into the Kachemak Bay).  The Homer airport runway can be seen across the center of the picture.  The Spit is comprised of the Alaska Ferry Terminal, the Small & Large Boat Harbors, several campgrounds, the Lands End Condominiums and numerous kiosks for charter fishing boats.  The actual town of Homer is along the mainland to the right of the above picture.

While still up on the bluffs above Homer I zoomed in on the far end of the spit for this picture.  In the center of the picture on the top edge of the water are the Lands End Condos and we camped in the Homer Spit Campground immediately to the right of the condos.  We had a view of the ocean out the back window of our trailer and were able to watch the tides come in and out as well as the fishing boats coming and going along with eagles flying overhead and the occasional raft of sea otters playing in the bay.

While still up on the bluffs above Homer I turned slightly to the left and zoomed in on the Grewingk Glacier across Kachemak Bay to the east of Homer--quite an impressive sight.

Homer is located at the southwest end of the Kenai Peninsula along the Cook Inlet.  This picture was taken several days earlier while we were in route to Homer from Soldotna looking west across the Inlet at one of the many dormant volcanoes that dot the landscape throughout Alaska.

Just a short walking distance from our campsite was the Salty Dawg Saloon.  It is a well known landmark in this area and for those of you that follow "The Deadliest Catch" on the Discovery Channel one of the fishing crews featured on the show is based out of Homer and are known to heartily celebrate their safe return to port at the Salty Dawg.  The Salty Dawg is a small log cabin type structure that is covered completely inside (walls, ceiling, everywhere) with dollar bills pinned to every inch of available space over the years by the patrons of the saloon.  The beer was ice cold and we definitely enjoyed our visit.