A repeat story and a new story for the new readers.
You are truly an Alaskan when you measure the distance from one town to the other by hours not miles. For instance its takes 4 hours for us to travel to Anchorage, and three hours to travel to Homer in the wintertime. Each town is about 200 miles from here, but if you are traveling to Anchorage you have to factor in the congestion of traffic to get to your destination. And if you are traveling to Homer in the summer add another half hour because of the tourist on the way to or from visiting Homer. It takes 3 hours to get over the mountains to Seward. But if you dilly-dally along the way it might take five.
A weekend vacation in the summer means a camping trip to the banks of the Kenai River close by, or the Little Susitna (Little Sue) a 6 hour drive. Or lake fishing on Kenai Lake, Tustamena or Skilak Lake. If you get home by midnight, not to worry it is still daylight.. Or a trip to the big county fair in Ninilchik in August, to see the giant vegetable that are grown by proud gardeners. The State Fair in Palmer is one everyone should go see and enjoy. It is awesome!!
Or just fishing in Anchor River or a big halibut fishing trip by boat taking off from the shores of Cook Inlet in Ninilchik. You have to be at the boat launch at 4:30 in the morning with rain gear, and your lunch and drink. Be out on the water all day, hopefully catching the “big one.” Get back to the beach and have a big tractor pull the boat up on to a trailer and you disembark with your catch of the day. Most fishing guide, clean and fix your fish for freezing and shipping. Then the long ride home arriving well after 9 in the evening. But, oh well, it’s still light out.
How about a trip to Homer and stop at all the little shops in between. Look up the shrimp and crab man on the Homer Spit. Buy what you want and head home, stopping at the Anchor River Inn for a great seafood dinner. Or a trip to Seward during Salmon Derby Days or the fourth of July and watch all those tall muscle guys and gals in shorts and shirts, run up and back down Mount Marathon. Chances are the person who won is your neighbor. Pick a place that serves ice cream cones, because it’s hot in Seward on the fourth of July!! The Kenai Fjord boat charter to see all the amphibians of the ocean. The birds and eagles are magnificent. Seward has a wonderful Sea Life Center, that you can spend hours and hours learning the habitat of the seals, otters, whales, octopus, jelly fish, the diving Muirs and Cormates and other creatures of the sea.
Don’t forget the old mining towns, Hope, Valdez, Whittier are fun trips. The ride on the Alaskan railroad from Anchorage to Whittier, a cruise ship meeting you to take you to Valdez. Or a train trip to Fairbanks, the highlight, a view Denali as (the native’s name for it) and a slow ride over the Hurricane Bridge. Destination Fairbanks and the great mining areas, and the great park at “Alaska Land” with all the museums of old time mining, general homestead living, and a wonderful museum that houses the pioneers of the beginning of the aviation era in Alaska. And then make your way to Chena Hot Spring and stay over night for a leasure soak in the hot pools. Wonderful.
Some days we just show them our backyard, fishing at Bishop and Swanson River, and a trip through Captain Cook Park, to see the beauty of Cook Inlet and the land of 10,000 Smokes across the bay. (Volcano’s in every stage of eruption) The oil rigs standing on legs sticking up out of the swift water of Cook Inlet.
Oh! But the most important of all is to stop to smell the Fireweed blossoms and wild Sitka Roses and show them your favorite spot to pick Blueberries, raspberries and wild strawberries. Warn them about the “Devils Club” that attack you if your wander to far off the beaten path. Watching out for those devilish stickers and that big ol’ bear that may be watching your pick HIS blueberries. We tell them our “bear encounter stories” and the momma moose and moose baby stories.
Our summer visitors from the “lower 48 states” get a peek at our home-style of Alaskan living. The first thing most of our visitors say “it’s so quiet” and “do you live here year round” and “ its so beautiful and how much snow do you get?” We have a ready answer for all the questions….after all we have told “our story” many times. We gladly take them to our favorite fishing holes and other sites to see. Our summer times are our vacation along with our many visitors. And when they get ready to leave, give a call to all your local friends and neighbors and they will be right over with their favorite picnic dish and a big smile ready to meet a new friend from “down below.” Usually deep fried beer batter salmon and halibut is what we serve.
We end our summer days around our bon fire telling tall tales of Alaska. Most of them true!!
We hope you had a great summer. Make a list for next summer, start with more fishing!’
The Grannie Annie series is written by a 47 year resident of Alaska, Ann Berg of Nikiski.Ann shares her collections of recipes from family and friends. She has gathered recipes for more that 50 years. Some are her own creation. Her love of recipes and food came from her Mother, a self taught wonderful cook. She hopes you enjoy the recipes and that the stories will bring a smile to your day.
Grannie Annie can be reached at anninalaska@gci. net
The “Grannie Annie” Cook Book Series includes: “Grannie Annie’s Cookin’ on the Woodstove”; “Grannie Annie’s Cookin’ at the Homestead”; “Grannie Annie’s Cookin’ Fish from Cold Alaskan Waters”; and “Grannie Annie’s Eat Dessert First.” They are available at M & M Market in Nikiski.
