I don’t even know where to BEGIN in recapping our epic summer vacation in Homer, Alaska! It was memorable in so many ways.
First, let me address the question I get asked most…”Why Alaska?” For the same reason Ryan and I pretty much travel anywhere…for a fish 😂. Homer, Alaska is the Halibut capital of the world and Ryan has always talked about going. When we started to plan it, we asked our friends Jordan and Kristen if they wanted to join and to our surprise, they said yes!
So we booked our flights from Norfolk, VA to Anchorage, AK, rented a car with Turo, found the most amazing Airbnb, and made an itinerary!
The beginning of our Summer Vacation in Homer, Alaska…
Let me start out by saying, the treck to Home is NOT for the faint of heart lol. We arrived in Anchorage around 8 pm their time which was 12 pm our time and THEN we had a FOUR HOUR drive ahead of us to our Airbnb. Fortunately, it only gets dark there for a few hours so we had more light for the drive but when it got dark, it was very dark. And finding this cabin in the dark wasn’t easy.
Thankfully we survived (honestly, I don’t say that lightly) and we woke up to the most beautiful view.
**If you are planning a trip to Homer, allow me to suggest flying and driving on separate days.**
On our first day, we knew we’d be tired so we slept in, got bagels from the BEST bagel shop, and then checked out the town.
We hit up the Salty Dawg Saloon, Salmon Sisters, a brewery, and Wasabi’s Bistro for dinner. At the saloon, everyone puts dollars on the wall so if you ever make it there, be on the lookout for ours 😉.
The woman at the brewery said she could tell we were not from Alaska because Alaskans don’t wear white shoes. We all were wearing white shoes 😂.
Then it was time for the ACTION…
The next morning was what we came there for…the fishing trip!
We went with the Coldwater Alaska team because Ryan had heard such great things about them in the spearfishing community. All were true because our guide, Brian, put us in all the action.
He said we had one of the best days he’d seen in a while too as far as weather and seas went. We saw otters, sea lions, puffins, and a pod of ORCAS! The orcas were breathtaking. There were at least 10 of them out there and we could tell some were HUGE.
(I highly suggest watching my “Alaska” highlight for the full effect)
Our boat ride to the fishing grounds was probably about 2/3 hours out but with all the life we saw, it went by fast. And we did make a cool pit stop for a nature pee on an island.
We went out to where there was kelp as large as palm trees underwater. Ryan suited up and Brian set the rest of us up with fishing rods and bait.
I actually hooked the first halibut of the day! As soon as I started to reel in my line, that fish RAN! I actually got a gnarly bruise from fighting it. It entangled my line in the kelp but fortunately Ryan dove and found it! He put a shot in it (spearfishing) and we had our first fish of the day! We were hype.
We ended up bringing home 7 halibut! We had it filleted and frozen there. Then we shipped part of it home and flew with the rest. It was over 80lbs of fish!
Our next Alaskan adventure was to a glacier!
Coldwater actually boated us to Grewingk Glacier Lake Trail. It’s a 3-mile hike and is rated easy but your girl def struggled a bit lol.
This could partly be because I am out of shape and partly because our friend Jordan was practically RUNNING to the glacier so he could PROPOSE!
We’ve known Jordan since college so it was SO exciting and special to get to witness his proposal to Kristen with the most beautful backdrop!
We also got to witness one of these glaciers carving which was so cool. The hike to our pick-up location was even more beautiful than the hike to the glacier too!
The last adventure of our summer vacation in Homer, Alaska…BEARS!
Ever want to get in a tiny plane and fly over treacherous mountains to see giant animals? Lol it wasn’t at the top of my bucket list but I am glad we did it!
We went with Alaska Bear Adventures and they were also great. The people of Homer were all GREAT.
Our pilot was a master and we lucked out again with great weather AND a whale carcass had washed ashore for the first time since 2016 and the grizzles were flocking to it!
They provided us with the fancy wader pants you see in these photos and packed us into a 6 passenger plane for an hour ride to see some furry friends.
The bears were actually pretty close but they are so food-driven (the whale) that they hardly paid us any mind. The backdrop was amazing too. There were some aggressive mosquitos though but they were worth it for this once-in-a-lifetime experience. We even got to see them fight each other!
Wrapping up our adventure…
We stayed our last night at the Homer Inn and Spa which was cool but nowhere near as amazing as our Airbnb. It also was a DIY spa? Lol
The trip back home was pretty much as rough as it was getting there though definitely less dangerous.
We packed a LOT into just 6 days. I would go back in a heartbeat but I would build in more time to rest/travel. I’d also be better about making dinner reservations ahead and NOT book it during the annual Salmon Festival (half the town closed down all of a sudden to celebrate!).
The weather and views were unendingly amazing. The perfect escape from humid Virginia!
If you decide to do a summer vacation in Homer, Alaska (or anytime) I’d love to hear about it!
