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Salmon season in Southeast Alaska is wrapping up in a year that has seen an estimated 58 million fish harvested according to Troy Thynes, regional management coordinator for commercial fisheries with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The final numbers for fish tickets are still preliminary, but, of the estimated harvest, pink salmon was the clear leader with 48.2 million fish. It was also 41% higher than the recent 10-year average. "The main thing is the pink salmon run came in a lot stron...
The moose harvest closed Friday with a final count of 129 moose according to Hilary Wood of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The total count, including illegal moose, was a four-year high, beating 2019's total by two. The number of moose harvested on Kupreanof Island, including the area around Kake, was higher than the previous three seasons, totaling 61, six of which were illegal. Though Kuiu Island's final count of 21 fell short of the 29 reported in 2020, it still numbered higher than...
The 2021-2022 Dungeness crab harvest is predicted to total 4.23 million pounds, over two million less than the last harvest, according to Joe Stratman, the lead shellfish biologist for region one with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Numbers released so far include the harvest data for the 2021 Dungeness crab summer season in Registration Area A, which is comprised of the inside waters of Southeast Alaska. The commercial Dungeness fishery summer season totaled 3.09 million pounds...
Once again, Alaska legislators have gaveled back into special session because Gov. Mike Dunleavy wants to show his constituents that he believes in one thing above all else: The largest Permanent Fund dividend in state history. He’s like a wide-eyed kid in the candy shop, only he’s got a record-setting Permanent Fund balance jingling in his pockets and wants to spend some of it to buy chocolates for everyone in the state. Talk about a dangerous sweet tooth that can only decay the future growth potential of the state’s only savings accou...
The Borough Assembly discussed a new sanitation ordinance during Monday's meeting, Ordinance #2021-17 would aim to mitigate bears getting into garbage and make changes to the recycling program. Public Works Director Chris Cotta spoke to the assembly on the four focuses of the ordinance and the purposes of it. The ordinance would require a reasonable effort must be made to secure garbage from bears and other wildlife. It lists examples of measures that could be taken including tying down the lid...
The moose harvest is in full swing this year with a count of 81 reported moose as of Tuesday according to Hilary Wood of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. During Hunt RM038, Unit 3, which is mainly comprised of Mitkof Island and Kupreanof Island, has seen the most activity. 35 legal moose have been taken so far on Kupreanof Island. Of that, 20 were taken in the area near Kake. With less than ten days to go in the season, 17 more would be needed to reach last year's final tally of 55. Kuiu...
Lost fishing gear - be it nets, lines or pots - continues "ghost fishing" forever, causing a slow death to countless marine creatures and financial losses to fishermen. Now new "smart buoys" can track and monitor all types of deployed gear and report its location directly to a cell phone or website. Blue Ocean Gear of California created and builds the buoys that also can track ocean temperatures, depth, movement, even how much has been caught. The small, three pound buoys are just seven inches...
Unlike in the Bering Sea, there's good news for crab in the Gulf of Alaska. A huge cohort of Tanner crab that biologists have been tracking in the Westward region for three years showed up again in this summer's survey. "We were optimistic and we did find them again. Pretty much all the way across the board from Kodiak all the way out to False Pass we found those crab and in good quantity," said Nat Nichols, area manager for the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game at Kodiak. The bairdi Tanners are...
Alaska's Bering Sea crabbers are reeling from the devastating news that all major crab stocks are down substantially, based on summer survey results, and the Bristol Bay red king crab fishery will be closed for the first time in over 25 years. That stock has been on a steady decline for several years and the 2020 harvest dwindled to just 2.6 million pounds. Most shocking was the drastic turn-around for snow crab stocks, which in 2018 showed a 60% boost in market sized male crabs (the only ones...
Steve Toth, 55, passed away on July 26, 2021 surrounded by his wife and two children. He was born in Highland Park, Illinois on Aug. 1, 1965, to Istvan Toth Sr. and Mary Toth. After his birth, the family moved to Chicago, where he lived for the first part of his childhood. After graduating from Wilmot Junior High, he went overseas to Ireland and attended the Royal Caravan School for four years and graduated high school there. Afterward, he moved back to the states, and then on to Petersburg,... Full story
It took freedom of information requests, weeks of queries to administrators and more than three months past a legal deadline for Governor Dunleavy to finally release his choice for a Board of Fisheries seat. Dunleavy announced last Friday his appointment of INDY Walton of Soldotna to fill the vacant seat on the seven-member Board that directs management of subsistence, personal use, sport and commercial fisheries in state waters out to three miles. The vacancy came 115 days after the Alaska Legislature on May 11 rejected his choice of Abe...
August 25 — An officer conducted a foot patrol downtown. An officer gained entry to a residence for the owner near Birch St. An officer responded to a noise complaint near 1st St. August 26 — A deer was struck and killed by a vehicle near 9 mile Mitkof Highway. Chickens were killed by a dog near S. Nordic Dr. A deer was struck, killed, and salvaged near Mitkof Highway. Lost property was reported near Bernice Ln. An officer spoke with an individual concerning a civil matter at the police department. An officer responded to a report of an ind...
Alaska’s 2021 salmon harvest has blown past the forecast and by August 27 had topped 201 million fish, well above the 190 million projected at the start of the season. The catch was bolstered by a surge of pink salmon to the three top producing regions: Prince William Sound, Southeast and Kodiak, combined with strong landings of sockeyes. “Pink salmon runs are over 95% complete, based on average run timing. Effort drops off quickly this late in the season, so it is difficult to predict where that harvest will end up,” said Forrest Bower...
August 18 — Property was found near Sandy Beach Park and the owner was notified. An officer conducted a civil standby at the police department. An officer responded to assist the Volunteer Fire Department after a report of a fire alarm on N. Nordic Dr. A sighting of a black bear sow and cub near Howkan St. was reported. Officers responded to a reported disturbance near S. Nordic Dr. August 19 — A deer was reported tangled in a batting cage near the ball fields and extricated himself. Property was reported lost near Birch St. Property was rep...
OBI Seafoods announced the production of 100,000 cases of pinks on Monday at about 11:30 a.m. by blowing the steam whistle at the OBI plant in Petersburg. "It's a morale boost for the employees and it lets the town know that the fish are coming through," said OBI fleet manager Don Spigelmyre. Spigelmyre complimented Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game managers for working with the processors by opening-up good areas for fishing. "We'll likely get to the numbers predicted by ADF&G and we hope to even...
August 12, 1921 The Petersburg ball team was defeated by the Ketchikan team on the Ketchikan grounds Monday afternoon by a 17-3 score. The Petersburg team left here Saturday night on the halibut schooner Olympic with the intention of playing ball on Sunday afternoon, but were delayed by fog so that they arrived at their destination about 5 o’clock in the evening. Arrangements were quickly made with the Ketchikan management for a game on Monday afternoon which resulted as stated above. August 9, 1946 Mrs. Carroll Clausen, president of the E...
We Alaskans have had a free ride To the Editor: We Alaskans have basically had a free ride since our Permanent Fund was established in 1976 with the proceeds from the Prudhoe Bay oil lease sales. At that time, the Legislature decided to abolish the State income tax (based on a percentage of the Federal income tax), the School Tax (a once-a-year $5 payment per wage earner to help fund schools) and the Disaster Tax (a once-a-year $10 payment per wage earner to help fund disaster relief). Rather than keep these taxes, even at a very minimal rate,...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game released an emergency order Monday to revise limits for king salmon in Southeast Alaska. The order sets the bag and possession limit for residents of Alaska as one king salmon measuring at least 28 inches in length in areas other than those where the retention of king salmon was prohibited. Once those areas are opened to retention, the resident bag and possession limit will be raised to two king salmon 28 inches or greater in length. Areas where the...
Most people are unaware that the yarns and fabrics that make up our carpets, clothing, car seats, mattresses, even mop heads, are coated with chemicals and metals such as copper, silver and aluminum that act as fire retardants, odor preventors, antifungals and anti-microbials. Now, crab shells from Alaska are providing the same safeguards in a bio-friendly way. The metals and chemicals are being replaced by all-natural Tidal-Tex liquid treatments derived from chitosan molecules found in the exoskeletons of crab shells. The bio-shift stems from...
Early prices to Alaska salmon fishermen are trickling in and as anticipated, they are up across the board. That will give a nice boost to the economic base of both fishing communities and the state from fish taxes, fees and other assessments. About one-third (62 million) of Alaska's projected catch of 190 million salmon had crossed the docks by July 16 at the half-way point of the fishing season. Prices paid to fishermen vary based on buyers, gear types and regions, and bonuses and post season...
“Unprecedented” is how fishery managers are describing sockeye catches at Bristol Bay, which topped one million fish for seven days straight at the Nushagak district last week and neared the two million mark on several days. By July 9, Alaska’s statewide sockeye salmon catch was approaching 32 million, of which more than 25 million came from Bristol Bay. The only other region getting good sockeye catches was the Alaska Peninsula where nearly 4.6 million reds were landed so far. The Alaska Peninsula also was far ahead of all other regions for pi...
Crab has been one of the hottest commodities since the Covid pandemic forced people in 2020 to buy and cook seafood at home, and demand is even higher this year. Crab is now perceived as being more affordable when compared to the cost to enjoy it at restaurants, said global seafood supplier Tradex, and prices continue to soar. That's how it's playing out for Dungeness crab at Kodiak and hopefully, at Southeast Alaska where the summer fishery got underway on June 15. Kodiak's fishery opened on...
Alaskans who are engaged in or interested in mariculture are invited to become founding members in a new group that will advance the growing industry across the state. The newly formed Alaska Mariculture Alliance (AMA) is a private non-profit successor to a five-year task force formed in 2016 by Governor Walker and re-authorized in 2018 by Governor Dunleavy. The task force will sunset on June 30. “One of the priority recommendations was to create a long term entity that would coordinate and support development of a robust and sustainable m...
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Wildlife officials in Alaska have said two campers were attacked by a bear this weekend while they were sleeping in a tent in Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist Jeff Selinger said the campers were sleeping when the bear attacked Saturday around midnight, Anchorage Daily News reported Saturday. The campers had bear deterrents but did not have enough time to use them. “There’s no indication that they did anything to prompt the attack or did anything wrong,” he said. “It’s one of t...
Frank W. Sharp, 89, died on May 12, 2021 in Angoon, Alaska. He was born to Albert Sharp and Mary Coghill Sharp in Orofino, Idaho on February 14, 1932. He worked as a game warden for the State of Alaska Fish and Wildlife Protection in Petersburg from 1965-1970. A full obituary can be viewed at beyondthedash.com/obituary/frank-sharp-1082439838... Full story
