KENAI PENINSULA - June 27 - July 8

Located on the Kenai Peninsula between the busy harbor towns of Homer and Seward is the town of Sterling where we spent 8 long rainy nights at the almost empty Alaska Canoe and Campground.  This wasn't the loveliest, or liveliest place we've been to in Alaska, but it served our purpose of having a campsite with electric and water over the 4th of July holiday and was a central location from which to take day trips to explore the Kenai Peninsula.  While it rained most of the week, we battled cabin-fever by visiting small town museums in the area.

KENAI FJORDS AND SEWARD

On our day trip to Seward, we stopped at the Kenai Fjords National Park Exit Glacier Area.  Buried under over 1,000 feet of ice is a mountain range covered by the Harding Ice Field.  Of the 38 glaciers flowing from the ice field, Exit Glacier is the only one that can be reached by road.

We hiked the trail to the glacier; year signs mark the progress of the receding glacier.  It's difficult to get the perspective from pictures on the size of Exit Glacier and the river below.  It was huge!

KENAI CITY - July 4th
The relentless rain cleared out for most of July 4th.  Wearing a fleece jacket, jeans, and wool socks, we watched the 4th of July parade in Kenai City.  I missed seeing fireworks, but it's pointless to shoot off fireworks when the sky never gets dark this time of the year.  We were told the firework displays at Christmas and New Years are spectacular!

Miss Alaska was excited to see us at the parade. 

Kenai Borough mayor candidate float was big, patriotic and colorful. 

Chickens, turkeys, goats, and sheep paraded with the 4-H Club.

HOMER
The town of Homer extends from the mountain foothills to the tip of the spit of land that juts out into the Kachemak Bay.  We spent one night at Bayview RV park located 9 miles above Homer.

The view of Kachemak Bay from the campground was gorgeous.

HOMER SPIT CAMPGROUND
The Homer Spit Campground is located a the end of the road with a large boat harbor on one side and the Bay on the other side.  With numerous restaurants, gift shops, and concessions for sightseeing and fishing charters, the area is a hub of activity.  Like most campgrounds in Alaska, the campsites are tight, close and small; this one was no exception.

The Clown Car
A few hours after we set up camp, a family of 5 pulled into the site next to us.  As mom, dad, 2 teenagers, and 1 tween unfolded themselves from the car the kids were whining, "OMG, I can't feel my legs!  I hate this car.  Why can't we get a camper like they have?"  Mom, ignoring them or answering "just shut your ******* mouth", was not a happy camper.  Knowing immediately this would be entertaining, we grabbed a beer and watched discreetly from inside our rig as they continuously removed an impossible amount of gear from the small car; we dubbed it "The Clown Car".

How they packed themselves, 2 tents, tarps, sleeping bags, pillows, groceries, fishing poles, clothing and a couple of chairs into that car remains an impressive and amazing mystery.

Otter
While walking the beach in front of the campground we noticed a gathering of people watching a sea otter swimming and floating close to shore.  As it got closer to the beach we saw it was rubbing it's stomach area and some of the group speculated it was a female giving  birth.  After awhile, the exhausted looking sea otter got out of the water and laid on the beach.  It was clear the poor thing was distressed and either injured, giving birth, or sick.  A call was made to the U.S. Wildlife Service to report there was an animal in trouble.

After dinner we walked back to the beach to check in on the otter.  A volunteer and college intern from the Wildlife Service had arrived, set up a boundary to warn people to stay back, then sat on the beach observing the sea otter while making sure no one disturbed it.   The intern told us the otter was an adult male.  The next morning the intern, volunteer, and sea otter were no longer on the beach and we assume it wasn't a happy ending.

SELDOVIA

Waiting to board the Seldovia Ferry in Homer.

Seldovia is a quiet picturesque waterfront village that can only be reached by boat or airplane.  While on the 45 minute ferry ride from Homer to Seldovia we passed private and commercial fishing boats, forested rocky islands, and had views of glaciers on the snowcapped volcanic mountains that make up the Pacific Ring of Fire.   We also spotted  a humpback whale and sea otters.  

The town is decorated with several beautiful wood carvings. 

A stroll along the Historic Boardwalk of Seldovia was lovely.

Early Russian influence helped shape Seldovia.  St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church was built in 1891,  "St. Nicholas is known to keep close watch on Seldovia's fishermen and sea farers - bringing prosperity, peace and safety."

The economy of Seldovia has changed over the years.  Fur trade ended with the lack of demand for furs during the Great Depression.  It then became an important commercial fish canning port until the 1964 Great Alaskan Earthquake destroyed the canneries.  Seldovia's economy now relies on tourism and fishing charters.