Day 4 – Halibut Day in Homer

Bill, Jeanne, Steve and Megan

Bill was kind enough to take us four amateurs out on his boat for a day of Halibut fishing on the bay.  This isn’t as easy as you might think. In fact, it is a pretty strenuous activity. We went about 18 nautical miles into Kechamac Bay, not far from where it joins the Gulf of Alaska.  Fortunately for us the weather cooperated as we had no rain and calm winds so the seas weren’t too rough.  You fish about 100 feet down to the bottom using cut-up herring as bait.  There is a limit of two fish per person and believe it or not, Jeanne caught the first two halibut within minutes of when we started.  The average fish we caught was about 10 lbs but they can also easily be up to 40 lbs or more.  It takes quite a bit of effort to reel in a fish that big and I can’t even imagine what effort would be required to land a 40 lb one!

Our Catch

The fishing was quite good and it really helps to have someone guiding you who knows how to fish.  We frequently had multiple fish on the lines at the same time.  After a few nice keepers, we got more selective and finished the day with 10 nicely sized ones, which Steve had cleaned and shipped back to NYC.  We are going to split the catch.  If you aren't familiar with halibut, the ones we were catching were about 2 1/2 feet long and about a foot wide.  They are a very flat fish with dark on one side and white on the other.

Another interesting aspect is that they tag some fish in Homer and there are prizes given out if you catch a tagged fish.  You buy a lottery ticket good for that day, which we did but unfortunately we caught no tagged fish.  Too bad, I could have used that 50 grand first prize.

After we finished fishing and said our goodbyes, we drove 4 hours back to Anchorage and everyone immediately just collapsed into bed.

Day 3 – Byron Glacier and the Homer Spit

Halibut Cove

On the way to Homer we stopped to take our hike to Byron Glacier in Portage Valley that weather cancelled yesterday.  We still had a misty type of rain to deal with, but without the high winds and driving rain from yesterday it was a pleasure.  It was an easy hike of less than 2 miles, but we got the rare opportunity to stand on a glacier at the end.

After that we drove about 4 hours down to Homer, Alaska, which is the hometown of Steve’s roommate Todd from college.  We stayed with Todd’s parents, Bill and Marianne and they treated us to a really wonderful time.  Our main activity after arriving was taking the boat over to Halibut Cove for a fantastic meal of Alaskan seafood at the Saltry Restaurant including recently harvested oysters from Halibut Cove itself.  No way to reach it except by boat.  On the way across Kechamac Bay we went by Gull Island which was the home of thousands of seagulls.  We also saw Sea Otter and a very unique bird called the Puffin.  It sort of resembles a mix of a toucan and a penguin and has a very bright orange beak.

Homer Spit

The Homer Spit is where the marina in Homer is located.  It is a 5 or 6 mile “spit” of land that juts out into the bay.  It is the location of shops, bars and the starting point for many tourist excursions.  For a very small town, the Spit is always crowded with activity.  You may note from the photo the tall poles that are through out the marina.  That is to accommodate the high tides that reach 27 feet.  At high tide, you can touch the tops of the poles.

Facts of the day - Homer is the home town of Jewel Kilcher, the singer.  It is also home to the ships from America's Deadliest Catch.

Day 2 – Alaska Weather and Snickers

Patrøn the Brown Bear

Today we got a lesson in Alaskan weather while we travelled 45 minutes south to Girdwood and the Portage Glacier Valley.  We left the hotel in overcast weather and light jackets as it was still relatively warm, about 51 degrees.  We stopped at a scenic overlook just outside of Anchorage and suddenly we had high winds and colder weather.  It turns out that Alaska has very localized weather.  It can be sunny in one spot and cold and rainy 5 or 6 miles away.  When we took the Alyeska Tram ride there was a light drizzle, but when we reached the top it was 39 degrees with some light sleet.  Our next stop was about 10 miles away for a boat ride to see the Portage Glacier, but that was cancelled by wind gusts up to 90 mph.  The last touring stop was the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center and we were back to a light drizzle with no wind and we were only 6 miles away.  Alaska Travel Advice: Always wear layers of clothes and be prepared for any kind of weather at any time.

Jack the Moose

We met Snickers at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center when we took the Behind the Scenes tour, which I would highly recommend.  Snickers is a very big porcupine who let us feed her carrots.  The AWCC takes in injured and orphaned animals and releases them back into the wild if they are able.  Our tour guide was an intern named Scott who is also a caretaker, so he was able to give us some great insights into the animals and how they came to the center.  We also met the brother and sister bears, Joe Boxer and Patrøn, Jack the Moose and we also fed Julie the Sitka deer leaves until we ran out and she started eating Megan's coat!

Animal sightings - Several Bald Eagles

Day 1 – North to Alaska 


It really is a LONG way to Alaska from Philadelphia. Total flying time on Delta was just a little under 12 hours if you include the two brief stops we made in Detroit and Minneapolis. We arrived in Anchorage about 30 minutes ahead of schedule at 12:15am (4:15am EDT). Not sure what the flight distance is but the driving distance is about 4300 miles. All in all, it didn’t seem all that bad considering and we didn’t have any problems. The only thing that was interesting was that the sky was completely dark when we left Minneapolis but was about a gray dawn color by the time we reached Anchorage. It really is the Land of the Midnight Sun!

2012 Alaska Trip Itinerary

Wed (July 11) – Fly to Anchorage

Thur (July 12) – Portage Glacier tour and Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center

Fri (July 13) – Drive to Homer

Sat (July 14) – Fishing in Homer

Sun (July 15) – Denali Star train from Anchorage to Denali

Mon (July 16) – Denali National Park tour

Tue (July 17) – Denali Star train to Fairbanks

Wed (July 18) – Fairbanks and Riverboat Discovery

Thur (July 19) – Travel to Seward

Fri (July 20) – Tour Kenai Fjords National Park and Resurrection Bay tour

Sat (July 21) – Anchorage, Talkeetna and Mount McKinley flightseeing

Sun (July 22) – Anchorage and fly home