State Parks and National Parks

Deep Creek and Ninilchik State Recreation Areas

Fishing and wildlife watching, particularly for bald eagles, attract visitors to the Ninilchik Area that covers 257 acres on Cook Inlet, at Mile 135 of the Sterling Highway, midway between Homer and Soldotna.

The area is known for good sport fishing, Deep Creek is legendary for its halibut and king salmon runs in Cook Inlet.

Deep Creek's fishing reputation keeps its campsites and day parking facilities in high demand.

Bald eagles are seen year-round, and May is a good time to watch for migrating birds that come to the wetlands here enroute to their summer feeding grounds.

sandhill cranes in the saltwater marsh.

The area offers six developed park facilities. Ninilchik View is perched on a bluff overlooking Ninilchik Beach, which has 13 campsites and a day site fearing access to the beach, river and Ninilchik village.

Russian settlers who worked for the Russian-American Trading Company started this village, where some of their descendants still live today. A local landmark is the small white Russian Orthodox Church situated on a hilltop overlooking the village, Cook Inlet and its volcanoes.

Campers and day visitors search for tasty razor clams at Ninilchick Beach. Caution should be used when walking out to the offshore sandbars as the tide returns quickly and can leave clam diggers stranded.

Ninilchick River Campground is tucked in a spruce forest with 43 campsites. There is a gravel trail to the river.

Photo credits in order: Courtesy of Alaska