The Cook Inlet

Belugas and a Bore Tide Along Alaska's Turnagain Arm

By Andy Johnson III

May 17^th, 2015

I visited Homer, Alaska for two weeks in the Winter of 2005. Captured by Alaska’s beauty, I decided to stay for a few more weeks, extended my trip one more time, got offered a job and a place to live right before I was supposed to leave for the third time, and couldn’t turn down an offer to teach for the following school year. My two week trip turned into one of the best years of my life.

It took me eight years to travel back to Alaska. I missed this beautiful state and when I learned that one of my best friends in the world was planning to move away from Homer, I decided that it was time to go back for a visit. This was my first chance to introduce my new wife to this beautiful state. I also used the occasion as my reason to finally purchase the Fujifilm X-T1 and XF 10-24mm f/4 and XF 55-200mm f/3.5-4.8 lenses.

Belugas Make a Rare Appearance

After arriving in Anchorage and reconnecting with friends there, we set off for Homer. When leaving Anchorage for the Kenai Peninsula you drive along the Cook Inlet and encounter spectacular views through an area known as Turnagain Arm. During one of our stops to take in the view, someone shouted out that they had spotted belugas. There are only two pods of belugas in Alaska and in the almost 40 years that Mike Becker, our host, had lived in Alaska, he had never seen them.

Driving along the Cook Inlet, we continued to stop and each time we saw more of the belugas swim by. Their white backs were easy to spot, in contrast with the darker water. Being back in Alaska for less than 24 hours and encountering belugas made me feel like we were getting ready setup for a better trip than I could have anticipated.

The white back in the lower right corner is a surfacing beluga.

The Bore Tide ROlls By

Mike described the bore tide to us as we continued our journey into the Kenai Peninsula and suddenly Bethany exclaimed, “Is that the bore tide?” Pulling over along the side of the road, we looked out and spotted the bore tide rolling along the Cook Inlet. By the time I had hopped out of the car and positioned myself for photos, I was only able to get some of the waves that rolled by in its wake. Nature showed up with perfect timing, providing a spectacle that we will never forget. We drove away from Turnagain Arm more excited than ever what our time in Alaska would bring.