On to the Kenai Peninsula

Finally leaving Healy, a few miles north of Denali, we headed south toward the Kenai Peninsula. Our intention was to drive about half way, stopping in Anchorage to spend the night in a Walmart parking lot and stock up for the next few weeks. Products on the peninsula will be much more expensive. Except for a short section of road resurfacing the road was very good and I told Helen that the good roads would end when we got south of the big city.

We did stock up at Walmart, but were forbidden to park there over night. It came as a surprise and we tried to come up with an alternate place to stay on the way to Ninilchik. There are many state parks along the route, but each one has a maximum RV length of 22 feet. So we drove on, and on, and on. And we soon found our way to the Scenic View Campground, where I had already made reservations. We got there a day early, but it didn't faze them one bit and soon we were in a camp site. I asked if I could possible change the oil on my motorhome and they said sure. I started draining soon after while the oil was still hot and all mixed up.

This is the view from our campsite.


This is Mount Redoubt and is one of four ACTIVE volcanoes we can see from our site.

It was after 10:00 PM when I finished with the oil and I cleaned up and changed out of my work clothes. Restless, I wanted to check out the area. My drive took me south along Route 1 beyond Ninilchik. Just a mile up the road I saw a female moose grazing beside the road. It was still light, but I couldn't get a picture because the camera was back in the motorhome. Then I stopped by a creek and got a bucket of water and got the most of the road muck off the jeep.

Heading back north, I saw a moose calf trying his best to run along the Deep Creek bridge on legs that seemed way to long for him or her. I stopped the car as there was no traffic at all at this time of night and watched him, thinking that it's odd that his mother is not close. Just then, the mother rose from the side of the road, coming up the embankment looking like Godzilla. I was only ten feet away, but safe in my car, I think. She stopped and looked directly at me, then she looked at the calf, at me once more, then she rose up further, stepped over the guard rail and shuffled her offspring off the bridge and back into the woods. Magnificent, and also NO CAMERA.

The next day, we took the dogs down to the beach at Ninilchik. Both of them ran right in, but I guess they found the water cold, because neither one would go back in the water, and that is, indeed, strange.





Helen wanted me to play ball with the dogs to get them some exercise, but I really didn't like the taste of the ball.



On the way home, we stopped at Deep Creek and let them run in the fresh water. This was a different story. The water was a bit warmer than the ocean and they had a grand time. There was a lot of current and they would swim out and let the current run them through the rapids and then get out, run upstream and do it again.



The campground owner was telling us about a great place to see wildlife in the twilight of the afternoon, meaning after 11:00 PM. So Helen and I headed out to Oil Well Road so see what we could find. We didn't drive too far when we found this Momma moose grazing on the lush grass on the left side of the street. We stopped for a picture and lo and behold, she had a set of twins in the woods on the other side of the street. They were a little skittish and their picture is a bit blurry, but I had to include it.







Further out on Oil Well Road we came upon a lot of interesting scenes, but no big wildlife. We did see a Momma duck and about six ducklings and a couple of large owls. Helen got this interesting picture way out in the woods.



Today we took a ride to the city of Kenai and had a nice lunch at a little cafe. It was a low key day and we had a good time. Tomorrow morning I'm supposed to go out halibut fishing and I'm hoping for the best. I hope I'll be warm enough. I hope I don't get sea sick. And, I even hope I get a fish or two.

later.