Did you know the word mascot originates from the French word mascotte, meaning “lucky charm”? What an appropriate topic considering St. Patrick’s Day is this Tuesday (don’t forget St. Urho’s Day is Monday). Apparently, our friends Mike and Mary Harden thought we needed a mascot. Regular visitors to Alaska, when they …
Fish Whacker
I spend a lot of my off season prepping for the new year. Being ready for whatever a season can throw at me is the key to success. Okay, healthy salmon runs sure help too. I’ve purchased new waders and boots. Broken fly rods have been replaced, and so have reels that have seen better days. I’ve restocked spools of fishing …
Chamber Vacuum Sealer
One of the best recommendations for our business came over 20 years ago from our friend Dave Anderson. Dave is/was a successful businessman whose passion is the outdoors. He told us that he bought a chamber vacuum sealer to process fish and game and we should get one for our business. We had been considering …
Silver!
I often talk about the Beaver Creek All-Stars that live in our neighborhood. We now have a new category of excellence. Beaver Creek Olympic Medalist. In his second Winter Olympic’s, Gus Schumacher earned a well deserved silver medal in the 15km cross country men’s sprint relay race. He improved in all the other …
2026 Sockeye Forecast?
I had a blogpost all set for today detailing the 2026 Upper Cook Inlet sockeye forecast. I decided to put it on pause. The reason is the information I came across was from internet chatter and not the source. I won’t believe the numbers until the Alaska Department of Fish and Game makes it official. The …
GoFundMe
Whenever we’re helping guests put together an Alaskan fishing adventure, we always recommend adding a saltwater trip in Homer. The two captains we recommend are Boo Kandas and Mike Wheat. Most of you reading this have fished with either one of them or even both. Last week, Mike, his son Ryan, and Oliver (Boo’s son) were …
New Alaska State Park App for 2026
Launched at the beginning of the year, the Alaska State Parks has an app available that encourages people to visit and hike the 31 parks across the state. It’s called the Alaska State Parks Passport Challenge. The app has interactive mapping software that allows the user to track trails and earn digital badges to …
USDA Forest Service Cabins
We’d love to have everyone reading this stay at Beaver Creek Cabins & Guide Service for their Alaska adventure. Unfortunately, the reality is we’re small with limited availability during a limited season. Don’t worry, there are plenty of other places to stay and travel to experience the grandeur of …
Winter Beauty
It may not feel like it, but winter is slowly disappearing. Since the first day of winter solstice, Kenai has gained 36 minutes of daylight. Winter is far from over, but prepping for the 2026 fishing season makes time go by fast. Renewing licenses, buying more gear, it’s a process I enjoy nearly as much as I do being on the …
Bill Matthies
The holiday season should be a happy time so I’m sure you’ll understand why I didn’t share the news of the passing of Jane’s father, Bill Matthies. We’re sad to see him go, but it was a blessing to have him as long as we did. We should all be so lucky to have 90 years of adventures on this earth. There has been a …