Marine Wildlife Tours/Water Taxi

Marine Wildlife Tour

The 2 hour marine wildlife cruise shows off the highlights of Kachemak Bay.

• The tour includes Gull Island – our major bird rookery- home to 20,000 nesting seabirds, 8 species including Horned & Tufted puffins, Cormorants – { both Pelagic and Red Faced}, Murres, Murrelets, Glaucous – winged gulls & Kittiwakes.
• Other highlights include our wealth of Sea Otters. Kachemak Bay is one of the most prolific bays in the world as far as numbers of creatures that live here in addition to the seasonal ones that come here to feed for the summer.
• Nesting Bald Eagles are seen along the shoreline.
• Often we are able to watch whales in our bay – sometimes Humpback whales, Minke whales and occasionally a pilot whale makes an appearance.
• Porpoise and seals are also often spotted while touring.
• The guide takes small groups – speaking directly to you – { not over a microphone} – The boat is able to cut the engines and drift by the animals you are watching – so as not to disturb them.
• The 3 hour birding tour is sometimes an option – similar to the 2 hour tour cruise – but has an additional hour of coastline for more species of birds. Rate will be adjusted when requesting the 3 hour tour.

Wilderness Hiking In Kachemak Bay State Park

This is by far the most popular hike in Kachemak Bay – an absolute must-do when visiting Homer, Alaska. It is a fairly easy hike and well suited for most ages and abilities. The adventure begins with a water taxi ride to Glacier Spit.

The drop of point near Rusty’s Lagoon has great tide pooling to enjoy before the trail. The hike to Grewingk lake is a flat and well-maintained trail on the glacial moraine traveling through stands of cottonwoods and spruce. Once at the lake, you wil experience the stunning view of Grewingk Glacier from Grewingk Glacier Lake, where calves of icebergs drift up close to the shoreline.

The Saddle Trail portion is a gradual climb to the 500′ elevation with steeper switchbacks back to sea level in the last quarter mile. A short backtrack connects you to Saddle Trail for the one-mile hike to your pick-up location in a well-protected cove. This is a casual three-hour hike or can be extended for spur trail hikes to the Grewingk River tram or other destinations. There are also great camping locations on the beach at Grewingk Lake.

Glacier Lake Trail

Length: 3.5 miles


Rating: Easy, popular family hike.


Hiking Time: 80 minutes from Glacier Spit Trailhead (wind exposed beach: morning drop-off best, afternoon/evening pick-up at Saddle Trailhead.) And out the Saddle Trail (½ mile from Grewingk Lake)

Elevation Gain: 500 ft.
Trailhead Access: Marine Access – Glacier Spit Trailhead (wind exposed beach, morning drop-off best); Saddle Trail (afternoon/evening pick-up best at Saddle Trailhead)

Camping: Small camping area at Glacier Spit Trailhead; Right Beach (accessible at low tide from Glacier Spit); Grewingk Lake.
Camping Advisory: Please consider camping on a higher portion of Grewingk Lake flats: landslides from area ridges falling into the lake could generate large splash waves (50 feet or more) along shores.

Water Availability: Right Beach; small stream near the junction of the Saddle Trail.