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The campsite we stay at for a few nights in Ninilchik was wooded and on the bluff, but what was most interesting was the campground host of the state recreation area. Rick, who lives alone and looks like a salty fisherman of a sort, showed me his great find on the beach- dug right out of the sand during one of his daily walks. It was beautiful, polished shades of brown, either a tooth or a claw. Those who are supposed to know, including some fossil experts in Montana (where Rich spends six months out of the year) are stumped by the find. He reported that a local woman, upon seeing his find offered him $500 immediately. He laughed and said, "Oh, no, I can't do that. She added another "0" to her offer, but he declined. Quite a find on just another beach walk. He told me that about 16 miles South of Ninilchik fossilized Mammoth bones have recently been found washed ashore. We plan to stop there for a few days on our way out of the Kenai.
I have yet to take my Halibut day boat fishing excursion, instead, I bought a good used Halibut fishing pole, a heavy duty real, 50 lb. fabric testline with really BIG hooks, called "c" hooks. They curl around more than the typical "j" hooks most of us have seen and used. The bait I bought were Herring, about the same size as the trout on a good day of fishing in Colorado. Armed with gear and bate and new rubber mucking boots, I set off to catch my limit casting from shore. I fished three or four times over the next couple of days, mostly at high tide, but to no avail. Skunked, yep! No fish story here, but I am undaunted. Well, what does this have to do with the title of this posting? When you are skunked in the fishing department you can always go agate hunting. Both Louise and I have been successful, but just like fish, they are no easy to catch (or find). All three of us have spent many, many hours over the past week rock hounding and combing the beach.
With pockets full of interesting finds, we cull, sort and sometimes store the precious finds.
Bald Eagles are everywhere up here. They love to cruise the winds along the bluffs and they rule the roost when it comes to beach food. They live together with sea gulls; the gulls, however, know their place. The eagles are truly magnificent creatures and very LARGE in person. Both Louise and I have been able to picture capture them in flight and perching on the cliffs and trees, oftentimes eliciting a sense of awe by their sight.
Hillslides, not hillsides. Yep, within a 1/4 mile of where we had just walked, a goodly chunk of bluff gave way and crashed down onto the sandy shoreline. The avalanche of sand and sandstone created what looks like a sandstorm cloud, which took several minutes to dissipate. WE were thankful that we had decided to turn back and to stay away from the bluff that seemed to always be shedding some sand and stones.
We traveled to Homer today, a relatively short drive from Ninilchik. We elected to go on the cheap and dry camp in one of the town's RV settings along what is know as the "Homer Spit," a jet of land about two miles out into the Sound. It is one of the most beautiful panoramic scenes we have ever witnessed, but that is another entry for another time. I do have to share before I sign off, I saw a King Salmon that someone caught ten minutes before I arrived to try my luck at King fishing, it was HUGE, perhaps 3 feet long. Talk about getting someone interested in fishing for Kings the first time in my life. Yes, the two hours of fishing netted me zippo, but then there is tomorrow!
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