After we left Homer there were two things I really wanted to do. One was to drive to the end of the most westerly road in North America. The other was to watch the tractor launch / retrieval of the fishing boats in the Inlet.
We headed to Anchor Point and took the Old Sterling Highway to the Anchor Point Beach Road that in turn took us to the the end of the road of the most westerly highway point in North America. It was just one of those “we’re close, so you’ve gotta do it” things. And a bonus was that at the end of the road was one of the tractor boat launch/retrieval operations.
These areas are closer to good fishing grounds than the nearest ports, so launching fishing boats from the beach makes economic sense. The cost for a launch and retrieval is around $75, and it’s quite a sight. We stayed awhile to watch and also stopped at the state day-use area and then headed up the road.
Our next destination, a few more miles up the highway, was the Deep Creek Beach State Recreation Area. The road down was pretty bad and full of potholes but we went slowly down the steep hill. At the bottom was another tractor boat launch/retrieval operation and the campground.
First we went to claim a spot in the campground. The campground was okay. Mostly, it was a parking lot with tables and a fire ring going down a center row. There were vault toilets and a trash receptacle. We picked a spot where no one could block my view of the Inlet and backed up to the center. The beach was very similar to the one at Homer, a lot of fine black gravel. But from here I could watch the tractors doing their job.
We were able to watch many of the boats coming in during the late afternoon. And then the launch started up again early in the morning. It was endless entertainment and fascination for me, but I was able to drag myself away late morning to continue our journey through the Kenai Peninsula for hopefully another great spot.
Here is a video of a boat launch.
Here is a video of boat retrieval.
Day 66 (Day 32 in Alaska)
Miles: 55*
Driving time: 2:00
Roads: Sterling Hwy (AK-1), Old Sterling Hwy, beach roads
Road conditions: Main roads good, roads to beach fair
Overnight: Deep Creek Beach SRA Campground, Ninilchik, AK
Weather: Mostly cloudy (53/61)
Total miles in Alaska: 1,106*
Total miles since crossing Canadian border: 3,666*
Total miles: 5,234*
* Since our motorhome is our only vehicle, mileage includes side trips.