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Great Things to See and Do When Visiting Homer, Alaska

I had the chance to recently visit the great town of Homer, located at the tip of the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. Homer has a lot to offer the visitor with a wide array of things to see and do. Homer primarily sprung up as a fishing village and continues to be one of the premier halibut fishing areas in the entire world. It is also world famous because of the “Homer Spit”, a 4.5 mile skinny stretch of land that extends straight off of the peninsula and separates the Kachemak Bay and the Gulf of Alaska. Homer offers breathtaking views of the surrounding volcanic mountains and bays and is truly one of the most picturesque spots I have ever seen. But here are a few things I was able to do while visiting that I would highly recommend to anyone who visits.

Do a “flightseeing” tour – We were able to rent a little Cessna plane that only sat 3 (me, my wife, and our pilot) and go out over the Kachemack Bay and the Harding Ice Field which contains many glaciers directly across from the Homer Spit. It truly was amazing getting a bird’s eye view of the bay, mountains, glaciers, and we were even able to spot some wildlife along the way. It wasn’t cheap, but well worth it.

Islands & Oceans Exhibit – This is a great new exhibit that focuses on the habitat of the oceans and islands of Alaska. The exhibit hall does a great job of showing the history of Alaska as well as the history of the wildlife and the different problems they have had with endangered species and how they are working to bring many back to a healthy population. It is very well done as we were pleasantly surprised given it is in such a remote area. But don’t go thinking you are going to spend the whole day there. Between the short film and walking around looking at the exhibits, plan on 1-2 hours. Admission is free.

Drive Homer Spit – You can’t go to Homer and not go out on the spit. It is quite an experience driving out on such a small strip of land with ocean on both sides of you and surrounded by huge mountains. There are a ton a great little touristy shops selling all kinds of fun stuff. Keep you eyes out for bald eagles as they are abundant out of the spit and don’t forget to stop in the “Salty Dawg Saloon” and famous landmark that believe it or not, truly is full of a bunch of old “salty dawgs” (at least it was when I went in).

Overall, Homer truly is a great little town and I would recommend visiting to anyone who is able to make it to that part of the world.

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