Alaska Sporting Journal - April 2023

PUBLISHER

James R. Baker

GENERAL MANAGER

John Rusnak

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Andy Walgamott EDITOR

Chris Cocoles

WRITERS

Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Tony Ensalaco, Scott Haugen, Tiffany Haugen, Safari Club International Alaska, David Zoby

SALES MANAGER

Paul Yarnold

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Mike Smith

DESIGNER

Lesley-Anne Slisko-Cooper

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT

Kelly Baker

WEB DEVELOPMENT/INBOUND MARKETING

Jon Hines

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Katie Aumann

INFORMATION SERVICES MANAGER

Lois Sanborn

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES

media@media-inc.com

MEDIA INDEX PUBLISHING GROUP 941 Powell Ave SW, Suite 120 Renton, WA 98057 (206) 382-9220 • Fax (206) 382-9437 media@media-inc.com • www.media-inc.com

CORRESPONDENCE

Twitter @AKSportJourn

Facebook.com/alaskasportingjournal

Email ccocoles@media-inc.com

ON THE COVER

Tony Ensalaco (right) and his father Bob have shared some memorable moments fishing for steelhead in Alaska. Bob is Tony’s favorite fishing partner.“I was fortunate that my dad possesses all the characteristics of the perfect fishing partner,” Tony writes.“That’s a good thing, because it would have been awkward if I had to cut him loose after living under his roof for so long.” (TONY ENSALACO)

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE URSINE KIND

In the second of a two-part From Field to Fire series, Scott Haugen shares more tales of close calls with bruins – from black and brown bear encounters in the Panhandle to hunting and fishing around massive grizzlies in Southwest Alaska, Haugen can attest to the reality that you always have to be bearaware when exploring the Last Frontier’s outdoor playgrounds. Also, stick around for supper, courtesy of Tiffany Haugen’s big game shanks recipe!

FEATURES

17

TOUGH TIMES FOR KENAI KINGS

It’s been a brutal couple years for Chinook salmon fishing in the Last Frontier, with closures and restrictions in some of the most popular king destinations as low runs continue. The Kenai Peninsula – plus nearby Cook Inlet saltwaters – have been hit particularly hard. We rounded up multiple Alaska Department of Fish and Game emergency orders to detail the very limited scope of 2023’s fisheries.

24 HOORAY FOR HUMPIES!

(LISA HUPP/U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

9 The Editor’s Note

11 The Alaska Beat

15 Outdoor calendar

60 SCI Alaska on federal ‘overreach’ affecting hunters, state

Ask Alaskans and Lower 48 visitors about what the state’s most popular salmon is and few of them would list pinks first. Or second. Or third. But standing firmly in their corner is our correspondent David Zoby, who lays out his argument that these ignored, ugly stepchildren of Alaska’s salmon cosmos deserve your respect and can also be quality table fare. In a state where the coho, sockeye and king are royalty, don’t forget those dreaded humpies have some value too!

41 THERE’S NO ‘I’ IN TEAM STEELHEAD

Chicago resident Tony Ensalaco has been a regular visitor to Southeast Alaska  – usually to chase spring steelhead – and over the years has fished with plenty of partners on these adventures, some of whom were compatible and others, not so much. Ensalaco came up with eight traits he looks for in finding the perfect cohort to share the river with. “Lifelong fishing buddies will develop a special bond that is impossible to manufacture,” he writes. “It must come naturally.”

publisher. Printed in U.S.A.

As I write this, college basketball’s March Madness is starting, and in a world where Goliaths in most walks of life have the upper hand on us nobodies, there’s always a David or two who, for one shining moment, sticks it to the man.

So every March, I always root for those NCAA Tournament underdogs from remote outposts and that make due with meager resources to rise up and pull off a “Did we just see what we think we just saw?!” upset. That was on my mind as I read Dave Zoby’s piece on sticking up for Alaska’s overlooked – maligned? –species of Pacific salmon, the pinks.

They’re nowhere near as big as kings; far from as tasty as sockeye; not as easy on the eye as iconic Last Frontier coho. But dammit, those lovable, imperfect and ragtag humpies have a fan in Zoby,

EDITOR’S NOTE

and for that I salute you, sir!

When I was a kid, I faithfully tuned into all those fishing TV shows. Usually, it was the host catching fat largemouth bass in a Deep South reservoir, casting for bonefish in the gorgeous blue waters of the Florida Keys, or maybe tossing a fly for colorful rainbows in a Montana stream straight out of A River Runs Through It.

But for me, my favorite fish to catch was the ugly, muddy-water-inhabiting catfish. I loved those hot summer nights in California on family trips, breaking out a flashlight and some nightcrawlers, chicken livers or some of those disgusting but delightful stink baits, and throwing a baited hook out hoping a channel cat would wander by for a nibble. Can’t say I recall Roland Martin, Orlando Wilson or Bill Dance filming similar fishing experiences.

Maybe my motivation for being a crazy cat man was how delicious those whiskered beauties tasted. I remember a family friend cooking up some of our catches when we stayed at their lakeside vacation home. I also lived in Fayetteville, Arkansas for a few years in the early 2000s, and I’ll never forget joining my sports reporter coworkers from our newspaper heading over to a local joint – it was aptly named The Catfish Hole – for fried-food feasts of cats, fries and hush puppies, with a dollop of coleslaw. Absolute heaven.

So let’s all give some love to those pinks that most salmon anglers want to forget about. Just as we cherish the underdogs of March Madness, let’s pay homage to those lesser-loved fishy creatures that just want their chance to feel good for a minute.

-Chris Cocoles

Pink salmon are never going to pass the eye test for aesthetic beauty, but like the editor’s longtime admiration for catfish, humpies deserve some love too, as our Dave Zoby chronicles this month. (KATRINA MUELLER/U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)

AL ASKA BEAT

Last month’s approval of the Willow Project on Alaska’s North Slope by the Biden administration also saw it scaled back by 68,000 acres to protect important land for migratory caribou. Still, there are concerns that “this dangerous project will jeopardize the health of local communities and the environment,” per Jordan Schreiber, director of energy and environment at Accountable.US. (U.S.

THEY SAID IT

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY)

“

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION BUCKS TREND, GREENLIGHTS WILLOW PROJECT

The 2020 election transition couldn’t offer a better example of how differently the chief occupant of the White House feels about Alaska’s natural resources.

Granted, former President Donald Trump suggested he was opposed to the Pebble Mine, but he also removed Roadless Rule protections for the Tongass National Forest, which would have opened the door to larger-scale logging products in the nation’s largest such public land. Trump also pushed hard for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling against opposition from Native subsistence hunters and environmental groups concerned about the threat to caribou migration and other factors.

Contrast that with Trump’s successor. President Joe Biden’s administration – led by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland – was far more vocal in opposing the Pebble Mine, which ultimately was shut down via the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Water Act authority. Biden also reversed Trump’s Tongass decision, making two huge wins for two of the Last Frontier’s most pristine ecosystems.

So, that makes Biden’s approval last month of the ConocoPhillips-led Willow Project on the North Slope’s National Petroleum Reserve – and close to migrating caribou corridors –a departure from his policy to combat climate change and it drew criticism from a sector that’s mostly had his back.

“This is a grievous mistake. It green-lights a carbon bomb, sets back the climate fight and emboldens an industry hell-bent on destroying the planet. It’s wrong on climate and wrong for the country,” said Christy Goldfuss, Natural Resource Defense Council’s chief policy impact officer.

Added Earthjustice’s president Abigail Dillen, “We are too late in the climate crisis to approve massive oil and gas projects that directly undermine the new clean economy that the Biden administration committed to advancing. We know President Biden understands the existential threat of climate, but he is approving a project that derails his own climate goals.”

It should also be noted that in Washington, D.C., the Willow Project has received bipartisan support from the Alaska delegation, as Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan and Democrat Rep. Mary Peltola sent out a joint release praising Biden for approving the drilling. Peltola proclaimed that “the people of Alaska were heard.”

“After years of consistent, determined advocacy for this project, from people all across the state and from every walk of life, the Willow Project is finally moving forward. I would like to thank the President and his administration for listening to the voices of Alaskans when it mattered most,” Peltola added.

“Now, it’s on us here in Alaska to make sure that we make the best of this opportunity – that we use the revenues and jobs and economic opportunity from this project to make investments in the future of Alaska.”

Biden also proposed limiting development in the National Petroleum Reserve and indefinitely suspended oil and gas leasing on 2.8 million acres of nearby nearshore waters.

“Kaskanak Creek is home to our ancient villages, and still the most productive creek for subsistence hunting and fishing closest to our village. We have always opposed mining around Kaskanak Creek and will continue to be vocal in our opposition to projects like this that threaten our pristine waters, salmon, landscapes, and way of life. We’re counting on our leaders in Washington to enact watershed-wide protections so we don’t have to continue fighting off dangerous mining proposals left and right.”

-AlexAnna Salmon, president of the Igiugig Village Council, commenting on a new potential Bristol Bay mine project.

TWEET OF THE MONTH

FROM THE ASJ ARCHIVES – MAY 2019 WHERE SALMON ARE A ‘WAY’ OF LIFE

It’s not so much about the fish; it’s about where the fish take you. These words have been spoken to me many times by my longtime friend Ed, a 73-yearold retired motorcycle-riding preacher who wields a fly rod as his instrument to enlightenment.

It’s spawning season, and this stretch of the creek is shallow, narrow, and jammed with tomato-red sockeye salmon. Katmai National Preserve is part of the Bristol Bay watershed, an enormous and rich system of rivers and lakes that boasts the world’s largest run of wild sockeye.

There was much consternation before the College Football Playoff national championship game when it was announced that tailgating in the lots around Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium was banned. But at the Super Bowl of Alaska sporting events, the Iditarod featured tailgaters eating and drinking as dog sled teams started their journey from Anchorage to Nome.

NOTABLE NUMBER

The 51st running of the Iditarod saw the smallest number of mushers to ever enter the race, which was won by Ryan Redington, grandson of event cofounder Joe Redington Sr.

Although Ed is not with me in the plane, his words are. Never having been much into sportfishing, yet surrounded by many people in my life who are, I’ve often scratched my head over the appeal. But as I gaze out the window at a view of perpetual glory, I start to get it. I begin to understand Ed and the legions seduced by the allure of fishing.

The pilot skims a lake in the middle of nowhere Alaska and deposits our group of four on the shore. Clad in chest waders and carrying fly rods and camera equipment, we set off across the tundra, a living mosaic of lowbush cranberry, reindeer lichen, and the ever pungent Labrador tea plant.

The spongy ground and our clunky boots make for slow going, giving us time to enjoy our stunning surroundings of nothing but wild country. After a wobbly 45-minute trek, we arrive at a high ridge overlooking Nanuktuk Creek, also known as Little Ku, in Katmai National Preserve.

Every year, tens of millions of sockeye stream into nine major rivers, some of the state’s largest lakes, and countless tributaries to spawn the next generation. But we are not here for salmon. We are here because of salmon. Of the many species that feast on this plethora of protein, none seduce more sport fishermen to this part of the world than rainbow trout. And nowhere in Alaska are the rainbows as abundant and large as they are here. It’s easy to see why.  Salmon provide a plentiful diet: nutrient-rich eggs, spawned carcasses of the adults and young salmon that emerge in the spring. Rainbows here can reach monster size – a mind-boggling 30 inches in length. These “trophy” trout are the reason that Bristol Bay fishing is deemed world-class and tops every serious fly fisherman’s bucket list. They are also the reason that another fishing friend of mine has christened the region “The Holy Water.” -Amy

Gulick

Amy Gulick’s book The Salmon Way chronicles the importance of these great anadromous fish to Alaska. (AMY GULICK)

Congratulations to the University of Alaska Fairbanks rifle team, which captured its 11th NCAA team title in mid-March.

OUTDOOR CALENDAR*

April 1 Spring brown bear hunting season opens in Game Management Unit 6B (Montague Island-North Gulf Coast)

April 1 Spring brown bear season opens in GMU 8 (Kodiak)

April 1 Brown bear season opens in GMU 22 (Seward Peninsula and Southern Norton Sound)

April 1-3 Bart Hall Shows, Long Beach Center, Long Beach, California (hallshows.com)

April 14-16 Great Alaska Sportsman Show, Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center, Anchorage (greatalaskasportsmanshow.com)

April 21-22 Safari Club International Alaska Chapter Alaskan Hunting Expo and Sportsman’s Banquet, Dena’ina Center (907-903-8329; aksafariclub.org)

April 21-23 Fairbanks Outdoor Show, Carlson Center (fairbanksevents.com/outdoor-show)

May 10 Spring brown bear season opens in GMU 10 (Aleutians)

May 27 Start of Valdez Halibut Derby (continues through Sept. 3; valdezfishderbies.com)

May 31 Brown bear season ends in several GMUs

June 2-11 Valdez Halibut Hullabaloo (valdezfishderbies.com)

*For more information and season dates for Alaska hunts, go to adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=hunting.main.

Spring brown bear hunting seasons are set to open on April 1. (LISA HUPP/USFWS)

Remote, Comfortable & Affordable

Our remote Alaskan fishing lodge is situated on the upper stretches of the beautiful Egegik River. You’ll watch some of Alaska’s most stunning sunrises, complete with a distant, active volcano. We are a fishing camp specializing in coho fishing, brown bear viewing, and flyout fishing adventures to even more remote destinations in the Last Frontier.

Coho Fishing The Egegik River

The Egegik River is touted by many experienced anglers as the best silver salmon stream in all of Alaska. Becharof Lodge On The Egegik River was the first fishing lodge to become established on the breathtaking Egegik River, and is less than a 5 minute boat ride from some of the best fishing holes on the entire river.

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• Home cooked meals, snacks, and nonalcoholic beverages.

Trips

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$4,850per person

Kenai River king salmon anglers were left out in the cold when it was announced last month that both the early- and late-run Chinook fisheries would be closed due to poor escapement projections. (LISA HUPP/U.S.

KENAI KINGS CLOSED EARLY

RIVER, SALTWATER FISHERY SEE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR OF SHUTDOWNS

For the second straight year, some of Alaska’s most famous king salmon fisheries won’t host fishing opportunities as poor runs continue.

As the Alaska Department of Fish and Game began to list restrictions on Chinook fishing in early March, the waters hardest hit by closures and limited opportunities were rivers on the Kenai Peninsula and in adjacent Lower Cook Inlet saltwaters, shut down to protect this year’s return and ensure future fisheries.

Here is a breakdown of 2023’s affected waters, courtesy of ADFG:

FISHERY: KENAI RIVER EARLY-RUN KINGS

STATUS: CLOSED

ADFG is closing the early-run king salmon sport fishery in the Kenai River drainage downstream of the outlet of Skilak Lake effective 12:01 a.m. Monday, May 1, 2023. From May 1 through June 30, fishing for king salmon of any size, including catch-and-release, is closed in the Kenai River from its mouth upstream to the outlet of Skilak Lake. King salmon caught while fishing for other species may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately. In

addition, on March 2, 2023, the Division of Sport Fish issued Emergency Order 2-KS-1-11-23 closing the Kenai River to fishing for king salmon, and prohibiting the use of bait and multiple hooks from its mouth upstream to the ADFG markers located at the outlet of Skilak Lake from July 1 through July 31, 2023.

The 2023 preseason forecast for Kenai River early-run king salmon is 2,914 large fish (fish greater than 34 inches in length). The total run forecast is less than the optimum escapement goal range of 3,900 to 6,600 fish. If

FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)

realized, the 2023 run would rank as the fifth lowest run in 38 years.

“In an effort to protect Kenai River early-run king salmon and in compliance with the regulatory management plan, the early-run king salmon fishery is closed to sport fishing in an effort to meet the early-run escapement goal,” stated acting area management biologist Jenny Gates.

FISHERY: KENAI RIVER LATE-RUN KINGS STATUS: CLOSED

ADFG is closing the king salmon fishery throughout the Kenai River drainage and prohibiting the use of bait and multiple hooks in the Kenai River from its mouth upstream to ADFG markers located at the outlet of Skilak Lake. These regulatory changes are effective 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 1 through 11:59 p.m.

Monday, July 31, 2023. Additionally, released on March 2, 2023 Emergency Order 2-KS-1-10-23 closes sport fishing for king salmon of all sizes in the Kenai River from the mouth upstream to the outlet of Skilak Lake from May 1 through June 30, 2023.

Anglers are advised this closure prohibits all sport fishing for king

salmon, including catch-and-release fishing. King salmon may not be retained or possessed; king salmon caught while fishing for other species may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately. Anglers are also reminded that bait/ scent and multiple hooks are prohibited on the entire Kenai River.

The 2023 forecast for the stock of large late-run king salmon in the Kenai River is 13,630 fish. This total run forecast is below the optimum escapement goal (OEG) range of 15,000 to 30,000 fish.

Therefore, consistent with the management plan, it is warranted to close sport fishing for late-run king salmon in the Kenai River to achieve the OEG. ADFG is also implementing restrictions to saltwater sport fisheries for king salmon in Cook Inlet waters north of Bluff Point (Emergency Order 2-KS-15-23), prohibiting retention of king salmon in the personal use dipnet fishery, and restricting the commercial Eastside setnet fishery, and drift gillnet fishery.

“The 2023 forecast for Kenai River late run of king salmon is significantly less than the lower end of the OEG.

Without conservative measures, the goal may not be achieved,” Gates said.

FISHERY: KASILOF RIVER EARLY-RUN KING STATUS: RESTRICTED

ADFG is implementing the following sport fishing regulation restrictions for early-run king salmon in the Kasilof River drainage effective 12:01 a.m. Monday, May 1 through 11:59 p.m. Friday, June 30, 2023. The bag and possession limit for king salmon 20 inches or greater in length is two hatchery-produced fish. Hatcheryproduced king salmon are recognizable by a healed adipose fin-clip scar.

Naturally produced king salmon of any size may not be possessed or retained and are distinguishable by an intact adipose fin, a small fleshy fin on the back of the fish just ahead of the tail. Naturally produced king salmon that are caught may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately.

Additionally, only one single hook either baited, unbaited, or on an artificial lure may be used beginning 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, May 16 through 11:59 p.m. Friday, June 30, 2023. Single-hook means a fishhook with only one point.

Southcentral Alaska anglers will be largely left to work the rivers for fish other than Chinook this year. “The 2023 forecast for late run of king salmon is significantly less than the lower end of the (optimum escapement goal),” says Department of Fish and Game biologist Jenny Gates. “Without conservative measures, the goal may not be achieved.” (BERKELY BEDELL/U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)

Where last year state managers waited to take inseason actions to protect the runs, this year they announced closures well ahead of time, in early March. They point to poor productivity and ocean conditions as driving low Kenai River king numbers. (KATRINA

ADFG manages the Kasilof River early-run king salmon sport fishery to achieve a sustainable escapement goal of 700–1,400 naturally produced king salmon as monitored through an ADFG weir located on Crooked Creek. Crooked Creek king salmon are used to supplement king salmon stocking programs across Southcentral Alaska.

“To achieve an adequate escapement and collection of naturally produced king salmon broodstock in 2023, as well as increasing the success of anglers targeting Kasilof River hatchery-produced king salmon returning to Crooked Creek, ADFG has determined restrictions to the early-run king salmon sport fishery in the Kasilof River are needed to achieve these goals,” Gates said.

FISHERY: SUSITNA BASIN KINGS STATUS: LIMITED TO CATCH AND RELEASE ADFG is implementing the following sport fishing regulations for Units 1 to 6 of the Susitna River drainage effective 6:00 a.m.

King salmon fishing is closed in the Susitna River drainage, except for the Yentna River drainage. Any king salmon caught incidentally while fishing for other species may not be removed from the water and must be released immediately. Sport fishing for king salmon on the Yentna River drainage (Unit 4 of the Susitna River) is restricted to catch-and-release. Sport fishing gear is restricted to one unbaited, single-hook, artificial lure in all waters of the Susitna River drainage. A single-hook is defined as a hook with only one point.

fishing there.”

In addition to these management actions to the sport fishery, the Northern District commercial king salmon fishery will also be closed. Data gathered from weirs, fishwheels, boat surveys and aerial surveys will be used to gauge run strength during the season.

Monday, May 1 through 11:59 p.m.

Thursday, July 13, 2023.

“Last season, king salmon stocks on the Deshka, Eastside and Talkeetna Rivers returned at historically low levels. Low runs are again expected in these same areas of the Susitna drainage this season, warranting starting the season closed if we are to achieve escapement goals,” said Ivey. “Recent years’ performance of the Yentna stock in achieving its management objective warrants starting with catch-and-release

FISHERY: LITTLE SUSITNA RIVER KINGS STATUS: LIMITED TO CATCH AND RELEASE ADFG is implementing the following sport fishing regulation for the Little Susitna River drainage effective 6 a.m. Monday, May 1 through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, July 13, 2023: Sport fishing for king salmon is restricted to catchand-release in the Little Susitna River drainage from its mouth upstream to the Parks Highway. In addition, sport fishing gear is restricted to one unbaited, single-hook, artificial lure. Any king salmon caught must be released immediately. A person may not remove a king salmon from the water before releasing the fish.

“The Little Susitna River achieved

MUELLER/U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE)

its escapement goal over the past several years with the majority of the fishing season being restricted to catch-and-release fishing,” area management biologist Sam Ivey said. “The escapement goal is likely to be achieved through non-retention if this year’s run size compares to the recent three-year average. A weir will be used to evaluate run strength inseason on a daily basis should additional actions be necessary to either close the fishery or relax restrictions during the season.”

This management strategy is designed to provide sport fishing opportunities on the Little Susitna River and achieve the king salmon escapement goal during 2023.

FISHERY: LOWER COOK INLET KINGS STATUS: LIMIT REDUCED FROM TWO TO ONE ADFG is reducing the bag and possession limit from two to one king salmon of any size, south of the latitude of Bluff Point (59 degrees 40.00 minutes north). The waters of the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon and the Seldovia slough and lagoon are excluded from this change. This regulatory

change is effective 12:01 a.m. Monday, May 15 through 11:59 p.m. Monday, July 31, 2023. The waters excluded from the Seldovia area include all waters from Seldovia Boat Harbor upstream through the slough to the lagoon.

Based on the recent early-run and late-run king salmon escapement monitoring in the Kenai, Anchor and Deshka Rivers, this year’s king salmon runs are forecasted to be below the lower end of their escapement goals, which has triggered inriver sport fishery preseason closures in these streams. Additionally, all of these stocks failed to achieve their escapement goals in 2022 despite closures to both fresh- and saltwater king salmon fisheries.

“Given the continued period of very poor productivity for Cook Inlet king salmon and the increasing harvest trends in Lower Cook Inlet, reducing the king salmon bag limit is a precautionary approach for the period of time when Cook Inlet stocks are traveling through these salt waters,” said area management biologist Mike Booz. “These challenging conditions

have increased the need for more progressive restrictions to ensure that we get as many king salmon as possible into Cook Inlet escapements.”

FISHERY: WEST COOK INLET KINGS STATUS: CLOSED

ADFG is closing all drainages in the West Cook Inlet Area to sport fishing for king salmon effective 6 a.m. Monday, May 1 through 11:59 p.m. Friday, June 30, 2023. King salmon fishing in West Cook Inlet area streams is closed in regulation from July 1 through the remainder of the year.

“King salmon runs in Cook Inlet are anticipated to be especially poor in 2023,” Ivey said. “Major king salmon fisheries in this area of Cook Inlet have been closed in regulation since 2011. Several small stocks that remain open to king salmon fishing in this area are likely in jeopardy of overexploitation if left open this season.” ASJ

Editor’s note: For more on Alaska fishing information, check out adfg.alaska.gov/ index.cfm?adfg=fishing.main.

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ALASKA’S DIMINUTIVE SALMON DESERVES MORE RESPECT

BY DAVID ZOBY

Capt. David Bayes throttled down the 38-foot Current Lady as we approached the salmon grounds. Towering cliffs rose from the sea. Kittiwakes and shearwaters wheeled all around the boat. We already had a fish box full of fat halibut. My big fish came on a jig and ran drag, and I was happy just to be back in Alaska. But this was a combo trip and there was a bit of talk about Chinook salmon being around, and maybe even an early coho or two. The location Capt. Bayes had chosen looked like the rest of the coast: rugged headlands, occasional rafts of bull kelp, distant islands and volcanoes. We were alone.

Deckhand Shannon Zanone leapt into action, setting the two heavy downriggers up and looking up to the wheelhouse for instruction. Bayes made the call and Shannon dropped a downrigger. She let the line from the trolling rod out with her thumb on the spool. Before she could set the rod in the holder, the tip throbbed and then went slack.

“Reel, reel, reel!” she cried. But the clients were standing around with their hands in their pockets. No one knew who should go first or what the drill was. Shannon didn’t have time yet to give the speech. Dewie Latta of Pennsylvania grabbed the rod and began to reel. The screaming drag, the cries of seabirds and the breathy exhalations of nearby gray whales –  this is why I came to Alaska.

THE CAPTAIN MANEUVERED THE boat so that the line did not tangle with the downrigger. Dewie landed a nice-sized Chinook, his first of the season. Shannon called it a “feeder king,” which meant that this particular fish was not headed for a stream to spawn this year. DNA samples from “feeders” connect them to British Columbia, Washington and Oregon waters. These are not resident Chinook, but rather migratory fish that

A late-summer day in Alaska brings plenty of sunshine and salmon. And while pinks don’t get the attention in the Last Frontier that coho, sockeye and kings do, don’t dismiss how fun they are to catch or, as author Dave Zoby argues, their table fare. (DAVID ZOBY)

have come to Alaska to gorge on baitfish.

“That was fun,” Dewie said, grinning. Shannon bonked the salmon, marked it, and slipped it into the fish box.

Capt. Bayes reset the boat for another pass. He said there were marks all over the fish finder. The other rods buckled and soon we had several fish on at once. We began to boat rockfish, pink salmon and the occasional king. I was tickled to land a large buck pink, a fish going 6 pounds or so. The fish was dime-bright, nearly 25 inches and had thrashed and fought all the way to the net, like wild salmon tend to do.

A blizzard of silver scales filled the water when the deckhand netted my fish. I had a fellow fisherman snap a photo of me and the salmon, with the gorgeous scenery over my shoulder – a bit of drizzle and fog. Shannon made two marks on the fish’s tail, and dropped it into the box.

“Are you keeping pinks?” asked one of the clients. He was from New York by way of Montreal and had formed a low opinion on pink salmon somewhere

along the way. He told me earlier that his father was a chef.

“Of course,” I said.

“I was told they were mushy.”

PINK SALMON ARE THE smallest of the five species of Pacific salmon. Most pinks (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) are between 3 and 5 pounds. The Alaska state record is a 13-pound, 7-ounce Kenai River fish, while the International Game Fish Association’s all-tackle world record is 14 pounds, 13 ounces and the Washington state record is 15.4 pounds, all remarkable considering their short lifespan. They are aggressive spawners and have a huge area of distribution. You can find them from Sacramento to the Bering Sea and beyond, but primarily from Puget Sound north. In fact, their home range seems to be growing – Arctic fishermen, who only knew char and whitefish in the past, are now reporting pink salmon in their nets. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is studying this phenomena, and early data suggests

that climate change prefers some salmon species over others, the pink salmon being the obvious benefactor of changing ice dynamics and warming.

There are wild populations in Siberia, Japan and North Korea. In Alaska they are harvested by commercial seiners in tremendous numbers, over 100 million fish per year. And they make up the bulk of Pacific salmon harvested by commercial fishermen. Pinks, or “humpies,” spawn close to the ocean – they are not built to leap waterfalls or navigate hundreds of miles of freshwater rivers like coho and Chinook. No, the pink salmon gets right down to business relatively soon after entering freshwater.

Their entire life cycle lasts just two years, so they have to make use of their time. They also begin to morph almost immediately upon entering their natal streams. Their skin turns a mauve color and they rapidly lose their brightness. The males grow large humps on their backs. Perhaps this is one of the reasons they get a bad rap. Or perhaps it’s because most people have only had pink

A salmon comes over the rail of the charter boat Irish Mist out of Homer. Many anglers weren’t excited when a humpy came aboard during the author’s trip. “I heard the familiar disappointment you hear when someone lands a pink,” Zoby writes. “One man said that he wasn’t going to keep any pinks. That sentiment spread among the other fishermen.” (DAVID ZOBY)

salmon from the can and never fresh. Whatever the reason, it seems like the pink salmon needs to hire a PR firm. Anglers, suckered by derisive rumors about humpies, sometimes give their pinks to me on these outings. I gladly accept them all.

I HAVE CAUGHT PINKS on flies in freshwater and in the salt. One of my most memorable fishing trips took place several years ago when Dave Brown and

I booked the yurt at Humpy Creek in Kachemak State Park. (You can get the picture of just how many pinks invade this little stream by the fact that it’s named after their annual arrival.) We caught pinks, Dollies and chums until we couldn’t fish anymore.

Taking a cue from the resident black bears, we killed a bright hen pink and roasted her on a driftwood fire down near the beach. We had a single lemon and some soy sauce, plus a growler of

beer from Homer Brewing. That was it. But that was all we needed.

With our fingers we ate chunks of fresh salmon. You could see the distant lights of houses on Skyline Ridge above Homer. You could see a chain of headlamps dancing along the Spit as cars drove the wet roads. But, really, civilization was so far away. We felt disconnected.

Seals chased salmon up into the mouth of Humpy in violent, startling surges. They chomped pink salmon and swallowed them whole, then shyly slunk back out into the bay. It was nearly midnight and we didn’t want to go to sleep just yet. The next day, as Dave and I were waiting for our water taxi to take us back to civilization, we rigged up and cast our bright flies into Kachemak Bay. We caught two limits of pinks – six chunky fish apiece – that we bled and took back to Homer. I hadn’t caught any Chinook or coho that year, so these were the salmon I would live on back in the Lower 48. We had them processed to ship home.

Since then I’ve come to know the value of this diminutive wild salmon. On charters I’ve been delighted to catch pinks; often a few humpies can save the day.

And there’s more.

Marine animals and seabirds rely on humpies to survive. Bears eat them one after another, head first usually. Pink salmon are part of the complex food web that supports the great, lush North Pacific rainforests. Their carcasses and eggs nourish the landscape and feed other gamefish like rainbow trout, steelhead and char.

Whole cultures have arisen around the annual return of this wild salmon. It fed indigenous people for thousands of years and no one seemed to complain about them, or wish for something better. What’s better than a fish that never fails to show up?

And they nourish me. What I’m saying is that if you haven’t given pinks a chance, maybe it’s time you did so. Or you can give them away to someone who knows what you don’t.

BACK OUT ON THE Current Lady, the action picked up into a frenzy. Chinook were coming over the rail, but so were the pinks. Customers, new to Alaska and

A happy client holds up a dime-bright pink. (DAVID ZOBY)

sport fishing, turned to Capt. Bayes and Shannon each time a salmon was netted.

“Is it a king?” they asked.

“Nope; this one is a pink.”

And the customer, invariably, grinned a little and said that they were really hoping it was a king. At sea, most salmon are hard for laypeople to distinguish because they are all bright and streamlined. It takes some experience to know what’s what. Few of the clients wanted pictures of themselves holding pink salmon. They wanted kings.

It pains me to see clients on charter boats dismiss these fish. Little did my boatmates know that I was staying in Homer as a guest to my longtime friend David Ferreira. A retired meat cutter, David owns a boat that he freely shares with his friends. He’s helped fill my freezer with wild fish many times.

This past summer, I flew up and stayed in a 30-foot Dutchmen motorhome parked at David’s house on City View Avenue. His 26-foot Sea Nymph, the Sea Pickle, sat idle in the rain. The Portuguese captain knew the parts he needed. He said he could get the boat going with only a day’s work if he had the right parts. Each day he waited for the stern drive to arrive. Each day it didn’t come.

All winter we had exchanged texts about the fish we were going to catch. He told me he had no fish in his freezer.

“And I live on fish,” he said. “Wild game is OK, but it’s so lean. I’m a fisherman and I want fish.”

While I wasn’t fishing, David and I drove down to the Spit to check the dumpsters. In Homer you don’t need a fishing report. All you have to do is check the dumpsters. Kings, sockeye, rockfish, halibut, Pacific cod and pinks were present in huge numbers. But suddenly, one day it was almost all sockeye. Men and women stood at the cleaning table fileting sockeye they had snagged over at China Poot. Usually, David and I would be snagging reds too, but this year, without a boat, we couldn’t get there.

It’s only a few miles across the bay, but with no boat there’s no way. I booked charters. Capt. Ferreira stayed ashore. His apron and his knives rested in a tub in his boathouse. In his free time he learned songs on his guitar: Los Lonely Boys, Eric Clapton and Willie Nelson. When people decry not catching the fish they imagine, I wonder if they give a thought to someone like David Ferreira, a diehard fisherman with a broken stern drive. He’d love to be out on the sea

catching pinks. He’d love to trade places with them.

What does he do with pinks? He smokes some. He makes a fish dip with smoked pinks by mixing them with cream cheese, red onions and capers. Once, he netted fifty pinks in a setnet. These he processed and made into patties. But mostly he filets them and makes a chipotle sauce which he smears over the filets. He bakes them at 400 degrees for 18 minutes. Once, after eating his chipotle pink salmon, we had a long argument about which was better, halibut or pink salmon. We sat at his table and talked pinks versus kings. They are that good if you handle them correctly.

ALASKA IS HOME TO several fishing cooperatives that raise smolts and release them into the wild. Commercial seiners recover their investments by hauling great numbers of adult fish. The leftovers – the ones that avoid the nets –or the ones we often catch 40 miles out of Homer, are bonus fish. But are they wild if they were reared under artificial conditions? Is this merely a question of aesthetics?

I don’t worry about such distinctions when I’m out on a charter trying to catch

Capt. David Ferreira – here processing a small halibut in the Homer drizzle – is a proponent of the culinary value pinks offer anglers. He’ll smoke pinks and from those filets creates a zesty dip. (DAVID ZOBY)

my next dinner. But later, back at the dock, or around David Ferreira’s dinner table, those things came up.

I told him about Point Allison near Valdez, how I drove there once and caught as many pink salmon as I wanted by standing along the riprap near the hatchery. Hundreds of fishermen stood in a line and casted to the surging schools of pinks. The salmon were headed for the production facility and were predestined to swim right into the factory where workers inside were waiting to process them.

Despite the beautiful scenery and

the calls of seabirds, the metal building crouching there against the rocks flavored the scene with a sort of brutalism that is impossible to ignore. The modern sport angler has to be able to frame himself in a world of contradictions. I guess we call it industry, but witnessing thousands of fish swimming to a series of ladders that would lead them to a slime lime complete with gloved workers and fluorescent lights made us wonder what we have created in our pursuit for efficiency.

I described it to Ferreira.

“Yeah, I’ve seen it too,” he said.

A FEW DAYS LATER, I was back on a Deep Strike Fishing boat. This time I was with Capt. Chelsea Schmitt on the Irish Mist (Alaska Sporting Journal, March 2022). Deckhand Emily Leggitt set the downriggers at 45 feet and the fishing commenced, much in the same way it did a few days before. Only this time we had lots of company. Over a dozen boats from Homer were out trolling the same grounds.  I saw the Current Lady making a wide turn, the angler in the back pumping on a rod, Shannon ready with the net. A cheer rang up from the mist when the fish came over the rail. It must have been a king.

Nobody cheers for pinks. Silvers only earn a slap on the back. This imagined hierarchy of which fish are worthy and which are humdrum is totally invented. I thought back to a few weeks earlier when I was in Boulder, Colorado, stalking the grocery stores.

It was 97 degrees outside and the grocery stores were air conditioned. I encountered “Norwegian” and “Scottish” versions of Atlantic salmon going for north of $25 a pound. But I know that both of these are farm-raised products.

These fish exist in crowded conditions and are fed a diet of protein pellets. They suffer from disease and infestations of sea lice and other parasites. They are not, and never have been, wild fish. They do not carry the omega-3s that wild fish do – not even close. And nutritionally they are inferior in every way. And yet, through marketing and sleight of hand, they fetch high prices, much higher than the free-swimming pinks I hope for every time I book a charter and every time I pull on my waders at Humpy Creek.

I wanted to stop the fit soccer mom who was considering a hunk of Scottish salmon; I wanted to tell her about the pinks I catch all summer long in Alaska. They are mercury-bright and they quiver after I stun them and bleed them in the all-day light. Sometimes people actually give them away, I wanted to tell her.

Capt. Chelsea found the salmon and pretty soon the deck was awash in fish, both kings and pinks. We were using bait (trolling herring behind a flasher) and spoons (a deadly one the captain called a “birthday cake”).

But, again, I heard the familiar disappointment you hear when someone

Zoby was gifted these pink salmon and looked forward to eventually enjoying them on his plate.

“What I’m saying is that if you haven’t given pinks a chance, maybe it’s time you did so,” he writes. “Or you can give them away to someone who knows what you don’t.” (DAVID

ZOBY)

TRY THIS PINK SALMON RECIPE

David Ferreira, pink salmon aficionado, has a chipotle salmon recipe you should try the next time you take home a couple of humpies (or, heck, sockeye, Chinook, coho, etc.):

INGREDIENTS

Two pink salmon filets

¾ cup mayo

2 to 3 tablespoons of panko

lands a pink. One man said that he wasn’t going to keep any pinks. That sentiment spread among the other fishermen. Soon, Emily was releasing more salmon than she was netting. She didn’t mind, though. She only asked that if an angler didn’t want their pink salmon, tell her before she netted it so that she could release it unharmed. The net tends to send their scales showering like confetti. That’s what happens when you net a wild fish.

My turn came and I fought a feisty

2 to 3 tablespoons of crushed cornflakes

2 tablespoons crushed chipotle peppers

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon red pepper

1 tablespoon dried chopped onion

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 cup of Mexican blend shredded cheese (set the cheese aside)

Mix all the ingredients (except for the

salmon to the net. It leapt and thrashed and I didn’t care what its Latin name was, or if it had credentials. Here was an organic fish – line-caught, sustainable, ethically harvested, humanely killed (Emily whacked it deftly), and bled. We were 45 miles from Homer and out on the edge of the Gulf of Alaska in one of the last intact ecosystems left in the world. There were orcas and humpbacks. And there were pink salmon. And sunlight. There were shearwaters and their awkward,

cheese and cornflakes) in a large bowl. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat aluminum foil with baking spray and place on a cookie sheet or shallow pan. Smear the filets evenly with the mixture.  Sprinkle Mexican blend shredded cheese and cornflakes on top of everything.  Cook for 18 minutes, or until the cheese turns dark brown on the tips. Serve with a spring salad. DZ

skittering, watery take-offs.

Hours later, as we headed in and the other clients slept in piles like puppies, I sent a text to David Ferreira.

“Get your knives out; we have salmon.”

I didn’t tell him which kind, and he never asked. ASJ

Editor’s note: Dave Zoby is a freelance writer out of Casper, Wyoming, and is the fly-fishing editor at Strung Magazine. Follow him on Instagram (@davidzoby).

Homer fisherman David Ferreira’s baked chipotle pink salmon concoction “rivals most seafood recipes,” says author David Zoby. The chipotle adds some spicy flavor. (DAVID ZOBY)

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FINDING THE BEST PARTNERS IN CHROME

8 TRAITS A STEELHEAD ANGLER LOOKS FOR IN A FISHING TEAMMATE

BY TONY ENSALACO

At some point in time, everyone will have to make important decisions that will have a major impact on their lives. Some examples would be whether to attend college, what career path to follow, what kind of vehicle to purchase or lease, or committing to buying a home.

Then, there is the mother of all decisions. You probably already know where I’m going with this. If you make the right choice, you’ll guarantee yourself a lifetime of happiness and bliss. Choose wrong, and it can mean you’re destined for a future full of anguish.

Let’s announce this one together. On the count of three. One. Two. Three Fishing partner! What? You thought I was referring to choosing a spouse? No; never even crossed my mind. Besides, what the hell do I know about that? I only proposed once, and that was over 25 years ago. So, I’m going to stay in my lane and stick with what I know.

Fishermen will meet countless potential partners, but only a small percentage will ever make the cut. Lifelong fishing buddies will develop a special bond that is impossible to manufacture. It must come naturally.

There are certain traits that are needed for the partnership to succeed. You can

Of course, one of author Tony Ensalaco’s favorite fishing partners is his dad, Bob Ensalaco. But Tony has a few character traits he looks for when rounding up friends to take on his next Alaska fishing adventure. (TONY ENSALACO)

have two great people who are top-notch anglers, but if their fishing personalities don’t quite mesh, then the partnership will eventually fail. I have learned what to look for in a good partner, so I am careful about who I invite to the fishing grounds.

Actually, there has only been one man who I have been fishing with that I didn’t get a vote in the matter. He was assigned to me when we met in the hospital over half a century ago. I’m talking about my father, Bob Ensalaco.

I was fortunate that my dad possesses all the characteristics of the perfect fishing partner. That’s a good thing, because it would have been awkward if I had to cut him loose after living under his roof for so long.

The rest of my inner circle came from trial and error. Some became my go-to guys because they have most of the qualities that I value, and they are the first ones I call when I have the urge to hit the river. If they’re unavailable, then I might consider inviting a handful of B-listers that I will occasionally fish with out of necessity when my regular pals are unavailable. Out of that stable, there

are only a select few who I would ever consider inviting up north. Alaska is on most anglers’ bucket list, but I’m also aware that the rigors of traveling and the hard-nosed fishing that I do isn’t for everyone. These are some of the things that I consider and steer clear from when extending an invitation to join me on one of my Alaskan excursions.

RELIABILITY

There is never a guarantee that a fishing trip will be successful, even in Alaska. Indeed, key factors are completely out of a person’s control, such as the weather, timing of the run and whether the fish are even willing to cooperate. However, proper preparation helps increase the chances of a favorable outcome. That starts at home.

Being well prepared certainly can tip the odds in your favor. Even a simple mistake like forgetting to pack a vital piece of equipment can have its repercussions. It can be hard – or next to impossible – to replace a forgotten

item once you arrive at your final Alaskan destination, so I need to rely on my partners to help me cover all the bases. Whatever I forget to pack, one of my buddies will usually remember to bring.

There was one year when I forgot the tow rope that I use to pull the boat out at the takeout. It’s located at the mouth of the river and the water level is influenced by the incoming and outgoing tides. It’s a good thing my dad remembered to bring a long section, because getting off the river during a low tide, we would not have been able to back the trailer down close enough to the water without getting stuck in the soft gravel. We needed the rope to yank the boat up to higher – and firmer – ground.

It’s also nice when you have partners who don’t have to rely on you to supply them with items that they should have brought themselves. It becomes frustrating when you fish with someone who is constantly asking you to borrow things that should be standard in every fisherman’s arsenal. Being self sufficient and well prepared are great assets to look for in a partner.

COMPATIBILITY

There is a better chance that a leftist animal-rights activist from PETA will get along with a right-wing NRA-cardcarrying big game hunter, than a snobby, hardcore, catch-and-release fly fishing purist will coexist with a meat fisherman who has a “whack ’em and stack ’em” mentality and is looking to fill his freezer.

You don’t have to see everything eye to eye with the people you fish with, but it sure helps when you have a common goal and similar fishing styles. For example: If one guy wants to spend the day fishing in the salt and another one is a devout river rat, then maybe those two shouldn’t be on the same trip together. Or, if one guy is accustomed to staying at four-star resorts with fully guided trips and his buddy is more of a DIY outdoorsman, then a compromise might be difficult to work out.

Even something as benign as figuring out what time to start the day can become an issue. I know of two anglers who have fished all of their lives together. They get along great – like two peas in a

Chris Kelly is one of the author’s favorite cohorts to fish with. It’s not so much Kelly’s fishing prowess, but his disposition. “What he lacked in experience, he more than made up for with his enthusiasm,” Ensalaco writes. “It’s nice to share it with people whose company you actually enjoy.” (TONY ENSALACO)

pod – and have similar personalities and senses of humor. The only difference? One gets up at the crack of dawn and is anxious to go fishing in an instant, while the other one needs to sleep late. Then, once he finally decides to roll out of bed, he needs a couple of hours to wake up and drink his coffee. The early riser is jumping out of his skin and raring to go while he watches his buddy leisurely sipping a cup of morning Joe.

The entire group needs to be on the same page. And this starts with the start time, when to take a break and when to get off the water. If you like to fish from sunrise to sunset – which can be a long time in Alaska – and your partner doesn’t have that kind of interest or stamina, then time on the water becomes an issue. My suggestion is to discuss the trip’s itinerary ahead of time so there are no surprises or conflicts.

DURABILITY

Visiting the Last Frontier is a tough journey, even for the most seasoned adventurers. A person’s health and fitness must be taken into consideration when traveling to Alaska. The state isn’t

like the Lower 48, where hospitals and immediate-care facilities are usually just a few minutes away. If an Alaskan emergency occurs, it might require a helicopter trip or plane ride to get the proper medical attention.

I would be hesitant to extend an invitation to someone who might be a serious health risk. Even someone who appears in good health can struggle with traveling, vigorous fishing schedules, fighting a bunch of fish, and persevering through possible inclement weather. If someone isn’t physically up for the challenge, it might diminish some of the trip’s activities or even cut short the trip altogether.

Years ago, there was an incident when I brought one of my closest buddies to Alaska. At that time, he was on some heavy meds for a chronic ailment that he had been battling. With all of the chaos of getting to Chicago from Florida the night before and returning to the airport early the next morning to catch the first flight out, he mistakenly double-dosed himself. No bueno! Long story short: He was whacked out for almost three days before his mind was able to readjust and

return to normal. The rest of the week went off without a hitch, but if I had known how serious his health condition was, I probably would not have asked him to go that year. Please make sure that anyone you bring with you is in good shape.

LIKABILITY

You don’t have to fish with the most highly skilled anglers to have a great Alaskan experience. It’s better to surround yourself with people who you generally like, rather than guys who might be viewed as d-bags but happen to be lights-out fishermen.

Catching fish should be important, but it doesn’t have to be the sole focus of a trip. One of my all-time favorite steelhead trips wasn’t because I caught tons of fish that year. In fact, the numbers kind of sucked. What made the week so special was because I had a great guy to fish with. His name is Chris Kelly. Chris was someone who I worked with. When I met him, the first thing I noticed was that besides being super intelligent, he was so personable. So much so that I invited him on my annual

Father-son steelhead trips to Alaska are made all the better for the Ensalaco men by their all-around compatibility. “I was fortunate that my dad possesses all the characteristics of the perfect fishing partner,” Tony writes. (TONY ENSALACO)

LIAR, LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE

Here’s something that happened to me a few years ago and highlights why some fishermen just aren’t worth having around.

A trio of anglers stormed into town the night before my last day on the river. They carried themselves with all the swagger of international rockstars and appeared to have an intensity like that of a staff of brain surgeons. Unfortunately for them, their timing was off.

The fishing had been one click below stupendous earlier in the week, but it was noticeably winding down due to the dramatic drop in the river’s water level. The fishing was literally and figuratively drying up. I knew from floating the river the past five days and that with the weather report calling for bluebird skies some fish were going to be caught, but my final day of the trip wasn’t going to be easy. I went to bed with low expectations.

Around 2 a.m. I woke to the sound of a truck running and footsteps frantically going in and out of the room. It was pitchblack and I couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on. Once I realized that all of the commotion was coming from the room next door, I covered my head with the pillow and tried to go back to sleep. Didn’t work.

About 20 minutes later, I could hear the truck speeding out of the gravel parking lot. The river is only a few miles away, so I had no idea what their game plan was, other than ensuring that they would be the first ones to launch. I’m sure they did because at that time of year, daylight was about 5:30 a.m. and

the dining room doesn’t serve food until 6, so it’s protocol for guests to start fishing sometime after 7. A quick crunch of the numbers told me those guys had a four-hour headstart on the rest of us, but for half of that time they would be in complete darkness.

That evening, I got off the river early. The fishing was exactly how I predicted: alright, but nothing great. The other guides who I spoke to throughout the day experienced the same results as my boat. It wasn’t a bust, but we all agreed that the fishing had been much better earlier that week.

I never did see my neighbors on the river, which means they stayed ahead of me all day. I figured they burned themselves out with the ridiculous start time and then decided to get off the river to go back to the lodge to regroup.

After returning to the lodge and grabbing a hot shower, I walked into the lounge. The joint was empty, except for the aforementioned group sitting at a table to the left of the bar. My instincts told me not to make eye contact, so I bellied up to the hardwood with my back turned to them. The place was quiet, but I could hear one of them talking on the phone, presumably with his significant other. By the somber tone in his voice, he sounded dejected, and I heard him tell the person that the day had been “OK,” though he had expected “better.”

“Sounds accurate,” I thought to myself; after all, it was a tough day. A minute later I heard the same voice, but now with an exuberant tone call out,

“How’d ya do?” I was sure the inquiry was meant for me because I was the only fool in the immediate vicinity. I reluctantly swiveled the barstool that I was perched on and began sharing my honest results.

He stopped me in the middle of a sentence to proclaim they had landed 65 steelhead between the three of them, including several doubles. Now, besides the fact that there were experienced fishermen, including professional local guides, all over the river that day, no one experienced a fraction of that outrageous number of hookups.

Then, you have to ask yourself, “How could these guys have done so well?” I’ll say it: He was full of s%^&! Not only was the fishing slow for everyone else, it’s mathematically impossible to hook, fight and land that many fish in that short of a time frame.

Hell, it’s at least six hours or more of travel time at that water level to get off the river without ever making a cast. Plus, I was moving rather quickly, so if they were kicking ass like he claimed, then I would have had to pass them at some point. Naturally, when the fishing is cranking, you end up fishing later into the evening. No serious angler comes off the water when the fishing is that good. And I know my skepticism was correct because his two buddies never looked up or bothered to chime in to confirm his story. They sat there with their mouths shut while the guy spewed outrageous fish stats.

The only thing I can say is … well, you know. TE

When you’re sharing the river with another angler or two for hours upon hours, it’s important that you’re all on the same page. “You don’t have to see everything eye to eye with the people you fish with, but it sure helps when you have a common goal and similar fishing styles,” the author muses. (TONY ENSALACO)

trip, even though I was fully aware that Chris had never seen – let alone caught – a steelhead in his entire life.

As it turned out, what he lacked in experience, he more than made up for with his enthusiasm. What drew my attention was how he was able to fit in with even the most grizzled steelheaders, like he was one of their own. I made it to Alaska the day before Chris was scheduled to arrive, so I met him at the lodge after completing an 11-hour shift on the river. When I returned that evening, I discovered Chris shooting pool and hanging out with a couple of the locals ,along with a few of the guests. It was like he has been going there for years. Now, that’s the type of guy I want to be around.

Again, fishing is the main objective for most of us, but it’s still only a part of the Alaskan experience. It’s nice to share it with people whose company you

actually enjoy.

RESPONSIBILITY

Whenever I conducted an interview with a possible new hire for the commodities trading group that I managed, the first question that I would ask was, “Can you answer the bell?” Because I needed to know if that person could make it to work on time.

It is no secret that the high-pressure environment of a trading floor attracts certain individuals who might have trouble showing up every day, mostly due to extreme late-night activities (i.e., partying). The same problem can be prevalent on fishing trips.

I’ve been fortunate over the years that alcohol consumption has never been an issue with my crew. Sadly, I have witnessed on several occasions when someone decided to indulge in too much

extracurricular fun and had to be put on the 24-hour disabled list.

Normally, it only takes a couple of days to become acquainted with most of the guests at the lodge. You’ll learn each other’s names and where they are from, along with other small pieces of personal information. Typically, seating arrangements stay the same throughout the week – especially at breakfast – so you tend to get used to one another’s company, and also know right away when somebody is noticeably absent.

When inquiring to the present bunch where so and so is, you usually get the same awkward response: “He decided to close the bar down last night and he’s having trouble getting up this morning,” or – my favorite – “He is bent over praying at the porcelain altar and tossing out all of the fun he consumed last night.”

For the life of me, I can’t understand why some guys use terrible judgment and refuse to show restraint when it comes to boozing on fishing trips. Look at it this way: The trip only lasts X number of days, so why waste one sleeping off a hangover? Why spend a day feeling miserable because of a self-inflicted wound? Not only is the person hurting himself, but it affects his partners as well. I want to be with anglers who I can count on and not have to worry about finding Gatorade and crackers so they can nurse themselves back to good health.

Listen: I’m no angel and I’ve had my share of good times, but I have learned how to restrain my alcohol consumption, especially when I only have a few days a year to reside in Alaska. Now, I’ll be happy to stay in the bar until last call on the night before going home, when I can sleep in and have nothing to do the next morning but pack. Plus, it’s a real treat to unwind and reminisce about what’s hopefully been a great trip.

If you fish with someone who has trouble knowing when to say when, then maybe you shouldn’t extend an invitation on a major trip. Bring guys who know how to limit their alcohol intake.

KNOWLEDGE

Most anglers I fish with will never be mistaken for being members of Mensa, including myself. But what they might lack in general knowledge, they make up

Sometimes, even spouses get along well enough to fish together and bring home some fillets! That’s what Danny and Kristen Kozlow accomplished.

(TONY ENSALACO)

for in knowing how to handle a fishing stick. That’s helpful when you’re limited to only a few days of fishing. The sooner that you can get dialed in, the quicker your odds of success increase. That’s why I make it a point to fish with my friend Ryan McClure, one of Glacier Bear Lodge’s top guides, as soon as he is available.

Not only does Ryan know how to find the fish, he’s also a bank of information when it comes to the area’s river systems, wildlife and the town itself. Having some local knowledge makes the trip that much more special. Alaska can be a quirky place, and some of the stories I have heard about its residents and the antics that take place there are fascinating. I mean, who doesn’t love some good gossip? And if you don’t have a connection to any of the locals, hire a guide. Most guides are well informed about the area and they are happy to answer any of your questions.

RESPECTABILITY

My favorite people to fish with are the ones who can leave their egos at home and are capable of being truly happy to see others catch fish, even when they are struggling. Believe it or not, there are a few anglers out there who don’t mind when someone does better than themselves.

That selfless, team player mentality enhances any trip. I have a few dudes in my personal contacts who I have fished with, and I’m sure they would be a tremendous asset to me in Alaska. But I refuse to even consider them because of their competitive nature. The only thing that matters to them is that by the end of the day, their catch ratio is higher than yours.

If you fish long enough, you will run into those clowns – guys who are so competitive and full of themselves that they will do almost anything to get an advantage over their competition, even though it’s not a contest to anyone but themselves. Some of them might even go as far as blatantly lie about their piscatorial conquests just to one up their perceived rivals (see sidebar, page 46).

OPTIMISM

Take it from a lifelong Chicago Cubs fan. You got to believe – even when the odds seem to be stacked against you. No matter where you fish, it’s never a sure thing that you’ll land on decent fishing, including Alaska.

Truthfully, it’s extremely rare to have dead-solid perfect conditions. There are times when too much experience can be

detrimental, and sometimes it’s better to be naïve.

One of my best trips was during a year when most fishermen decided to throw in the towel and cut their trips short because the river was running high and dirty – a steelheader’s nightmare. I was ready to pull the plug as well, but my partners talked me into sticking around. They thought the fishing would improve, even though they had nothing to back up their claim. I thought they were nuts.

Thank goodness they talked me into staying, because the river dropped into shape and the fishing was spectacular. If it wasn’t for their optimism, my skepticism would have caused me to prematurely abort a fantastic trip.

Finding the perfect fishing partner is an impossible task because they don’t exist. The good thing is, you don’t have to clone yourself to find one. You just need to know what characteristics to look for. Then, when you meet someone who appears to check most of the boxes, give them a chance to see how the partnership develops.

Having a great fishing cohort to share quality time with on the water will make the memories that much better. It’s almost like having a spouse. Do I know about that? ASJ

If you’re respectable, enthusiastic, not too competitive and a responsible angler, you can chase chromers with Ensalaco on an Alaska adventure. (TONY ENSALACO)

In bear country you never know how an encounter with a bruin will go down, which is what makes the experience so exciting – and requires clear-headed planning ahead of time about how you’ll react.

(SCOTT HAUGEN)

ON BRUIN MEET ’N GREETS, UNWANTED AND OTHERWISE

WHAT A SPORTSMAN’S DONE WHEN COMING FACE TO FACE WITH BEARS

SECOND OF TWO PARTS

BY SCOTT HAUGEN

Ilove calling black bears and have had success doing this in many places, especially in Southeast Alaska.

There was the time I used distressed fawn calls to bring an enraged bear out of thick timber. It was my buddy’s first time seeing a bear come to a call and he couldn’t pull the trigger fast enough. The bear dropped 12 paces from us.

While preparing to fish for coho in a tiny

stream in Hyder a few years ago, one of the locals warned me, “You better take your shotgun with slugs, because the brown bears are thick now, and that bear spray won’t do any good.”

We’d moved to the town at the head of the Portland Canal in August. It was now October and the coho were running.

“Don’t be like the guy I watched get killed right over there 20 years ago,” the

man continued, standing in my front yard and pointing to a spot on the road that ran through town. “That tourist was taking pictures of a brown bear walking down the road. I hollered, but the man didn’t listen. Before he knew it, the bear was on him, killed him, then ran into the brush. I covered the body with some cardboard so the tourists driving by didn’t have to see it. These bears are mean; you be careful!”

GIVE SHANKS FOR A GREAT DINNER

BY TIFFANY HAUGEN

Spring is almost here, meaning it’s time to dig through the freezer and make sure none of that prized big game meat from last fall gets shoved to the back. One of the most overlooked and best-tasting cuts of meat is shanks.

Shank meat is the most flavorful cut on a big game animal. Similar to the preference of chicken legs and thighs over breast meat, lower legs of larger animals do taste differently from the bigger muscle groups.

Less-used muscles like the tenderloin are not as flavorful as  shanks. They work harder, thus requiring more blood flow, so there’s more flavor. The trick with cooking shanks – whether from deer, moose, caribou or other big game – is to go for the “low and slow” method, or the quicker pressure cooker (Instant Pot) method.

Although a slow cooker is preferred for retaining moisture, either device works for this recipe as the shanks are cooked separately from the stuffing they are served upon.

SHANKS

Four boned-out deer shanks, two caribou shanks or one moose shank

1 tablespoon beef broth concentrate

¼ cup water

¼ cup melted butter

1 tablespoon poultry seasoning

1 sprig rosemary

Three to six sage leaves

Dissolve beef broth concentrate in ¼ cup water and pour into slow cooker or Instant

That buck you harvested last season contains some of the most underappreciated meat big game has to offer –shanks. Tiffany Haugen’s recipe shares how to prepare them for the table. (TIFFANY HAUGEN)

Pot. Place shanks in a single layer, if possible, into cooking vessel. Mix melted butter with poultry seasoning and pour over shanks and top with rosemary and sage leaves.

SLOW COOKER

Cook for four to six hours or until shank meat is “fork tender.” Every hour or so, turn meat over to allow for even cooking. Keep warm until ready to serve.

PRESSURE COOKER

Cook on high pressure for 55 minutes and allow pressure to lower naturally.

STUFFING

⅓ cup butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

One onion, chopped

Six celery ribs, chopped

8 ounces mushrooms, chopped

One apple, chopped

4 cloves garlic, diced

⅓ cup fresh parsley, chopped

¼ cup raisins

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon red chili flakes, optional

5 cups crouton stuffing mix

¾ cup beef broth

Two eggs, beaten

In a large skillet, heat olive oil and butter on medium-high heat. Add onions and celery and sauté five to 10 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms and continue to sauté another

five minutes. Remove from heat and add apples, raisins and spices. In a large bowl, gently mix cooled onion mixture with crouton stuffing, beef broth and beaten eggs until combined. Pour into a greased, 8-inch-square oven-proof casserole pan. Cover with foil and bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the top of the stuffing is golden brown. Keep warm until ready to serve.

GRAVY

1 cup beef broth or pan drippings from slow or pressure cooker

1 cup whole milk

¼ cup butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

In a large skillet, melt butter on mediumhigh heat. Add flour and whisk until bubbles begin to form. Slowly add beef broth and milk, whisking constantly. Cook until thickened.  Salt and pepper to taste and add more broth if gravy becomes too thick. Add parsley and keep warm until ready to serve.

Editor’s note: For signed copies of Tiffany Haugen's popular book, Cooking Big Game, send a check for $20 to Haugen Enterprises, P.O. Box 275, Walterville, OR 97489, or visit scotthaugen.com for this and other titles.

FIELD

I HAD MANY CLOSE encounters with bears in Hyder, both brown and black, but never had to fire a shot. I did come face to face with two wolves one morning as they were walking down the same trail I walked up. At 7 yards there was a momentary staredown. Fortunately, they ran in the other direction.

Multiple times I was run out of fishing holes by brown bears in Hyder, usually by surprise as the bruins mysteriously materialized next to me. One time a big brown bear forced my son and I to cross a river to avoid an encounter. I didn’t like that and neither did my boy.

But in all my bear encounters, I’ve only been charged once. There was a close call one afternoon in elk camp, high in the Absaroka Range in Wyoming. A buddy and I had arrowed two big bulls on opening day, and despite hanging them in locked metal boxes high in the trees, a cantankerous grizzly wouldn’t give up.

After realizing it couldn’t access the meat, it moved to our camp and went for our horses. That’s when my partner hit it

Few thrills in big game hunting approach that of calling in a bear, as they are atop the food chain and they’re coming to kill. Author Scott Haugen called in this bear in Southeast Alaska. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

FIELD

I froze, the bear slowly lifted its head, lethargically rolled over and sat up like a dog, facing away from me. The bear never looked at me, slowly gained its feet and moved down the trail. I didn’t have to fire a shot, and with my adrenaline pumping like never before, I backed out of there, happy the bear went the other way.

Three years ago I was photographing a remote fly-out fishing trip for a lodge in Alaska. I snapped photos of a brown bear that came down to the edge of a small stream to fish. My guide buddy David Stumpf rigged fly rods while the four clients helped and watched me from a distance.

When I laid on a gravel bar to get a better angle, the bear’s lips puffed up. I knew what that meant. It aggressively walked up a steep bank and stood on its hind legs as it looked at me. At 70 yards I was concerned, so I stood up to make myself look big, waved my arms and clapped my hand. The bear dropped to all fours, briefly paused, then its ears laid back and it came full speed through alders so thick I couldn’t see it.

I hollered for David, who had a .44 Magnum pistol and reached for my bear spray, but I couldn’t get it out of the holster. Just as the bear busted from the brush – 15 yards from me – I ducked and David fired a shot past me over the bear’s head. Luckily, it turned the bear. It happened so fast, I didn’t have time to get scared. We spent the rest of the day fishing and keeping a watchful eye for aggressive bears.

SPEND ENOUGH TIME IN  bear country and encounters will happen. Anticipating how a run-in might unfold and preparing for it before heading afield will help thwart a potentially bad situation.

square in the nose with a blunt arrow. After seeing how effective that was, I carry a blunt when bowhunting in grizzly country.

I’ve had several bears approach within feet of where I was calling while hunting them, as well as walking trails, fishing and waterfowl hunting in Alaska. When in bear country, expect an encounter and anticipate when, where and how it might unfold;. And never, ever let your guard down. But know that no

matter how prepared you think you are, it pales in comparison to when a charge actually happens.

WHILE CUTTING ACROSS A point of land to reach a slough in Southwest Alaska one September, I followed a bear trail through thick, yellow grass that was taller than me.

That’s when I bumped into a sleeping brown bear – less than 5 feet from me.

Then again, how you react when coming face to face with a bear comes down to many factors, not the least of which is what move you decide to make – or not to make. ASJ

Editor’s note: Want to learn how to skin and break down a bear? Order Scott Haugen's popular Field Dressing, Skinning & Caping Big Game DVD at scotthaugen.com. Follow Scott’s adventures on Instagram and Facebook.

Haugen with a  healthy bear taken on Prince of Wales Island. He loves bear hunting and photographing bears, and says that the potential danger is what creates the excitement. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

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WHEN OVERREACH BECOMES OVERDOING IT

SAFARI CLUB ON FEDERAL INTRUSIONS AFFECTING ALASKA HUNTERS, STATE MANAGEMENT

BY SAFARI CLUB INTERNATIONAL GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Ever been at a banquet where the person next to you reaches across to trade his dessert for your chocolate cake without asking?

That is “overreach” – intrusion into your space;  bullying; disrespect; just plain self-centered behavior. Whatever you call it, it bugs you at best and starts a fight at worst. That reach across your plate might not be illegal, but it can result in bad

feelings impeding becoming friends. Similarly, members of outdoors communities use the term “overreach” to describe federal actions that unnecessarily limit opportunities to harvest wildlife and/ or impede a state’s abilities to manage sustainable populations for maximum public benefit.

Often, federal laws such as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation

Act, or ANILCA, require public involvement and consultation with the state before restrictions are adopted for federal lands. When required participation is minimized or skipped, federal actions that might not be illegal are upsetting – even when there might be common support for those actions.

Not all federal actions are overreach, but actions that disregard the role of

Alaskans get lumped into the category. Lawsuits may not resolve conflicts, and the outcome may be worse. Calling over the banquet chair to make your seatmate return your cake doesn’t erase the bad feelings and you won’t get your cake back if your seatmate already ate it. Overreach is hard to fix.

CONGRESS MOVED 103 MILLION acres

out of general public lands into special conservation units when it adopted ANILCA in 1980. Congress balanced those increased protections of the land with specific provisions to continue traditional public uses and state management of fish, wildlife and waters. Actions viewed as overreach of federal authority include: Upon statehood, and like all other states, Alaska regulated

access on navigable waters – until 17 years after ANILCA, when the National Park Service adopted regulations in 1997 that unilaterally extended NPS authority over state waters.

The Supreme Court’s 2019 Sturgeon Decision confirmed ANILCA limited NPS authority to federally owned land/water.

Such “wins” are expensive, lengthy battles that damage relationships.

Cancellations of Northwest Alaska caribou hunts have drawn the ire of conservation organizations like Safari Club International, which calls federal decisions like that an intrusion, or “overreach.” (RUTH CUSACK)

If a situation arises where conservation lands are impacted by uses of state waters, the state asks NPS to cooperatively evaluate impacts and solutions using state management tools. Instead, the public reports NPS officials describing their hope for a damage situation to trigger another lawsuit that results in allowing an NPS response on state waters.

Beginning in about 2010, both NPS and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began to preempt state regulations through limits on traditional methods of harvest or closing harvests on federal lands due to national “values,” even though Congress transferred authority to the state with statehood, like all other states, and confirmed in ANILCA. Despite repeated Congressional actions

in federal laws that confirm state authority for fish and wildlife, such as the Congressional Review Act applied to void USFWS’s overreach in 2016, the court recently ruled against the state.

ANILCA protects traditional public entry and access on federal lands, requiring a “finding of damage,” public involvement and state consultation before adopting limits. ANILCA also prohibited NPS from charging fees for entry on park lands (except on Denali Park Road and Katmai’s Brooks River facilities).

In 2022, NPS began restricting public entry/access and requiring a fee for a permit to be in the Brooks River corridor without going through the required regulation process. When

SCI ALASKA FUNDRAISER, HUNTING EXPO SET FOR APRIL 21-22

Safari Club International refers to itself as “the world leader in preserving the freedom to hunt and is a major contributor to conservation efforts worldwide.” The Alaska chapter does its part throughout the Last Frontier’s hunting scene, and this month SCI is hosting its two-day Alaskan Hunting Expo and Sportsman's Banquet on April 21-22 at Anchorage’s Dena’ina Center.

The two-day event features Friday night’s SCI American Heroes Night banquet.

“SCI Alaska Chapters Heroes’ Friday night banquet features a tribute to those men and women who have put themselves in harm’s way to ensure that Americans can lead safe and secure lives,” a SCI press release states. “There will be special recognition given to members of the armed forces, firefighters, and police officers.”

Service members who attend the banquet with ID will have an opportunity to win one of 10 guns that will be awarded. Tickets cost $80 and there will be live auctions and other raffles. Proceeds will go towards conservation efforts, outdoor education and veterans’ support.

The Saturday, April 22 Sportsman’s Banquet features $100,000 in raffle prizes, highlighted by big game hunting trips, including the Alaska Governor’s Chugach Dall sheep permit. For more information on sponsoring a table or raffle prizes, go to aksafariclub.org/annual-banquet or call (907) 903-8329.

You can also donate to SCI Alaska Chapter at aksafariclub.org. ASJ

Moose hunts have also been shut down in Northwest Alaska. SCI defines overreach as “federal actions that unnecessarily limit opportunities to harvest wildlife and/or impede the state’s abilities to manage sustainable populations for maximum public benefit.” (RUTH CUSACK)

“When required participation is minimized or skipped, federal actions that might not be illegal are upsetting – even when there might be common support for those actions,” SCI’s Government Affairs Committee writes. “Not all federal actions are overreach, but actions that disregard the role of Alaskans get lumped into the category. (RUTH CUSACK)

SCI, the public and the state of Alaska protested, NPS twisted ANILCA’s wording as only protecting certain methods of access. Snowmachines have an access right, but not people walking in the park. Overreach!

THERE ARE MANY OTHER overreach examples, such as the Bureau of Land Management piling on so many hurdles and costs so as to prevent trappers from acquiring cabin permits, despite Congress’s directions in ANILCA. Many Alaskans have forgotten Congress balanced allowing uses with land protection in ANILCA.

While Alaskans appreciate the benefits of conservation lands, your Alaska Chapter SCI and other conservation organizations monitor federal actions to prevent overreach that impacts traditional public uses also protected by ANILCA.

Hands off our cake! ASJ

Editor’s note: For more information on SCI’s Alaska’s chapter or to donate, go to aksafariclub.org.