What a Job

I guess guiding salmon fisherman is a unique job. People ask me about it all the time and you know me I'm always willing to talk. I love people. I talk in the airport, I talk in the grocery store so it seems I'm the perfect person to do this job. Shortly after I started guiding I relized that this wasn't life altering work, its just fun. So the only way I can take great pride in what I do is to be 100%. And thats me, I'm all about guiding, its my life and I'm into it full throttle. Lots of people are interested in the mechanics of it all, cool boats and neat gear. But the most important part of it all is the people. It might be the only job in the world where you can mix business with pleasure and have it work better than if you didn't. The best friends I have I met fishing.As you know, I'm on a quest to become the very best person I can be. Success in life is so complex, its everything. Its work, its relationships, its health, its independence, its caring and nurtureing....well you know. So what better way is there to learn about life than to be around 300 people a year like my friend here, Nate. Nate is a stand up guy, self made and scary smart. He's exactly the kind of guy that I want to be around, to be inspired by. Nate had the unfortunate opportunity to fish with me a few years back on what everyone agrees was the coldest day in Kenai History. The temp was in the 50's and the rain wasn't your usual Kenai drizzle, it was full on toad stranglin, gulley washin rain. So we kind of bonded that day , buddies for life. Nates a local guy and knows his way around this neck of the woods...and he goes fishing with ME.

This pic is my friend Chris Fejes. Yup, we met 20 years ago fishing the Kenai River. Chris does life better than anyone I know. He's my sounding board for the serious stuff and having had more than his share of sadness in life he knows priorities. If I were to never get another thing out of guiding, Crisco's friendship has been enough. As you can see he's running the boat while I'm fishing, coooool man....

The guy holding that beautiful fish there is Jacques Lizin. I met him in 1985 when Sabena Airlines was flying into Anchorage. He and his lovely wife Veronique live in Arville Belgium just a short jaunt from where the Battle of the Bulge was fought. Jacko is an expert fly fisherman, gourmet cook, somalier and can run a chain saw like I run a boat. He' s like part of our family, our kids love him and we do too.

This guy with the King salmon is Harry Thomas from Massachusettes. You can tell wheres he's from pretty easy. He flew long range Bombers for us, B-38's that were prop driven during the cold war and the beginning of the Jet Era. Harry is an expert horticulturist, in fact he taught me that word. We talk sports, Harry's been on my team for 25 years....

So as I wait for the ice to go out and report on actual fishing I want to tell you all a little about the business/ life/ challenges of guiding. In the near future I'll post gear and what I do but I wanted to start with people. As I move towards 4000 reads on this blog...its the people. As I move towards my 29th season...its the people. Its you. I used these four people to underscore that, I hope you all understand.

This last pic I've been dieing to post. I might be the only guy on the Kenai with a pic of Eagle Rock with an actual Eagle on it. Last silver season I was fishing with my friends Gene and Helen Chambers and we were anchored right above the world famous Eagle Rock. Now I've seen hundreds of seagulls on Eagle Rock, afterall it didn't get that white washed look by itself but I'd never seen an Eagle. Low and behold that morning this juvenile Baldy made our day. We do plenty of catching but this kind of bonus makes the day.....