Stories of Alaska
"To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world."
John Muir
Baranof's Guide's Stories
We’ve assembled a motley crew of fishermen, hunters, outdoorsmen, and mountain men that get paid to follow their passion. Check out their adventures on and off the clock here.
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Children's Fishing Stories
What do Alaskan children think about fishing? They’ve grown up with it and aren’t afraid of telling the truth. Get the skinny here with entries from our local elementary writing contest.
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Commercial Fishing Stories
Sportfishing is one thing, commercial fishing in Alaska is something entirely different. Our local fishermen give you a behind-the-scenes taste of how our seafood is brought to market.
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Ketchikan's Past / Present
Why is Ketchikan a tourism destination, and why is it here in the first place? Our story is one of mining, fishing, timber, and tourism in some of the most beautiful country in the world.
Read MoreOur Host for the Stories
Greg Slagle is a Ketchikan local and proud Alaskan. He's selected the stories you find here to inspire, educate, and entertain our visitors in a way that only the Last Frontier can.
A Day in the Life in Ketchikan, Alaska
Alaska is a land of unique experience. A simple search through a TV guide reveals a wealth of shows telling the story of one aspect or another of life in the Last Frontier. This section is dedicated to relating all manner of tales concerning our local history, fishing, working, and life in general in Southeast Alaska. Here at Baranof, a large portion of our job is helping visitors define what they want their own Alaskan story to sound like. Toward that end, we collect every yarn our guides, guests, children and peers spin that we can get our hands on in an effort to broaden the scope of what goals our clients believe is attainable when they visit us.
When seeking your own unique story, we recommend you decide on a specific set of activities, and plan on plans changing. If you've ever been to a concert, chances are you aren't there to hear them play their most recent album exactly as it was recorded; you're looking for spontaneity, adaptation, and personalization. You want a one-of-a-kind experience that falls within the realm of something you know you enjoy, not a cookie-cutter reiteration. That's what this collection of stories is for. We'd like to inspire you to dream big and learn Alaska's songs by heart. When you get up here to experience it live we want you to know how special every hit on your fishing lure, eagle sighting, and moment with your family really is.
Alaska Story Themes
Whatever you are interested in, we probably have a story about it...
Historical Stories
Ketchikan Past & Present View AllMisty Fjords
Ketchikan's MainAttraction Coming Soon
Campfire Stories
Fun, Interesting ordown right bizzare Coming Soon
Corona Virus Update 2.3.2023
Even in the remote islands of Southeast Alaska, COVID-19 poses risks. The health and safety of our guests, employees, and community are our top priorities. We have put special measures in place to keep people safe on excursions:
The safety of our customers is paramount, so we’re also not going to walk away from common sense guidelines such as:
- Vaccination – We believe vaccines provide safe and effective protection against COVID-19. We strongly encourage vaccination and boosters for all employees, and the vast majority are currently vaccinated against COVID 19
- Social distance – We strive to keep groups separated as much as possible during the licensing and outfitting process, but our real strength in social distancing is based on the size of our boats. With only six passengers per vessel and one captain they spend time with, the risks of exposure are limited.
- Masking – We abide by the federal mandate for passenger vessels, masks are required for the duration of the tour while in enclosed cabins. That being said, there is quite a lot of airflow even on our hardtops which are typically open to the back deck. Masking may be required at times for vulnerable guests on a case-by-case basis.
- Stringent Cleaning – We’ve increased the frequency of disinfecting surfaces and high traffic areas such as the Alaska Fish House restaurant, bathrooms, the outfitting room, the dock, and our boats. Hand sanitizer will be available to all guests on every boat.
- Wellness Checks:
- Employees receive daily wellness checks to ensure they are healthy and symptom-free.
- Employees are empowered to call in sick if they show symptoms.
- If you or anyone in your group is experiencing symptoms, we will work directly with you to cancel or reschedule your tour free of charge.
These protocols have enabled Baranof Fishing Excursions to operate safely and successfully throughout 2020, 2021 and 2022. With your help, we intend to continue fishing safely in 2023!
