Nikolaevsk, Alaska

These pictures were not included in the last blog. read on to get the story.




This cafe was only one room with a sun porch for additional seating and Nina prepared food in a small kitchen behind her.

Nikolaevsk, Alaska

In Nikolaevsk we experienced something very unusual and fun at the same time. We were on one of the scenic drives around Homer. We drove what seemed to be miles of wilderness and we were dying for a nice cup of hot coffee. Suddenly a settlement appears - Nikolaevsk. We see a church, stopped, took a picture. On a post nearby was a hand painted sign- cafe. Oh!! we could smell the coffee already. Off we drove down a little dirt road to a house which housed the cafe- in we went. The place was full of unique gifts, pictures and vintage clothing. We soon discovered that the hostess, Nina Fefelov prepares only authentic Russian food and by reservation only. As it turned out that someone cancelled their reservation and we were convinced to stay . Stew insisted on having coffee and Nina tried to convince him to have tea instead. In the end stew won and received his coffee. The meal was tasty. Before we left, Nina insisted we dress up in Russian clothing and have our picture taken. Nikolaevsk's population is 304- a settlement of "Russian Old Believers". Nikolaevsk is one of the settlements near Homer. The other settlement you can only get to by foot or boat. Traditional clothing are worn, Russian is the first language, and the church dictates that males do not shave. The Old Believers in this area lead a family -oriented, self-sufficient life-style. They use modern utilities, and food sources are from gardening, small livestock, fishing and hunting. Families are typically very large (8 to 12 children).

Additional picture taken in Nikolaevsk. Do we pass as "Russian old Believers" ?

Homer, Alaska

On our scenic drive we seen these large, long legged birds similar to our blue heron but larger. These birds are called Sand Cranes and they are everywhere.

Homer, Alaska

Kachemak Bay and surrounding mountains (behind the clouds) provide a specular backdrop for Homer Spit. Homer Spit juts out for nearly 5 miles, a long , narrow bar of gravel, from Homer shore. The spit is a center of activity- restaurants, small shops and galleries.


The rest of the pictures were taken from scenic drives around Homer. The road whined up one of the mountains in the area.






When we were in Homer it was drizzling rain for 3 days but the scenery was still beautiful.

Homer, Alaska

A view behind our 5th wheel at Homer- a bald head Eagle.

mountain scenes around Seward

Some of the mountains in the Seward area.

Mount Marathon race-Seward, Alaska

every 4th of July, the hardy run the Mount Marathon race up this mountain. You can see the path on the right hand side.

Rescurrection Bay- Seward, Alaska

We camped right on the shores of the bay and the view was breath taking. Cruise ships arrived daily , as well as the charter boats . Also where the sea otters loved to play.

Fishing Charters - Seward, Alaska

Fishing charters are very popular in all of Alaska. While we were in Seward we would walk to the wharf in the evening around 5:30 pm to watch as the boats came in with their catch. Every charter would weigh their catch. The bid white looking fish is halibut and the largest we seen weighted 289 lbs. Of course that fish was weighted alone,at that time the battery on our camera dies and we were not able to get a picture.








One thing we learned about halibut is that they are a flat fish with one eye . the white side is the underside with no eye and the darker side has the eye. halibut is born with both eyes but one dies.

the catch included halibut, salmon, lingcod, & rockfish



It was very interesting watching the people who went on the charter and listening their stories of how they struggled when they were reeling in their big catch. There is a derby throughout the summer to see who catches the biggest halibut.

Seward, Alaska

Seward is located on Resurrection Bay,127 miles south of Anchorage, population 2606. Historically, Seward was an important transportation hub for Alaska's mining, exploration, fishing and trapping industry. Resurrection Bay, a year- round ice-free harbor, made Seward an important cargo and fishing port as well as a strategic military post during WWII.

This church is St.Peter's Episcopal church-it is considered the oldest protestant church on the Kenai Peninsula.







This is the original hotel and it is still open for business.

































Brown & Hawkins is one of the oldest family owned business in Alaska. It was built in 1904.

Exit Glacier

Exit Glacier is 3 miles long and descends some 2,500 feet from the Harding Icefield. Bears like to hangout on the hillsides. We didn't see one the day we were there.

Trans-Alaska pipeline

You are able to see the trans-Alaska pipelines at various sections in Alaska-800-mile,8-billion dollar project. The people who were involved in the construction of the pipe lines have taken the environment ,the wild life, vegetation into great thought and consideration.

Goldmine-Dredge#8-Fairbanks,Alaska

While in Fairbanks we had to try our skill in gold panning. we went to a goldmine that is set-up as a museum.

The buildings on the site were actual buildings that were used in a goldmine. Dredge # 8 was a active mine. we were given a tour and were shown how gold was mined from the ground.









A crash course in gold panning was followed by the real thing. Guests, that was us, grabbed a poke filled with pay dirt and tried our hand in panning gold in the sluice box. When we struck it rich, we were allowed to keep our gold. Next, we went to the assay office where our gold was weighed and assay its market value-together we got 16 troy oz. which was placed in a circular vial and made into a necklace.




After that hard work we went to the mess hall and had an authentic miner dinner- all you can eat beef stew, biscuit, tea and cake. We had fun.

North Pole, Alaska

North Pole is located along the Richardson Highway, approximately 12 miles southeast of Fairbanks, population 1595. The town was named as such hoping to attract a toy manufacturer who could advertise products made in North Pole. Although the toy industry did not materialize, the city developed the theme city "where the spirit of Christmas lives year round." The visitors information building plus other buildings are made from logs with sod roofs

Fairbanks,Alaska

Fairbanks city is located in the heart of Alaska's great interior country on the Yukon River- population 31,182


The pictures where taken downtown Fairbanks.

We were there the last week in June 2007 and it was daylight all the time - appro. 23 hours . We did so much walking and the air is so fresh that we didn't have any problems sleeping.