Planning a trip to Kenai, Soldotna and Sterling
Visitor Information
The Soldotna Visitor Information Center, 44790 Sterling Hwy., Soldotna, AK 99669 (tel. 907/262-9814 or 262-1337; www.visitsoldotna.com), is located on the south side of town; drive through the commercial strip and turn right after the Kenai River Bridge. It's open daily in summer from 9am to 7pm, in winter Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. Besides the usual brochures and free maps, they offer help with lodging, camping, charters, and other services. Anglers should stop in to see the world-record 97-pound king salmon and a 20-pound rainbow trout. Stroll behind the center to the river walk to get close to the water and a handy site for streamside fishing.
In Kenai, the Kenai Visitors and Cultural Center, 11471 Kenai Spur Hwy., Kenai, AK 99611 (tel. 907/283-1991; www.visitkenai.com), contains a set of museum galleries. A history and culture exhibit includes first-edition journals of Capt. James Cook, who explored Cook Inlet in 1778, and the "King of Snags," an immense conglomeration of lost fishing lures, rods, and sticks pulled from the river bottom. Large temporary art exhibitions are mounted, too. To get there, follow the Spur Highway past Main Street and look for the large, landscaped building on your left. In summer, admission to the museum is $5, free for students through high school; off season, admission is free. The center is open in summer Monday to Friday from 9am to 7pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm; and off-season Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm and Saturday 11am to 4pm.
Special Events
Kenai Visitors and Cultural Center hosts invitational art shows each summer. Works usually cross media and include contemporary art and traditional Alaska Native work.
In Soldotna, the Peninsula Winter Games and Tustumena 200 Sled Dog Race (tel. 907/262-9814), an Iditarod qualifier, are held in late January. Progress Days (tel. 907/262-9814), in late July, offers a parade, rodeo, car shows, and other festival events commemorating the completion of a gas pipeline in 1960.
In Ninilchik, the Kenai Peninsula State Fair (tel. 907/567-3670; www.kenaipeninsulafair.com), south at mile 136 on the Sterling Highway, is the third weekend in August (August 18-20, 2012), with rodeo, music, crafts, games, agricultural and craft exhibits, and other country attractions, plus a few kids' rides. One-day admission is $8 adults, $6 ages 6 to 12 and seniors.
Getting There
From Anchorage, the drive on the Seward and Sterling highways to Soldotna is 147 miles. Allow 3 hours, without stops: In summer, traffic will slow you down; in winter, speeds are limited by ice and the fear of hitting moose. Kenai is 11 miles from Soldotna on the Kenai Spur Highway, the first major right as you enter Soldotna from the north on the Sterling Highway.
A backpacker van called the Stage Line (tel. 907/235-2252; www.thestageline.net) connects Anchorage, Homer, Seward, and points between. In summer they run to Homer daily from Anchorage and Seward, less frequently in winter. The fare from Anchorage to Soldotna is $66 one-way, $120 round-trip. The pickup point in Soldotna is the Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center. The Anchorage ticket office is at 412 W. 53rd Ave. (tel. 907/868-3914).
Kenai receives very frequent flights from Anchorage from Era Alaska (tel. 800/866-8394; www.flyera.com).
Getting Around
The area is so spread out that walking most places really isn't practical, and there's no public transportation. Everyone drives. Several major car-rental companies operate at the Kenai airport: Hertz, Avis, Budget, and Payless. If you plan only to fish, however, you may not need a car, instead getting rides from your guide, your host, or a taxicab. Ask about transportation options when you reserve your rooms. There are several cab companies; try Alaska Cab (tel. 907/283-6000 in Kenai, or 907/262-1555 in Soldotna).
Fast Facts
Banks -- You will find banks on the Kenai Spur Highway in the middle of town, and in Soldotna on the Sterling Highway commercial strip.
Hospital -- Central Peninsula General is in Soldotna at 250 Hospital Place (tel. 907/262-4404); from the Sterling Highway, take Binkley Street to Marydale Avenue.
Internet Access -- Connect to the Web for free at the Kenai public library, 163 Main St. Loop (tel. 907/283-4378), or at the Soldotna public library, 235 Binkley St. (tel. 907/262-4227).
Police -- For nonemergencies in Kenai, call the Kenai Police Department (tel. 907/283-7879); in Soldotna, call the Soldotna Police Department (tel. 907/262-4455); outside city limits, call the Alaska State Troopers (tel. 907/262-4453).
Taxes -- There's a 6% sales tax in Kenai and Soldotna, and 2% outside city limits.
