Stories of Alaska
The fish don't know...
- AJ Slagle
- 2021-04-22 11:00:00
- Fishing Stories
- Ketchikan, Alaska
A family of 6 on a halibut hunt on a windy rainy day in the 28 foot raider! The only vessel in the fleet with a heater and a full head on board, perfect for rainy windy weather, they were from Chicago and lively and fun,also their first time to Ketchikan...
As we made our way together from their ship to Baranof one of the brothers in the group asked me "AJ, who do you think is better Lebron James or Kobe Bryant?" My reply was met with some mirth as I did not remember who they were at first and said," I don't keep track of football!" Incredulous for two reasons, the gentleman who asked that, could not believe I mistakenly said football instead of basketball and secondly that I was not a fan! So his next question was " then what do you do?" I answered "well I shoot deer from the window of my house, I catch halibut and rockfish in front of it and I make a living showing you folks the bounty and beauty of Alaska!"
His reply was "that's pretty cool!" And we continued to the Baranof facility to get them licenses and raingear after which we all loaded into the boat and headed south to try for some halibut, it went well even though the weather was deteriorating and we caught two halibut and limits of rockfish for everyone...
The trip ended and we came back to the dock, hung the fish for pictures and said our farewells, then I was to begin the next charter...the weather had continued deteriorating and the four clients I was too guide next had dwindled to two old gentlemen that were fishing buddies and still wanted to go...
We returned to the site of the previous charter and the anchor wouldn't hold due to the increase in wind and swell, so I proposed a spot in the Tongass narrows that was very familiar and a little more sheltered and they said " let's go for it!".
It was about a 20 minute run and we anchored behind a small island in 70 feet of water, then it got busy! Quill back, China and copper rockfish one after another as fast as they could drop down, then we hooked into the first halibut and it was a keeper about 25 pounds! And so it went rockfish for four hours with two more halibut caught and released, a 60# pounder and a 80 #pounder not bad for a nasty day...
Then one of the gentlemen looked at me and said " you know I know those people who canceled, they are on my ship...I'm going to show them the pictures of all these fish we caught!" Apparently they had told him it was too nasty of weather and they would not catch any fish, I guess they were right, they didn't catch any...but we sure did! In every charter I hope for calm waters and clear skies, and when that isn't the case I make the best of what is there, good rain gear gloves and keeping as warm and dry as possible, with an annual average of 160 inches of rain a year the days without it are going to be considered rare at times, so accepting and adapting has been an southeast Alaskan resident tradition...which makes showing our guests the beauty and wonder of our home in the safest and most comfortable manner is our goal and responsibility...
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!
