When they won’t come to you.

You go to them. That is what we did. It all started with lunch and my good friend Lisa, (she does amazing wildlife photography trips to Alaska) plus a question about bears. I went with Lisa in 2018 (when I was more mobile) to Lake Clark National Park Chinitna Bay. Roy and I both knew that was a no-go this trip. So, what to do? Airplane to boat, to bear viewing from boat, back to airplane. My first thought was how is this going to work, I’m in a boat they are on shore (not much chance for action) I was thinking. Well, I am so glad I was wrong. I am getting ahead of myself.

This is exactly what we did with Alaska West Air. The staff there were able to help get us on the plane and then off the plane into the boat.

My only experience flying in Alaska had been in very tiny planes so you can imagine my surprise when I saw a nine-seater. Ok it wasn’t super spacious I did however have a window and some breathing room. I don’t like to fly this is one time Roy told me all I had to do was breathe and look out the window and that is what I did.

Now that we are on semi dry land, (ok a wooden dock with some steps) it was time to get in. It was cool they brought the boat to us as the others who were also getting in boats had to walk the plank. This is not only a bear viewing area it is also a great salmon fishing area.

Wolverine Creek/Redoubt Bay is on Big River Lakes, here is a description of the area we were at. We head directly to the base of Wolverine Creek and experienced a small version of combat fishing. I mean there had to be at least ten skiffs in this small area most were fishing. I caught some of their lines in my pictures which was a little annoying, but I was seeing bear. That made it OK.

It took a few minutes to navigate around the boats, but our guide Evan had us tucked into a nice cozy spot. Here, we could see the water and the shore. The first bear was trying and trying to grab a fish but to no avail, lots of splashing and coming up empty. He was trying to compete with the salmon fishers (they were winning)

He then decides to come over to our side of the creek. Which was a win for both of us he got some good fish, and I got some good photos. He did also have some fun blowing bubbles.

Maybe this was done to clear the palate, between morsels

There was another bear who stayed on shore and was intent on turning over every rock on the beach. He did get in the water once but there were no fireworks, the bear that was in the water was way too involved in his food.

The fireworks occurred when mama bear number one came on the scene. How to clear out a beach. She made short work of the land lover as all it took was a growl from behind the bushes and he was gone. The waterlogged bear took a few more antics to get him to go. This sow had 3 cubs that were just adorable in how they hung around mom.

I also saw a Common Merganser with some of her ducklings. I was hoping that they would catch a ride. They usually get a quick taxi ride on mom’s back. I did get to see that later though, so it wasn’t to disappoint.

The boat decided to head to a different part of the lake to see the actual place where the salmon spawn. I was like ok let’s go. I am glad we left because the journey over to the spawning grounds was very cold and foggy the reason for this is crossing the glacier melt it is cold coming right off the glacier. It was windy, damp, foggy, and spooky.

All you can’t see

Once across to the fresh water the temperature warmed and so did the water. Side note here I did taste the glacier run off and it was like eating a pile of rock salt. The fresh water I did not taste as I did not want to reach in and touch some salmon. There were thousands of them here it was like watching the whole lake move. A picture could not capture the intensity of the end of one life cycle and the start of another.

Stopping at a waterfall was a chance to see freshwater mix with the glacier slit and watch clear blue water turn to a brackish grey.

We journey back to the bears although our vantage point was not as good as the first time there. I was still able to see a few bears. Mom and her three bears were still there but left shortly after our arrival. The next set of bears to come was a sow and two cubs. They were actually too hard to photograph so we moved on to Hidden Lake but ran across a distraction called a bear on an island. The cool thing was it was us and another boat for about 5 minutes.

Hidden Lake was the best place to end the day because it was so peaceful and quiet except for the sound of my voice in this video.

peace

From here it was back to the plane and the return trip home. I told you I am not fond of planes, so the return trip was in a smaller beaver plane. I almost wanted to say I’ll stay here. I am glad I did not because flying over the glacier was awe inspiring. Pictures do not do it justice. We were able to see deep into some of the cracks in the glacier. It is a blue color that does not have a description. Then the lake was so blue black you could get lost just looking at it.

I will be posting a slide show of the trip in a separate post.

This bear viewing trip was much better than expected for me. I went in thinking it was going to be a disappointment because I wasn’t standing on land. Like everything I’ve had to adjust. This however is an adjustment I would do again. How else could you get pictures like these.

Plus, I don’t have to be the fastest runner just have a larger and quicker motor than everyone else.

Two Different Looks

One Great City. That is what Homer AK has been this trip. We found a nice day to head down to Homer Alaska we were hoping to find halibut hanging from the days catch. No such luck. We are not sure they even do that anymore. Well, when that didn’t work, we decided to dig out the transportation from the car and have lunch. Before lunch we wanted to figure out if Roy and I could take a bay tour and head over to Halibut Cove or Seldovia. Unfortunately, the answer was no. Partially because getting the wheelchair over the lip of the boat, and the fact that this time of year has the lowest tides, and it is a floating dock. (The lower the tide the steeper the incline.) Off to lunch, at Captain Pattie’s Fish House. This place and the boardwalks in Homer are very handicap accessible in a strange way. I say this because the sidewalks are wood slats but are close enough, I won’t get stuck, or tip on any ramps. Not that I’ve gotten stuck before. Lunch was good Roy had local razor clams and I had halibut.

I had a video appointment so that left Roy free to explore. When he came back to get me, he brought bad news Halibut Cove was also out due to the same tide issues. Side note is we both would have been seasick because of the size of the boat. It was so sweet that he would have gone with me even though he would have been sick. I did say this trip I was not buying more t-shirts so Roy heads me directly over to a shop with t-shirts. I had to buy it because it said Salmon Slut F/V. I haven’t been able to see if the fishing vessel is still fishing.

So, shopping done we were off to explore the docks. A visit to Homer is not complete without a visit to Salty Dawgs (this however is not handicap accessible). Although the gift store Salty Girls is which carries Salty Dog t-shirts. Speaking of that area of the dock we saw this halibut charter between

Salty Dawg and Salty Girls called ButtWhackers (not saying a word). Further down the dock we drove the chair and took a few pictures of the harbor.

It was a bright sunny slightly windy day on the Spit which treated us to some Parasurfers for lack of a better word.

A beach on the Cook Inlet side of the Spit had a few brave souls letting the wind catch their sails while standing on a surfboard. I thought letting the wind lift you out of the water might be exciting but also unnerving (I was watching and that is how I felt.

What a difference a week makes. The next time we headed down to Homer, it was raining (water does not mix with the chair). I have been trying to visit the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center. I do need some dry weather though to do this.

What we did do was drive around the spit and town taking pictures from the car. I had attended a camera club meeting where ‘bad weather photography’ was the subject. Who would have thunk I would use it. Check these photos.

Roy decided seeing I wasn’t doing my trek he said we needed some salmon, so we stopped at Salmon Sisters for sockeye salmon. This will be dinner in a few nights. Along with the fresh halibut I was able to talk one of our neighbors out of. They caught and cleaned it, Roy will cook it, and I will eat it.

So, driving through Homer we saw a bus named Sue and of course had to get a picture of it. The restaurant is an old double decker bus, and you can eat upstairs. It serves tacos.

Although we did not stop because we were on a mission to get wine. We discovered this little winery in 2017 on another trip to Homer. The restaurant I mentioned earlier that we said was now ok is where Roy was introduced to the wine. He tried a rhubarb chardonnay (Roy is not a big rhubarb fan.) So, we headed up to the winery making a long story short. He loved the wine and has received Christmas gifts from here. This stop was on his agenda this year and we made it back. I was also impressed he has now broadened his horizon to include pomegranate / raspberry wine and some others. The best part of the winery is the respect and help they give to Military and Veterans. They even have a parking spot reserved for Veterans right outside the door. So, Bear Creek winery is a must do stop when on the Kenai. Roy enjoyed the tasting room, and I got a t-shirt. If you are keeping track that is 3 t-shirts so far.

I Almost Caught IT…

on camera. It is one of the things I have always wanted to capture, two eagles locking talons and falling through the sky. I’ve only seen this once and was not quick enough with my camera. There is such a wonder about how such a large bird can twist and turn while connected to another. Here is the photo I captured. This was taken with my long lens, and I cropped in quite a bit.

This happened on one of those trips when Roy said ‘you don’t know, if you don’t go’. We had just finished a fresh fish taco dinner, caught by Tom who we had met on the ferry. I need to mention the side of mosquitos were interesting. (I have a thermacell lantern that is making the trip with us next time.) I don’t brag or recommend a product but this one does work. Ok done with infomercial. The tacos weren’t any fish they were halibut smooth tasting fish not bad for someone who only sees from one side of its body. Tom’s place was cool because we ate in the garage which was two shipping containers and a truck trailer for walls. Just interesting and only in Alaska. So, after dinner we decided to visit my second favorite eagle spot. (First one is church and babies).

The spot where I took these photos from is what by a cliff this is where in the afternoon the eagles can catch the wind. Here is a page explaining how they catch the wind. This is also a spot where juveniles fake fight or sometimes real fight. Here are some of the pictures I took that night. I am hoping I get that opportunity to capture it this trip.

More eagle babies on the horizon.

50-Yard Line …

much better view for Sunday at the rodeo. I did say Roy got the seating chart right the second time. The rodeo started at 2pm so we got there a little early to grab the perfect seat. I was just going to just switch places with where Roy was yesterday. We get there and he decides that the corner might be a better place. I tried to enter one way no go to narrow. So, let’s take a trip in front of the bleachers that is also a no go. In fact, this is where I got stuck in a rut. My crazy bull rider from the other day came to my rescue. I call him crazy because I showed him his pictures and yes, he said those are cool. After we all decided I can’t get there we settled for the left side of the gate. That my friends ‘was the 50-yard line’. I did not know then how perfect it was. I saw everything from the calf wrestling to the break-away roping from a different angle. Roy was also able to put a few loving on some of the horses that were standing next to and behind him at the arena gate.

I even shot a few photos of the ones he was loving on, so I have evidence.

Instead of barrel racing today was pole bending. We did see a few perfect runs and yes, we did also see a few tipped over poles. The set up for this event is interesting and can be found here.

Today there was more breakaway roping was also on the schedule today. Here is a short video from one of the riders

rope the little one

Also on the agenda they had a similar event to the roping but instead of roping the calf you have to put a mark on its shoulder using mustard and a tennis ball here’s a pic of it.

I do think this is called wrangling but I like calf wrestling. I do have to say she gave it her all and lost.

calf 1 cowpoke 0

We were again treated to some trick riding this time I was a little further from the rail, so no flying gravel.

The spectators had fun also my seat for the 3legged race placed me right in front of the winners. I felt like they were heading straight towards me.

You got this

The kids also got in on the action except they did not have to grab anything off the bull, it was a calf.

don’t run away

Like in good rodeo you have to have some drama when it comes to bull riding. Saturday was Kayden. Sunday was angry bull. The bull dumped his rider early and decided he was not going back in the holding pen. You could tell something was up as he was not liking being sat on just overall angry bull. The rodeo non clown tried to face off and stare him down that did not work. They finally had to release another bull to distract the bull who would not behave. Once distracted they were able to catch him.

I will admit shooting action shots is a tad challenging to me. I am glad I’ve spent some time here tracking eagles with my camera it is the same techniques.

All in all, it was a good 4th and Roy enjoyed another small-town traditional holiday.

Here’s a slide show from day 2.

At the Rodeo had a front row seat

sometimes a little too front row. I will explain more on that a little later. I will also explain why I need a 4-wheel drive chair. I did get stuck once or twice or maybe three times. People are so nice when they are helping dig out a chair stuck in the dirt. I have to say the grounds were fairly wheelchair accessible until you get to the area leading up to the handicap ramp for the bleachers. This is where I got stuck. (Not hard packed at all.) We were able to get up on the bleachers and caught a few of the Junior Rodeo before the main event. (We did miss the beach races. You can see the video on their Ninilchik Rodeo Facebook Page.)

The Junior Rodeo did need to be captured from the bleachers as it was using a smaller part of the arena. I was watching these young say under 5 years old children being led around the barrels by adults. My thought was what a great way to introduce your child to the rodeo. I think it was fun for both parties involved. I watched a little more than figured it was time to eat dinner. This is where I got stuck again and also when Roy and I decided both of us need to find better seats.

Off we go to find better seats before the main event starts, with a stop over for dinner at the snack shack. This is a place I did not mind paying $23 for 2 cheeseburgers considering one was a meal. (It went to support the local youth.) Back to the seating situation there was a small set of bleachers inside the contestant area on fairly level ground, so we pulled up there, it turned out to be an awesome seat for the action. (Right at eye level.)

It wasn’t quite the 50-yard line but it was to the right of one of the entry gates to the arena.

Day 1 had some action from bulls to bull horns. Here’s some highlights

Calf Riding
Bull Riding
3-legged Race
Trick Riding
Barrel Racing
$100 the Hardway

Three big takeaways from day 1 included: 1. being glad I can’t run. 2. you have to be a little crazy to ride a bull. 3. don’t sit too close to the rail when trick riding is involved.

Why am I glad I can’t run? I will explain. The $100 the hard way involves a bull, an envelope taped to the bull’s horns, and a stampede of grown men. Check out the two videos. (spoiler alert: the bull got away with the money.) They repeated this on Sunday.

The Rules

The Stampede

Why do you have to be a little crazy to be a bull rider. In case you get thrown from the bull pinned underneath and then when you see the photos, say that was cool. This happened on Saturday to Kayden.

I was able to get his ride from start to finish. He did get up and walked away but that was a scary scene. I am very glad he was ok. I needed him to get me unstuck on Sunday but that is another story.

Saturday there seemed to be more rocks bouncing in the air and near me. I think it could have been where I was seated. The trick riders would come by kick up some stones I would flinch and lose a shot. (We did remedy this on Sunday). I was able to capture some shots.

We enjoyed the rodeo so much we came back on Sunday. Roy did get the seating chart right the second attempt on Sunday.

Enjoy the slide show below

Hometown Celebration

That is what I saw this weekend at the Ninilchik Rodeo. I’m pretty sure we will see more of the same at the American Legion fish fry on the 4th. I have to say it has been an amazing time on the Kenai. I will be doing a couple of posts on just the rodeo. We also visited the cemetery where the Legion placed American Flags on the grave sites.

So please enjoy the pictures

It was a Bull. No, it was a Cow moose.

This is what happens when you have two different viewpoints, one from the driver side and the other from the passenger side. This occurred the other night as we were driving to see more eagles. Anyone who have heard our banter, can imagine the banter. I did however say don’t go back there will be others to photograph. Well, a u-turn was made, and we both realized that at the exact same time we both saw a moose. (Just of the opposite sex).

How often does that happen when you are both right. As a bonus we were treated to twin baby moose, of course mamma tried to get in the way of my shot. During the u-turns and the banter I was not able to get a picture of the mom. (Unless a butt shot counts.) I do believe once mom felt our presence, she was eager to nudge her kids out of the way.

Almost saying no photos please.

There are some disadvantages from shooting from a car; no cross-yard pursuits. So where to next.

Remember though we did see the bull moose on the other side of the road. He was just standing there no care in the world. I’m thinking he was thinking they are too far away and can’t take my picture. (These paranoid thoughts are happening because lately every moose we see we can’t get a good photo of.) Back to the story. Roy sees a road where we can get closer, and I can use my camera from the car. After going down a near (dirt) road we cross the road that can get us close to the moose. I first try shooting with the 300mm close, but I think I can do better so, I brought out the big guns. Here are the photos side by. side. I did not realize the big difference until I saw the photos side by side.

I like both versions for different reasons the 300 mm lens gives you the look that everything is in focus. The 600 mm has you looking and concentrating only on the moose.

This moose was not photo shy, he was only concerned with the flavor of his grass. I took a few more photos than we had to leave. Our fish taco dinner had gotten rescheduled to the next night. Off to Homer. Roy had to find out if the restaurant where he was introduced to Bear Creek Winery Rhubarb Chardonnay still served it. I am getting ahead of myself.

view looking down on it

We did our normal pass throughs of the beaches in an off chance we would see eagles, because that is what this year seems to be focused on. No eagles tonight though. We get to Homer a little earlier than we wanted to. So, a trip to the harbor and checking for more eagles. No luck by the ferry terminal. We then find another road we had not travelled, (yes, we explored) a short trip around the small boat harbor.

Now to that restaurant and dinner. We had visited the ‘The Fat Olive’ on our last trip through Homer in 2017. The food was great, and Roy learned about edible flowers and wine. On this particular Sunday there were no edible flowers and no Bear Creek wine. What did happen was after dinner this group of three kids came over to our table 1 boy and 2 girls. The look on Roy’s face was quizzical because he was not sure what the shy boy was asking. The boy kept pointing to Roy’s nose and his oxygen, well the sister chimed in and asked Roy if they could lay hands on him and pray for healing. He agreed and it was just interesting to see the determination in the three kids when they were praying for him.

Where do you go from there? Home with leftovers and warm thoughts.

Why do we do what we do

when we do it? That is a question Roy asked me after this day was done. Saturday, we got a late start even though we had all intentions of attempting the farmer’s market again. (I would stay in the car.) Needless to say, we stayed in bed. When we did get up and moving, we were side- tracked by a nice rack of halibut. After a few pictures, we head down to Anchor Point just to find out they are paving the road and to expect long delays. We decided not to wait. Roy has been reading the Milepost (a book that is published yearly for travelers in Alaska). He read about a small Russian village of ‘Old Believers‘ (the link is to an article from 2013). On a side note. In our exploring of Homer in 2017 we discovered the road to the village Kachemak Selo mentioned in the article. They are a very closed off community

After not wanting to wait for the construction we stopped for a coffee in one of those non-Starbucks drive through coffee huts. Saw there was a pizza place in the same parking lot. So we got a fresh made slice (1/4 of a large pizza). Roy and I split one slice. It was good and even had glazed garlic butter on the crust. Then, we travelled ten miles down a paved road in Anchor Point Alaska and found the village of Nikolaevsk Alaska.

The town itself is very quiet when you drive through. To me it felt a little like pulling back a curtain to peek in on someone or something. The center piece of the town seems to be the church A little explanation about the church (the link is to an article from 2015). They have service on Saturday night I was able to take the pictures right before people started to arrive for service. You could see a sense of community along with a reverence for the church.

The congregation is in the process of building a new church, it looks like they have been at it awhile.

I am including some links about the architecture of Russian churches and Onion Domes

I hope you enjoy the pictures of the church.

So, we head back to town but before we leave, I took a picture of the school which teaches all grades under one roof. I thought it interesting that there was even a school for a community that small, being they are so close to Anchor Point.

We decide to give the road to the beach another shot. We were first car by the flagger, he said it would be about a half hour, so we waited. I am so glad we did. Had we come through when we first stopped, we would have missed the feast that was occurring on the beach. When the fishermen are done with fileting the catch the scraps get thrown on the beach for the birds to eat.

takeoff

It was cool to see them all swarm on the beach and even fight over some pieces. I was not able to get any real fighting on camera, I did however capture the landing of an eagle after the fight. I think he thought He was victorious, because the wings are up saying: “he is the champion!”

So, to answer the question Roy posed. I am not sure why it happens. I am just happy Roy listens to whatever voice or thought tells him what direction to go in.

Tracking Eagles

The Holy Transfiguration of Our Lord Chapel

First part of the day we decided to be lazy I caught up on my blog and edited some pictures, Roy slept. After lunch we decide to get moving and photograph the Russian Orthodox Church in Ninilchik, the lighting was ok for landscape/ building photography.

The cemetery at the church used to be a little less overgrown than we discovered it to be. There is also a Veterans cemetery next to the original one in much better condition. I was disappointed, but it also gave me a chance to explore the front of the church and the cemetery from the front.

The church overlooks the small village of Ninilchik AK. The village is small and old but with good bones. I have enjoyed the beach and it is one you can still drive out on. We haven’t done that yet. I am stressing the word YET. The town is also home to a small fleet of fishing vessels. One of the days we were down by the beach they were in harbor.

The beach here has an advantage over Deep Creek and Anchor Point as there is a dock where the vessels can tie off. On one of our recent visits to the beach we saw a salmon tender. These vessels collect the fish so the fleet can continue to fish.

We have enjoyed parking on the road so I can take pictures from it. There have not been very many eagles down at this end of the beach but that is still good. I was able to photograph some of the few breakers I’ve seen.

The beach here does have some shallow rocks near shore, so there are some danger signs.

The road that runs on the other side of the harbor has a turn out right before you head down the road. It is below the bluff that the church sits on so the opportunity to practice tracking eagles with my camera was ample.

Before we left Ninilchik I happened upon this building I am thinking that it hasn’t been active in a long time, or it has a well-hidden path to the entrance.

When tracking eagles, we always have to stop at Deep Creek which used to be a favorite spot for me. At the top of the road down towards the beach is a charter fishing service J&J Smart Charters and Deep Creek View Campground RV Park. They go out and fish for halibut. When the boat returns the crew hangs the catch for the day up so pictures can be gotten of the fish. So far this was the first time this trip that we were able to capture it as it was happening.

There is going to be a rodeo right down the road on July 2nd & 3rd at the Kenai Peninsula State fairgrounds. I am looking forward to the beach horse race earlier in the day. This is all being sponsored by the Peninsula Horseman’s Association. I do plan on concessions food on the 2nd.

I can’t believe that we have been in one place with the trailer for over a week. I do know there is so much more to explore. I have to run now and get to exploring.