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there be anybody left in Homer, Alaska, once they've seen Arenal?
At least six properties near Tronadora and Chimurria have been bought
by Homerites and three have had Tico houses remodeled or in the process
now. Michael Copeland, a realtor from El Castillo, the village between
the east end of the lake and the foot of Arenal Volcano, toured the
south side recently, introducing his two Homer clients to the locals
near where they will be building a totally new place on the mountainous
road to El Silencio. Homer, located at the entrance to Cook Inlet
at the "end of the road" from Anchorage, is famous for it's
salmon and halibut fishing as well as for the long, low "spit"
that juts way out into the inlet. If the Homerites time it right,
they can be here for the Alaskan tsunami and in Homer for the Arenal
eruption. Just kidding. They're more likely to disappear in a Tronadora
Road pothole, as might any of us.
El Castillo was to be the overnight
stop on the 15th Annual Vuelta al Lago last weekend (next weekend
as I write this). Each year the village, approximately halfway on
the 137-
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kilometer
circuit of the lake, tries to accommodate 3,000 or more bikers, who
start Saturday morning in Tilaran and end Sunday afternoon back at
the Tilaran plaza if they don't wear out sooner. The Vuelta al Lago
occurs every February, put on by the Association Ciclismo Recreativo
de Tilaran, who obviously do a heck of a job. They have a website
at www.vueltallago.com, where perhaps you can sign up early for the
16th annual tour of the lake in case your correspondent drops the
ball or spins his wheels again next year.
Those wishing to follow the
example of Roberta Ward Smiley and husband Dan Wilson in regenerating
indigenous forest can get from them seedlings at their 100-acre
property, La Reserva, in the hills above the Cinco Esquinas intersection.
Having gone a long way toward reforesting their 100-acre former
dairy farm, restoring habitat that has brought back many animals
and birds, they're offering seedlings of a variety of indigenous
trees for a dollar each. Roberta's phone number is 383-2596.
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