The Kenai Penisula, Alaska

Picked up the car from the shop in Anchorage and went back downtown to hopefully see Mt. McKinley. It’s a beautiful today after a day of rain yesterday. We didn’t see McKinley this morning but did see mountains across the Cook Inlet. The weather is perfect for travel to Homer. The drive was amazing. The Sterling Highway followed Turnagain Bay with mountains all around. We saw some surfers using parachutes to move them through the water. Also saw plane refuel a helicopter in midair. There is no way to capture the beauty of this drive.
We were planning to stop in Soldotna but there was traffic..traffic..traffic! We pulled into the Fred Meyer’s and it was full of motorhomes, fifth wheels and all kinds of Rv’s. I called and found a campground a little further down the highway at Kasilof…The Decanter Inn and RV Park. Not very busy there. We went to the restaurant/bar after setting up and had a beer. The owners are from Louisiana!! Go figure. We went back into Soldotna and had Mexican food…too much to eat but very good. We parked at the Visitor’s Center and walked on the boardwalk along the Kenai River. There were people there cleaning very large salmon they had caught. Not many others fishing. We found the local brewery…Kenai Brewery. Went in to have some “tastings”. Very nice beer and a very nice guy serving! Met a lady who came in for some tastings too. She is on her way to Kodiak...she’s with the Coast Guard. After that we went back to the rig. We are planning to leave the next morning to finish our trip to Homer and hope to visit Kenai before we pull out.
Got up the next morning and set out for Kenai.
Drove to the city and found a little park on a bluff overlooking the mouth of the Kenai River. There were at least one thousand, maybe two, standing along the mouth and even into the water. It was prime time for the running of the reds…Sockeye Salmon. The only people allowed to dip net salmon are Alaskans…we couldn’t do it. It was amazing to see. The nets were large…some five feet in diameter on long poles. The tide was going out and people just stood on the banks or in the water with these nets catching salmon. Each head of household is allowed 25 salmon and each other member is allowed 10 each. A family of five could go home with 65 salmon! After the big morning run we went down to the beach and met a guy netting. He was originally from Arizona but had moved to Alaska years ago. That’s the normal story…they visit and never go back! After doing some more exploring around the area we got back on the road headed toward Homer.

Anchorage, July 12-15, 2011

Woke up in Denali NP and it was raining. We did OK getting out of the park and getting on the road but we had rain and clouds all the way. We stopped at a large turnout on the way (would have seen Mt. McKinley if it was clear). We set up the camera on Jim’s workbench under the cover of an umbrella and took a photo of us both in front of the rig. A couple in a little Class B stopped and asked us what we were doing…you see, it was raining. When we told them we needed a Christmas card photo with Mt McKinley in the background the man commented that he knew we were either crazy or doing something fun. A little of both I thought!
We drove into Anchorage looking for a campground called Midtown RV Park. It was midtown alright…right in a busy part of town. We found the campground…what a dump. We drove around the block and tried to get out of there. I was looking in the campground book to find something else. We headed back north towards Golden Nugget RV Park. I called the office to see if they had space for us. It was funny because the guy in the office started the reservation process “what’s your name, etc.” I asked him if I could do that when I got there as it would only be a few minutes. He said come on! We paid a little more than we wanted to but we were needing a camp. We had an appointment at the Honda service for the tow car in the morning. Anyway, it was good…full hookups, WiFi. Jim took the car in the morning and came back to the rig to wait on good/bad news about the tow. We did laundry and caught up on some things. Went back and picked up the car to wait until they ordered parts. We went downtown and parked the car at the JC Penney’s downtown. Went to the Visitor Center and took a trolley tour around the town. Very good tour guide…she was raised in Anchorage and she knew all about the history. Took us to Earthquake Park and told us all about the quake which happened on Good Friday 1964. There was a tsunami and everything. Quite amazing! Our guide finished our tour by singing the Alaska State Song. It was worth the $15. After the tour we walked all the way to the Snow City Café. Tom, the courtesy car driver, recommended it. It was very popular…we had to wait about 40 minutes to be seated. It was worth the wait. We drove around the area. Went back and walked thru Earthquake Park. Drove past the airport where we saw moose and saw some more. Cannot believe there are moose right in the town! We also stopped to take pics of FedEx planes taking off right over our heads. Next day took the tow back into the shop and had the courtesy car take us downtown. We took a free shuttle to the zoo. Very natural surroundings in the zoo. Saw lots of native animals…brown bears, Dall sheep, wolves, eagles, etc. Returned to the city and visited the Anchorage Museum…saw lots of beautiful art work and historical displays. Stayed for a beer in the lounge waiting for Tom to pick us up. Car will stay in shop for the night. Hope to pick up car in the morning and get out of town to Homer.