Alaska 2010: Day 40 - Homer, Alaska (free day

Sunday, July 18, 2010 Day 40 – Cruise To Seldovia

Ivan & Shirley Yurtin – Rig #12

Sunday morning was a beautiful rainy morning and our scheduled caravan left the RV Park and drove to downtown Homer.

We boarded the M/V Discovery Charter at 11 am, which is owned by Captain Tim Cashman. His cruise took us past Gull Island, Bird Rookery and through Eldred Passage. In spite of the rain, the water was actually smooth as glass as we started out on our voyage. Along the way, we saw numerous birds i.e., murre, black legged kittiwakes and of course puffins. We also saw rafts of Otter swimming on their backs. Tim mentioned that the fur of the otter is very dense, which helps them with buoyancy. We also observed a Solar panel perched on the rocks which allows the Pratt Museum to operate a remote controlled camera to watch the birds on the island.

We passed Peterson Bay where oyster farming takes place, Barabra Creek where eagles were all lined up in a row waiting for lunch. Tim pointed out Elephant Rock and Camel Rock. The cruise then took us through Eldred Passage.

We landed in Seldovia around 1 pm. Seldovia is an island city in Kenai Peninsula Borough with a population of 286. There is no road system connecting the town to other communities, so planes and boats are used for transportation. Most of us headed to the "Mad Fish Restaurant" for lunch. The smoked Salmon chowder was very good. After lunch we headed in various directions to check out the town. Seldovia is somewhat secluded and off the beaten path. However, there are numerous things to do. We only had a little over two hours to spend exploring.

We walked up the hill to St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, which was built in 1891. The name Seldovia is derived from the Russian word 'seldevoy' meaning 'herring bay.' The church was locked so we could not go inside and it appeared to be run down from lack of maintenance. Next we walked down the main street of Seldovia, which parallels the waterfront. There are no traffic lights in Seldovia. The town has a school that was built August 30, 1972 for grades 1-12 named after Susan B. English.

We took a walk on the last of the "boardwalk" which was the town’s “original” main street along the waterfront. The waterfront was rebuilt after the Good Friday Earthquake March 27, 1964. The earthquake registered 9.2 and caused the land mass to drop 6 ft. After the earthquake the town would never be the center of commercial fishing in Kachemak Bay. As a result a new road connecting Homer to Anchorage made Homer the new hub of the bay’s fishing fleet.

Our next stop was the Visitor Center. As you walk up to the front door a beautiful stained glass window catches your attention. The logo represents the traditional animals, fish and birds that are important to the people of Seldovia.

Before boarding for our trip back, we received word that the caravan group that opted to go halibut fishing, had bagged their limit of fish. Great day was had by all!