It’s been two straight weeks of John Steinbeck literary references to start off the blog.
That’s it.
No more.
But, “best laid plans…” is a fitting way to describe what happened this past week.
On Monday, the plan was to pack up the camper for a 3 night, 4 day adventure at the Russian River. It’s not easy to get a reservation at this popular destination, so Jane and I were eager to go.
That all changed when Boo from Tall Tale Charters called Sunday night to say he had a couple of openings for a halibut trip on Monday.
Considering that two of his clients, Bob and Lori, were staying at our cabins for the week, spending the day packing the camper would have to wait.
We were glad we went. We had an awesome day of fishing and sightseeing out of Homer.
Put this in the category of “Seeing Something New”. I’ve fished for 40 years out of Homer and I’ve never seen an orca whale. There are plenty of orcas in Cook Inlet, but I had not seen one until this trip. It wasn’t just one, there were close to a dozen swimming near us.
We also saw several humpback whales. While I’ve seen humpback’s before, it never gets old.
When our Homer trip was over, we took our saltwater fish back home to Beaver Creek to process. A bald eagle watched me the entire time. He was very close.
How close? I’d guess 30-40 feet away.
As soon as I threw the fish remains in the creek, Mr. Opportunity swept in for an easy meal. It is illegal to knowingly feed bald eagles, but that is not what I was doing. I was properly getting rid of the remains and not leaving them on land or on the dock.
So, after our unplanned trip to Homer on Monday, Tuesday morning the camper was packed and we drove to the Russian River for 3 days/4 nights of camping and fishing.
On Day 1, Jane and I walked the trails alongside the river scouting for fish and seeing if any fisherman were having any luck. Very few fish were caught or seen. There were so few fish that even the Sanctuary, the area that salmon stage before swimming up the Russian River, was empty. We decided not to fish at all and spent the rest of the day at our campsite.
On Day 2, Bob and Lori joined us and we hiked from the campground all the way down to the Kenai River. After several hours of fishing, with two fish hooked and lost, we all decided it was a good day and headed back to the campground.
On Day 3, Jane and I agreed we had too much to do back home and ended our camping and fishing trip a day early. If the fishing had been better, we would have stayed longer.
Plans are important, but being flexible is too. By making changes, Jane and I were able to see whales, catch a bunch of ocean fish, and spend time getting to know Bob and Lori. I’ve got a strong hunch that their first trip to Alaska won’t be their last.
Of Moose and (Fisher) Men