Soldotna second-annual cattle drive
Motorists along College Loop Road typically have to keep their eyes peeled for a moose just around the bend, but it was an entirely different hoofed animal that motorists saw moving en masse down the curvy road Sunday during the Soldotna Equestrian Association’s second annual cattle drive.
The SEA roped in even more riders than the inaugural event in 2011, and had roughly four horseback riders to every cow in the herd of a dozen animals, which also included a feisty young bull and two wide-eyed calves that stuck tightly to their mothers’ sides. The riders themselves were an equally diverse group, varying in age from 8 to 65, and bringing with them an equally expansive range of experience.
Shorebird festival attracts record number of people
The 20th Annual Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival was broadly attended this year, attracting 1,900 people who registered.
Attendance was up by 9 percent from last year, said organizer Christina Whiting.
Some 80 attendees were Alaskan. Of those 55 percent came from Homer, 35 percent from Anchorage, and others came from Seward, Fairbanks, Kenai/Soldotna, Trapper Creek and Talkeetna.
The furthest-attending was a couple who traveled from Australia and another pair from England. A caravan of birders from Texas/Mexico came to Alaska just for this festival, Whiting said.
“Our core group continues to come every year, which I think speaks volumes. I don’t quite know what it means. They are coming back taking the same walks with the same guides year after year,” Whiting said. “To me that says we have a solid program that people enjoy.”
Spring in the air; but record-high snow on the ground
Hydrologists from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service report high snow pack in Alaska, to no surprise to Alaskans, but the extent of record breaking snows could be alarming.
Snow survey data, gathered from SNOTEL and snow course sites, is used to forecast river flow volume, breakup flooding potential, avalanche danger, summer forest fire probability, and fresh water availability for municipalities and power generation. And, don’t forget that salmon fishing is directly affected by high water – when the rivers run high, the tendency is for the fish to migrate in higher concentrations, meaning shorter, faster runs. Snow survey information also contributes to calculating winter severity with respect to wildlife survival.
Dirtbags plan to clean up Homer, raise funds
A close cousin to the ski bum, the dirtbag is the guy so dedicated to climbing that next pitch, he will literally sleep in the dirt at the base of a wall to get the glory of the sunrise start.
Homer Wilderness Leaders celebrates that spirit of dedication to wilderness adventure by honoring the DiRtBaG. We do it by offering discount rates to the boys and girls (DiRtBaG) to help local kids raise money to fund their wilderness expeditions over the summer.
HoWL has been taking kids across Kachemak Bay and through the mountains, lakes, rivers and beaches of the Kenai Peninsula since 2009. HoWL’s mission is to provide outdoor experiential education to young people in Alaska.
And they do so with gusto.
Pull on your big-boy boots and take a hike
After stumbling onto a few innocent flyers posted around town, Homer resident Pete Fineo finally decided to bite the bullet and schedule an excursion across the Kachemak Bay to hike out to the face of Grewingk Glacier.
“It’s something I’ve had on my bucket list for about four years now,” Fineo explained. “I figured I live in a state with so many glaciers, I ought to see at least one of them.”
Fineo is no stranger to hiking, having tackled a 2,000-mile trek along the Appalachian Trail. Yet, he was eager to explore the remote, snow-covered expanse across the Bay, and contacted George Reising of Halibut Cove Adventures to see about setting up a hike.
A former financial engineer and mortgage banker hailing from Lower 48 metropolises like Pittsburgh and Seattle, Reising began finding his work less than satisfying and decided to try something different.
Spring marks return of Homer’s Sandhill cranes
Arrival of the Sandhill Cranes is one of the sure signs that spring is here. It is a Homer spring ritual to eagerly await and greet these majestic birds that have flown over 3000 miles from California’s Central Valley to return to their nesting grounds in Homer.
A halibut worth kissing nets $28,260 prize
Chad Aldridge received a phone call on Friday night at about 9 p.m., the soonest Homer Halibut Derby organizer Paula Frisinger could possibly get the news to him.
He had won the champ’s pot in the annual halibut derby contest, $28,260.
Since Aldridge caught his 350.8 pound halibut earlier in the summer on June 19, he had some serious waiting to contend with before finding out if his fish proved the largest.
“I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I kept telling myself someone would beat me. A 339-pounder caught was pretty close. It would have been a tight contest,” Aldridge said.
That halibut was caught on Sept. 25 by Chriss Ryherd of Soldotna.
Fish change standings
Chriss Ryherd of Soldotna caught a 339.6 pound halibut Sept. 25, capturing first place for the month. He was fishing with Capt. Sean Martin of North Country Halibut Charters aboard the M/V Irish. His catch came close to challenging the season leader, Chad Aldridge who landed a 350.8 pounder June 19.
Also new in the standings is another Alaskan, Askel Buholm of Palmer who caught a 226.8 pound halibut Sept. 24. He was fishing with Capt. Josh Brooks aboard his boat, the Huntress. He is now in second place for the month.
Two women join leaders in Halibut Derby
With a little over a week to go in the Chamber of Commerce’s Jackpot Halibut Derby, the September standings changed by two over the weekend.
Sheryl Warmblood of Eagle River now holds second place with a 178 pounder caught Sept. 17 while fishing with Capt. Mike Swan aboard Beausoleil of North Country Halibut/Spirit Charters. She is September’s new lady angler.
Now in fourth place, Renee Lyons of Denver, Colo. caught a 97.8 pound halibut Sept. 18 fishing with Capt. Billy Joe Adams on his boat.
Group inaugurates water trail
The Kachemak Bay Water Trail was christened under blue skies Sunday and calm water, with good cheer and champagne, establishing a trail that will eventually extend as far as Seldovia with marked campsites along the way.
Dave Brann, the organizer and visionary who developed the water trail proposal, said he has been toying with the idea for five or six years.
“This last spring, I really got into it and started promoting the idea after I went to the Alaska Trail Rendezvous,” Brann said. The Alaska Trail Rendezvous is a meeting of trail enthusiasts from around the state held by the National Park Service.
