This week we’re heading to Little Tutka Bay, a small community across the Kachemak Bay from Homer. Rick Harness owns a tourism business called Seaside Adventure; Rick is also a scuba diver.
“My name is Rick Harness, I live in Little Tutka Bay. I have an ecotour business so I take tourists out to play with the wildlife, explore the bays and islands and the dunes.
Most people come over by boat, some people come over by floatplane…. People in our area travel mostly by skiffs, rowboats and kayaks – kayaks are more and more popular as time goes and you’ll see more people traveling that way. We’ve been doing our kayaking business for a few decades now and it’s just our way of life.
In the summertime we have one of the richest plankton counts that you’ll find anywhere. As the spring progresses the waters turn green and greener. But on the shoulder side of season the water clears up and it’s amazing, amazing. It’s like taking a jungle walk with all the kelps and the kelp forest under there and it has such a diverse marine life. Every once in awhile something will be shadowed off to one side of you and pretty soon you find out there’s an otter that’s curious enough to check out out. And I’ve had sea lions come right up to my facemask and stare me down – it’s fun, but quite unnerving. It’s an amazing activity to do because the world above is so rich, but down below is even richer yet.
Everybody that comes to visit says it’s one of the most beautiful places they’ve ever visited – so that says a lot.”
