Halibut Cove & Kachemak Bay, Alaska

​Alaska’s Ridgewood Wilderness Lodge is located in beautiful Halibut Cove, just 7 miles from Homer, Alaska.

Halibut Cove is a peaceful, quaint community surrounded by mountains, forests, glaciers, coastline and oceans and is home to abundant wildlife. There are approximately 100 summer time residents and visitors who enjoy the 1 local restaurant, boardwalks, and 2 art galleries that culminate on one end of the island.  Even Alaskans vacation to this part of the state to remind themselves of why they moved to Alaska in the first place.

Alaska’s Ridgewood Wilderness Lodge is located on the Kenai Peninsula, on the South side of Kachemak Bay in Halibut Cove, Alaska, and is adjacent to the Kachemak Bay State Park, just 7 miles from Homer, Alaska.

​About Halibut Cove, Alaska

Artists, craftsmen, fishermen and abundant wildlife make up the small community of Halibut Cove.  From the floating post office, to the boardwalk that runs along the water’s edge past the coffee shop & art galleries to the local restaurant, visitors to Halibut Cove will be enchanted by this unique area of Alaska.

About Homer, Alaska

Homer, Alaska, known as the “Halibut Fishing Capital of the World”, 200 miles south of Anchorage, is surrounded by fantastic wilderness and ocean on Kachemak Bay. The Homer Spit (a long, narrow point of land extending out into the water) has the world's longest road into the ocean water and is rated as one of the top 100 beaches in the United States. The town grew up around the coal mines established there in 1889, and it was named for Homer Pennock, a gold prospector. Alaska: The Last Frontier is a popular TV show showcasing Homer's beauty and the unique surrounding areas. 
The Ridgewood is located in a secluded spot in Halibut Cove, across the Bay from Homer and adjacent to the Kachemak Bay State Park and Kachemak Bay Wilderness Park, surrounded by pristine wilderness and gorgeous grounds. This Alaskan hamlet has 1 restaurant, 2 art galleries, one of the only floating post offices in the U.S., and a plentiful opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. The Ridgewood is the perfect home base for any Alaskan adventure, whether it be bear viewing, halibut and salmon fishing, guided hikes, flightseeing or wildlife viewing.
 
The natural beauty and adventure of Alaska await you at the  Ridgewood.
A History of Halibut Cove
Halibut Cove is located on the traditional lands of the Seldovia Village Tribe, descendants of the ancient Kachemak Bay peoples and today’s Dena’ina and Sugpiaq people. We honor this land and recognize the ongoing contributions of the indigenous people who continue to live here.

History by Diana Tillion:
A Scandinavian fisherman found the tremendous herring spawning area in the Halibut Cove Lagoon in 1911 - a lagoon shaped like a balloon with extreme depths, inside mountainous hills with a narrow and shallow entrance. For the herring to gather and spawn, the lagoon habitat was perfect. Scandinavians came in substantial numbers to build 32 saltries, and harvest and preserve the herring roe. Many European men and women came to the winter fishery to work and Scottish ladies were praised for their skills. They came in the spring and left when the production was finished. Ishmailof Island, just west of the entrance, provided a place for housing and warehouses. Halibut Cove grew to considerable numbers. Professor Morgan Sherwood, a historian, found a letter in the archives of Washington, D.C, asking the government to stop the saltries from dumping their waste in the lagoon, for fear that pollution would harm the herring spawning grounds. The letter in reply said, “On a huge coastline like that?! You have to be kidding!” The fisheries ended in 1928 when the herring failed to return. The herring fishermen left empty warehouses and a vacated village except for a few Scandinavian fishermen who were already fishing salmon and halibut for the canneries developing in Seldovia.

The influx of people being offered homesteads by the government on the Kenai Peninsula drastically escalated in the 1930’s. Kachemak Bay had been of interest to coal mining companies because of the rich coal veins that were on the north side. A dock and warehouse were built at the end of Homer Spit to accommodate the ships that came for coal to deliver to markets, as well as coal for boat fuel. The port was a valuable asset for the homesteaders too. The community slowly grew with fisherman and homesteaders. New fisheries were developed, and canneries were built on the Homer Spit.

When we married in 1952, and moved to Halibut Cove, there were 6 old bachelors left over from the herring days. I had worked for the Homer, Alaska, radio communication station, and my husband and I started KXC34, the only radio station in Halibut Cove. Because of my affiliation with the system, I often had to row around delivering messages in the community. Sam Pratt had provided Homer with the first crank telephone system, and Clem suggested one for Halibut Cove. No one agreed, but he bought the roll of wire and 17 telephones and shoved them in his backpack. When he hiked around the Cove stringing the wire from tree to tree, no one tried to help him – but no one tried to stop him. If a squirrel chewed on a line, or a limb fell on a wire however, there would be a loud knock on the door, “Hey Red! Come fix the line!”
A collection of old bouys dangling from a weathered old spruce stump, that is buried in the isthmus - which is a long, gravel beach that connects each end of the island.
Old buoys collected on a spruce stump in Halibut Cove, Alaska.
The front of an old art studio that has been covered in driftwood, rocks, bouys, sea glass, pottery, and fishing nets. The building became it's own art piece.
An artists' cabin in Halibut Cove, Alaska.
A tall signage post, with blue and white markers indicating directions to various points around the island, like the galleries, baseball field, and cemetery.
A sign for directions in Halibut Cove, Alaska.
Black & White photo of 1920's herring Saltry.
1920's Herring Saltry near what is now the Halibut Cove Public Harbor. Photo Courtesy of 'Old Halibut Cove Collection'.
Picture
Otto Rensing. Light house keeper. Photo Courtesy of 'Old Halibut Cove Collection'.
Now, Halibut Cove, Alaska is beautiful for those who live and enjoy its splendor. Approximately 100 summertime residents enjoy the 1 local restaurant, boardwalk, and 2 art galleries that culminate on one end of the island. In the winter, the community shrinks to 25 hardy souls who live on the island year-round.

When you return to Halibut Cove, you can relax in the lodge,
a secluded getaway with dramatic high ceilings
cut across by rustic timbers.

The hosts of this remote wilderness lodge are two sourdough Alaskans, Kevin and Lucinda Sidelinger. Kevin, who built the lodge using timbers from the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, created a unique building that compliments the environment. The Douglas fir, timber-framed bedrooms offer plenty of space as well as large windows and panoramic views of the bay, mountains, and beaches, along with private baths and an undeniably Alaskan flavor. 
Enjoy the mountains, and the cove from a comfy deck chair, talking to Kevin and Lucinda about their life in Alaska. They can always be encouraged to share their years of pioneering oyster farming on the bay, or trekking across remote wilderness areas in the Great Land with their favorite Llamas. It is the perfect complement to a very Alaskan experience. Join Lucinda as she prepares your meals, or just enjoy the melding of scents wafting from the kitchen. 
Scenic Halibut Cove

Discover Halibut Cove, Alaska’s hidden gem in Kachemak Bay.
Daily Activities

Our guests can choose from the best of Alaska, all at our doorstep.
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