Homer to Cooper Landing

As is fitting, on the day we leave Homer, it’s warm, sunny and calm. I picked up a breakfast bagel sandwich on the way to the RV park. 

I left Homer around 1:15pm. Stopped at the Fred Meyer in Soldatna for gas  and continued on to our B&B in Cooper Landing. Right after leaving Homer, it was overcast and the temperature dropped to 55°F. But after the highway turned inland, it warmed up to ~70°F. Much nicer. 

The B&B seems pretty nice and we’ll see what breakfast is tomorrow morning. 

Homer, AK

Wednesday - It’s hard for me to tell but this may be Dixon Glacier across Kachemak Bay from Homer. Right now, I’m sitting in Heritage RV Park about ¾ of the way down Homer Spit. They have a nice view facing the bay with a view of the mountains and glaciers out the front door. Their view is below. The pano was taken just after low tide (-0.89ft).

I’m not sure what is on the agenda for today as I just rode down here. I believe the others are exploring the shops near the end of the spit. My brother is having everyone over for dinner (red salmon that he caught last week). I brought the old Instant Pot sous vide stick with me just to cook salmon. 

This was just the view while walking around the shops at the spit. I found the group after they found some fish tacos for lunch. Bridget shared her order. Pretty tasty. 

Thursday - Last night there was an 8.2 earthquake about 500 miles southwest of here. Reports say that it was the strongest quake since 1964. About 10:30pm, the tsunami sirens were going off and the low lying areas were being evacuated. My son and his group in the RV ended up at the cul-de-sac by my brother’s home. The tsunami was a non-event at 0.8 ft. Today is has been a cool, cloudy day. The group had their halibut fishing charter canceled and are now fishing in a small inlet on the spit. 

Ural Trip

Sunday - Around noon on Sunday, I headed south with the Ural. The destination for today was Anchorage but eventually, we’ll be in Homer. Bridget left on Saturday with the Prius filled with most of our luggage. I brought my camping gear as I’m considering stopping on the way back. 

It was warm in Fairbanks but by Cantwell, it was 55°F and drizzling. The headwind didn’t help my progress much as the Ural was easily the slowest thing on the road. 

Tuesday - Lots of wind on today’s ride to Homer. Between the wind and the hills there were times when I could barely maintain 50mph. Homer is beautiful. We are staying with my brother at his home overlooking Kachemak Bay. We are here for several days before heading north to the Kenai River.  

Permafrost Tunnel

On Saturday, some friends arranged a tour of the Permafrost Tunnel located north of Fairbanks near Fox. I had heard about the facility since I had arrived as a graduate student. 

There were about a dozen of us and the logistics manager did a fantastic job telling us the history of the tunnel including the early days. The original tunnel is still there but it has been expanded numerous times. Both the length and height have been increased. 

The tunnel is chilled to -5°C by numerous air conditioning systems to keep the walls and ceiling solid. LED lights are installed throughout the tunnels so it was pretty well lit. 

Numerous bones were found when they dug the tunnels but due to the area, none were considered archeologically significant. As the ice sublimates, items surface such as this horn.