Another year, another Alaska

Every visit to the great state of Alaska yields great rewards and plenty of surprises. This year's pilgrimmage was no different. The journey was timed to coincide with the historically best time to catch the run of Copper River Red (Sockeye) Salmon as well as the best tides for our chances at the big halibut out of Valdez. I certainly believe the timing worked out well!

99.1 lb halibut! The biggest I've ever caught!

Standing on top of and right next to Worthington Glacier - a quickly receding piedmont glacier just north of Valdez.
In Alaska, there are more private pilots per capita than any other state. Some find the need to park their experimental helicopters right on their driveways.

The journey to and from the north is usually made possible by the work from our friends at Alaska Airlines. This picture was taken from my AirTran jet as I taxied out of SeaTac.
No, he's not upside down. He's dipnetting. This is the view from above as my friend works at catching the amazing Sockeyes one their way back up to the spawning grounds.
I sat pensive, tied off to the cliffs of the Copper River Valley. The sunlight of the night blinded me from reality - it was midnight and here I was, clinging to a rock in the hopes that some salmon would run into my net.
It's hard to tell, but I'm reeling in my 99.1 lb halibut in this shot. It's not that hard, it just takes a while.

So, in the end I came home with about 120 lbs of usuable salmon, halibut, ling cod, and red snapper and a lifetime of memories. I love this place and I look forward to returning, whenever that may be.