AROUND THE COASTS
Snapshot Who we are Paige Bower / Petersburg, Alaska / Salmon, halibut, blackcod, herring roe-on-kelp, Dungeness crab, and sea cucumber diving mong that which falls within
Bower quickly made connections and
learning a new craft of leatherworking,
the expertise of fishermen are
hopped on a salmon tender in June 2018
Bower continued to develop her fishing
knives: There’s the ubiquitous
to learn the ropes on the water. Tendering
career crewing on Dungeness crab and
Victorinox utility knife, bleeding knives,
is slow compared to actual fishing, so in
salmon seining boats in Southeast Alaska
fillet knives, and knives to gut and clean
September that year, she joined a seiner to
in 2019. The following year, she continued
specialized in shape and size to the
fish for chum salmon outside of Sitka. Her
with those two fisheries, but also picked up
species at hand, among many others.
timing couldn’t have been better. For most
longlining for halibut and blackcod.
Learning how to use and maintain these
in
A
the
fishing
This year Bower has been fishing
blades is often part of the trade typically
Dungeness crab, salmon, halibut and
learned through experience.
blackcod, but added the purchase of a Southern Southeast Alaska herring roe-
But for Paige Bower it was a love of
on-kelp permit and leased a sea cucumber
knives, or more precisely knifemaking, that brought her to her burgeoning
dive permit — with the expectation of
career as a fisherman in Southeast
buying into the latter next year.
Alaska. And after three short years of
Her precociousness, self-confidence
working as crew, she’s found enough
and skill has allowed Bower’s career
satisfaction on the to start buying into
on the water to take off quickly, but
fisheries even as she looks to invest in
there have been challenges and learning
her knifemaking operation.
experiences along the way — seasickness and stinging jellyfish notwithstanding.
“One of the reasons I started fishing was to support my knifemaking,” says
“I think the biggest challenge at first was
Bower, 25. “It is definitely doable — fish
being teachable and open to criticism,”
in summer and work on my knifemaking,
industry it
the
she says. “I had to change my attitude a
leatherworking in the winter.”
confluence of a stellar catch and market
lot to let things roll off and not take things
Bower moved to Petersburg, Alaska, in
price happen just a few times a decade,
personally.”
2018 from her home in Zillah, Wash., for
but for Bower it happened on her first
adventure and to work with a community
opener.
seems
With so much time on the water and growing responsibility on boats, Bower
of knifemakers to further her metal-
“I don’t think I’m allowed to talk about
hasn’t let go of the craft that first brought
working craft. Petersburg also happened
specifics of what we caught and how
her to Alaska. She’s looking to downtime
to be a bustling fishing port with plenty of
much we made, but I will say my captain
this winter to build her own hydraulic
work for those willing to work hard.
looked at me and said, ‘This isn’t normal,’”
press, which would allow her to make
“Zillah is in the middle of a desert, and
Bower says with a chuckle. “I did realize
layered Damascus steel blades in her own
Petersburg is in the middle of a rainforest,”
how much opportunity there is in fishing, if
shop. If you’re interested in checking out
she says. “They’re very different, but both
you work hard and get lucky, you can make
Bower’s knifework, you can find her at
are small towns with a strong sense of
a lot really fast.”
shawleatherworks.com and on Instagram
community.”
this summer that will propose to restore Roadless Rule protections for the Tongass National Forest, “returning stability and certainty to the conservation of 9.3 million acres of the world’s largest temperate old growth rainforest,” according to the department’s announcement. To subscribe, call 1-800-959-5073
After a winter of knifemaking and
“We see today’s announcement as a big win for our fisheries and maintaining a sustainable economy,” said Linda Behnken, executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association, based in Sitka. The Tongass National Forest is the largest intact temperate rainforest
@shawleatherworks.
— Nick Rahaim
in the world, representing nearly a third of the planet’s remaining oldgrowth temperate rainforests. It holds more biomass per acre than any other rainforest in the world and stores more carbon than any other national forest in the United States. — Jessica Hathaway October 2021 \ National Fisherman 15
