THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOMER

I have to admit that I really wanted to visit Homer to see the Time Bandit from Deadliest Catch. We were two weeks too late. The boat and crew were here for provisioning, but they had already left to make money for the season. The Time Bandit would have been parked right here.

Our day started a little cloudy but the sun did eventually come out a tiny bit. The rest of the boat harbor at the end of the spit was filled with much smaller boats. It seems that anyone can take charters out to catch halibut. In addition to the boats, there were tons of trailers in the parking lot from all the fisherman who drive down from Anchorage and other areas to catch halibut.

These racks are everywhere, even at our campground. The halibut trophies are on display for pictures before they get filleted. Some are long enough to touch the ground!

Cutting these guys up requires some talent. There are plenty of places to get your filets shipped back home, too.

There is more than fishing in the town of Homer. Cute art shops and bakeries were all over town. We found a winery and tasted a few before we bought a couple of bottles of Alaskan wine. Their wines were all berry flavors, but good!

The Homer spit is a long thin stretch of land that ends at the ferry. It had a touristy feel once we got about half way down the 4.5 mile stretch of road. There were several campgrounds, lots of cars, and cute little shops and restaurants on both sides of the street.

Nestled between shops were many many charter boat offices. You could tell this was a fishing village and the people who were there to fish all wore rubber boots. I didn’t think to pack anything like that!

Right in the middle of the busiest area was the famous Salty Dawg Saloon. We parked near it and had to see the inside….just had to!

We walked in one end of the building that had a very low doorway. There were lots of local fisherman having a drink at the bar, but I didn’t expect this…

I got a picture of the boys standing under lots of money. Sadly, we didn’t leave any dollars because we couldn’t see an empty spot! It was overwhelming to stand there!

Across the street from the post office, was a pair of nesting eagles. You can see the silhouette of one on the left tree and the nest is on the right.

We toured the Islands and Ocean Visitor Center that told the history of the seabird refuge and explained some of the biological research taking place in the Alaskan Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. For example, sea otters were once disappearing and scientists were able to increase their populations.

We drove around Homer and took some scenic hilly roads to see the view over Cook Inlet. Unfortunately, the gray clouds were not cooperating! On a clear day, you can see the volcanoes across the inlet topped with snowy peaks.

Leaving the marina, we saw this old boat junkyard. Most were old wooden boats that probably have some good stories to tell.

I wonder how many fish were caught on these boats back in the day?

Homer is a super cute, fishy, artsy town! I can see why so many people came here for the holiday weekend. I would come back again! According to their cruise ship calendar, they only see 1 ship every 3 weeks. Everyone else comes by car or ferry. Oh, and they have a small airport.