Homer, AK: Halibut Fishing Capital of the World

-
On our 4th day in Alaksa, our last night in Kenai and our last day on the Kenai Pennisula, we drove on down the Sterling Highway to Homer.

-

The drive down is a little scenic, overlooking Cook Inlet and the 4 volcanic mountains. The area is known for clamming, but we didn't do any. I wanted to stop in Anchor Point at Blue Bus Diner for an ice cream shake, but they weren't open. Blue Bus is well known for both burgers and shakes. I didn't care what they served, I just wanted to experience the Blue Bus. No such luck.

-
-

-
Homer's known for bald eagles and halibut fishing. And maybe, I guess, for TV's The Deadliest Catch. I met an older guy, Winston, from Tallahassee, FL, who had just been out fishing & was shipping home 100 lbs. of fish. He went out twice, caught an 87 lb halibut on his first day, they had gone out to about 200' depth. We had done all our fishing back in Seward, so when we stopped at the Visitor's Center upon entering Homer, we were looking for other things to do. We talked for awhile with the informative lady in the Center and finally she drew us aside and said, "I don't normally tell people this, it doesn't sound attractive, but it might just be the thing for you. Go back half a block and turn right. Drive out to the dump."
-

Why didn't that surprise me? After talking with Doug, the Visitor's Center recommends we tour the dump. On all my trips, this has never happened.

-

Tom & I skipped it, but the Busbees went. (above photo) Sure enough, they found what they wanted - bald eagles. Homer is known for their large population of Bald Eagles and it turns out a lot of them hang out at the dump.
-
Tom and I had read about some good biking and hiking on Homer and surrounding islands, so we headed to a bike rental shop and traded our car for a bike for the day.
We loaded the backpack and began our ride out onto the Spit. Homer has a 5-mile gravel bar sticking out in the water on which stands the hub of the fishing guides, several docks, coffee shops, restaurants and touristy stuff, including The Salty Dawg. There's a nice walking/bike trail, but you probably want to drive out there, park, then walk around. Since we had bikes, we biked out.
-

-
We arranged a water taxi to take us & our bikes out to "Jakolof Bay" where we'd ride the 8-mile dirt road across the island to Seldovia, where we could catch the last ferry out at 4:15 & meet the Busbees for dinner in Homer at 5:30. The Homer resident who recommended this assured us it was about a one hour bike ride.
-
-
We had read about Seldovia, but read nothing about Jakolof Bay, what, we wondered was Jakolof Bay? We couldn't wait to explore! 2 weeks later back in my cozy home, I googled it and found this helpful information:
"The population of the community consists of 0% Alaska Native or part Native. Jakolof Bay is close to Seldovia. During the 2000 U.S. Census, total housing units numbered 0, and vacant housing units numbered 0. U.S. Census data for Year 2000 showed 0 residents as employed. The unemployment rate at that time was 0 percent, although 0 percent of all adults were not in the work force. The median household income was $0, per capita income was $0, and 0 percent of residents were living below the poverty level."
-
That tells you something, right? That's a lot of zeros. That's because it's a deserted island! There's nothing out there! Zero. Zilch. Nada. We traversed up and down, up and down, up and down hill after hill in the deep woods of Alaksa and didn't even see any wildlife. I just knew we'd see some moose, caribou, bears, dall sheep, crikey, even an arctic squirrel. But no, we didn't. I guess the wildlife was at the dump.
-
The water taxi was fun, it was just us, the captain and his dog, Daisy. She was terrified. It was a tiny cabin with a flat, long platform out front where our bikes were secured. The long nose of the boat would flop up and down, slapping the sea loud and hard, splashing water all over the place. It was the bounciest ride I've ever had. Daisy crawled under the table and sat on my feet and moaned. It was sunny outside, but look at the photo, it looks rainy because of all the splashing.
-

-
-

We finally began approaching land. And remember, we didn't know it was a deserted island. But we began getting suspicious the closer we got.
-
-
Finally a dock appeared. We circled an otter and pulled up to the dock. There were a couple other little boats tied up, not many. We saw a couple tents set up on the grass above and some people around a campfire.
-
We unloaded our bikes and waved goodbye to Daisy.

-
And began riding the only direction available. I was so excited. We were going into the heartland of Alaska, away from the tourists and the stores!
-
-
I was surprised it was so deserted though. And I was surprised there was so much "uphill" riding. I assumed this lady suggested a popular ride and I assumed it would go pretty much down hill, otherwise, why not drop us off at the other end and work our way back?

-
But not everybody thinks like me and this ride inclined. A lot.

-
But the views were spectacular!
-
-

At our first break, we were giddy. We thought we were at the pinnacle. Unbelievable views, great woodsy smells, warm sunshine! We took a rest and drank half of our only bottle of water. We must be almost halfway, according to that lady and her "one hour" itinerary! Tom dug out a map. (It's what he does) Giddy, giddy, giddy, we were Loving. It.
-
-
-
-
-

-
-
But soon the ride began to get long. It was well past an hour, maybe three. Hills kept appearing. I'd crest one thinking the sea would pop up into view just over the top, hold my breath, crest the hill.... and...... nope. No sea. Just more woods. Or Hills. I found this stream and took a break. It was at the foot of the biggest hill ever and Tom was stunned I stopped instead of building my speed for the hill. I had to stop - I just knew there'd be bears down there at the water, slapping around some salmon like you see in every single photo of Alaska. But again, nope, no bears. And I was fully stopped at the base of Mt. McKinley. Well, Mt. McKinley's twin.

-

-

-

-

-

-
-

Tom waited for me halfway up the hill, we took a break and finished the water. It was getting late; surely we had to be near the end. But I was pretty sure the other dock wouldn't be at the top of the mountain. Tom dug out another map - the one of Seldovia - to see if, perchance, it sat atop a mountain.

-

As we began riding/walking/pushing the rest of the way up this hill, I hit survival mode. The time didn't matter. I couldn't possibly hurry, I had to focus just to move. Catching our boat didn't matter. Being waterless didn't matter. What mattered was that I put one foot in front of the other and keep going. There was no other choice. Then I hit hysterical mode where I began laughing and couldn't stop. Laughing to tears. Isn't this hilarious?! I slapped my knee. We have no control. Anything could happen - another hill, a flat, a 20 mile stretch of road - anything! Maybe there was no Seldovia!

-

To help me survive, Tom began reading the Seldovia map. 20 Things to do in Seldovia. 1. Visit the library. 2. Use the internet and catch up on emails. 3. Visit the post office and mail a postcard.......

-

..... and before I knew it...... I crested the final hill! I could see the sea! We're gonna live! We might even catch today's ferry and meet the Busbees for dinner! Oh blessed, sweet mercy, Dinner! I love dinner!

-

-

We pulled into an old-timey, rickety half abandoned town, found a shack that served as a grocery store. The clerk said the ferry was docked right across the street and would be pulling out any minute! We grabbed: 2 bananas, 2 waters, 1 Starbucks mocha, 1 gatorade, 2 cream puffs, crossed the street and flagged down the Rainbow Ferry.

I love it when a plan comes together.
-

-
This is pretty much how we roll. I can't tell you how many times we've over- or under-estimated an adventure, how many times we've run down docks or airports just moments too late, how many times we've dragged suitcases bouncing over train tracks..... I guess we just like the adrenaline rush.
As we floated back out into the water, I looked with amazement back at the island - we crossed that, I nodded to myself. My smile got bigger, my shoulders straighter, I confirmed "We crossed that!"
-
-
Busbees headed back to Kenai and didn't wait for us for dinner. We were so incredibly exhausted. We parked the bikes out on the Spit and walked into the nearest restaurant, a new one, The Crooked Hook. Tom had Shepherd's Pie and I had a giant burger with Montery Jack cheese and homemade chips. Gallons of soda. It was the best meal of my life.
-

-
We rode the bikes the final 5 miles back across the Spit to the now closed rental shop. Parked the bikes and crawled into our car. Shortly after passing the Visitor's Center, I finally saw some Alaska wildlife, a moose. By the way, this picture was taken around 9:30 pm. See how light it was out? That's why we usually forgot about dinner until 10 pm at night.
-
-
We drove back to Kenai and got some much needed rest before heading North the next day to search out the wonders of inland Alaska. Which leads me to Day 5, in which Ethan and Brielle jump off a cliff and that story will have to wait.
-
My other Alaska Posts:

Kenai Fjords, Seward
The Seward Highway
Kenai: Dipnetting
Seward: Exit Glacier
The Sterling Highway
Capt. Cook State Recreation Area

Travel Info:
Home Fishing Charters
Alaska Anglers, fishing on the Kenai
Homer
The Drive to Seward
Kenai Fjords
Miller's Landing