Our travels today took us north of Kasilof, with a first
stop at the Visitors Center for the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. We did a brief tour of their indoor exhibits
but had really planned to hike their trails.
However, no dogs. So we had to leave poor Ranger in the back
seat while we did a short walk to the lake.
We did see about eight different types of birds, which was good compared
to most of our birding outings this trip.
A stop at the tourist
information center in Soldotna resulted in walking Ranger along their path to
the Historical Museum. There were actual
cabins in which homesteaders lived, furnished according to the period, along
with the original school house. One gets a picture in mind of the mid-19th
century, but Soldotna was actually settled post-World War II! The area was uninhabited at that time, and
the federal government offered 160 acres free to any veteran who would
homestead. He must build some sort of
dwelling, live there for seven months out of the first year, and he would be
given the deed to the property. And
people really came. The schoolhouse which was used in the early 1950’s was lit
by Coleman lanterns, and the teacher had to carry a gun while coming to work
due to the bears in the area! Hard to
believe all of that was happening within our lifetime. Even I recognized and remembered the foot-treadle sewing machine, the metal lunch boxes, and the "Dick, Jane, and Sally" school books. Soldotna today is a thriving town with a
small airport, restaurants, stores, and all the amenities of current times.
The drive along the Kenai Spur Road was surprising in that I
was not aware of the oil drilling taking place in Cook Inlet. The scenery was a mix of trees and industrial
buildings, and the road ended at Captain Cook State Recreation Area in the
northwest corner of the Kenai Peninsula. Looking out from the beach, we could
see oil-drilling platforms. We had a
sandwich (surrounded by the notorious Alaska mosquitoes), drove through the
campground there (nice, but very buggy!) and then headed back, stopping for a
few groceries on the way home.
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