7PMVNFt*TTVFt+BOVBSZ 38 © Travel Juneau Travel © Departments Features Fish Alaska Traveler 6 Destination Juneau by Troy Letherman 38 Alaska’s third-largest city, Juneau is situated in the heart of 46 Fish Alaska Gear Bag 10 © Glenn Hall southeast Alaska’s Tongass National Forest, and residents Fish Alaska Online 12 and visitors to the capital city are treated to over 130 miles of groomed hiking trails, any of 114 species of birdlife, all Fishing for a Compliment 14 fve of North America’s Pacifc salmon species, both brown Fish Alaska Families 16 and black bears, and several diferent species of whales that inhabit the Inside Passage. It’s a coastal paradise, in other Salmon Sense 20 words, ripe for the discerning traveler to pick of this year’s destination list. Fish Alaska Fly 22 Boats Adventures in Pasagshak Fish Alaska 24 by Rick Birch 46 Fish Alaska Saltwater 34 Hoping to make family memories that will last a lifetime, Fish Alaska’s Rick Birch headed for Fish Kodiak Adventures Fish Alaska Stillwater 36 to experience a smorgasbord of both fresh- and saltwater Fish Alaska Recipe 78 fshing opportunities. Whether fshing out the back door on the Pasagshak River or heading into the protected waters Advertiser Index 81 ofshore, Birch shows why this remains one of Alaska’s best angling destinations. Fish Alaska Final Drift 82 Fathers & Sons by Marcus Weiner 52 60 Fish Alaska Publisher Marcus Weiner has made many trips © Terry W. Sheely W. Terry © to the Nushagak River for its red-hot Chinook fshing, and while those trips were awesome, none reached the heights of his latest visit to Bristol Bay Adventures, because this time he was there with his son. Join Marcus and Charlie for this king-fshing adventure to one of Alaska’s best fshing rivers. Cross Sound by Terry W. Sheely 60 Cross Sound is the open end of a gaping salmon funnel, and Fish Alaska Contributing Editor Terry Sheely takes us to this Southeast salmon crossroads, fnding a bonus in the bottomfsh and halibut available. River of Plenty: The Togiak by JD Richey 66 66 You can do it all here—cast to surface-sipping grayling, © JD Richey battle fresh-from-the tide kings, stalk leopard rainbows behind spawning sockeye in clear tributaries; there are even aggressive northern pike in the backwaters and endless fats teeming with chums, sockeye, silvers and pinks. Here JD Richey explains how and when to make your trip to the Togiak special. COVER / Fish Alaska Publisher The Guide’s Perspective by Ken Baldwin 72 Marcus Weiner poses with Iliamna River guide Ken Baldwin of Angry Eagle Lodge takes his favorite fishing partner, us behind the scenes in this feature, teaching anglers how to son Charlie Weiner, and a be Prepared, Practiced and Fit before their trip to Alaska, and 72 Nushagak River king salmon showing how that will result in a lot more fsh being caught © Ken Baldwin © Ken double. © Brian Woobank once here. January 2017 www.FishAlaskaMagazine.com 3 PUBLISHERS Marcus Weiner Melissa Norris ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Patrick Speranza Kathy Anderson EDITOR Troy Letherman OPERATIONS MANAGER Wayne Norris EFFICIENCY MANAGER Ana Taylor ART DIRECTOR Bailey Anderson PRODUCTION MANAGER Russell K Porsley III CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Greg Brush, Troy Buzalsky, Andrew Cremata, Les Gara, Scott Haugen, Pudge Kleinkauf, George Krumm, J.D. Richey, Terry Sheely, E. Donnall Thomas Jr. CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Hastings A. Franks, Ken Baldwin, Anthony Madden, Tony Davis, Kristin Dunn, Brian Woobank REGIONAL SALES MANAGERS George Krumm (907)-529-6172 Rick Birch (907)-394-1763 SALES REPRESENTATIVE Alan Mariner (907)-345-4337 Fish Alaska Magazine PO Box 772424 Eagle River, Alaska 99577 Toll Free 1-877-220-0787 (907) 345-4337 main (907) 223-8497 advertising www.FishAlaskaMagazine.com SUBSCRIBE TODAY! Check out our subscription specials at www.FishAlaskaMagazine.com Already a Subscriber? Call for our renewal specials! (907)-345-4337 Toll Free: 1-877-220-0787 Fish Alaska magazine is published ten times annually in January-July, Aug/Sept, Oct/Nov and December by Fish Alaska Publications, LLC, P.O. Box 772424, Eagle River, Alaska 99577. Send all address changes to P.O. Box 772424, Eagle River, Alaska 99577. One year subscriptions are $30 U.S. dollars for subscriptions in the U.S., $50 U.S in Canada, and $80 U.S. in all other countries.Te single copy price is $6.99 in U.S. dollars. To subscribe by phone please call 907-345-4337. Editorial correspondence should be sent to Attn: Editor, Fish Alaska magazine, P.O. Box 772424, Eagle River, Alaska 99577. Unsolicited manuscripts and photos will be considered, but must be accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. Although we will take care, Fish Alaska is not responsible for the loss or return of unsolicited materials. Te opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily the opinions of Fish Alaska magazine publishers and editors. ©2017 by Fish Alaska Publications, LLC. All rights reserved. upping the game. He had a knack for store in Anchorage, the youngest store bringing in products that would sell like manager in the entire company running a crazy for the right price. He led employees thriving location. Wade shared stories of Fish in Peace, Paul Miller. who respected him and sought to earn his diferent promotions Paul conceived to get (1939-2016) by Melissa Norris respect. And Paul always extracted the best customers to come into the store, including from his people because he led by example. the time he wanted Wade to build a huge A married couple visiting Alaska from their He was frst one in, last one out and he display of goldfsh to give away while the home in Arizona walked into Soldotna worked his tail of in those long hours. He store sold aquarium merchandise. Another Hardware store. Tey were on the Kenai was an exceptional businessman, a natural time Paul taught Wade a lesson in point-of- Peninsula for their dream vacation fshing leader and also a kindhearted family man. purchase. Paul had bought a huge order of for salmon, hoping to enjoy the trip of One of Paul’s sons, Scott Miller, tells StarKist tuna in a can. Wade spent a couple a lifetime. Tey were not particularly another story from when he went of hours making a 6-foot tower from all these experienced anglers, however, and as it to business school in Hawaii. During a cans of tuna. Paul came along and helped turns out, their timing was less than ideal retail management class he was taking, a by taking a bunch of cans out of the display. for the peak of the sockeye run. Tey were professor told a narrative about a manager He told Wade, “You don’t want to make it disappointed they had not caught any of a national corporation that was known too nice. People won’t want to mess up your fsh to take home and shared their story for his management skills. Te tale he told display. Tey need to feel like they can grab when they happened upon Paul Miller, about this manager was of him speaking in some out of there.” the proprietor of Soldotna Still, as these and more anecdotes pile-up, Hardware. After visiting with for those of us who knew him, it seems as them and hearing their tale, if there’s always something more to say, one Paul asked them to meet him more narrative of Paul’s impact on anyone back at the store an hour later. who came across him, another tale of his He drove home, flled a cooler generosity to spread. For instance, a couple with his family’s vacuum-sealed of years back, a series of substantial wildfres fsh from his own freezer and hit the Funny River area in Soldotna. It was he took it back to share with a the second largest wildfre in the history of couple he had just met, for no the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge area. other reason than the spirit of Te volunteer fre department in the area pure generosity he exuded on a is tasked to bring their own equipment, daily basis. and with the scale of the fres, many of the On another occasion, a volunteers were coming in to buy shovels local man came in to the and other debris-clearing tools. Tey were store looking to buy a dip quietly comped, the frefghting equipment net. With the sockeye season given out at no charge, the volunteer well underway, they did not frefghters told money wasn’t necessary. have any dip nets remaining With the amount of wilderness in the in stock and nobody had any area, fres have caused trauma for several for sale anywhere in town, or families across the Kenai Peninsula over the across the entire peninsula for years. Tere was one family in particular that matter. Paul went home from Ninilchik, a couple with four kids to get his and loaned it to the who were incredibly poor and then had man so he could fsh for his their house burn down. Tey came into the family. Paul’s wife, Sherril, Paul Miller was a family man who cared most about store to buy things like a kitchen sink and commented, “You may not get family, living the Alaska lifestyle, and giving back to water heater, and the father asked Paul if he his community. © Soldotna Hardware that back.” would put it all on an account so they could “So be it,” Paul answered with a shrug. GSPOUPG SFUBJMNBOBHFSTJO$IJDBHP pay in installments. Paul told him no; there “It could happen, and if it does, then he rallying them to be great with his motto would be no charge.