Catch up with all that's happening at Alaska Sportfishing Expeditions in Ketchikan, Alaska. Covering the week of September 6, 2021.
Welcome back to another edition of the Ketchikan fishing minute for the week of September 6, 2021.
As we had hoped, the conditions that lead to a strong summer coho run, seem to have also looked favorably on fall coho too, as guests found a lot of nice fish all week.
Like we've mentioned previously, finding the coho seemed to be the hardest part but once on them they were hungry and aggressive.
Many guests were successful at either getting their limit or getting close.
We thankfully enjoyed our reprieve from some of the heavy rain we got over the last week of August and the first week of September, trading last week's nearly five inches of rain for a meager .61 inches this week.
Every year we get guests from all walks of life each with varying skill levels.
Some are here for the first time, while others are making their 30th trip or more.
Having repeat guests come year after year is one of the things that makes our job extremely rewarding.
We build relationships with people and work hard to make sure their vacation is an enjoyable one.
After having been doing this for more than 30 years, we often hear a different story with the same thing.
Like I've always wanted to come to Alaska or our friends came last year and had such a good time they talked us into coming with them this year.
We were a little surprised and excited to hear about how 17-year-old Haley Meek found herself at the cedars lodge with her dad Brad.
Haley is a first-time guest at the cedars lodge pictured here with another first-time guest Delfino Lorenzo.
Haley's trip to the Cedars was part of a senior project she was completing for school.
As part of the project, Haley had to pick something she had never done before and then spend the year learning all about it.
Haley had never been fishing and spent the summer diving into it first back at home in Preston, Idaho learning all about freshwater fishing and then in Alaska at the cedars lodge learning about saltwater fishing.
Haley spent the week catching salmon and halibut fishing with captain Alex Simmons and from the looks of things we'll have a lot to talk about in her report.
If Haley's experience is anything like that of some of the others who fished with their dads, this last week we think that it's pretty likely her project will spark a love of fishing and the outdoors that will last her a lifetime.
We were saddened this week to get the news of the passing of our longtime business partner and friend Bill Ruth.
Bill became a partner in silver king lodge in 1991 and along with partners Don Olson and Kirk Thomas steered the direction of the company over these last 30 years.
Bill's business background was in real estate and his expertise was invaluable as the partners worked on expanding capacity at Silverking lodge as well as during the acquisition of Clover pass resort in 2003.
He told me more than once “I can live with the business making no money but I can't live with putting out an inferior product.”
His insistence on producing a top-notch product not only challenged us in the past but will continue to challenge us as we move forward in his absence.
We know that there are as many reasons to visit Alaska as there are people for Haley, James, and Lena.
Their outing provided an opportunity to develop a love for the outdoors and the thrill of the fish on the end of their line.
For Bill, it was an Alaskan oasis that he often referred to as the only thing I own that isn't for sale.
For all, it was a chance to spend time in some of God's most beautiful creations with some of their favorite people in the world.
Bill knew that it ultimately came down to the people who insisted that everything, we do add to your experience rather than take away from it in our fast-paced seasonal environment.
That can be challenging but it's a challenge.
We're excited to continue accepting and when we do we'll capture it's right here on the next Ketchikan fishing minute.