Salty Dawg Saloon

Salty Dawg Saloon is an institution in Homer, so we had to pay a visit. As the door creaked open and we stepped inside, we were greeted by the dark glares of twelve bearded fishermen seated around the bar. In the ensuing silence, we were sized up and dismissed as ... *gasp* ... tourists! Fortunately we aren't from the 'Lower 48' and we didn't visit during the busy summer season, so we were served (bottles, no glasses).

The walls of the saloon are covered with one-dollar bills, all signed by the various patrons, so we added our 100 cents' worth to the wall.

We enjoyed our beers in the gloomy fishermen's den, but we soon left for the brighter, less fishy pasture of the wine-tasting course.

A Seaside Getaway

On our trip to Homer we stayed at the Land's End Resort, which has been described as the best-located hotel in Alaska. It is right at the end of a long, narrow spit in Kachemak Bay, and is surrounded on three sides by sea. We stayed in a loft suite so we enjoyed quite a special view of the bay.

Unfortunately we couldn't sneak out onto our balcony to appreciate it...

On Saturday afternoon we decided to walk off our lunch and wine with a stroll along the beach. We braved a howling sea breeze and close to -20 temperatures to do it, and it was worth it. We even stuck our fingers into the sea! Brrrr!

We loved the picturesque drive along the spit road, and we were spoilt for kodak moments. Here is one of our favorites.

We were amazed to see so much wildlife around Homer, and we added some more moose and a couple of sea otters to our list. We also saw hundreds of Bald Eagles, which was awesome! These magnificent birds of prey are endangered in the States, but they abound like scavengers around the fishing ports.

The scenery on the way to Homer was typically exceptional, and once again we were treated to spectacular mountain views. We also drove alongside the beautiful Kenai River, which is a rafting destination in summer. All in all, it was another great weekend in Alaska.

Hi Honey, I'm Homer...

... and it's Caesar Salad for dinner!

We drove down to Homer, a popular seaside town about 240 miles south-east of Anchorage, for a long weekend. The hanger was a cooking and wine-tasting course put on by Van Hale, a top chef in Anchorage. He is famous for his Caesar Salads, and we learnt how best to toss romaine in his delicious (now-not-so-) secret dressing.

During the course we had tasting sessions of varieties of the individual ingredients: ten different balsamic vinegars, ten olive oils, ten parmesan cheeses, six types of anchovies, and four kinds of croutons. It was very cleverly arranged and we learnt a lot about how to combine ingredients.

The weekend also included welcome appetizers on Friday night, a four-course dinner on Saturday night, and Sunday brunch. The best part of the weekend was the fabulous wine-tasting. We sampled eleven different wines from Spain, New Zealand, Argentina, France and America, and we came away laden with a few bottles and many happy memories.