Trip log: RV Trip to Alaska 2014 |
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6/13/2014 Day 37 Another Layover day in Homer, Alaska It was raining this morning. We sat around until abut 10:30 then went out sightseeing, first up East End and East Hill roads to the Carl E. Wynn Nature Center, which was closed. Then on the way down we drove up Skyline Drive to a lookout point where you can see most of Homer and the Homer Spit. By then the rain had intensified and the ceiling had lowered to the point we could no longer see the glacier across from the spit.
From this height we could see across Belluga Lake to the Bald Mountain Air float plane dock where the flight we took to see bears originates. Both of their planes were still on the dock. This would not have been a good day either for flying or for sitting in the rain watching bears. We picked a good day Wednesday! On the way back down into town we saw a moose and calf, probably the same ones we saw yesterday. |
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6/15/2014 Day 39 And still in Homer, Alaska The tide was -5.1 feet this morning at 11 AM so we once again donned the Alaska tennis shoes and walked all the way out to the surf, counting steps on the way back. It calculates to 900 steps—over a half-mile from the high tide line to the surf. Today at 5:25 PM it will be +19.6 feet, over 24 foot rise and the water will be about 30 feet in front of the RV.
Now we’re hearing reports of an impending storm building in the Gulf of Alaska which will impact the Spit Monday night and Tuesday, so we will leave tomorrow and make our way over to Seward. Hopefully by then it will be past.
We bought more frozen salmon bringing our total on board to about 10 lbs. Donna hopes to get home with some of it; Russ hopes to eat most of it before then. We’ll see. The toaster oven we bought in Vancouver, WA to replace the microwave convection oven that failed has proven to be a perfect way to bake/broil fish. 20-25 minutes uncovered at 450 on the lower rack position. |
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6/14/2014 Day 38 Still in Homer, Alaska
We must like it here. This makes almost a week in Homer. Today we found the *real* End of the Road. The road does end at the foot of Homer Spit as previously described; however, Alaska #1 actually goes through Homer then east about 20 miles, becomes gravel, then dirt, then narrow dirt, then steep, narrow dirt down to the mud flats at the east end of Katchemak Bay. There are homes and farms all along this road, and at the end the road and street names become very Russian. We are told that the Russians who live out here are not particularly friendly toward visitors. We saw nobody, however. |
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6/12/2014 Day 36 Layover day in Homer, Alaska Today is much more overcast than yesterday and raining off and on, proving once again that we’re geniuses when it comes to picking weather for activities. This was a lay-around day. After breakfast at a local bakery, we found a real fish market and bought 2 pounds of absolutely fresh king salmon, one for our dinner tonight, and one to freeze for later. It was the very best salmon we have ever had.
We did some computer work then went to the Platt Museum downtown, a lovely little place showing the history of the indigenous people, the fishing industry, the earthquake of 1964 and the general history and homesteading of Homer. I washed the Jeep—not very well, but the first layer came off anyway. Since it was raining, Donna washed the RV with paper towels and got much of the grime off of that.
So we’re still in Homer, enjoying sitting here in the dirt parking lot on the 4-mile long Homer Spit, essentially on the beach with our front facing Cook Inlet to the south and Katchemak Bay across the spit behind us. Wind surfers play here, dogs play here and there’s a 25-foot twice-daily tidal swing to watch. |
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Moose and mooselet at Platt Museum parking lot |
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Moose and mooselet again at Platt Museum parking lot |
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We returned to the Pratt Museum at noon to finish watching their videos which are outstanding. Most of them have something to do with settlers or natives or their descendants talking about the old days and some of the customs, like fish drying. One display is a large flat panel display the size of a dining table laid out horizontally. The video shows plates and bowls of food and people’s hands serving and eating the food along with their conversations and a description of the food. Excellently done. Then we went to the Islands & Ocean Visitor Center where they do oceanographic research. We returned to the fish processing place where we bought the most excellent salmon to inquire about purchasing more and shipping it home.
It rained steadily and pretty heavy until almost 6 PM, enough to form small lakes in the gravel parking lot we call home. We still cannot see the mountaintops. Tomorrow promises to be a sunnier day.
I repaired the electrical connector for the towing harness on the front of the Jeep which had cracked one mounting foot and required a support washer. |
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6/16/2014 Day 40 Homer, Alaska to Seward, Alaska, 170 miles So we finally pried ourselves loose from Homer and made it to Seward. The big storm that was predicted is here, not yet in full force but on the way. Raining steadily since we got here at noon. This time we chose Resurrection Campground with electric and water at $30/night. There are many with no hookups for $15 available, but we got the last one facing the bay with electric and water. Here you sign up at a kiosk by punching in your vehicle license number but NOT the site number you are in. You can move sites as long as your license number shows as paid up. People in the three tiered ranks behind us covet the beachfront properties and lunge at them as soon as they are vacated.
We are just hunkered down waiting for the rain to stop. Had dinner (burgers and chowder) at Nellies Roadhouse on Fourth Street. Burger & fries $13, bowl of chowder $9. Gas is $4.25/gallon. We signed up with Major Marine’s 9 hour glacier tour to Northwest Fjord on the vessel Viewfinder for Friday, which promises to be warmer and calmer than today.
The electric heater quit and I spent 30 minutes figuring out that the GFI had tripped in the bathroom which serves all the outlets in the RV. Duh. |
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6/17/2014 Day 41 Layover day in Seward
This morning we walked the Seward small boat harbor docks, checked on the glacier tour and the boat Viewfinder that we’re signed up for on Friday, then spent several hours in the Alaska Sealife Center, an aquarium much like Monterey Aquarium but smaller. Nicely done displays and rescue facilities for injured birds and mammals.
It rained all last night. Today is windy and cold (40 this morning) with off and on rain and occasional blue sky. The 9 hour glacier tour didn’t go out today because of high seas and everyone who was signed up for it was moved to a larger boat, and a shorter length tour. We were not signed up for anything today. |
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Homer Spit and Cook Inlet |
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RVs on the beach at Seward |
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Waterfront at Seward |
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The real end of the road east of Homer |
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So, the end of the road as described here is pretty Jeepy. It required 4WD lo-range to negotiate it and we didn’t go all the way down to the beach, fearing that we might get stuck in the mud, but turned around in a wide spot probably 1000 feet or so from the bottom. It’s really steep, probably 20 to 25% grade.
We went back up Skyline Drive to take photos in the bright sunshine of the town and the spit below. From here you can see the seaplane docks, the full length of the spit and the campground where the RV is currently living. We came back, dumped the tanks at the RV dump across from the Post Office and then bought more salmon from the warehouse that we bought the very excellent salmon from a couple days ago. This is frozen and we will eat it on the way back. It will cost about $500 to have 20# of salmon overnighted to us when we return home. Well worth it.
We got the Alaska tennis shoes out—the rubber boots, in other words—and went walking in the surf at high tide. There were a lot of locals out board surfing, wind surfing, flying kites and enjoying the beach, this being Saturday. Dogs everywhere.
We also found out that the Bald Mountain Air bear flight had to turn back today because of high winds—couldn’t land at the bear beach, once again, proving Donna’s genius in picking days to do things. |