Kenai Peninsula Day 2

July 21, 2022

Jeff was up first and strolled the property. Very pretty property.

The rest of the crew gradually came to life as well.

Very slow wake-up today for everyone. Shelia and Kent fighting off a little head cold symptoms. Jeff started to feel a little stuffy in the throat, so fingers crossed for all. Everyone took their time to call family, read emails, shower, and in general meander through the morning.

At noon with Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches in tow we wandered off towards Kenai via Soldotna. This is Salmon fishing central. There are cabins, trailers, campers, RVs, motels, etc. everywhere. Soldotna is pretty good-sized with all the community amenities. We went to Kenai where the river Kenai dumps into the ocean. We found the Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center.

Nice exhibits inside and out about the area. Both how the salmon industry evolved and fell under federal and then state regulation when Alaska became the 49th state.

From the visitor center a quick drive down to old Kenai, which is not like a typical old city center. Really only a few old historical fishing huts. We have a view from the cliff down to the mouth of the river. Totally crazy the number of people on the shore Drop Net fishing for Salmon. On the shore and in a boat thousands of fishermen.

We watched several planes come into the airport and suspect they all are filled with fishermen. The Silver Salmon are in the full run during this time. Even from a distance you can see the silver as the catch in their net and bring them up on shore.

Then we drove around until we were down by the estuary of the river and a raised platform to see back to the cliff. Just another view of the river basin and all the fishermen along with the activity around the public ramp. Very well organized and $36 to use and park for the day.

The rain started spattering around, so we headed towards the Kenai Animal Conservation Center. There we toured inside where they had displays and information on the area. Watching the topographical map light up to see how the salmon migrate and really get a feel for the glacier structure and where we have been.

We then put on our raincoats and a light drizzle was in the air. We hiked down to the lake and across the bogs. The peat was everywhere with ferns and the native spruce. No bears, although on the trail a notice was posted a bear siting a few days ago close by. The Elderberries were everywhere, so as soon as they start to ripen the bears will be plentiful. Mosquitos are never absent from walks and today was no different.

Mukluk ala Sheila

After the walk, we headed to the Fred Myers store to get dinner supplies. Straight to the meat section to get the protein picked before all the sides.

David was a super salesman and we picked up Silver (Coho) along with crab cakes and some hamburgers to make a surf and turf dinner.