Happy 4th of July!

4 July 2010
Sunday

So how do you celebrate the 4th of July in Alaska? You go to Seldovia!  Accessible by boat or floatplane and populated by some amazing people.

Early morning found Jim getting ready for his fishing charter experience. When we got off the ferry yesterday we watched a group of people with their catch and Jim got the bug. He was able to book a charter which left at 7:00 AM and returned at 4:00 PM. All day long we heard people talking about the rough seas outside the harbor area and how no one would stay out there just to fish. But when he got back no one could wipe the smile off his face! We'll be sending ?? pounds of halibut home for later. Fish fry anyone?

The rest of us had a leisurely morning in sunny Seldovia and enjoyed the various activities the town had for the 4th. There was a short parade [about 15 minutes] followed by a craft fair, a rubber duck race [1st prize was $1,500], a log rolling contest, canoe jousting, egg toss, tug of war between the locals and the outsiders [the locals had their end of the rope attached to a pick-up truck], a fish tossing contest as well as children's games and a food court. In between we went for a 2-mile hike called the Otter-bahn Trail which took us through a thick, overgrown woods heavily populated by a variety of berries, then a wetland and a long gravel beach and then back along a winding road to the village. We enjoyed reindeer hot dogs for lunch.

After we watched Jim's catch being cleaned we were invited to a local church supper. Interestingly enough, the captain of the charter boat was eating hot dogs. He said he gets fish six days a week and his most favorite food is hot dogs--no matter what they were made of. We enjoyed the baked halibut [recipe coming from the wife of the charter boat captain], a variety of salads and an array of desserts.

The clouds have covered the village and a definite chill is in the air. If this was Minnesota and February, I would say we were about to get some snow.

Did I mention that one of the volcanoes across the bay is smoking today?