Global Journeys with Jill Dutton
Veteran travel journalist, Jill Dutton, takes listeners around the globe to discover a sense of place through the stories of those she meets along the way. Each episode is an insider's look at a destination -- whether through the eyes of a chef, historian, distillery owner, fisherman, or farmer, each person we meet adds a rich layer to the narrative of culture and place. We'll dive deep into the hearts and souls of the places we visit, uncovering the hidden gems and untold stories that make each destination truly unique.
Jill's podcast was ranked #22 in FeedSpot's "Best Travel Podcasts on the Planet."
View Jill's portfolio of articles in national magazines, listen to her podcast, read her syndicated column, Global Plates: The People We Meet, The Food They Eat, or show your support by subscribing to the Global Journeys with Jill Dutton podcast!
Global Journeys with Jill Dutton
Ketchikan, Alaska Series: An insider's look at Ketchikan and the city's only craft brewery, Bawden Street Brewing Co.
This episode of Global Journeys with Jill Dutton is the first in a series that looks at the culture, food and drinks, fishing, and beauty of Ketchikan, Alaska.
In the Ketchikan series, we’ll navigate the stories, legends, and secrets that shape Ketchikan’s identity. We’ll meet the people who call this place home and gain insights into the traditions of the area.
In this first episode of the series, we delve into the heart of Ketchikan, Alaska where we explore its rich culture and history, and meet Sean Heismann, the mastermind behind the city's only craft brewery. A true craftsman of brewing, Heismann regales us with tales of how he turned his passion for beer into a thriving establishment that's found its place in this vibrant community.
But wait, there's more! As we raise our glasses to celebrate the art of brewing, we'll also be getting an exclusive insider's peek into what makes Ketchikan a must-visit destination for adventurers and wanderers alike. Sean will be our guide as we discover the bounty of reasons to visit Ketchikan.
RESOURCES
Find Bawden Street Brewing Co. on Facebook
Read Jill’s itinerary for Ketchikan and Waterfall Resort: Sport Fishing in Alaska at Waterfall Resort, Plus 3 Nights in Ketchikan to discover local food, arts, and culture: 6-Day Itinerary – Global Journeys with Jill Dutton
Visit Ketchikan Alaska Home (visit-ketchikan.com)
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UP NEXT:
The Ketchikan series continues next week where we’ll discover Alaska fishing. Known as the Salmon Capital of the world, novice and experienced anglers alike flock to the area to experience the thrill of landing a large king or coho salmon, lingcod, or halibut. Two fishing lodges – Waterfall Resort and Steamboat Bay Fishing Club, both located on remote islands, offer the ultimate immersive experience for families, friends, and co-workers. The rich ocean waters are teeming with fish, not to mention the humpback whales, Orca, otters, bald eagles, puffins, and other sea life.
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Welcome to Global Journeys with Jill Dutton, the captivating travel podcast that takes you on an extraordinary adventure around the world. I'm your host, jill Dutton, and I am thrilled to be your guide through the mesmerizing tapestry of cultures, landscapes and experiences that await us. Global Journeys with Jill Dutton is more than just a travel podcast. It's an exploration of humanity itself. Through the power of storytelling, we illuminate the lives of the remarkable individuals we encounter along the way, whether it's through the eyes of a fishing guide, a distillery owner, a mixologist, a historian, chef, or even a farmer. Each person we meet adds a rich layer to the narrative of culture and place. In this podcast, we embark on a transformative journey where the focus goes beyond the typical tourist attractions. Instead, we dive deep into the hearts and souls of the places we visit, uncovering the hidden gems and untold stories that make each destination truly unique. Join me as we venture off the beaten path, seeking authenticity, connection and a deeper understanding of the world we inhabit. Together, we'll unravel the tapestry of cultures, one story at a time. Although my writing career began in the late 90s, when I created and launched a wellness publication called Evolving Magazine, since 2015 I've worked as a travel writer on a mission to seek out the locally celebrated foods, liquor trends, outdoor activities and stories of those I meet along the way. My work has been published in Wine Enthusiast, a far woman's world, first for women, insider road trippers, modern farmer chilled magazine and many more digital and print publications. I'm also the creator of Global Plates the people we meet, the food they eat a syndicated column. Creating this podcast is the next step in my journey of sharing the stories of the people I've met along the way. So pack your curiosity, leave your preconceived notions behind and let's embark on Global Journeys with Jill Dutton, where each episode promises to inspire, educate and awaken the wanderlust within us all. Today's episode of Global Journeys with Jill Dutton is the first in a series that will look at the culture, food and drinks, fishing and beauty of Ketchikan, alaska.
Speaker 1:Nestled the mist, a backdrop of lush forested slopes and overlooking the bustling Tonga scenarios, a water passage used by float planes, fishing boats, ferries and barges. Ketchikan's origins traced back to its establishment in 1885 as a location for salmon canneries. Initially sustained by fishing, the town's economic focus shifted with the introduction of logging and the rise in popularity of cruise ship visits. Bring a rain jacket for the city's notably wet climate, as the annual rainfall averages around 162 inches, often referred to by locals as liquid sunshine. While in Ketchikan, you'll want to explore the downtown area along the harbor, check out the birthed cruise ships while dining on the city's claim to fame salmon, or stop at one of the numerous dive bars that dot the city. Historic Creek Street is another. Don't miss the raised boardwalk. Pathway spans over Ketchikan Creek. Watch fly fishermen tackling their sport. Stop in one of the touristy shops or art galleries and read the numerous placards describing the history of Ketchikan's brothels and red light district, with a visit to Dolly's house, a former brothel that's now a museum. Many visitors know Ketchikan through a day stop on a cruise line, but this historic city deserves a longer visit. Stay in one of the local hotels, book a whale watching cruise, a fishing expedition or spend the day kayaking On land. There's an abundance of tours for every interest, whether you want a dive bar tour, a ziplining experience, a bicycle tour or a discovery of the totems and art of the area. There's the Saxman Totem Park, alaskan Rainforest Sanctuary, totem Heritage Center, tongass Historical Museum and more.
Speaker 1:In this Ketchikan series, we'll navigate the stories, legends and secrets that shape Ketchikan's identity. We'll meet with the people who call this place home and gain insights into the traditions and of the area. This series acts as a portal to a world where mountains meet ocean and tales of resilience and triumph are etched into the very fabric of the town. In this first episode of the series, we discover Ketchikan's only craft brewery, bodden Street Brewing Company, and the mastermind behind its frothy concoctions, sean Heisman. In this episode, we're trading in our maps for mugs as we take a sip of the rich history and unique flavors that Bodden Street Brewing Company has brought to Ketchikan. Sean Heisman, a true craftsman of brewing, is here to regale us with tales of how he turned his passion for beer into a thriving establishment that's found its place in this vibrant community.
Speaker 1:But wait, there's more. As we raise our glasses to celebrate the art of brewing, we'll also be getting an exclusive behind-the-scenes peek into what makes Ketchikan a must-visit destination for adventurers and wanderers alike. Sean will be our guide as we discover the bounty of reasons to visit Ketchikan. So, without further ado, please join me in welcoming Sean Heisman to Global Journeys with Jill Dutton. Sean, thank you for joining us today and sharing your insights on Ketchikan and the Bodden Street Brewing Company. We can't wait to embark on this incredible journey with you, my pleasure. First, I'm going to ask quick questions that you can respond to briefly. The questions are designed to give the listener a quick overview of the destination, so don't go over a couple sentences. You ready?
Speaker 2:Let's do it All right.
Speaker 1:All right, Okay, what would you say? Ketchikan's claim to fame is, I'm guessing you know you're the salmon capital of the world. But is it fishing? Is it Totemart? Is it cruise ships? I mean, what is it really that you feel like the city does well and is known for?
Speaker 2:Okay, here we go. It's reinvented itself right. So long time in the past we were logging, we were fishing logging. That didn't work out. We've even reinvented ourselves as a tourist destination eco-tourism. We've got a great brewery, we've got a distillery, winery, cidery, some fantastic restaurants coming up. So this is really a city like Alaska is about, you know, exploring and finding new things and making new things. So that's what I think Ketchikan's claim to fame is.
Speaker 1:Fantastic, and how would you spend a perfect day in Ketchikan.
Speaker 2:I have a five year old and a three year old and a brewery, my perfect day would be to bed rot. I would just stay in bed and know, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, where's mommy? I wouldn't hear that. That'd be my perfect day in bed asleep. Okay so that's horrible, I know.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, that's perfect. And when you do get out, though, what's your favorite restaurant, or maybe your favorite local food?
Speaker 2:So local food. Like the locals here, we go to fish house if you want to get fish, or we go sit with Rafi at New York Cafe or for feeling a bit fancy, we go up to the lodge. But if you really want like good, close food with good conversation, the best meal is always at somebody else's house. So yeah one of the things we know how to do here is cook, so I bet, I bet.
Speaker 1:And just curious are you a fisherman or angler yourself?
Speaker 2:No, I was in the army because I get seasick just by looking at the water.
Speaker 1:So no. I don't go out on boats, I was just curious because when I was there we would see in when I was on Creek Street, see the guys fishing for the salmon. So I was curious yeah, no, that's more of a sport.
Speaker 2:Those fish are usually spawning and they're not good eats. You really got to go out. Yeah, you really got to go out to like a net island or on Duke Island and some of the deeper spots to get halibut. But my five foot, nothing, 100 pound, nothing wife caught, I don't know, like 105 pound. Halibut was six months pregnant. It's just the most Alaskan thing ever. Of course she hooked it, then I reeled it up to 700 feet, but she got it. We're going to say she got it.
Speaker 1:It's tough. I mean I went, I went sport fishing with Waterfall Resort and Stilba Bay and I mean even a 40 pound halibut. It's a lot of work.
Speaker 2:It is a fight. They do not want to come up.
Speaker 1:No, they don't. Okay. Well, what surprises you most about Ketchikan?
Speaker 2:The strong sense of community. So I lived in a bunch of different places Los Angeles, philadelphia, new York and we talk about these places having like a strong neighborhood ethic. When we talk about a community, I mean it's really people up the street who see you doing something. Stop what they're doing to help you literally passersby. So I built everything in the brewery by hand. Passersby would see what I was doing, stop and like hold a board for me and then go on by their business. What surprises me the most about Ketchikan is this just huge sense of community.
Speaker 1:That's. That's fantastic. And are there any hidden gems or lesser known spots that maybe travelers make sure they check out?
Speaker 2:That's a good question. Creek Street Cabaret, carl and Maria have an awesome, awesome, awesome venue. Great local live musicians playing great local live music. Great idea, it's super cool. Yeah, it's a good place just to go pop your butt down, grab a beer and just listen to I don't know Dave Rubin noodle something out on the guitar for an hour or two.
Speaker 1:It's pretty cool, great suggestion and any particular time of year that Ketchikan really comes alive.
Speaker 2:There are two. Blueberry Festival oh my goodness, you want to talk about everybody and their brother coming down. Yeah, literally everybody from both North and South and the islands congregates right there on Main Street around the firehouse and everybody. So there's that. The other one is, believe it or not, around Christmas. So we do a boat parade in Christmas and you're like, what does that mean? Well, a bunch of boats get chartered and they put lights on on the fireworks and the kids love it, everybody loves it.
Speaker 1:Oh, that sounds fun.
Speaker 2:That really does.
Speaker 1:Okay, and last quick question best tip for someone visiting?
Speaker 2:Plan, plan, plan plan plan. Find a thing, that you like to do. You can hit all that stuff during your stay. If you get off a cruise ship. The best way to experience Ketchikan is to make friends with somebody who lives in Ketchikan and then come stay with them. So that's my tip Plan or make a friend.
Speaker 1:I love that. That is perfect, okay, well, thank you for that quick look at Ketchikan. Now let's dive into you, let's talk about your brewery. Oh, let's. I stopped by there it was fantastic. But so if you would tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey into the world of brewery, how much?
Speaker 2:time do we have? So my initial I'm not going to start back to. You know my mom and dad met in Cincinnati but my initial major was in molecular biology and piano performance. Then I realized I was going to be stuck in practice rooms or a lab eight to 16 hours a day and that was boring. So I switched over to philosophy because somebody was going to pay me to talk about the deep ideas. Sign me up.
Speaker 2:So BA, ma, I was finishing up my PhD in philosophy and putting out I think I put out like 60 CVs, basically applications to schools all over the nation to try to get a job and no bites, and I panicked and I'm like well, I need healthcare now. So I joined the Army Reserves. Yeah, little did I know that my training would take. I was a biomedical equipment technician. So crazy high tech, long school, 11 months in school plus the nine weeks basic combat training. I was home for maybe six months before I got deployed for 10 months. We got extended for three months. After that I was home for a hot second. Then we had an extended training mission for the.
Speaker 2:So when I got back from Afghanistan, we were my wife Nicole and I were living in Philadelphia at the time and she had, being the sensitive partner, noticed that I was consuming more alcohol than I usually did, and because we were just out of grad school and she was going through residency for obstetrics and gynecology, she was like, dude, we're broke, we could save some money if you made it. I did the math and I'm like, well, wait right, I can have gallons of beer that I like to drink on hands at any one time. Sign me up. So the first beer sucked. It was terrible. So you do what you do. You buy a couple more books, you buy some more equipment. The next beer is a little bit better. It's not where you want it. You buy a notebook to start taking copious notes about what you're doing and how you're doing it, and that's just sort of snowballed.
Speaker 2:When we moved here in 2016, I kind of I brought that hobby with me and I came here to retire. I was done. I was done with the army. That was eight years, so I was on what's called individual ready reserve, so I had two years where they could call me up, but I was basically retired.
Speaker 2:So I started off brewing at home once a month and I found like I was actually getting pretty good at it and I enjoyed it. So I started brewing like twice a month and then once a week, and then twice a week. And then one of my mad at science experiments exploded all over my wife's wedding dress in the closet and I got the automated and get this crap out of my house, go start a brewery. So it just so happens that one of the local home brewers owned a building that had a blank empty spot. So our location used to be the steam generation and laundry for the old hospital.
Speaker 2:So all concrete construction built in 1932. It's a beautiful, beautiful building. It was a perfect spot for a small brewery and I thought, well, how hard can it be? Little did I know. So yes, that's kind of how I got into it. Started off with an interest in science, I came out of my deployments not 100%, but sort of leaned into that by channeling some of that excess energy and attention to detail into brewing, and then we just grew it into a business.
Speaker 1:Fantastic. When did it open?
Speaker 2:We opened on July 16th 2018.
Speaker 1:Okay and then. So you were already living in Ketchakam when you started the brewery. Has the town and the local water, or anything, influenced your brewing style?
Speaker 2:So one of the things that I noticed so yeah, two questions.
Speaker 2:So that's actually a whole bunch of questions. One of the things that drew me to think that this was a possibility was A. The town basically owns the power production plant. We own the hydroelectric dam, so power was dirt cheap. So that was one. Two the water is beautiful here. There's nothing in it, it is awesome. So, cheap power, great water. I had a spot. So those kinds of inputs matter when you're dealing with thousands of gallons, hundreds of thousands of gallons.
Speaker 2:The inspiration for the style of brewing that we do is sort of rough, sort of on the edge, a little bit experimental. So we don't filter our stuff, we don't pasteurize it. Sometimes you're going to get a little yeast and that's okay, that's vitamin B12. We like that funky, funky flavor. So we do a lot of French and Belgian farmhouse styles, particularly the saison style. We do darker stuff too, a lot of porters. I think we got a stable of like five porters that we can do One imperial stout that I'm happy to put my name on. It's gorgeous. So the rough, raw, experimental. Let's try something new. It's going to be a little funky and that's where it goes. So that really is the kind of beer that we try to make.
Speaker 1:Fantastic. It sounds delicious. I love saison. And what is the response been so far in Ketchikan and both from locals and from tourists? I'm just curious your thoughts.
Speaker 2:Okay, so I'm a numbers guy, so I look at like butts and seats and I look at growth. Over time, year over year, we've increased our revenue 30% over 30%, which is dull as hell to talk about, I agree. What I have noticed is that we have a dedicated stable of regulars who come in. They follow us, they know when the new releases are. So year over year we find that we're putting more butts in seats. We are selling more beer. I cannot keep up. I started off with me and two employees. We now have seven employees Wow, yeah, and it's a full-time business. Like we can be packed in here on a Thursday and Friday night, which is during the offseason from October to May, which is kind of unheard of for a small business here in Ketchakun.
Speaker 1:Right, and do you have seasonal beers? Have you been releasing those?
Speaker 2:We do Right now. We're really leaning into summer. So we have a cucumber lime sea salt goes. So it brought a tear to my eye. I don't cry, all right. If you could see me now, I have a big giant beard and tattoos, but that beard made me weep like a baby. We just did a blueberry Berliner Weiss where we used locally harvested blueberries. We use what I like to call uncompensated domestic labor. I send a bunch of kids out with some five-gallon buckets and say bring me blueberries. Oh, that's great yeah. And we are also making a raspberry imperial sour. So again, locally harvested raspberries. As much local stuff that we can get here in Ketchakun, we'll try to use it. What else are we doing? So we do a cream ale. So that's kind of like boring bland, but I put my beer nerds spin on it. We use a German colch ale yeast so it's got that nice crisp taste of a pilsner or a lager, without being too heavy or too hoppy.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm just odd that we can do the stuff that we do and people love it. They're so welcome to try new things that aren't like another IPA. I make three IPAs under duress, but I make three IPAs.
Speaker 1:Oh, they sound fantastic and I would like having that kind of variety as well. Do you serve food? No, I don't serve it. Do you serve it? Sorry, I'm over it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, alaska's alcohol laws are exceptionally weird so it would be a whole different license and regulatory structure if I wanted to serve food. But we do partner with local restaurants, we'll do like a tap takeover for a restaurant. If you're going to cook with our beer, I would definitely recommend using the beer to guard, so that's like a French farmhouse style amber in your beer batter for fishing chips. It's fantastic.
Speaker 2:I've used the stout in Chile. We've braised short ribs in our porters. We do the Prince of Wales chocolate porter, which is perfect for desserts. Do a little bit of a reduction on that and then drizzle it over something else chocolatey. They go great with blueberries too, that sounds amazing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, okay. Well, thank you for that. And how does your brewery contribute to the local community and interact with residents and visitors? Is there a bit Good?
Speaker 2:So this is another great question. So, like when I started this joint, like having worked scut jobs in the service industry and having been in charge of stuff in the Army, part of what we want to provide is an outlet for veterans in prior service military and comarque. So we hire almost exclusively prior service military Coast Guard Marines. I was in the Army, so we try to really tap into that veteran community which we have a large one here in Ketchikan. We also are huge sponsors of the Ketchikan Arts and Humanities Council which do amazing things in the off season. We also sponsor the Ketchikan Chamber Orchestra which I'm kind of a member of. I play the cello, sort of a hobby.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:And another big partner that we have is the Ketchikan Running Club, so we sponsor all the races that they put on for Ketchikan. So, yeah, it's all about making sure that we're grounded and we're rooted in the community, that I'm giving back to my fellow vets and fellow prior service military members, and we're making Ketchikan as rich and diverse a place for activity during the off season as possible, because it's dark here in the winter and you got to have stuff to do.
Speaker 1:Right, oh, that's fantastic. I've written a lot about dive bars in Ketchikan and during my visit we just had so much fun. Everybody would be. You know where are you at? Oh, I'm at this one, and you know I mean the different dive bars. So I'm curious. They've each got their unique personality, and so I'm curious how does the brewery meld with that atmosphere? Or have you found a way to capture that dive bar atmosphere, or are you shooting for something totally different?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I do a 1-80, jill, to be honest with you. So the dive bar has its place, absolutely, that is true to Ketchikan's roots. I bring something completely different. On the one hand, if you were to look into my tap room, you would see everything in there I made, I made the tables I made.
Speaker 2:I didn't make the chairs, I had to buy those. I'm sorry, but I made the wall. I designed the tap room. I made the bar. I made the bathroom. I made the. I stole the door to the bathroom from the Heckman building. Don't tell them. I made the chandelier.
Speaker 2:So I do something that's a little bit different. When you walk into my joint, you're going to find unique stuff that you won't find any place else. We're not a dive bar. Feel this is you and your buddies come in after work, you have a pint of something great and then you probably go on to do something else Because you can only have 36 ounces per person per day for on-site consumption and a brewery in the state of Alaska, fiery Hoop, number one. I try to offer something that's a unique b higher in ABV, so you get your dollars worth and something or not I'm going to be able to get at a dive bar. That being said, we do make flagship bars for some of our local dive bars. So, for example, we make a grapefruit IPA for the asylum, which we can barely keep up with the demand for. We also also make the happy bear beer for the Arctic, the Arctic bar.
Speaker 2:We make their beer. We have so like the local, one of the local liquor stores, so we provide all the beer for them. We put it in the cans. We've recently branched out into our own soda, so we make a root beer. We also make a ginger lychee cream soda too.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, everything sounds amazing.
Speaker 2:So to circle back, yeah, I don't want the dive bar, If that's God's place. Everybody else is doing it better than I. Could I offer something that is unique to Ketchakand? You're not going to find it? Literally any place else in this town.
Speaker 1:Excellent, excellent, and we talked about some of the different flavors that you're creating, as well as the local ingredients. I'm curious do you have any beers that are, you know, that pay homage to Ketchakand's culture or history?
Speaker 2:Well, so that's difficult. To be honest, this is not our land. This belonged to the height of people before we even got here, and I'm just a middle class white guy. I'm not going to appropriate or use any of their culture. I'm not going to do any of that.
Speaker 2:do any of that because it's just not my place, right, so I've had people suggest, you know you should name it after this. You know mythological figure in the height of mythology and I don't feel comfortable doing that, so we do, however, try to tap into our economic past. As you know, logger fisher.
Speaker 2:One of our beers is called extra innings. This is a great story. One of our beers is called extra innings and the Thomas Basin before they dredged it out. So if you're heading down from our joint towards away from town down south, I think you go across a big red bridge and if you look out to the ocean where there's now like a yacht club that used to be a baseball field. So the loggers and miners back in the 40s and 50s, what they would do and play baseball games against each other and the Navy guys who would come out. The title swell here is like 19 feet. So if your game, a baseball game, went into extra innings, you were going to finish that game ankle, shin, deep and water. So we pay homage to that by making a mid ABV nice, light, refreshing beer, blanche, which is a Belgian farmhouse style light. The logo that we have for that one is a picture of a local boys' grandfather playing baseball angle, deep and water. So like it doesn't get more local than that. Like local boys' grandfather, it's a great story.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's fantastic. Ok, and final question, unless you've got anything else you want to talk about, are there any specific events or activities that really help to cement that unique experience?
Speaker 2:So for our brewery again, this is going to be inside baseball stuff, but the way alcohol regulation is in Alaska it's exceptionally big Breweries can't do anything fun. We are the no fun zone. No games, no live performance is nothing like that. So what we do is we have to go off site. So what we do is we donate things like beer for the wearable arts festival in the spring, where we, over the course of the winter, we like make costumes and it sounds corny, but I tell you that's the moment I fell in love with Ketchakam, when I sat through my first wearable arts.
Speaker 2:The creativity that goes into some of those costumes is amazing. We donate the beer to support something like that, but as far as stuff in the brewery goes, it is it's just. It's illegal for me to do, right? No?
Speaker 1:no, that sounds perfect. And plus you're, you're, you're serving your beer and like Arctic Bar and those kind of things. So no, that's perfect. Was there anything else that maybe I forgot to mention?
Speaker 2:So we are right now. We're small. We have expansion plans that are coming up, so we try to fly a little bit under the radar. We do have social media and if you Google me I'm going to pop up. That's the people who search me out. Are the people that I really want to have come here, because it's usually somebody who has a deep appreciation for the kinds of mad science that go into this. Yes, so yeah, I've right now. I like being small. I like only being being able to seat 49 people. I like local bars, restaurants, folks saying, hey, can you make me this specific beer for this specific activity? For example, cw for Christopher Boss retired after 30 years in the Coast Guard and asked me to make a beer for him, for his retirement party, and I did that. Yeah, that's really why I got in the game. I love doing that kind of stuff.
Speaker 1:That's fantastic, Sean. Thank you so much. I need to come back and sample some Bodden Street Brewing.
Speaker 2:Company Bodden Street Brewing Company. That's correct.
Speaker 1:Oh, thank you so much for being here today. I'm thrilled that you're kicking off our Ketchikan series.
Speaker 2:Absolutely my pleasure, Joe. Thank you.
Speaker 1:The Ketchikan series continues next week, where we'll discover Alaska fishing, known as the salmon capital of the world. Novice and experienced anglers alike flock to the area to experience the thrill of landing a large king or coho, salmon, ling, cod or halibut. Two fishing lodges, waterfall Resort and Steamboat Bay Fishing Club, both located on remote islands, offer the ultimate immersive experience for families, friends and co-workers. The rich ocean waters are teeming with fish, not to mention the humpback whales, orca otters, bald eagles, puffins and other sea life. We'll meet Chuck Baird and Avid Fisherman and the director of corporate business development for the Waterfall Group. So stay tuned for this series as we uncover the hidden treasures of Ketchikan Alaska, one fascinating local story at a time. Let the captivating narratives, authentic voices and unique perspectives paint a vivid portrait of a community that thrives on tradition, innovation and a profound connection to its roots. Until next time, may your travels be filled with endless curiosity, open-hearted encounters and transformative adventures. Safe travels, fellow explorers, and keep wandering.
