Current projects underway and properties under our care

Anchor River

The Anchor River is one of Alaska’s most valuable road-accessible salmon and steelhead rivers. Multiple state campgrounds support a variety of recreational activities including world-class fishing. A portion of the river’s headwaters are located in the Bridge Creek Watershed Protection District, the source of the City of Homer’s drinking water.
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KHLT owns over 130 acres along the river, preserving a total of two miles of riverbank and has helped other conservation organizations acquire almost 70 additional acres. Currently, KHLT is developing a new 5-year plan to increase conservation efforts on the Anchor River.

Bridge Creek

On December 12, 2018, Nancy Hillstrand and KHLT signed papers to permanently protect her 302 acres near Bridge Creek for valuable wildlife habitat, open space, and water quality close to the City of Homer. The name of this special place is Let Nature Sing Wilderness Preserve.
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​The Bridge Creek Reservoir is important moose and bear habitat, as well as being highly valuable to the City as the sole water supply for the surrounding area. Bridge Creek is also a tributary of the Anchor River, meaning that it contributes directly to healthy salmon, Dolly Varden, and steelhead habitat. Protection of this land in the Bridge Creek Watershed ensures that groundwater and streams have a clean and healthy environment through which to filter before entering the Reservoir. Keeping this piece of land in a virtually pristine condition directly benefits the entire ecosystem, from Homer Residents to baby salmon in the Anchor River. KHLT successfully collaborated with the Homer City Council to acquire stewardship funds from the City’s Water Reserves in order to maintain the valuable characteristics of this property forever. Nancy says it best, “Thank you, Mother Nature.”

Mountains to Sea

The goal of the Mountains to Sea initiative is to connect protected lands in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge to the ocean through a conservation corridor.

KHLT, in partnership with other organizations and agencies, has identified 20 priority salmon streams as the Mountains to Sea project area.

Poopdeck Community Park

KHLT’s Poopdeck Platt Property in the heart of downtown Homer is the Land Trust’s home base. This almost 3.5-acre property was the homesite of Homer legend, Poopdeck Platt. Poopdeck, born Clarence Vernon Platt, purchased the property in 1956. Poopdeck passed in 2000, and KHLT purchased the property in 2002 from the Platt family estate.

Aside from being KHLT’s office location, the Board of Director’s goal for the property is to transform it into a community park. Over the last several years, KHLT has worked with National Park Service’s Recreational Trails program, local landscape architects and community members to help create a conceptual design for the future park. Construction is underway on an ADA universally accessible trail through the property. More information available here.

Stariski Estuary

Stariski Creek is home to pink salmon, silver salmon, steelhead, Dolly Varden, and rainbow trout. After a 2019 transfer of 73.39 acres of Stariski Estuary from The Conservation Fund, KHLT now owns approximately 400 acres on the creek, permanently protected for its valuable salmon habitat. The parcel contains valuable habitat important to bear, moose, lynx, and migratory birds, among other species. Anglers frequently fish for salmon on the property.

KHLT will keep an eye on the land to make sure the streambank remains healthy. When visiting the property, KHLT staff has seen signs of moose, bear, river otter, and evidence of migrating geese, along with plentiful silver salmon in the fall. With the addition of this property, KHLT  protects over 600 acres along Stariski Creek.