Kayaking Nuka Island: Mikes Bay & Berger Bay

"excerpts from Exploring Alaska's Kenai Fjords: Chapter 21 Nuka Island and Nuka Passage"

"Nuka Island is a remote part of the KACHEMAK BAY STATE PARK. The island is the largest island on the Kenai Fjords coast, at 15,000 acres. The heavily forested island is known for its idyllic sheltered coves, hospitable terrain and reliable haulout beaches. Nuka Island boasts scores of bald eagles, harbor seals, sea otters and a historic fox farm once operated by Herring Pete and Josephine Sather." See KAYAKING NUKA ISLAND: PETES COVE

• Mikes Bay

"Mikes Bay is named for Smokehouse Mike, who lived in the bay from 1918-1921. Mike built a warehouse at the bay's head on a grassy knoll. He stored his boat on a adjacent tidal mud flat. During the prohibition era, Mike distilled whiskey in a hidden building deep in the woods. Along with an Englishman named George Hogg, they regularly stoked a thirty-gallon whiskey still.

• Berger Bay

"The waters around Berger Bay are perfect for a kayak or shallow draft boat. An intricate shoreline with tiny nooks, small forested islands, and rocky islets easily arouse curiosity. Several places along the shore of Berger Bay show signs of Herring Pete's wood gathering activity as well as early Native American use with more than a dozen conspicuous culturally modified trees, some fallen."

"The second tiny nook southeast of the north entrance point has a stream, a narrow wooded valley, and a prominent spit that is perhaps the best camping location in the bay. Adjacent to the spit, a fox shed from Sather's fox farm stands at the edge of high water. Two alternative camping areas are worth mentioning. One area is located at the bay's head, where a choice of haulout beaches and potential camping sites lie along the shore. The second camping area is in a tiny north-facing indentation along the south shore, one-half mile northeast of the bay's south entrance point. Another Sather fox shed marks the spot."

Check out NUKA ISLAND and PETES COVE