Anchorage, Homer, Kodiak

The Anderson household has a new addition: a Subaru. Yes, you read correctly, I now own a four door car. Despite the personal identity crisis I seem to be having- in that I do not want to let go of my coupe lifestyle, I love the new ride. Tok is way more comfortable in the backseat, which is now outfitted with a shield that blocks his ability to get to the front seat, and a hammock that covers the seat.

Having driven the truck (via ferry) to Anchorage, my return trip required an extra driver. I put out an APB to my fellow coastie wives in Kodiak and received a quick reply from Stephanie. With three kids and holiday season soon approaching, she volunteered to fly up on my dime and steal the Sub (pronounced soooob) to shop in a “real” town.

In my super secret world of boat wives, I received a call from a new boat wife, Elizabeth. She lives in Washington, and her beloved lives on Kodiak, and she wanted to surprise him when the boat pulls in from patrol. In a win-win situation, I convinced her to save some money and just fly up to Anchorage instead of Kodiak, and be a relief driver (in case something happened). It worked out perfectly. She rode with me for ½ the drive down the Kenai Peninsula and then finished the drive with Stephanie. Our drive took us down Turnagain Arm, through post-card worthy snow covered peaks in Portage, and then through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. We saw lots of moose and volcanoes!

For our one evening in Homer, we stayed at the Mermaid B&B and dined at Fat Olives. The two glasses of wine that I had with dinner accompanied great conversation and delicious pumpkin cheesecake. At 26 degrees with a gorgeous moon, we walked home to our B&B to catch a few hours of sleep before getting up to load the ferry- bound for Kodiak!

The next morning, as I loaded Tok into his kennel in the bed of the truck, I captured an amazing sunrise over Kachemak Bay. The open water greeted us with 35 knot winds and 10+ foot seas. The two gals took Dramamine and snoozed for most of the trip. I dozed in and out and rose in just enough time to catch our sunset before heading to dinner in the galley.