July 16th... Fish, Fish and More Fish.. and a side trip to Homer.
Fish Fish and More Fish...Well, the month of July is half over already.. hard to believe. I am sure the next 6 weeks will fly by even faster. This is an exciting time for Soldtona. The REDS are in !!!! For anyone unfamiliar with this expression.. the red's are Sockeye that arrive in the thousands in the Kenai River at this time every year. People come from all over the world to fish them and dip net them and catch them in any way they can. You would think that with that much pressure, they would not survive another year, but somehow they do. They will be back again next year.
Dip Netting at the mouth of the Kenai River.
This is pretty exciting to watch. Every permanent Alaskan resident is allowed what they call Subsistence fishing. Each household is allowed to Dip Net so many fish for personal consumption. An average family is allowed 25 fish for head of household and then 10 additional for family. It is just Another way that Alaska helps their people survive the tougher climate and environment. And as you can see... it is a HUGE event.
The Red's are exactly that... Bright beautiful fish with rich dark red meat.. and they are delicious. The daily limit right now is 3 fish per person but as long as the numbers stay up, the limit will jump to 6 a day. You can fill a freezer fast at that rate. We are off to buy another freezer on the weekend... already!!!! Between the salmon , halibut, Cod and the Razor Clams, it is filling up very fast.
No complaints from us :)
After the Reds, it will be time for the Silvers... Coho.. that will make their way up the rivers and we will fish those as well. Thank god for vacuum sealers and pressure caner's.. and a truck to haul it all home.
Speaking of home, we have decided that spending the winter in Alaska is not an option for us after all. Lots of things have conspired to bring this decision together, but we think it is the right decision for us both. Lot's of things changed , both around us and with us.. and we think coming home this fall is a good plan. Of course, there are NO regrets to any of this trip. We had a few set backs on the way up, a few here as well, but.... all in all it has been a fantastic trip so far... and will .. no doubt continue that way. I would do it all, exactly the same, all over again.
I still love Alaska, but I think, maybe being 7 years older since the last trip... maybe some of the changes that have occurred in and around us... maybe just realizing how far from home we really are... well, I guess it just all piles up until you come to a finale decision.. even if it isn't the one that you started out with, it is still the right one.
So... there we are... come mid-September at the very latest we will be on the road home. We will leave Soldotna at the end of August when our Friend and Host Bill gets back from his short trip away, and we will be off to Anchorage to spend a bit of time with friends there. Don is going to do some work for them and then it will be southward bound. We plan on selling the 5th wheel before we leave. It has made it's last long trip and needs a good resting place. I have put it up for sale on the Kenai Peninsula Craig's list and I am sure we won't have trouble selling it. It will make someone a great little fish camp up here for their summer trips.
We will pack up everything in totes... seal them up safe and dry for the ride home. The truck will be loaded because we will have all that, plus 2 full freezers of seafood. Yummmm.
Anyhow, that is the latest news. .. But in the meantime... still loving this beautiful country up here and all it has to offer. .. and So glad we came back one more time. (next time.. we will fly)
This past week has been a good one for weather... beautiful blue skies, and warm. We took advantage and made a trip to Homer so that we could see the mountains in all their glory. It was a very pretty day, took lots of pictures, hung out on the famous Homer Spit for awhile and played tourist. Loved it.
View of Mount Redoubt along the way to Homer.
Homer
The famous Homer Spit.
I loved this abandoned ship.. it reminded me of a Pirate Ship.. maybe something Captain Jack would live on :)On the way home we had truck trouble... ended up using our AAA once again to be towed home, but it all worked out good. Our neighbor and friend Russ happens to be a pretty dang good mechanic and he diagnosed and fixed it for us. It needed a new fuel lift pump and that only cost us $180 and he did the work. In exchange, Don spent a few hours yesterday helping him cut firewood for the winter. I love being able to trade services.. works out good for everyone.
We've also had a fair amount of Bear activity, which of course I have already filled you in on. There are still sightings nightly within a mile or two of here..( if anyone is interested in reading about the bear sightings in this area, there is a facebook page called.."Kenai Peninsula Bears" ) .. . but as long as they stay out of the 5th wheel I will be happy. I really don't need to get up close and personal with one. As a matter of fact... this is how we go to bed in Alaska.. when the Bears are in the neighborhood..
A great way to see and watch the Bears in their "natural" environment is to check out the live web cams on the Brooks River in Katmai National Park. If you are interested... just go to www.explore.org and check out the bear cams on the Brooks River. Awesome to watch.
The shots below are just a couple I thought I would ad in... they are pictures of the cabin here in Soldotna . Its a great spot to spend a summer.
Well, I guess that just about closes out this week. Not too much more to tell. I am sure that the only news for the next while will be "fish" related. I hope everyone is well and happy and having a great summer. Take care and keep smiling.
Our friends and neighbors.. Russ and Jan and our host..and good friend Bill... all say "HI" from Alaska.
An oil rig just south of Ninilchik.
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