We went to a nearby McDonald's to get some coffee and think about our plan. I called and found out the ferry from Whittier to Valdez was more expensive than what I thought. You have to pay for each PERSON ($89) and also for each VEHICLE ($75 per motorcycle). So it came out to about $165 each for the 3 hour ride. All that to save about 150 miles of riding around to the north. We decided we would be cheap and ride around the north.
But my brother Tom suggested we go over to the Hood airport which is the largest seaplane base in the world. We went over and drove around the loop and saw THOUSANDS of floatplanes docked all along all the shoreline.
We parked at one end of the 'runway' and watched them land and take off.
Here is a video I took of some airplanes landing and taking off.
We finally got on the road to Homer about noon. Was late in the day but again we felt like we just wanted to take it easier than we had been riding. Turns out we rode easier and stopped more but we just rode longer in the days because it stays so light out.
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| Large rain cell off to the right so we would miss that one |
It was a very scenic ride along the Cook Inlet and along the mountains. We went over to try to see the Portage Glacier but we missed the boat and you can't drive there. The temps dropped from the upper 60's to about 48 and we had to plug in our electric jackets again. It appears that my right glove has stopped heating for some reason. Very annoying.
It was a long ride down the 230 miles or so to Homer. Lots of boring miles with some nice views and lots of sport fishing, fly fishing, boating, hiking, etc.
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| Cold, misting, overcast, foggy, not much for viewing the Byron Glacier |
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| Gas prices in Soldotna, AK |
We arrived (finally!) in Homer about 9 pm. Then we just had to ride out the spit and see it. It was very touristy with all kinds of shops and restaurants. I thought anything we ate there would have a "tourist premium" so we went back into town and found what looked like a place where all the locals were. Bingo, found just the right place. I had a great turkey pesto sandwich with a "16 bean" soup.
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| Coming into Homer AK. That little piece of land to the left is the Homer Spit where all the fishing boats and touristy stuff are. |
Then we went looking for a place to stay and found a local RV park with a good grassy place for our tents, very nice shower facility, and a laundry room where I could sit and update my blog which I am doing right now! And it is only 1 am again! I really need to get to bed! so that's all for now.
One the way through Homer I saw a woman standing beside the road taking a picture so I looked over and saw what it was - two bald eagles sitting in a tree near their nest. Wow, are they huge birds! So regal and proud looking! Got a couple of decent pics.
Jerry
