Visitors

Starting in mid-July, we had a 4 week run of visitors that even went international as our neighbors from Connecticut brought their friends from England.  They arrived by Alaska Marine Highway after a weeklong ferry ride packed into a tiny four man stateroom.  The kids were excited to see them again and James was thoroughly entertained with "the other parents" while Kate was away at camp. 

Brian's aunt came to Homer with his parents and then we all traveled to Denali, Fairbanks, and Chena Hot Springs together.  See separate post for this trip.

My mom retired in June and decided to treat herself to an Alaskan Princess Cruise, and was joined by two of her sisters.  They cruised from Vancouver to Whittier and then drove to Homer (4 hours) for a short visit.  Then, my dad flew in and the aunts flew out.

Here are a series of photos showcasing what we like to do when visitors are here.

Hike to Diamond Creek

A short hike, just over a mile each way, following Diamond Creek as it descends through a gorge and ends at the beach.  The kids are rewarded with a creek full of logs play on and a waterfall to swim in.

 

Beach and view of the bay

 

 

James starts the trail back up with his new found walking stick

 

 

Eveline State Recreation Area

I ski these trails in the winter, but they make for a lovely short meadow walk and picnic spot in summer.  With each visit, something new is in bloom. 

 James posing with pushki and lupine in bloom.

 

 

Al, Sue, Maureen, KB, and James

 

 Aunt Sandra & Rufus in the same spot a few weeks later with fireweed in bloom.

Halibut Cove
The views from Homer are of the mountains across the bay in Kachemak Bay State Park, 400,000 acres of pure Alaskan wilderness.  There are no roads in the park, so most visitors either fly in or take a boat from Homer.  There are a few semi-developed campsites, a handful of state owned cabins, and a couple of privately owned yurts for rent.  There is also the scenic fishing/art community of Halibut Cove.  There are maybe 50 year round residents, but quite a few more with summer cabins and homes in the cove.  There are three art galleries, three oyster farms, a floating post office, and an amazing restaurant.  The community is linked by a series of boardwalks and many of the houses sit on pilings.  Water taxi from Homer is about $60 round trip, but lucky for us the Hickory has a couple of small boats we can rent for cheap, so Brian took the afternoon off to take us to Halibut Cove for a late lunch.

 The Saltry Restaurant

 

 Kids enjoying happy hour and kiddie cocktails.

 

 Linda, Pat, Chick, Kate, and James

 

The restaurant has turned an old fiberglass tub into the coolest touch tank ever.  I'm pretty sure Kate could spend all day playing with the star fish and anemone.  The items in the tank were found by Halibut Cove residents at low tide.

 

  

 

Tide pooling

Walking on the beach during low tide is always a fun activity, and the super moon in July gave our company a moon that appeared larger and brighter as well as a more expansive beach to explore as

a result of the extreme tides.

 

Super moon viewed from our deck.

 

Kids exploring tide pools.

 

The kids also love to explore the creatures below the dock in the harbor.  Kate has even located a milk crate on a line that someone has weighted down for what can only be our enjoyment.  Kate pulls up the crate and takes out sea urchins and sea stars (tiny sea star above) for us to see.  They also love to lay on the dock and look under it for gigantic anemones, especially those eating jellyfish.  It is really cool. 

Kate "saving" a sea star by retuning its stranded body to the water during low tide.

 

Halibut fishing

Since Homer is known as the Halibut Fishing Capital of the world, there are many charter fishing opportunities.  My parents went for a half day trip and reeled in some chickens as we like to call the smaller halibut.  Most people have their fish filleted, flash frozen, and packed to check as luggage on their return home.  It seems like half the luggage being checked at the Homer airport is fish.

 

 

Hickory Tours

Touring the Hickory with Brian is always well received by guests.  Luckily the ship was in port more than not this summer and all of our guests had a chance to check out the ship.

 

 

 

Fresh and Local Food

We also love taking everyone to our favorite local dining establishments.  For a small town, there are a couple outstanding restaurants.

 

Aunt Sandra, Mom, and Aunt Sharon at Two Sisters Bakery & Café

 

James enjoying a steamer at Two Sisters.

 

We also like to serve up veggies from our garden to accompany our salmon and halibut catch.

 

 

Fresh salads daily from our garden boxes, still producing and exceeding my expectations. 

 

 

Kate chomping on a huge purple carrot.