We had a nice drive from Homer to Seward, a lot was backtracking along the coast on the west side of the Kenai Peninsula, beautiful drive. We stopped at a water wheel in Moose Pass that powered a honing wheel. I was going to sharpen my axe, but I couldn’t find it. Now I really had an axe to grind, but no axe….
At least the views were beautiful as usual
Of course, we got to Seward, another seaport, and headed into town for dinner, Rita had a hankering for crab legs. This time she got tanner crab, a sweet variation of snow crab, I chose halibut & think I’ve reached my halibut limit.
Back at the campground our Wagon Master organized a fire and “wadingers”. Wadingers??? Well, he had two-foot-long skinny dowels with a six in long one inch in diameter dowel attached, it was rounded on the end and looked just like a cattail. Our tail gunner called them wampum sticks. Anyway, you spray a little Pam on the bigger dowel, take a raw Pilsbury biscuit and stick it on the end, you then manipulate the biscuit along the dowel flattening it to 1/4 inch thick. There were a lot of innuendos going on, so maybe it was a good thing Mica missed this part. But after your biscuit is ready you hold it over the fire like a marshmallow, slowly turning it. Basically, baking it over the fire. After its toast brown on the outside, you twist it on the stick. If it’s cooked all the way, it slides off easily.
You then go to the goodies table, fill the “wadingers” with your choice of pudding, jam, whip cream, cherry pie filling, or apple pie filling. Or a variation. Delicious!
Next morning, we went to Alaska Sealife Center to view their various wildlife plus we had a private Puffin Experience.
A lot of the Sealife Center was hands on, so we got to touch star fish, urchins & anemones. The water was near freezing, but it was fun seeing how they felt.
After we left, we found a great little restaurant and Rita chose, you guessed it, crab legs. Oddly enough I got another halibut sandwich. Both were delicious. I might be turning into a fish. Not going to even mention what Rita might be turning into. Just kidding Rita!!
Next day was another wildlife cruise, but the typical coastal Alaska weather finally caught up to us. A slow steady drizzle, all day…. Still saw lots of wildlife, a crazy humpback whale kept jumping out of the water, but getting pictures was really tough in the rain. Throw in the rough seas from the rain & wind and a half dozen of our group got seasick. So there have been better days…
Back at CC we tried to dry off & warm up. We watched a movie and went to bed. And here’s where the excitement happened, we just didn’t know it. Around 11pm there was an earthquake (7.5 on the Richter scale) that happened in the Aleutian Islands about 500 miles away. Of course, CC levels on air bags, not jack stands so we didn’t even feel it. But that’s not the crazy part.
Shortly after that there was a tsunami warning issued for the coastal cities in Alaska.
There was a lot of activity in the campground, lots of campers were packing up fast & heading out. We got a notice from the campground, luckily for us we were at a campground 105 feet above sea level. So we were safe. We did hear that campers all along the coast fled the coast. Finally, there was an announcement that the tsunami was only six inches high & posed no threat. Better safe than sorry. But the whole thing was exciting. It’s my first tsunami! We had a minor earthquake at home in Belleville in 1970 that I felt.
By the time morning came everything was settled down. We watched the eagles nest in the campground for awhile, mom & dad eagle taking care of two eaglets.
Then a nice hike in Kenai Fjords National Park to see Exit Glacier & get our National Parks Passport stamp!
We rounded out the day with an opportunity to ride a dog sled & see some puppies!
After the puppy time & being able actually walk away from the puppies with smuggling one out. We had a chance to meet with the staff of the kennel. They explained the Iditarod race, which what all these dogs were for, the process for the race . The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, more commonly known as The Iditarod, is an annual long-distance sled dog race run in early March. It travels from Anchorage to Nome, entirely within the US state of Alaska. It covers 938 miles and must be completed in 10 days. The team we met came in fifth place and is competing in the 2024 race, so fingers crossed!
We did see what equipment they used and they brought out a dog to demonstrate what the dogs actually wear during the race. It’s nothing like we thought. They wear the stuff in the picture day & night to protect them from the sub-zero temperatures they will endure during the race.
Mica even tried on the mushers gloves and discovered she could still text on her phone.
We finished up with a dog sled ride!
Spent the evening with friends admiring our view from our campsite!
