33 minute read
STEELHEAD DRIVE HIM CRAZY
YOU JUST NEVER KNOW
As a longtime visitor to Southeast Alaska’s steelhead fisheries, author Tony Ensalaco – rowing off the launch in the frigid Situk River – knows the only thing he can predict is that the weather and fishing will be unpredictable. He experienced both joy and frustration during his snow-filled
YOU JUST NEVER KNOW
AN ANGLER EXPERIENCES THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF SPRING STEELHEADING, COMES AWAY WITH NEW JIG INSIGHTS, PERSPECTIVE
BY TONY ENSALACO
“I can’t believe I’m actually paying for this $%#@” were the first words to spill out of my mouth as I exited
Yakutat Airport.
Outside the terminal it was freezing.
All I could see was white. The parking lot was buried in a thick blanket of snow, and several more inches were about to fall. I had to laugh, thinking, “What kind of person who has just persevered through a long, brutal Midwest winter and been under lockdown for the last year, would voluntarily leave a place where spring and hope finally has arrived? And he chooses to travel to a region that is three pages behind on the weather’s calendar cycle, just so he can do a little fishing?”
Believe me when I say that only a hardcore steelhead angler would make that type of irrational decision. The funny thing was that I wasn’t alone.
In fact, I’ve never seen this place so crowded this early in the season. I’m sure that most of the visitors decided to come sooner rather than later because they were anxious to put the past year’s pandemic debacle behind them and start experiencing some sort of normalcy.
As for me, my annual objective is to try and plan my trip to coincide with the beginning of the run – risking inclement weather and, most likely, lower numbers of steelhead in favor of finding a little more elbow room along the river.
I could play it safer by going a few weeks later, which means more rods on the water, more reliable conditions and more fish in the system, but every now and again my risky strategy has rewarded me with an early push of steelhead. I’ve been one of the most fortunate anglers to get the first shot at them. But I quickly realized that this time wasn’t going to be one of those magical years.
MY MOOD DIDN’T GET any better when I met up with my chauffeur, Pete Eads, the manager of Glacier Bear Lodge (866-425-6343; glacierbearlodge.com). After exchanging pleasantries, Pete informed me that four of his guides had floated the river the previous day and only managed to collectively bring one steelhead to the boats.
Making matters worse, he warned me that the unseasonably cold weather – along with several feet of snow on the riverbanks – was keeping the Situk River’s water temperature from barely making it above freezing. Its flow was reduced to a super-clear trickle.
Ice-cold water causes fish to turn lethargic, while low flows drive the steelies deep into the hundreds of logjams that are littered throughout the stream. The report reminded me of when I was challenged with the same type of frigid scenario back in 2008 and 2012, when the water temperature refused to significantly tick up while I was there, making the fishing difficult at best.
“Terrific. All I need to do now is find a leaky boat and forget my lunch in the vehicle when I float the river in the morning,” I thought to myself. “The first day will be a guaranteed total disaster.”
As I stared out the truck’s window during the short commute to the lodge, I felt relieved that my father had made a last-minute cancellation, which saved himself from being subjected to, most likely, lousy fishing.
Back when Dad delivered the bad news that he couldn’t make it, I only had a few days to mentally prepare that I would be fishing solo for the week. This wasn’t the way I envisioned my Alaskan fishing trip to be.
The saving grace was that the weather forecast was calling for rain and a significant warmup, which generally improves the fishing, but I wasn’t too confident that any precipitation would help because of the massive amount of snow on the ground.
After arriving at the lodge, my skepticism was temporarily quelled when I was reunited with my last trip’s fishing partner and fellow outdoor writer, Randall Bonner. Randy is the newest addition to Glacier Bear’s guide staff and was the one who managed to put his clients onto the only fish caught the previous day.
I also got to meet up with my buddies Ty Wyatt, Glacier Bear’s premier charter boat captain, and Ryan McClure, another one of Glacier Bear Lodge’s top drift boat guides. From the intel I was able to gather, there weren’t that many fish in the system. I needed to seriously adjust my expectations. The data suggested I would be lucky to catch one or two fish a day, and getting shut out could be a sobering reality. This was not the information I wanted to hear after making the 3,000-mile journey from Chicago.
After spending some time catching up with everyone over drinks and a prime rib dinner, it was time to call it a night and retreat back to my room and prepare for he next morning. I went to bed with the least amount of enthusiasm I had ever felt before a big trip. Little did I know at the time that the fish gods were about to take pity on me. They were about to deliver an unexpected gift of piscatorial prosperity.
Tony Mann, one of several guides the author interacted with this year, pulls a Situk steelie out of the river.
(TONY ENSALACO)
The way he was catching and releasing solid chromers at the end of his first day on the water, Ensalaco had high hopes for a productive trip. But it only got tougher to catch fish thereafter, though he did discover an interesting nuance in the bite that
afternoon. (TONY ENSALACO)
THE DAY STARTED EXACTLY as I’d predicted. The boat ramp was a slush-covered mess and the river was as low as I had ever fished it, which made floating downstream a slow-go. The good thing was that while I was apprehensive about fishing alone, I quickly became comfortable rowing in the soft currents.
But even though the water was crystal clear, I didn’t see many fish in the river.
Despite the unfavorable conditions, my morale was still high and I actually connected with my first steelhead a couple hours into the float. I was sidedrifting a pink and white jig into an obscure pocket when the float slowly disappeared. I assumed that I had snagged up, so I really didn’t set the hook that hard. To my surprise, I felt the distinct methodical headshakes of a decent fish. Now I was faced with a dilemma: How was I going to maneuver the boat over to a spot where I could fight the fish – while I was fighting the fish?
I don’t remember how it happened, but I managed to get the boat over to a shallow gravel bar where I could safely get out. Of course, while I was exiting the boat and not concentrating on the battle, the steelhead took off across the river and proceeded to wrap me around a log on the opposite side of the stream.
I had no choice but to act fast by jamming the rod to the side where the line was running and pull hard, hoping the 10-pound Maxima leader wouldn’t break. The trick worked, and I was able to work the colored-up steelie away from the trouble and guide it into the middle of the stream.
After a brief sparring session, I found myself releasing a 33-inch spring-run male. The fish might not have been the biggest or baddest steelhead swimming in the creek, but it sure felt good to break the ice by putting an early tally on the board.
After floating several more miles and landing two more steelhead, including a respectable 36-incher and another big brute slightly under 38 inches, I was feeling pretty lucky to have been blessed with three fish and thought about calling it a day.
Yeah, right.
EVERY REPUTABLE STEELHEADER KNOWS that I wasn’t about to put the rods away until the drift boat was trailored and removed well away from the river.
At precisely 4 p.m. I arrived at one of the more heavily fished holes in the lower third of the float. It used to be one of my favorite spots, but the area has changed over the years. It just hasn’t produced much over the last three seasons. That was about to change.
As I approached the hole, I halfheartedly lobbed a cast down the gut of the run, and in an instant, the float vanished. When I instinctively set the hook, a silver flash appeared below the bow of the boat and it was game on. Again, the cold water helped me make fairly quick work of the 7-pound chrome hen before releasing her back to continue the journey upstream.
What happened next was totally
unexpected. For the next hour, I don’t think I wasn’t able to make three or four casts before getting bit. The hole was teeming with fresh, ocean-bright steelhead.
The only thing I could think of was that I had accidentally stumbled onto a school that came in on the most recent tide, and I was lucky enough to be there at the right place at the right time. The fishing was as good as I had ever experienced. I didn’t land anything big – every fish was under 10 pounds – but they were all chromers and worthy opponents.
I inadvertently discovered something that I’m sure made the difference. After releasing the first steelie, I mistakenly grabbed a different rod with a differentcolored jig. The very next cast I hooked up and landed that one as well. I kept fishing the same jig but couldn’t get a takedown, so I quickly changed to a third color. Bam! First cast – fish on.
I discovered that it was imperative to keep rotating colors. I have learned over
The author’s buddy (and occasional ASJ correspondent) Randall Bonner of Glacier Bear Lodge prepares a boat for
launch. (TONY ENSALACO)
the years that even fresh steelhead can be put off the bite after being subjected to the same presentation over and over. When the party ended, every steelhead I landed had fallen victim to a differentcolored jig, and I firmly believe that the great fishing was due to taking the extra time to swap lure colors between fish.
One other thing: I was sure to take pictures to document the collaborating evidence to verify my story if someone decided to slap down the B.S. card on me. If anything, the good fortune that I unexpectedly fell into made me cautiously optimistic for the next day, even though I was pretty sure that I had just experienced an anomaly.
As every reputable steelheader also knows, as fast as the fish gods giveth, they can easily taketh away. And that’s what happened.
MY SECOND DAY ON THE water was tough. I didn’t touch a fish in the morning, but I did scrape up some sporadic action in the early afternoon, which kept me from losing my mind. However, after several fishless hours, I was having serious thoughts about coming back next year because of how “hit or miss” spring steelheading can be.
Alaska’s weather in April is never the same two years in a row, so timing the run is next to impossible. For example, during the week I was there, the air temperature was anywhere from the upper 20s when I arrived to reaching the 60s on the day I left.
It snowed several inches during the first two days before changing over to sleet and finally rain. This fluctuated the river’s water level from super low, to dead-solid perfect, to high, cold and dirty (a steelheader’s nightmare), to dropping and clearing in a five-day time span. I was seriously contemplating taking a day off from floating the river. Then I came to the conclusion that since I’m only here for a few days a year, I might as well suck it up and make the best out of it.
Besides, the day wasn’t a total bust, but I still couldn’t imagine floating alone the next day. As soon as I returned to the lodge, I asked Pete if it was possible if he could find it in his heart to let one of his employees play hooky from work to come fish with me. Against his better judgment, he graciously relieved Ryan McClure of his duties.
It really helped my psyche having someone in the boat with me. I have fished with Ryan on previous trips and have always done well with him. On this day, we spent more time catching up with each other’s lives than focusing on the fishing.
My favorite part about fishing with Ryan is that he offers me an insider’s insight on living and working in the Last Frontier and all of the quirkiness that comes with the territory. His best story this year was the one about the fisherman who had accidently knocked out the entire Borough of Yakutat’s power grid after making a poorly placed cast while he was trying out a new rod. How could that have happened? I’m not going to say another word because I know the dude. If someone wants to find out, then they’ll have to visit Yakutat to find out who the culprit was.
Even spending more time shooting the $%^& than fishing, we still managed to boat a half-dozen steelhead, with Ryan managing to land the best one of the day, a big red-striped male, using his centerpin outfit. We had to chase the fish at least 100 yards downstream in the drift boat before Ryan was able to subdue his prize.
Spending some time sitting up in the front of the drift boat and having someone other than myself to talk to gave me the break that I so desperately needed.
I WAS BACK TO fishing alone during the final two days of my stay. Truthfully, I’ve seen worse fishing but knew it should have been a hell of a lot better, especially knowing how good it can be under the right conditions.
I had a lot of time to reflect while meandering downstream. I started entertaining the idea of trying a more consistent fishery in the future. Maybe targeting sockeye or silvers would be a safer bet instead of rolling the dice on the spring steelhead run. Just when I convinced myself to try other species, I connected with the last steelhead of the trip. He was another deep-bodied male with an olive-colored back and gunmetal sides – probably in the 16- to 17-pound class – and fought his heart out.
While admiring the fish in the bottom of the mesh net, I realized the reason why I came all this way again. After removing the jig from the steelie’s thick upper jaw I bowed to the fish gods and said, “Yeah, maybe another year up here wouldn’t be so bad.” That last encounter ended the 2021 trip on a high note, and it was now time to head back to the lodge.
One of the perennial highlights of this trip is hanging out in the bar until last call on the final day and cavorting with the locals. That night, the usual suspects were holding court around Glacier Bear’s dining room when Ty Wyatt suggested taking a road trip to another watering hole. We collectively agreed that a change of scenery was a fabulous idea, so we piled into Ty’s recently acquired Nissan Pathfinder and headed down the road.
Once there, we met up with Carson Churchill and Tony Mann, a couple of Alaskan fishing guides. Carson will be guiding on the Nushagak and Togiak Rivers this summer, and Tony is a contract fly-out guide for Alaska West Air on the Kenai Peninsula.
I had passed these guys on the river earlier in the week, but didn’t get a chance to really talk to them. The conversations centered on the health of our fisheries, as well as the new developments of the sport, which were beyond Illuminating.
While Tony was pontificating his views on the future of the Kenai River to the left of me, Ty was explaining the intricacies and the nuances of Czechnymphing on the right. I sometimes forget that he’s a top-notch river guide when he’s not running ocean charters.
Just when everyone was participating in some heavy discussions, out of the corner of my eye I saw Carson climb up onto his barstool and lunge for the bell that overhangs on the bar. He rang it and shouted that he was going to buy a round of drinks for the entire bar. That’s something you don’t see every day in the budget-conscious steelhead community.
Carson’s unexpected act of generosity was much appreciated by the pub’s patrons. The night turned out to be the perfect way to end a difficult but enjoyable trip.
YEARS AGO, IF SOMEONE told me that I was only going to average less than a handful of fish a day on the world-famous Situk River, I probably wouldn’t have left my
Still, the Situk spit out some nice fish, as guide Carson Churchill
could attest. (TONY ENSALACO)
driveway. I could pull off those kind of stats on some of my favorite Great Lakes tributaries and save a couple large bills as well.
But you know what? I’m still glad I went. I caught up with old friends and met some new ones. The fishing was far from spectacular, but like every steelheader knows, any encounter with a wild steelhead will always be special.
Besides, there is so much more to Alaska than catching fish, which I’m slowly starting to understand. I was initially apprehensive about floating the river alone, but it definitely gave me a new perspective. And even though the fishing wasn’t what I had hoped for, I’m still glad that I made the journey north.
Hey, Carson: Just a head’s up. Next year, it will be my turn to ring the bell! ASJ
Ty Wyatt (left) and Ensalaco swapped stories during a fun night at a local
watering hole. (TONY ENSALACO)
“I started entertaining the idea of trying a more consistent fishery in the future,” the author wrote. “Maybe targeting sockeye or silvers would be a safer bet instead of rolling the dice on the spring steelhead run.” But it’s not that easy to quit such a risk/reward destination that Ensalaco keeps coming back to. (TONY ENSALACO)
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STIKINE RIVER FLOAT NOSTALGIC, PEACEFUL AND BREATHTAKING
BY MARY CATHARINE MARTIN
Each year, my partner Bjorn and I take a river trip. Parenthood (we have a 2-year-old and a fivemonth-old) has also meant that we’re thinking low-key options. COVID meant we were dreaming of travel.
So earlier this year, it felt pretty natural to find ourselves talking about the Stikine, which is the fastest free-flowing navigable river in North America. It has its start in the Sacred Headwaters of the Klappan Valley in British Columbia (also the source of the Skeena and the Nass Rivers), then crosses the U.S.-Canada border and flows into the ocean near the Alaska communities of Wrangell and Petersburg. In Lingít, the river is named “Stax Heen,” which translates as silty, cloudy or bitter river, Wrangell-based poet Vivian Faith Prescott has told me.
Here in Alaska, the Stikine delta – the largest delta in North America – is a stopover for tens of thousands of migratory birds. Each fall, Alaskans travel up the Stikine to hunt moose (as do Canadians.)
And the Stikine is a vital salmon river, with runs of all five species of Alaska salmon and many other fish besides. Southeast Alaska’s three transboundary rivers – the Taku, Stikine and Unuk – produce 80 percent of its king salmon.
In short, the Stikine is essential to life in the region, as it has been for thousands of years. It has a deep cultural history as a long-standing trade corridor for the Tlingit and Tahltan Indigenous peoples, whose traditional territories encompass the river (something highlighted by a digital production that was one of my favorite efforts of 2020, When the Salmon Spoke.)
If you, too, are dreaming of paddling, fishing on or seeing an international river, it’s hard to do better than the Stikine.
THE TRIP Six years ago, Bjorn and I floated down the Stikine with a couple of friends, Bjorn’s old fishing boat captain and her son. We all met in Wrangell and then flew over the border to Telegraph Creek, the only permanent town on the river, via small plane.
On the road from more populated areas of British Columbia, cars arrive by driving alongside the “Grand Canyon” of the Stikine – a 45-mile stretch of roaring river tackled only by the most daring and skilled of whitewater kayakers, and by a few tour boats, like the one operated by Jim Leslie and family out of Wrangell, Alaska Waters, Inc. (907-305-0495;
Paddlers head along the Stikine River, which flows from British Columbia into Alaska and gives birth to all five species of wild Alaska salmon. It’s a special place for author Mary Catharine Martin and her partner, fellow ASJ correspondent Bjorn Dihle. (MARY CATHARINE MARTIN)
Mining across the border in British Columbia has been a hot-button issue for those who hope to protect rivers such as the Stikine. This is the mine waste dam at the Red Chris Mine, in the Stikine watershed in B.C. (GARTH LENZ)
alaskawaters.com).
The stretch of river below Telegraph Creek, a town of a few hundred and home to mostly Tahltan people, is much gentler. There are a few small bumpy sections of river (though that may change with fluctuating water levels), but nothing that requires serious know-how.
MOOSE NEIGHBORS After we made our way from the airstrip, down through old Telegraph Creek (which, at the time, was blocked by a landslide) and to the water, our first major sight on the river was a rock formation known as “the Three Sisters.” The stretch of river after it was relatively easy to navigate.
It was early May and stands of birch, poplar and alder trees were just beginning to green up. We watched moose moving along gravel bars – one night a bull woke us when it stamped past our tent and, then, swam across the river. It was easy to get lost in the quiet and wildness of the landscape. A LOOMING THREAT But the Stikine watershed is also the site of vast stretches of mining claims and development. The entire corridor of the Iskut, the Stikine’s largest tributary and one of its most important salmon spawning systems, is covered in claims.
Mining isn’t new to the region; what is new is the scale and number of the claims, the amount of waste they would generate and are generating, and the consequences if any of those mine waste dams fail. The Red Chris, one of the largest, is partly owned and operated by Imperial Metals,
Acid drainage from the Tulsequah Chief, an abandoned British Columbia mine just over the Alaska border, in the Taku River watershed, one of the rivers being closely monitored for possible mining threats for salmon
runs. (CHRIS MILLER/CSMPHOTOS.COM)
Alaska Department of Fish and Game employees beach seine for juvenile Chinook on the transboundary Stikine River. (MARY CATHARINE MARTIN)
the company responsible for the 6-billiongallon Mount Polley mine waste spill in the Fraser River watershed in 2014. And it has the same dam design. Though the causes are manifold – salmon stocks are crashing all over B.C. since 2014 – the Fraser’s famed sockeye run has plummeted.
FINDING SOLACE Back in that sunny May in 2015 on the Stikine, however, we leaned back in our boats, looked up at the blue sky or watched snow-capped mountains as we floated by at 5 or 6 miles per hour.
Occasionally, we’d turn our boats to navigate through a choppy stretch of river. We were worried we were floating too fast, so we made sure we had extra time to explore river bars and sit at campfires. One morning we woke and saw the tracks of two wolves that had walked through our camp during the night.
When we were still in Canada we watched three Alaska Department of Fish and Game employees beach seine juvenile Chinook. They said they aimed to collect 50,000 and tag them with coded wire. King salmon on our transboundary rivers have been suffering in recent years and Unuk Chinook are declared a stock of concern. The Alaska Board of Fish is set to declare Taku and Stikine Chinook stocks of concern as well at its next Southeastfocused meeting in early 2021. Back in November, ADFG predicted the Stikine would see only 9,900 returning Chinook in 2021. One afternoon we headed to Fowler Hot Springs, also called Choquette Hot Springs.
We paddled up a calm slough that ended in sandbars, bear and moose tracks, and a faint path over a steep, muddy bank. There, we pulled up our boats and followed along a small creek, testing the water with our hands until it warmed. We saw dozens of small toads, sometimes right where the hot water bubbled up from the sandy ground. Brown bears had been using the warm pools to wallow in. That evening we camped at the outflow of the Great Glacier and walked up to the glacier itself the next morning.
OFF TO ALASKA Crossing the border from Canada into the United States on the Stikine River was the first time I’ve ever seen the lines on a map made manifest. Trees along the line of the border have been clear cut for a width of about 10 yards in straight lines as far as the eye can see.
By this point all of us except for Bjorn, who bathes in ice water beneath
Fishing along the Stikine River includes quite the backdrop for an angler to soak in. (MARY CATHARINE MARTIN)
The catch-and-release fishing for rainbow trout was solid along the Stikine. (MARY CATHARINE MARTIN)
the cool light of the moon, were looking forward to Chief Shakes Hot Springs. We surprised a curious brown bear on the banks above us and then turned into a still, almost invisible slough also known as the Ketili River.
A few miles later we turned into the shallow slough, just moments after a boatload of screaming people roared out of it at 30 miles an hour. Most people seem to be day visitors from Wrangell, and there aren’t many places to camp. We found a spot for two nights in as high and flat a space as we could.
The hot springs, though, were wonderful. One is indoors and one is outdoors, looking out onto a meadow filled with sunshine and birds.
For our last night, we’d booked the Forest Service cabin at Garnet Ledge, a few miles away from Wrangell. We left the hot springs early and paddled out into the miles-long expanse of the Stikine Delta. Arctic terns hovered, doves and yearling seals followed us, and the wind at the mouth of the river blew so hard it was almost impossible to steer a boat filled with air.
It calmed as we transitioned to ocean water, until the water was like glass. We navigated shallow waters, silt-banks, and driftwood trees, whose trunks all pointed just a little to the right of Wrangell.
Bjorn and I slowed as we neared the cabin, not wanting the trip to end. That night we watched the most beautiful sunset of the trip, reminisced, and talked about the rivers we plan to float next.
ONE SPECIAL RIVER Alaska is home to many rivers, each offering a different journey. The Stikine is one that is truly special. Despite the everpresent yearning to see new things, it’s a
A view of old Telegraph Creek, the only permanent town on the Stikine
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Essex, MA essexmarinallc.com
McLellan Brothers Inc.
Everett, MA mclellanbrosinc.com
Merrimac Marine Supply
Methuen, MA merrimacmarine.com
Nauset Marine-Orleans
Orleans, MA nausetmarine.com
Obsession Boats
East Falmouth, MA capecodboatcenter.com
Portside Marine
Danvers, MA portsidemarine.us
Riverfront Marine Sports Inc.
Salisbury, MA riverfrontmarine.com
South Attleboro Marine
North Attleboro, MA www.sammarine.com
Wareham Boat Yard
W. Wareham, MA wareham-boatyard-marina.com
It’s a glorious sunrise, viewed in fast forward thanks to the power of your 250 ProXS. Because you need to get there while the fish are still eating breakfast.
Learn more at mercurymarine.com or visit your local dealer, today.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Dover Marine
Dover, NH dovermarine.com
Winnisquam Marine
Connor’s and O’Brien Marina Belmont, NH Pawcatuck, CT winnisquammarine.com connorsandobrien.com RHODE ISLAND
Defender Industries Inc.
Waterford, CT Billington Cove Marina Inc. defender.com Wakefield, RI bcoveyc.com
O’Hara’s Landing
Salisbury, CT Jamestown Distributors oharaslanding.com Bristol, RI jamestowndistributors.com MASSACHUSETTS
Action Marine & Watersports Inc.
Holyoke, MA actionmarineholyoke.com
Bill’s Outboard Motor Service
Hingham, MA billsoutboard.com
Captain Bub’s Marine Inc.
Lakeville, MA captainbubsmarine.com
Doug Russell Marine
Worcester, MA WorcesterBoating.com
Essex Marina LLC.
Essex, MA essexmarinallc.com
McLellan Brothers Inc.
Everett, MA mclellanbrosinc.com
Merrimac Marine Supply
Methuen, MA merrimacmarine.com
Nauset Marine-Orleans
Orleans, MA nausetmarine.com
Obsession Boats
East Falmouth, MA capecodboatcenter.com
Portside Marine
Danvers, MA portsidemarine.us
Riverfront Marine Sports Inc.
Salisbury, MA riverfrontmarine.com
South Attleboro Marine
North Attleboro, MA www.sammarine.com
Wareham Boat Yard
W. Wareham, MA wareham-boatyard-marina.com
It’s a glorious sunrise, viewed in fast forward thanks to the power of your 250 ProXS. Because you need to get there while the fish are still eating breakfast.
Learn more at mercurymarine.com or visit your local dealer, today.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Connor’s and O’Brien Marina Dover Marine
Pawcatuck, CT Dover, NH connorsandobrien.com dovermarine.com
Defender Industries Inc. Winnisquam Marine
Waterford, CT Belmont, NH defender.com winnisquammarine.com O’Hara’s Landing RHODE ISLAND Salisbury, CT oharaslanding.com Billington Cove Marina Inc. Wakefield, RI MASSACHUSETTS bcoveyc.com
Action Marine & Watersports Inc. Jamestown Distributors
Holyoke, MA Bristol, RI actionmarineholyoke.com jamestowndistributors.com
Bill’s Outboard Motor Service
Hingham, MA billsoutboard.com
Captain Bub’s Marine Inc.
Lakeville, MA captainbubsmarine.com
Doug Russell Marine
Worcester, MA WorcesterBoating.com
Essex Marina LLC.
Essex, MA essexmarinallc.com
McLellan Brothers Inc.
Everett, MA mclellanbrosinc.com
Merrimac Marine Supply
Methuen, MA merrimacmarine.com
Nauset Marine-Orleans
Orleans, MA nausetmarine.com
Obsession Boats
East Falmouth, MA capecodboatcenter.com
Portside Marine
Danvers, MA portsidemarine.us
Riverfront Marine Sports Inc.
Salisbury, MA riverfrontmarine.com
South Attleboro Marine
North Attleboro, MA www.sammarine.com
Wareham Boat Yard
W. Wareham, MA wareham-boatyard-marina.com NEW HAMPSHIRE
Dover Marine
Dover, NH WASHINGTON dovermarine.com PASCO Winnisquam Marine Belmont, NH Northwest Marine and Sport winnisquammarine.com 2250 Commercial Ave. RHODE ISLAND (509) 545-5586 Billington Cove Marina Inc. www.nwmarineandsport.com Wakefield, RI bcoveyc.com
Jamestown Distributors
Bristol, RI jamestowndistributors.com
river Bjorn and I can’t wait to get back to it and share Stikine with our children.
I hope future generations will have the same chance. ASJ
Editor’s note: Mary Catharine Martin is the communications director at SalmonState, an organization that works to keep Alaska a place wild salmon and the people who depend on them thrive. Part of that work is at Salmon Beyond Borders, which works to defend the transboundary Stikine, Taku and Unuk Rivers.
To watch When the Salmon Spoke, which was presented by Southeast Alaska Indigenous Transboundary Commission and Ping Chong + Company, in collaboration with SkeenaWild Conservation Trust and Salmon Beyond Borders, go to vimeo.com/424432430. Check out salmonstate.org for more.
“We watched the most beautiful sunset of the trip, reminisced and talked about the rivers we plan to float next,” Martin writes. (BJORN DIHLE)
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