Betty Springen, an RVing friend from Anchorage, joined us on July 21 to go to the Anchorage Market and Festival which is a combination farmer’s market, craft show, and local entertainment. As in Fairbanks, we found the produce to be very expensive by Lower 48 standards. Quite a bit of it was shipped in from the Outside, also. We didn’t spend a lot of time there and headed out to watch salmon swimming up Ship Creek to spawn and to tour the Ulu factory. There aren’t many cities that you can fish for salmon right downtown during your lunch hour, but you can on Ship Creek in Anchorage! We did a walking tour of the city’s equivalent of the Parade of Fish downtown. They are salmon created by artists and sold to businesses. We had a nice late lunch during which we were joined by Joyce Logan, another RVer we had previously met.
July 22 through 25 were spent working around the RV, making a trip to the Freightliner dealer for work on the rig (maybe we have finally resolved the overheating issue), getting a haircut and groceries, etc., and generally getting ready to go to the Kenai Peninsula for a couple of weeks.
We had a beautiful drive to Soldotna on July 26th that included watching six dall sheep on a cliff
above Turnagain Arm. We parked on a large gravel vacant lot adjacent to the Soldotna airport for a couple of nights where we joined probably about 75 other coaches and trailers who were boondocking. (Note to the Aikens: This site won’t be open after this year.) Most folks were fishing for salmon (kings and reds) in the Kenai River that ran just behind the lot. Some had clearly been there for awhile because they were set up with smokers, extra freezers, etc. It was quite a sight and an interesting bit of local flavor. Oh, yes, there is a type of fishing called “combat fishing” here where people line up shoulder to shoulder to fish during the salmon runs. The Russian and Kenai Rivers, on the Kenai Peninsula are famous for these kinds of crowds and they are quite a sight! A couple from New Jersey was parked next to us and gave us each nice fresh salmon filets before we left. You haven’t had salmon until you have had fresh salmon—the same goes for halibut, too!
We spent the 27th touring the northwestern Kenai Peninsula and found a wonderful museum in the town of Kenai’s visitor center. We also enjoyed looking at the mouth of the Kenai River (with lots of fishermen present, including people using dip nets which only residents are allowed to use), a local Russian Orthodox Church 
that was open to the public, and driving through the countryside where we came upon The Landing which wasn’t in any of my guidebooks for the area. It is an old fish cannery turned into some shops, an eating establishment, some rooms, etc. It dates back to the early 1900’s when Libby owned it and seems to be a work in progress as a lot of space is vacant. We eventually made a loop back to Sterling, east of Soldotna, where we checked out a wood carving, as in using chainsaws to carve logs, establishment. They apparently lease booths to local artisans who produce work for sale on site. We returned to camp and I took a walk down to the Kenai River where I watched the fishermen and women standing shoulder to shoulder trying to hook salmon. I saw a few salmon landed; however, I saw a lot more get away! 
I would guess fewer than 50% of the salmon hooked were landed while I was there.The next day we headed for Homer—but we only drove 38 miles of the 89 mile trip! We pulled into a turnout to look at Mt. Redoubt and Mt.Iliamna and found the neatest RV park just below us. Scenic View RV Park had room so we parked for the night right on a bluff overlooking Cook Inlet with both mountains clearly in sight across the inlet. Mt. Redoubt is an old volcano that last erupted in 1966 and 1989 and, although Mt. Iliamna hasn’t erupted, it does have a couple of vents which spout clearly visible steam. Roberta and I took a drive to Ninilchik in the afternoon where we saw an interesting Russian
Orthodox Church with adjacent cemetery and another adjoining cemetery (for other folks) just outside the church’s cemetery. We drove through 
Ninilchik Village, the old part of town that dates back to the early 1800’s when it was settled by retired Russian-America Company workers who took Native wives. This area is very quaint and relies heavily on sport and commercial fishing for income. We returned to the RV park after checking out some state parks/campgrounds near Ninilchik and got ready for a wonderful dinner around the community campfire. The park owners grilled fresh 
halibut and salmon provided by campers and we all provided side dishes. Wow! Was that fish ever good! Brenda fixed it using four different seasoning methods, so we really got to sample the fish fixed in different manners. About 10:15 p.m. I walked down to the edge of the cliff and watched fishermen tending their set-nets below and the sunset across Cook Inlet. It was a beautiful sight 
and I took LOTS of pictures. The sun finally set on the north side of Mt. Redoubt about 10:40.We finally made it to Homer on the 29th, parking right on the water at the end of Homer Spit. The spit is a narrow five-mile stretch of sand that extends out into Kachemak Bay. This is a beautiful location with mountains rising right from the water across the bay and glistening glaciers high up in the same mountains. We stopped at an overlook on the way into Homer for a wonderful view of the area including Mt. Augustine at the head of Cook Inlet. Mt. Augustine is a volcano that rises out of the water to an elevation of 4,025 feet that last erupted in 2006. I grilled some of the salmon we had received at Soldotna for dinner (Good!) and, as I was sitting in Roberta’s coach eating, a bald eagle flew between the rows of coaches at eye level. This was the first of many eagles that we saw.
The 30th was spent sightseeing in the local area as we took a drive to the east end of Kachemak Bay where we saw some of the Russian Old Believer’s farms. The women in the area were dressed in long dresses with headscarves and the men had traditional long untrimmed beards (we saw a lot of the latter on the Kenai). We drove back along Skyline Drive on the north side of
Homer where we had long, wide views of the bay and surrounding area. The marine layer was moving in which gave some parts of the land and water a surreal appearance. Then, it was on to Anchor Point which is the farthest west point that can be reached on the U.S. (and North American) road system. I drove the car right down on the beach there. We drove a few miles east to Nikolaevsk, another Russian Old Believer settlement. We were told in Anchor Point that, although folks in Nikolaevsk keep to themselves and dress traditionally, they also have modern conveniences such as electricity, satellite dishes, and computers. (We saw modern pickups and other similar vehicles/equipment in all of these settlements.) Then it was back to Homer Spit where we visited the Salty Dawg Saloon, a local landmark with the original part of the building dating back to 1897. A walk along the small boat harbor resulted in seeing fish caught by sport fishermen being weighed and filleted—one halibut weighed in at 140 pounds.
The last day of July saw us boarding a boat for a ride to Seldovia across Kachemak Bay. The only way to get to this village is by boat or by air. It was settled by Russians in the early 1800’s as a fur trading post but has lived off the sea for many years since. We took a leisurely ride across, checking ou
t various wildlife areas enroute. Saw lots of birds (puffins, common murres, cormorants, kittiwakes and bald eagles), sea 
otters, a hump back whale and a harbor seal. After lunch in town, we walked up the hill to the Russian Orthodox Church where we got a good view of the area. A local resident walked by and told us the church is still in use. The congregation is made up mainly of Native Americans (Athabascan); however, because there is a shortage of priests, formal services are only held about every three months when a priest comes to town. The day was beautiful and the trip was full of new scenery and other things to see.
I spent some of the evening at Beluga Lake in Homer where I saw a 1929 Travel Air 6000 on floats. I especially wanted to see the aircraft because Tom Gummer had told me it was flying there. This exact plane was in use at Johnson Flying Service in Missoula, MT, while I was working in Missoula in the 1960’s. From a distance, it looked to be in good shape and I saw it flying several
times while I was in Homer. While driving back to the campground on the Spit, I saw two bald eagles sitting on old pilings. I pulled over to watch them awhile and to get some photos. I had previously watched and photographed a bald eagle on the beach in front of my campsite in the morning. They are really regal, beautiful birds and were abundant in the Homer area. This brought July to an end. What a month!
The 30th was spent sightseeing in the local area as we took a drive to the east end of Kachemak Bay where we saw some of the Russian Old Believer’s farms. The women in the area were dressed in long dresses with headscarves and the men had traditional long untrimmed beards (we saw a lot of the latter on the Kenai). We drove back along Skyline Drive on the north side of
Homer where we had long, wide views of the bay and surrounding area. The marine layer was moving in which gave some parts of the land and water a surreal appearance. Then, it was on to Anchor Point which is the farthest west point that can be reached on the U.S. (and North American) road system. I drove the car right down on the beach there. We drove a few miles east to Nikolaevsk, another Russian Old Believer settlement. We were told in Anchor Point that, although folks in Nikolaevsk keep to themselves and dress traditionally, they also have modern conveniences such as electricity, satellite dishes, and computers. (We saw modern pickups and other similar vehicles/equipment in all of these settlements.) Then it was back to Homer Spit where we visited the Salty Dawg Saloon, a local landmark with the original part of the building dating back to 1897. A walk along the small boat harbor resulted in seeing fish caught by sport fishermen being weighed and filleted—one halibut weighed in at 140 pounds.
The last day of July saw us boarding a boat for a ride to Seldovia across Kachemak Bay. The only way to get to this village is by boat or by air. It was settled by Russians in the early 1800’s as a fur trading post but has lived off the sea for many years since. We took a leisurely ride across, checking ou
t various wildlife areas enroute. Saw lots of birds (puffins, common murres, cormorants, kittiwakes and bald eagles), sea 
otters, a hump back whale and a harbor seal. After lunch in town, we walked up the hill to the Russian Orthodox Church where we got a good view of the area. A local resident walked by and told us the church is still in use. The congregation is made up mainly of Native Americans (Athabascan); however, because there is a shortage of priests, formal services are only held about every three months when a priest comes to town. The day was beautiful and the trip was full of new scenery and other things to see.
I spent some of the evening at Beluga Lake in Homer where I saw a 1929 Travel Air 6000 on floats. I especially wanted to see the aircraft because Tom Gummer had told me it was flying there. This exact plane was in use at Johnson Flying Service in Missoula, MT, while I was working in Missoula in the 1960’s. From a distance, it looked to be in good shape and I saw it flying several
times while I was in Homer. While driving back to the campground on the Spit, I saw two bald eagles sitting on old pilings. I pulled over to watch them awhile and to get some photos. I had previously watched and photographed a bald eagle on the beach in front of my campsite in the morning. They are really regal, beautiful birds and were abundant in the Homer area. This brought July to an end. What a month!
