Soldotna, Alaska

On our drive from Homer to Soldotna we saw a beautiful mountain range with peaks covered in snow.  The most predominant is the Redoubt Volcano or Mount Redoubt which is an active volcano in the Aleutian Range.  Located at the head of the Chigmit Mountains subrange, the mountain is just west of Cook Inlet in the Kenai Peninsula and about 110 miles from Anchorage. It is 9,150 feet in elevation and last erupted in March, 2009.  There are other volcanoes in the range that are still active but Mount Redoubt is the most striking. 

How's that for a home view of the Cook Inlet and the mountains on the other side.

Soldotna is located on the central-western portion of the Kenai Peninsula.  The city spans along seven miles of the Kenai River which empties into the Cook Inlet in the nearby town of Kenai.  It is considered one of the world's best places for fishing and hunting opportunities.  It is located on the western edge of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge which is a two million acre home to bears, moose, caribou, sheep, and many fish and bird species. 

After World War II, the U.S.government opened up the area to settlement under the Homestead Act allowing veterans a 90-day preference in selecting land and filing for property.  The location of Soldotna was selected as the site for the building of a bridge across the Kenai River.

The main draw in Soldotna is fishing the Kenai River.  This river has a very fast and dangerous current.  A boardwalk was built to stop erosion into the river and also to keep people from falling in.  You could be easily swept away.   

This boater had to keep the motor going so the current wouldn't sweep them down the river.

The boardwalk along the Kenai River is a great place to walk and it is also used for fishing from the side of the river.  

Walking down to the river from the welcome center in town.

The walkway covers several miles along the river and has open sections with stairs where the fisherman can get closer to the water.

There are a series of steps and landings that can take you down to the water to fish.  Many of the steps we saw were partially under water.

There are also openings in the fence along the river for the critters.

Animal protection is very important to the people of Soldotna. 

The town of Soldotna is filled with many parks and trails so the pups enjoyed their visit.  One park we went to is used for cross country skiing in the winter.  This time of year many people bring their dogs to it for exercise.  Since the park trails are very wide, the owners ride their bikes and let their dogs run loose with them.  We saw some beautiful big dogs loping along the trails having a great time.  Desi and Lucy were walking with us because they have just gotten too old to run but I told the Captain I would love to have a park like this where we live and a young dog to exercise.  That would be a blast!

We drove over to the Town of Kenai because we wanted to see the mouth of the river where it flows into Cook Inlet. It is where  thousands of salmon enter the river to come back to their spawning beds and another great place for fisherman, especially the commercial ones. 

This is one of the buildings from the original town.

After driving all over town we were unable to find where the mouth of the river was and finally gave up knowing we would be back another day.

The highways along the Kenai Peninsula have these signs posted.  We were surprised at how many moose have been killed since July 1st.

We decided to get up early one morning to drive along the highway on the Cook Inlet to get more views of the mountain range with the volcanoes.  This is easier said than done because there are few pullouts to look at the range and often the trees and bushes were so overgrown we couldn't see anything.  Another problem is that many people have purchased property and built homes along the Cook Inlet and you can't see past their land to the water.  The third problem is that this range is so high that often there are clouds disrupting the views.  But we persevered!  Got dressed, grabbed some coffee, raced to 'The Moose Is Loose' for breakfast goodies, and hit the road.

Mount Spurr , a 11,100 foot volcano, last erupted in 1992 showering Anchorage with inches of ash. 

There are four active volcanoes in the Aleutian Range, Mt. Augustine, Mt. Illiamna, Mt Redoubt, and Mt Spurr.  Redoubt and Spurr are the easiest to recognize because Redoubt has such a high peak and the top of Sparr looks like it collapsed since it last erupted. 

In 1859, Russia offered to sell Alaska to the United States because they were in debt from the Crimean War.  Due to the looming U.S. Civil War the sale was delayed until 1867.  Secretary of State William Seward took up the renewed offer from Russia and agreed to a proposal from Russia to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million dollars.  It was called Seward's Folly at the time.  Can you imagine...

The Russian influence can still be found in many areas in naming conventions and also Russian Orthodox churches.

The Holy Assumption Orthodox Church is a Russian Orthodox parish completed in 1896. It is the oldest standing Russian Orthodox church in Alaska.  It is an approximately 20 by 50 foot cruciform-shaped building.  Beautiful Mount Redoubt is in the distance.

The church sits on a bluff overlooking Cook Inlet.  Below it is the little village of Ninilchik.

Another day went by and we decided to look again for the mouth of the Kenai River.  Desi, every vigilant, was helping us look.  

We found our way back to Cook Inlet and the breath-taking volcanoes.  And then we spotted an access to the beach of Cook Inlet and way off in the distance we thought we saw where the inlet and river meet.  So we started walking along the beach, and walking some more, and more, etc.

In the distance we could see a boat heading toward what had to be the mouth of the river.

We finally made it. We had been told that when the salmon rush is heavy seals will hang around the mouth of the river and catch the salmon and toss them in the air.  They like to play with them.  Unfortunately, they also bite the bellies of the fish which kills them even though the seals don't eat the fish.

When we got there the large influx of fish had diminished so we didn't see any salmon or seals in the water.  There were plenty of birds hanging around and a short distance into the river were fishing boats so we knew the salmon were still coming in. 

Next to the river there is a large protected wildlife area for birds and other animals.  It looks empty but we understand there are a lot of animals and birds living in here in the summer.

As we walked to the mouth of the river we noticed a large bird on the beach just sitting and looking out at the water in Cook Inlet.  Every time we tried to get a picture it would fly off.  On the way back we saw it again and this time the bird allowed us to get a good distance shot of it.

A huge bald eagle was looking for dinner.

That made the long walk worthwhile.

While in the area we drove into the town of Kenai (again) this time to check out another Russian Church.

This is the Holy Assumption of the Virgin Mary Russian Orthodox Church.  It was built in 1894.  

Whereas the other church had gold colored golden domes, this church was done in blue.

Near the church is the Chapel of St Nicholas, built in 1906 as a tribute to Iguman Nikolai, the first missionary in the Kenai area.  Father Nikolai and two assistants were responsible for bringing the smallpox vaccine to the Kenai Peninsula.  The chapel was built over their graves.


During our week in Soldotna we also checked out some of the local places.  I mentioned earlier the Moose is Loose Bakery.  This place is famous for wonderful breakfast goodies.  

We stopped there one morning before our drive and purchased two apple fritters to go with our coffee.  I'm not usually a breakfast roll person but these were wonderful.  Light and fluffy with chunks of apple in it.  Yummy!  And, of course, a minimum of calories.

We also made a stop at one of the local breweries called Kenai River Brewing Company.

Needless to say, all beer was served in 12 ounce glasses. 

This was one of their food specials.  Sorry, we passed.

We had a nice time in Soldotna and the weather was beautiful.  Our next stop will be a few days back in Mat-Su Valley and then on to Glacier View to see and maybe touch some glaciers.  The weather prediction is for highs in the lower 40's and lows in the lower 30's.  That's because we will be at an elevation of 3,566 feet.  Peace!