Homer

NaturesLens visits Homer on small-group wildlife photography holidays in the United States, with time here planned around Bald Eagle, Harbour Seal, Humpback Whale, Otter & Sea Otter rather than general sightseeing. Current itineraries using Homer include Sea Otters & Bald Eagles of Alaska, with photography shaped around hide, boat-based, flight & landscape & behaviour photography sessions. Homer sits on the southern coast of Alaska, at the tip of the Kenai Peninsula where the land narrows into the waters of Kachemak Bay & the wider Cook Inlet. The town is famed for the Homer Spit, a long finger of gravel reaching out into the bay, backed by the rugged Kenai Mountains & fronted by rich, nutrient-laden waters that support an abundance of marine life. This meeting point of mountain, boreal forest, & sea creates a dynamic coastal habitat, where sheltered bays, tidal flats, & open ocean channels lie in close proximity, drawing in a striking concentration of wildlife within a relatively compact area. The surrounding waters & shoreline offer excellent opportunities to observe a range of iconic Alaskan species. Bald Eagles are a familiar sight, often seen perched along the coastline or soaring above the Spit in search of fish. Harbour Seals & Steller Sea Lions haul out on rocky shores & buoys, the latter notable for their considerable size & vocal, gregarious colonies. Sea Otters & their freshwater-adapted relative, the otter, are frequently spotted floating amid kelp beds or foraging along the shallows, using tools & dexterous paws to crack open shellfish. Further offshore, the deeper waters of Kachemak Bay & Cook Inlet provide feeding grounds for Humpback Whales, which can sometimes be seen breaching or lunge-feeding during their seasonal presence in the region.