Spit Spelled Backwards is Tips

Started out the weekend by driving 45 minutes North of Anchorage up to Palmer, AK Saturday morning. Upon arriving, we grabbed a quick lunch at the Downtown Deli where Jess and I had some pretty great turkey-bacon-guac sandwiches after trying some Butter Cookie Nutella gelato. Next we headed to the Reindeer Farm where we were able to pet and feed the reindeer. We also had the opportunity to feed/pet their 2 moose: Denali and Kenai which was a really great experience. Here's a video of me feeding one of the reindeer:

Then we drove 5 hours South of Anchorage to Homer, AK, The Halibut Fishing Capital of the World. Our first night there we headed to the Homer Spit where the boat harbor, sea kayaking, fishing charters, camping, etc happens. We stopped by the Salty Dawg Saloon which you may have seen from the show Deadliest Catch. This bar is where a lot of the fishermen hangout when they come in from being out at sea. Unfortunately, none of them were in Homer for us to see/meet.

After all our travelling, we were pretty hungry and the Boardwalk Fish and Chips was the perfect place to end up. The place was right on the water, and all their fish was caught fresh that day by a local fisherman. It was decorated with local signs including: "Spit spelled backwards is tips". It was here that I enjoyed the best halibut I've had so far.

We headed inland to the downtown area of Homer to find a place to stay for the night. We ended up at the heritage hotel which was reasonably priced for the nice (1st) room we were provided. Due to a minor issue we were "upgraded" rooms which moved us to a 70s style retro room where a band was playing at the bar next door. Luckily Jess had some clothespins with her to ensure our room would be dark for the night - something none of us have experienced since being here with the perpetual sunlight.

Sunday morning we headed to breakfast at the diner next door. I enjoyed a "Full Sail" which included thick french toast and crispy bacon - mmm breakfast! We then booked our sea kayaking tour with True North Kayak Adventures who were great in accommodating our last minute request. So we headed to the Spit to the Boardwalk Bakery where the ladies there were AMAZING and put together boxed lunches for our day trip. They even put our names on our bags which made me feel like my mom had made my lunch :)

At 10:45am, we started our adventure by gearing up with rain pants and rain boots - I'll try and get these pictures from Jessica. We look like mini-fishermen! Our water taxi took us from the harbor to a neighboring island across the bay. Here we met our tour guide Brad who lives on another island and kayaks to work everyday. Yeah, he's pretty hardcore. From there we went over the basics of kayaking and got our boats in the water. I was in a single kayak while Celeste and Jess had a double, and it was pretty amusing as we all learned how to steer with our rudders. While kayaking around the island we came across a couple of sea otters that were eating and cleaning themselves as they floated past us. We also saw a variety of sea anemones and barnacles and were able to touch them. It rained a little during our trip, but by the end the sun came out as we went ashore to enjoy our boxed lunches on the beach. My lunch consisted of: chicken salad sandwich on focaccia with southwestern pasta salad and a ranger cookie (rice krispies, coconut, and oatmeal). As my mom says, I'm eating well up in Alaska :)

Once we finished lunch, we were picked up by a water taxi and were transported back to the harbor where we changed out of our rain gear. We then hopped in the car and headed back to Anchorage. Upon our return we headed to the Glacier Brewhouse where we met up with Becca and ended our weekend adventure. Celeste and I split a halibut, salmon, and cod dish that I enjoyed with a raspberry wheat beer that I can honestly say has been added to my list of favorite beers. We'll probably be back there for Growler Tuesdays :)

Monday was a fairly normal day back at work. I learned a lot about the Warrior Transition Unit where we work with soldiers as they return from deployment. I really hope I have the opportunity to take part in this sometime next week.

We have already started planning our next adventure - so check back soon to see what this week holds!