I'm baaaaack!!!!!

[BearBio]

Just got in from Alaska and a successful halibut trip. Spent 3-4 days in Anchorage then down to the Kenai Peninsula. Before we left Anchorage, we took a trip North to the town of Talkeetna.

https://preview.ibb.co/mGwJ25/Talkeetna_2.jpg

Anchorage was fun, as always and it is definitely a change of pace to head south on the Kenai. Saw only two moose on the way down and they caused a small traffic jam, so no pictures!

https://preview.ibb.co/dthrN5/Kenai_Sign.jpg

Stopped off at beluga Point but no belugas were there!

https://preview.ibb.co/ip7VFQ/Beluga_Point.jpg

On the way, we stopped at Hope, a small mining town from the very early 1900's. Typical, we were a couple of hours before the museum opened but the curator was in her office and saw us walking around the exhibits and opened up early for us.

https://preview.ibb.co/mXb7vQ/Hope_Mining_Town_3.jpg

https://preview.ibb.co/dKnfFQ/Hope_Mining_Town_4.jpg

https://preview.ibb.co/m7Sah5/Hope_Mining_Town_1.jpg

The first day was pretty windy, so the Skipper decided to take us out of Homer. Homer is "The Halibut Fishing Capital of the World".

https://preview.ibb.co/dBNmpk/Homer_Welcome_Sign.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/dk7EaQ/DSC06748.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/cZ11N5/Homer_Glacier_2.jpg

Surrounde by glaciers, Homer sits on Katchemak Bay and Homer Spit is about 5 miles long and juts out into the Bay, and is covered by shops, restaurants and the "famous" Salty Dawg Saloon.
https://preview.ibb.co/euLT25/Homer_Spit.jpg

However, you couldn't prove it by us! We only caught a single "small" (under 28") halibut each and I caught a couple of dogfish and a single Alaskan cod==BUT, we saw many marine mammals! First was a sea otter in the harbor. Then.....WHALES! We saw a total of about 2 dozen Orcas ("Killer whales, another dozen sea otters and a dozen "humpies" (humpback whales). The orcas were cruising by checking out the fishing boats (not us!) and the humpbacks were breaching and fin-waving.

https://preview.ibb.co/i3iFh5/Homer_Sea_Otter_1.jpg

We returned to the "Spit" and had good halibut and chips at "Boardwalk Grill", across from the Salty Dawg (good and pricey!).

The winds were supposed to die down the next day (they did!), so we went out of Deep Creek... Due to currents, they can't create a harbor, so they launch from the beach!

https://preview.ibb.co/msOLFQ/Dry_Gulch_Launching_1.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/iX7fFQ/Dry_Gulch_Launching_2.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/ih7fFQ/Dry_Gulch_Launching_3.jpg


Fishing was..........weird! One side of the boat had their limits (One long and one short) before the other side got a bite. Anita caught one that was barely a long (28.5"). then nothing from 6:30 AM until 3 PM for us (I got a shark and that was all). Then, about 3:30, we got a long about 25-30 pounds! Nothing more until about 6 PM. Skipper told us to re-bait for a last drop and then we were heading back to the beach! At this point we had 2 longs and 1 short. About 5 minutes later, I got bit and so did Anita. We landed them at the same time, so we were limited out. Get this: Mine was a 45-50 pounder (we released Anita's long which was still alive and swam away) and also kept hers which was the short we needed! All in all, everybody got their limits!

https://preview.ibb.co/fDjAFQ/DSC06794.jpg

(I'm the one with the beard!)
https://preview.ibb.co/jRRwpk/Dry_Gulch_Greg_and_Anita_side_by_side.jpg

All in all, we brought home about 45 vacuum-packed bags of halibut and two of Alaskan cod!

Saturday, we had a red-eye flight to Seattle then a 3-4 hour drive. We went back to Homer to kill some time and then faced the Saturday traffic jam of motor homes. We reached Anchorage about 4 PM and turned towards the airport to get dinner at a Tibetan place on Spenard. One mile from a mall and 1/2 mile from the airport, I saw several people crowded upo against a fence and holding their dogs in close, so I made Anita turn around and go back. What we saw was a latge bull moose on a bicycle trail. Remember, this is DOWNTOWN Anchorage!

https://preview.ibb.co/mAHxvQ/Anchorage_Moose.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/fe9MN5/Anchorage_Bull_Moose.jpg
https://preview.ibb.co/hV9XUk/DSC06814.jpg

If the links don't work, I could use some help with posting. This is my first try since dropping Photobucket and using imgbb.

Thanks!

 

[Rustyt1953]

Beautiful pictures. I am envious of your trip.

If the word "majestic" needed a graphic, this would be it.

(imgBB. I'll PM you how I did it)

 

[bigwheelzip]

Welcome back. I know you had a good time.

Did you get to visit the late mayor of Talkeetna, Mayor Stubbs, while you were there?

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOA4Dcq2V6s[/ame]

For pictures already in your Imgbb library, use the Embed Code - Full Image and then select BBCode. Hold your cursor over the code text and the copy command appears at right, then select it.

Or when you first upload it to you library, you get the option this way: A popdown menu, and then select BBCode full.

 

[Jebus35745]

Fantastic pics, looks like a great time. Beautiful country. How'd you get there and how long were you there? We took a cruise along the Alaska coast and thoroughly enjoyed it. Nice memories, Larry

 

[nachogrande]

NICE!

GLAD TO HEAR you weren't eaten by a "you know what".

 

[rog8732]

Sounds like a great adventure. (( Assuming this was not your first trip there) ?

I've never known just how it works, but some folks seem to reap a better sampling of this life's "adventures" than do others. Seems as though you two are some of those who DO !

Thanks for the visit.... I hope to see it myself someday soon.

 

[nedlate]

Great pictures and write up! I have to ask-what is considered a "long and a short"?
Ed

 

[wingriderz]

Welcome back awsom pictures

 

[smitholdtimer]

BearBio

Actually the area isn't familiar any more but my trip to that area was financed by our Uncle back in the Spring 1963, first assignment out of Tech School was to the Middleton Island Radar Station in the Gulf Of Alaska. Landed in Anchorage at Elmendorf AFB and flew vie a C-47 to the island. The only thing I recognise now is the Glacier from your photos and even it seems to have changed some. Was home away from home for a 12 month stay. Your photos are great but my sight seeing was from the window of the C-47. No reason to doubt you enjoyed your adventure even with the weather conditions being other than favorable. Hoping to not distract from your post as I appreciate the trip back in time!

 

[BearBio]

Answers:


1. "Longs" are halibut over 28" long and "shorts" are those under 28". You are allowed one of each per person per day while fishing with a guide.

2. We were there a week. We booked our flights in May and First Class cost us under $300 per person from Seatac, each way. Later costs were $600 per person on the same flight. We went first class mainly due to arthritis in our knees. Also, we were allowed 2 check-in bags per person. Returning, we checked our fish (frozen in an ice chest) as check-in baggage ($75 over-weight charge).

3. We stayed at the Clarion in downtown Anchorage Sun til Wed. and stayed in a cabin owned by our guide in Clam Gulch (between Soldotna and Homer) for 3 nights.

4. Halibut was $19.99 per pound at Safeway in Anchorage and $31.95 per pound at the airport. We brought home about 45-50 pounds.

5. Charter was Wildrose Charters in Clam Gulch.

6. We did not fish salmon since the Columbia River is less than 2 miles from home.

7. Thanks for the posting help, guys.

5.

 

[MORSNO]

Did you get to visit the late mayor of Talkeetna, Mayor Stubbs, while you were there?

I'm sorry to say, but Mayor Stubbs passed away last week. He was just over 20 years old.

Stubbs the cat, unofficial Mayor of Talkeetna, passes away

 

[LVSteve]

When I saw "long" I thought your spell checker had changed "Ling", a codlike fish.

 

[A10]

Sounds like an amazing trip! My only time in Alaska has been at a paper mill shutdown in Ketchikan years ago. I loved it, it was beautiful except when it was raining sideways...I've promised my honey a cruise north one of these days.