Thursday, May 24th - 2nd Day in Ninilchik - What a trip!

This is the first campground that we've stayed at with functioning WiFi. The other two advertised that they have it, but it wasn't working. Steve and I wondered if the lack of service was more due to the fact that the season hasn't officially started yet (not until Memorial Day weekend), and the campgrounds were still working out the kinks.

I'll try to sum up the past few days as best as possible. I have plenty of photos to share with you too.

The night before we hit the road, we loaded up the camper, packed everything up; checking things off the list as we went along. Later on that evening (Friday night), I drove over to Lathrop High School to watch my friend Nik's daughter Neena perform in her first ballet recital. It was actually only a dress rehearsal, but it was the only time that photos would be permitted. I planned on attending when I first heard about it a month ago. I haven't spent any time with Neena in a long time, but I've posted photos of her here in this journal in the past. She's an adorable little red haired girl with big blue eyes and the sweetest disposition. People have mistaken her for my daughter in the past; something that always makes me smile.

The rehearsal was short (less than 30 minutes), but what an adorable group of tiny dancers! (Ages 3-5) I managed to capture several adorable photos of both Neena and the other ballerinas. Her mother was happy with them as well.

I just love the bandaid!	If it itches, scratch it!	Ballerinas in Motion	Which direction do we go in?
What is she doing?	Checking out the boy ballet dancer	Not quite clear on what comes next.	I just had to do this in selective color!
Neena pirouettes	Oops! I guess I shouldn't be twirling!	Pouring their entire heart into it!	Exiting the stage... where are the others?

Day One: On Saturday morning, the plan was to get on the road by 8am. That didn't happen. As usual, there were last minute things to pack, and we were both moving slower than usual. By the time we stopped at Sunrise Bagel for a breakfast sandwich, it was after 9am. Then, as soon as we left Fairbanks, we ran into road construction and had to wait for a pilot car. This held us up an additional 20 minutes. We ran into several more construction zones along the Parks Highway - slowing us down even further.

We stopped just south of Cantwell, at a pullout, to eat lunch. It was a beautiful rest stop, and we were totally alone there. Steve took Sedona out for a long walk, while I made sandwiches. It was so peaceful to listen to the sounds of the nearby river. The skies were still blue and sunny, but we could see dark clouds off in the distance. The photo at left is the view we had from the pull out along the Parks Highway.

The game plan had us getting into Palmer by 3pm and meeting friends for dinner as soon as we had the camper set up. We didn't arrive in Palmer until after 5pm and by the time the camper was set up, it was 6pm. I called Rebecca and Melinda, apologized for our late arrival, and asked if we could meet for coffee instead. Steve and I made salads for dinner; neither of us in the mood for a heavy dinner after our long day on the road.

We met at a local coffee house in Palmer called Vagabond Blues. It was wonderful to finally meet Rebecca in real life. I've known Rebecca online for about three years now. She came with her husband, Justin. I also got to meet a new online friend, Melinda. I met Melinda through the Alaska Living group on Yahoo. We all enjoyed coffee/juice and Steve and I nibbled on delicious cookies as we chatted. After about an hour, Melinda asked us if we wanted to follow her to her house up in the hills, to see the views from her property. It was a gorgeous drive! Steve and I rode up with Rebecca and Justin. We visited with Melinda and her husband Doug for a while, and were taken on a wonderful tour of their home. The views from every window were magnificent.

Melinda is a weaver (and a spinner), and has a studio/workshop in her home. I've never seen so many spools and skeins of yarn in my life! It was very interesting to learn about the craft of weaving, and to see some smaller pieces that she has woven. The intricate designs, and beautiful colors made them all gorgeous works of art.

We finally made our way back to the campground, and fell into bed exhausted. We had to get up early to make our way to Homer.

Insomnia struck (always when I need my sleep the most, it seems), and I found myself laying in bed at 4:45am. There was already morning light making its way in between the blind slats. I closed my eyes in the hopes that I'd doze off again. Fifteen minutes later, I realized I was up for the day.

I didn't want to disturb Steve by turning on the television to entertain myself (and didn't have access to the internet, or I would have gotten online to work on my journal), so I decided to get dressed, and take a drive around Palmer in the early morning hours. I wish we would have had more time to visit. There's a lot more I wish I could have taken the time to see.

Here are the photos I took on our way to Palmer, and while in Palmer.

Young bull moose wandering the highway	Mountainous vista along the Parks Highway	Denali Overlook: The mountain peeks above the clouds	Melinda's greenhouse (I thought it would look nice in B&W)
Early morning near the Matanuska River	Sandy and rocky bank of the Matanuska River	Matanuska River	Matanuska River bridge

Day Two: Sunday morning, we were on the road as scheduled at 9:30am. As always, it was a gorgeous drive down the peninsula to Homer. We made sure to stop at some of our favorite pullouts for photos and to take in the scenery.

Turnagain Arm	Seward Highway Rest Stop		I love this man!
My guy and my girl!	Tern Lake	Tern Lake	Tern Lake
Kenai Lake		Cooper Landing	Kenai Lake

We arrived in Homer by 3pm, and set up on one of our two favorite sites at Ocean View RV Park. I was disappointed to find out that they did have wireless hooked up, but the technician never gave the owner the 'free coupons' to pass out to her campground visitors. If we wanted to get online, it would have cost us and honestly - we were too busy enjoying the sunshine and warm breeze off the bay to care about internet access.

After taking Sedona for a long walk on the beach, Steve and I drove down onto Homer Spit to find the fishing charter company he was booked with, so he'd know where to go the next morning. The spit was much more active than it was in March when we were down for the eagle viewing, but not nearly as busy as it will be when the season officially opens next weekend.

After cooking an easy dinner of hot dogs and mac & cheese, we settled in for a little TV, a few glasses of wine, and relaxation. It was wonderful to see the bay just outside our windows.

Day Three: Monday was a free day with nothing on the itinerary. We slept in, and had a wonderful breakfast of scrambled eggs and ham, washed down by tall cups of coffee. We watched a little of the morning news before getting dressed for the day.

We took another drive down to the spit, to inquire about a trip to Halibut Cove. Unfortunately, the Danny J doesn't start running until Memorial Day weekend (much like everything else), and even though the water taxi could take us there, we wouldn't be permitted to explore the tiny community because it's private property. We decided we'll visit Halibut Cove some other time.

We decided to visit some of the shops that were already open for the season. Steve found a shop that stocked quality cigars and picked up three to enjoy while we're vacationing. After meandering in and out of various gift shops, we decided to take a drive up on East End Road to enjoy the scenery from high above the town and spit.

Not long after arriving back at the camper, the clouds began to roll in and the temperature dropped. We had to turn the heat on to take the chill off of us. When we took Sedona for her evening walk, the wind was whipping and seemed to cut right through my fleece jacket. I couldn't wait to get back to the warmth of the camper.

Waves and seaweed	Under the Alaska Ferry pier	At the end of the spit	One of many shops
The Salty Dawg Saloon	The Salty Dawg Saloon (see story below)	One of many fishing charters	Homer shop
Shops on the spit	Contemplation at the Homer marina	Mexican seafood, anyone?	Lighthouse village - shops
View from East End Road	View from East End Road	Two Milbert's Tortoiseshell butterflies	Cloudy sunset

(History of the Salty Dawg - found online):

The Salty Dawg started out as one of the first cabins built in 1897, soon after Homer became a town site. It served as the first post office, a railroad station, a grocery store, and a coal mining office for twenty years. In 1909 a second building was constructed, and it served as a school house, post office, grocery store. And at one time, it housed three adults and eleven children.

It was acquired in the late 1940's by Chuck Abbatt to be used as an office for Standard Oil Company. In April of 1957, he opened it as the Salty Dawg Saloon. The late 1950's produced a change for the Salty Dawg Saloon by joining this building to it.

The Alaska Territory became the 49th state of the union in January 1959.

Earl Hillstrand, the late State Representative, purchased it in 1960. After the March 1964 "Good Friday" earthquake, he moved the structure to its present location. The distinctive lighthouse tower was added to cover a water storage tank, thus completing one of Homer's more historical and recognizable landmarks.

The Salty Dawg Saloon that we know today is owned and operated by John Warren.

Day Four: This was one of the days Steve was waiting patiently for. His first fishing trip! He swore to me he was going to come home with fish. Our deep freezer is nearly empty (except for frozen pizza and chicken patties!), and in much need of salmon and halibut. Besides the empty freezer, my husband's spirit was in need of being out on a boat with other fishermen, sharing 'guy' stories about the one that got away, and exaggerating the size of their last big catch.

In order to have use of the truck while he was gone on his fishing adventure, I had to drive Steve down to the spit to meet the boat. At 6am. Why is it that I can be struck with insomnia for days on end, and open my eyes at 5am without a problem, but the one day the alarm goes off at 5:30am, I'm in such a state of exhaustion, I'm tempted to just tell Steve to drive himself to the marina?

I certainly didn't want to be without wheels all day, so I dragged my happy self out of bed, threw on a pair of lounging pants and a jacket, and wiped the sleepies from my eyes. Steve was a bundle of energy, and took great care in packing his backpack "just so" - to include THREE sandwiches, a container of pringles, 2 liters of water, a few poptarts, and pickles. This was only an 8-hour fishing trip, but you would have thought he was going out with the Skipper and Gilligan and wanted to be prepared for getting shipwrecked on an island. I guess fishing makes a man hungry.

I saw Steve take a Dramamine before he loaded up the truck. It's a good thing. The boat was pitching hard the entire time they were out. One of his boat mates spent the majority of the trip hanging over the side of the boat sick. Steve rarely gets seasick, but better safe than sorry!

When I got back to the camper, I crawled into bed and pulled the covers up to my neck. It was a blustery morning, and I had a chill I couldn't shake. I just wanted to get warm for a little while before getting ready for my day. Two hours later, I woke up. I guess I needed those extra hours of sleep.

My plans for the day started with a trip to the Pratt Museum. I spent more than two hours there! It's not an overly large museum, but there are so many interesting things to read about and listen to. My favorite exhibit was Homestead Perspectives. Click on the link and read some of the stories of the early settlers in Homer. What courage and fortitude! Some of these families came from 'modern' lives in the Lower 48, with pretty homes and running water. But when the homestead offering was made, they jumped on the opportunity to move to Alaska.

(From the website linked above:) Homesteaders lived a rugged life simply. They gathered coal and seafood from the shores. They harvested potatoes and cabbage, game and firewood from the land, and made do with remarkable ingenuity. Charlie Miller filed for one of Homer's first homestead applications in 1915. Log cabins sprang up - first on benchland by the sea, a decade later on the hills above town. By 1930, there were 78 homestead entries, but only 34 would become patented.

In the mid 1940s, a wave of soldiers back from WWII, encouraged by a veterans' homestead offering, headed north to find both peace and opportunity in the isolation of wilderness.

From the Pratt Museum, I visited Alaska Wild Berry Products. I bought two jars of jam (Cranberry Apple Butter and Wild Blueberry Jam). I enjoyed looking at the many gifts and candies. I stopped by two galleries, before making my way to the Homer Library. I wanted to check my emails after being without internet for so long (I'm an addict). I was allotted 30 minutes by the kind librarian, and enjoyed my online fix. By that time, Steve was due back in from his trip, so I drove straight down to the spit to wait for him.

It was perfect timing. No sooner had I parked the truck, he came running from across the parking lot. "Did you bring your camera?", he asked. That question meant he caught something. I was happy for him. Not only had he caught two halibut (each about 20lbs), but he caught the biggest king salmon on the boat (26lbs). He was a happy fisherman!

He had the fish cleaned there, but did the vacuum sealing himself. The campground office was nice enough to let him store them in their freezer until we left Homer.

Here are some photos I took at the Pratt Museum:

Sea Anemone	King Crab	Sea Creature Quilt	Old Homestead
Outhouse Door	Inside the Homestead Cabin	Ferns - the only green I saw in the garden.	Garden Art

Day Five: Wednesday morning, we woke to rain. And cold. And wind. It was probably in the low 40s as we packed up the camper to leave. We opted for a quick McDonalds breakfast, rather than preparing anything ourselves. Our next destination was Ninilchik - only about an hour up the road, so there was no need to rush.

The day was cold and blustery, and we discovered that the WiFi connection at this campground actually worked, so we decided to just stay in and watch a few movies, while catching up with things online. (I actually began this update yesterday, but didn't finish it.) And there you have the events of Day Five. A short drive, lots of rain and wind, chilly temps, and lazy campers. *grin*

Day Six: (Today) Steve went fishing again today. This time, I didn't have to drive him anywhere at the break of dawn. The charter left from the campground we're staying at (Alaska Anglers RV Park). I actually got to stay in our warm bed while he packed his backpack again, with enough food to feed a small village.

I took time to enjoy my morning coffee and worked some more on this journal. The drive to Soldotna is 40 miles from here, and I assumed that none of the 'touristy' things opened until 10am. It was still raining and the wind was whipping even harder than it was last night. The awning was out and I was worried that the wind would catch it hard enough to drag our camper away. I know it probably scared Sedona to hear the noise it was making, and to feel the camper rocking back and forth.

The drive was a pleasant one with hardly any traffic at all. I played some of my favorite CDs and sang along with them as I made my way up the Sterling Highway. Occasionally, I'd see an eagle flying overhead - high up in the sky, floating in the wind.

My first stop was the Soldotna Visitor Center, where I picked up some local maps and called my friend Jody. I reached her voice mail again and resigned myself to the fact that we'll have to get up with each other at another time. Steve and I don't have a cellphone (I know... we're living in the dark ages!), which makes it impossible to reach us when we're traveling. We just don't see the need for one; we've lived without cellphones for years (except for the phones we were issued when we worked) and don't want the added expense. I'm sorry it didn't work out for us to meet this time, but there will always be a next time, as the summer is young and this area is our favorite to visit.

I then drove the short distance to the Soldotna Historical Museum. The woman working in the office was quite knowledgeable (and talkative!) and I really enjoyed my visit. She told me a little bit about herself and what brought her to Alaska more than 30 years ago. She came here on vacation and decided to stay. She lived the "hippie" lifestyle (her words) in a cabin outside of Healy for two years. No running water, a woodstove for heat and cooking, a cabin that let cold air in during the winter, and she grew her own vegetables. I asked her if she was scared to live alone in the wilderness and she admitted she was terrified! She did have some friends a mile or so away for company, who she could go to in the case of an emergency (or if it was a particularly cold night and she wanted to stay warm). I just loved talking to her about those days when she was young and idealistic and felt she could take on the world (wilderness) alone.

While we conversed, she took me around the grounds and even let me go into the cabins (past the ropes). It's a small cluster of cabins/buildings, but it gives you a glimpse into early day Soldotna life when the area was full of homesteading families.

I found this information online HERE:

The first permanent residents of Soldotna were World War II Veterans, given a 90-day preference over non-veterans in selecting and filing for homestead property in 1947. That same year, the Sterling Highway right-of-way was bulldozed from Cooper Landing to Kenai. Soldotna was selected as the site for the Sterling Highway Bridge crossing the Kenai River.

The opening of the Sterling Highway provided a link to the outside world. The highway opened up the region to more homesteading and brought visiting sportsmen to the area for the first time. Soldotna’s first post office opened in 1949, with stores and a community center following shortly thereafter.

In 1957, oil was discovered in the Swanson River region, bringing new development to the Kenai Peninsula. In 1960, Soldotna incorporated as a fourth class city with a population of 332. The first Mayor of Soldotna was Don Wilson. A new post office and airport were constructed in 1962. With the approval of first class city status in 1967, Soldotna borrowed the funds necessary to establish a $2.3 million water and sewer system.

During the growth years of the 1970’s and 1980’s, Soldotna established itself as a service center for the Borough, the site for Central Peninsula General Hospital, the Kenai Peninsula College, the Alaska State Trooper Headquarters, the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, and the administrative headquarters for the Kenai Peninsula Borough. Soldotna has become an important administrative hub for the Central Kenai Peninsula.

		This cabin has an arctic entry	Homesteading in Alaska
	Dick Gerhart Cabin	Dick Gerhart Cabin	Ira Little's Cache
	Ira Little's Cabin	Ira Little's Cabin	Ira Little's Barrel Stove

From the Soldotna Historical Museum, I drove into the town of Kenai and stopped in at the Kenai Visitors and Cultural Center. This is definitely a "must see" stop if you're ever in Kenai. (From the internet:) The facility houses museum displays and exhibits, hosts original and traveling art exhibitions, and offers a variety of cultural and natural history programs throughout the year. The museum features Athabascan, Aleut and Russian cultural exhibits, homesteading, mining, commercial fishing, and oil industry history displays, and a natural history room with mammal, bird and fish exhibits.

I did a lap through the museum, before taking off on foot to Historic Old Town Kenai. Old Town Kenai still shows remnants of its Russian history. A self-guided walking tour takes you to the site of the old Russian parish, and the Holy Assumption of the Virgin Mary Russian Orthodox Church where church services are still held.

Child's shoes (Aleut)

Old Town Kenai

To be continued....