Kenai Peninsula Points of Interest

Let's go caribou-spotting on the wide open spaces at the mouth of the world-famous river system. This spot is one of your best bets for viewing these beautiful, stately beasts.

When people visit Homer, they may like to spend a day or two going “across the bay”— taking a boat or air taxi across Kachemak Bay to explore the quaint villages that straddle the line between towns and wilderness.

Here you’ll find 375,000 acres of forest, fjords, mountains and ocean. You can hike along 40 miles of trails, fish for salmon or rainbow  More...

Out of ideas for what to do? Check out the log books at this cabin to see who has stayed here and what they've done. 

This 18-mile-long loop gravel road is the premier wildlife-viewing area on the Kenai Peninsula, and you'll get spectacular views of lakes and glaciers. Don't forget to stop and explore all the nature and wildlife around you!

Sure, Homer's the "Halibut Fishing Capital of Alaska," but even non-anglers will revel in this end-of-the-road Alaska town. An eclectic mix of artists, fishermen, and outdoor lovers make up the lifeblood of Homer, drawn by its slow pace and postcard-ready setting by the clear-water bay. The heart of town is the Homer Spit, a long, narrow finger of land jutting into the bay.

When the original town site of Seward was established in 1903, Lowell Creek ran down what is now Jefferson Street. (At 100 feet, Jefferson Street is the widest right-of-way in Seward.) Lowell Creek originates in the ice fields of the rugged Kenai Mountains, producing from one to three severe floods per year. Until the Diversion Tunnel was constructed in 1939, large quantities of  More...

The Swiss Kilcher family came to this country on a boat in the 1940s escaping the horrors of World War II in Europe, blessing Homer with outstanding talents in the performing as well as visual arts. They homesteaded 600 acres at mile 12.5 East End Road, near the head of Kachemak Bay.

Digging for clams is easy and fun—kinda like fishing, but without all that waiting. Here are the top road-accessible clam havens south of Anchorage:

Anytime, though the best season is from April through September. Taste peaks in early  More...

Finding your lost puppy is probably easier than this. Understand how refuge staff try to bring moose back to an area. It's not as simple as putting up posters.

Stop at the Scenic View RV Park for a breathtaking view of four volcanoes. Mt. Iliamna, Mt. Redoubt, Mt. Augustine and Mt. Spurr. These smoldering mountains are part of the pacific “ring of fire” with Mt. Redoubt erupting as recently as March 2009. Look for the interpretive sign to learn more about Alaska volcanoes.  

Visitors driving down to Homer (south west from Anchorage) find a perfect pull out rest stop on the right side of the highway on the hill above town. From this vantage, they get a preview of the pleasures to come. Fishing boats' windows twinkle out in Cook Inlet and Kachemak Bay, the Spit stretches half way across Kachemak Bay, and the snowy mountains on far side of the bay, embracing Kachemak Bay State Park, plus of course the the town itself.

The Salty Dawg Saloon was originally one of the first cabins built here in 1897, just after the town was established. Today, a visit to the historic Salty Dawg Saloon on the spit will enhance your visit and put you in touch with many locals. Much more than a saloon, the Dawg has regular music performances and also serves light food.

This tiny town along the Sterling Highway may be known as “North America’s Most Westerly Highway Point,” but it has another, lesser publicized claim to fame: this is where locals love to come fish.

In the spring, it’s king salmon, followed by Dolly Varden and silver salmon in the summer; in the fall, you can catch steelhead until freeze-up.

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See the small body of water to the right? This is the upper end of Hidden Lake. Find out what natural changes have occurred to it over time. 

This little town 10 miles northeast of Soldotna shares its name with the highway that cuts through the Kenai Peninsula. Ironically, one of the best reasons to pull over here is to steer a different kind of vehicle: a canoe.  The Swan Lake Canoe Route starts 12 miles down Swan Lake Rd and offers a 17-mile float into town on the Moose River and over 60 miles of lakes and short  More...

Russian fur traders colonized this fishing village in 1820. Steeped in the history of early Russian America, it offers an old-world setting with its Russian Orthodox Church on the hill, quaint fishermen's cottages and log homes. Information signs tell the history of Ninilchik and walking tour maps are available at local businesses. A trail leads to the church and cemetery on the hill.  More...

Take a stroll down the boardwalk as it winds along the river. There are several interpretive signs with information about fishing, dall sheep, rafting and boat safety. You'll also find access to Pioneer Village where you can pan for gold at Prospector John's Authentic Gold Panning.

This spot, about a mile outside the town of Seldovia, offers big views that stretch out to the mouth of Kachemak Bay and even to Cook Inlet.

 Across the Inlet, you can also see the Pacific Ring of Fire, including Mount Illiamna and Mount Redoubt, each standing at10,000 and 11,000 feet. Even though they're some 75 miles away, on some days they seem like they’re  More...

In an area that’s famous for fishing, here is one spot where you don’t need a tackle box to blend in. As the name implies, this is a clamming town— with thousands of razor clams harvested annually from the sandy beaches.

Best of all, there is a pretty short learning curve for clamming: all you need is a little gear, a few safety pointers and a license, all  More...

The Keen-Eye Nature Trail is .75 miles long through a wooded area with a side trail leading down to Headquarters Lake. The Centennial Trail provide an additional 1.9 mile loop through a wooded area with further opportunity to view wildlife in the area. There are three basic options on these refuge trails. First and easiest is the 0.3 mile (one way), "accessible with assistance,"  More...

You don't have to go into the art galleries (although that's a good idea) to enjoy art in Homer. Many of the businesses, especially on Pioneer Avenue, adorn their buildings with outstanding outdoor art works.

Lawing was once named Roosevelt. “Alaska Nellie” purchased a cabin there in 1923 and later married Billie Lawing of Seattle. Together they ran a lodge and trophy museum that became a featured stop for Alaska Railroad passengers. Nellie loved to tell stories and her guests enjoyed her tales of daring and adventure on the Last Frontier.

This creek near Cooper Landing was one of Alaska's earliest gold finds. Peter Doroshin, a mining engineer for the Russian American Company, discovered gold in the area in 1850. Joseph Cooper later discovered gold in 1884, but he did not file a claim. Charles Sickels filed the first claim on Cooper Creek in 1895. Cooper returned in 1896 to stake claims on his namesake creek. The  More...

Check out this salmon-friendly habitat and learn why so many salmon spawn here annually. 

As you head down the Homer Spit, you'll see a collection of grounded boats. Some are occupied, and others are abandoned. All add to the charm of the Homer Spit. 

This little town 16 miles north of Kenai makes a nice spot for families to stop for a meal, stock up on supplies at M&M Market, and get advice on local fishing hotspots and camping locations.

At Captain Cook State Recreation Area, 13 miles further north, you can get a great camping site—with great views of the Cook Inlet, Mt. Spurr, Mt. Redoubt, & Mt.  More...

If you need a moment to yourself, this lonesome lake is a great place to find quiet solitude--and some excellent rainbow trout fishing. But that's not all it's great for. 

A most spectacular view from the head of Kachemak Bay to Augustine volcano, this 180 degree panoramic view of ice, sea, mountains and sky makes a great backdrop for your souvenir Alaskan photos. The view changes season to season according to what wildflowers are in bloom and depending upon varying cloud, sky, and snow conditions.

One of the most spectacular and accessible glaciers along the rail line, Spencer Glacier also has an interesting history. Listen to find out how it got it’s name and hear tales of what life was like for those who worked in the wilderness building the rail line.

Grab your optics and let’s take in the 360-degree view here at the start of the Kenai River, Alaska’s world-renowned salmon fishing hot spot. See wildlife up on the hillsides, songbirds, waterfowl, and the brilliant ice-blue Kenai Lake and River. Breathtaking.

(pop. 489)

Ken Tarbox is your guide to this area. Ken's a retired fishery biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. He's lived in the area for 32 years and wouldn't change a thing about it. 

The pass is an ideal location to witness the tremendous power that glaciers have had on the landscape. On the west side of the road at the pullout, travelers can see evidence of the millennial processes of past ice ages. Low, near-horizontal ridges mark the locations of glacial moraines near the tops of the mountains. These ridges, like bathtub rings, indicate changing ice depths as  More...

The Jesse Lee Home for Children is the second of three child welfare institutions in Alaska to bear the name. The first was established at Unalaska in the Aleutian Islands in 1890. The home was moved to Seward on Resurrection Bay in 1926. Following damage to the home in the 1964 earthquake, the Jesse Lee Home was relocated to its present location in Anchorage in 1965.

Above Homer, up East Hill and right on Skyline Drive a mile and a half (a beautiful drive along the bluffs overlooking Homer), watch for the Wynn Nature Center, managed by the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies. You can stroll in the wilderness among the beautiful flora and watch for wildlife or take a tour guided by a well-informed naturalist.

Stick to your workout routine with Seldovia Village Tribe’s Exercise Room. The SVT Exercise Room is located inside the Seldovia Conference Center and enjoys a near-panoramic view of Seldovia Bay.

Stop at the turnout to photograph this beautiful hanging glacier high on the mountainside.

This is a must stop for photos of beautiful Kenai Lake. The lake was formed from glacier water is a majestic blue and green tone. You'll find several parking areas along the lake and signs that give you a little history about it.

Drive a steep dirt road right up into alpine tundra terrain, rising from pristine white spruce forest onto tundra-covered hillsides surrounded by mountain ridges and rocky peaks. Camping is optional.

By midday, fishing boats have returned with their catch. Walk over to the fish cleaning tables to see halibut, salmon, and other quarry from the deep.

Homer is known throughout Alaska as the state's premier artist community, home to dozens of galleries and artists. You'll find a convenient cluster of galleries worth visiting along "Gallery Row," the stretch of Pioneer Avenue between Main Street and Lake Street. Here are three we like.

Picture Alaska (448 E. Pioneer Ave.) features original paintings and fine art  More...

The town of Kasilof  (pronounced kuh-SEE-loff) has a lot of the great activities that other Kenai Peninsula towns do—fishing, camping and wildlife viewing. But this tiny town 15 miles south of Soldotna, on the Sterling Highway, is also a vibrant dog sledding  community—while here you can visit the kennel of Dean Osmar, an Iditarod champion, and take a ride  More...