Have you ever had one of those days? You know – you get up with a plan and then the plan becomes even better in the doing of it? Yup? Hubbymoose and I had the same type day today.
We had originally thought to go to Homer Sunday and spend the night. For a couple of different reasons that did not work out. Plan number 2: sleep in a bit Monday, have breakfast and then drive to Homer for a day trip. Yay! We love day trips.
While waiting for our breakfast to arrive we heard the women in the booth behind me chatting about their plans for the day. We knew they were not from hereabouts when local names were mispronounced many times. I smiled at hubbymoose and turned to ask if we could help them find something.
Turns out they were also planning a trip to Homer and having trouble figuring out the directions and the stops they wanted to make. We chatted a bit and gave them some ideas. During the convo I told them we were also headed to Homer. They asked about hotels there and wondered if they’d be able to find a room, with a backup plan of driving back to Kenai to spend another night here. I loaned them my phone (theirs don’t work in AK – Verizon and Sprint – sigh) and they found a place to stay in Homer.
I turned back the hubby and said – shall we offer to guide them? He laughed and said “I was wondering when you would suggest it.”
We introduced ourselves around made the offer and they accepted. After they checked out of the hotel we gathered in the parking lot to discuss where to stop first, where I’d be turning, etc. We set off with them following – stopped at the Kenai City Dock area to see if they could see any birds – or, lacking that, at least the mountains. Sadly no birds – AND – the mountains were covered in misty clouds.
Onward!
As we headed down Bridge Access Rd. I quickly pulled over so they could take pictures of a small flock of sand hill cranes. Further down K-Beach Rd. was a moose near the highway so more pictures were taken.
This was how our day went, with stops along the way for scenic pictures and points of interest, including a stop for coffee in Ninilchik at the Daily Buzz. We chatted with locals all along the way and generally had a great time.
There, of course, was the requisite stop in Anchor Point at the farthest westerly point on a paved highway in the US. Here’s a picture of Rose, Dotty and Marlene.
Rose and Marlene are cousins. Marlene lives in Michigan. Rose and Dotty live near Tampa.
Our first stop upon reaching Homer was the Heritage Hotel which, by the way, is storied to be haunted. Sadly the clerk could not tell us the story . . . but did show the stairwell involved and the room.
We had lunch together at Fat Olives and had some great conversation. We made sure they had maps and a guide book and some suggestions on things to do, then parted company.
Hubbymoose and I stopped at Two Sisters Bakery, then went down to the Homer Spit and walked among the different shops along the boardwalk, then walking on the beach at the end of the road. We had a great time laughing and talking and getting wind and sun burnt before heading back to Kenai.
It’s a beautiful thing when people are in the right place at the right time and willing to take a chance on trusting each other. Thanks, ladies. And, thanks, hubbymoose. I had a most wonderful, excellent day.