WHOAH: What a season!

WHOAH: What a season!

Emily Lints73 comments
We are so filled with gratitude for the richness of this last summer.  Not only were we in Bristol Bay, AK for the largest recorded salmon return in history with our brand-new boat the F/V Maggie B., but it was also the first season our children, Maggie (5.5) and Ben (3.5), came aboard as deckhands for the very end of the season.   Here is a photo and video collection of our high points.

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Boat Miracle!!!

Boat Miracle!!!

Emily Lints60 comments

Kyle has transformed a big burned up mess into a promising boat project!  Check out these great progress photos.

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AMAZING SEASON!!

AMAZING SEASON!!

Emily Lints8 comments
Being a fishing family has its challenges- time apart, big risky business investments, so many variables out of our control.  Our motto is work our butts off and hope for just one more great season at a time!

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Yummy Halibut, Salmon Coming

Yummy Halibut, Salmon Coming

Emily Lints21 comments
The 2017 halibut season was expedient and fishy- everything a fisherman can ask for.  In the 10 years that Kyle has been skiff fishing this is by far the best fishing he has seen.

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June = Fish

June = Fish

Emily Lints4 comments
June means fishing for the Lints Family.

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Great Season in 2016

Great Season in 2016

Emily Lints4 comments
Kyle and the crew came back from Bristol Bay about a week ago and we're so glad to have them home!   Phew, we all made it through another season.

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Herbs with Rosalee:  How to Choose the Healthiest Salmon

Herbs with Rosalee: How to Choose the Healthiest Salmon

Emily Lints2 comments
Here's a great article that renowned Herbalist, Rosalee de la Foret of Herbs with Rosalee, just wrote on what to look for in healthy, quality salmon. She included an interview with us. Check it out!

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Catch Report

Emily Lints1 comment

Quick report from the F/V Northland:

-Dropped the permit card in Egegik, AK.  Fishing whenever possible, one to two times a day.  Catching a few hundred to few thousand fish a period.  The Port Moller test boat further south has recently tripled its numbers of catches - so hopefully a bunch of salmon will arrive in the river in 5 days or so!  Over 150K salmon have already made it up river in Egegik, working towards the 1.4 million escapement goal.  Working hard, having fun!  

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Waiting to Launch

Waiting to Launch

Emily Lints4 comments

It's that time of year again- when we are so excited for the upcoming season.  

Excited to put the 'ol F/V Northland back in the water.  Excited to catch the first beautiful, fresh, sockeye salmon for 2016.  Excited to see so many returning customers placing their orders and licking their lips in anticipation for the upcoming harvest.

THANK YOU to all of our customers that put their orders in by the end of May- it really helps us plan for our season.  GOOD NEWS, if you haven't yet we are still taking orders- so keep them coming!  

 Kyle and our 2016 (rockstar of course!) crew of Jamie and Jake are putting the final touches on the boat hoping to launch into the river in the next couple days.  Fresh paint on the decks, repairs to the fiberglass that was smashed around too hard last year, new buoys for the upcoming smashing around, hanging new nets . . . the list goes on.

So far the 2016 sockeye salmon return to Bristol Bay, AK is just starting.  There is a test boat that fishes the southern line of the fishing district and so far they are reporting an index of about 20.  (When the fish are REALLY coming in strong later in the season this number rises as high as 200!!).  New in Bristol Bay this year is that you have to drop your permit card on your first fishing day.  In the past there was a 'Free Week' before you had to commit to a fishing district.  What's important about this is there is a 48 hour closure if you decide you want to change from one are to another.  48 hours doesn't sound like a big deal, but in the commercial fishing world missing out on a HOT 48 hour fishing period can really decrease your season's catch.

On the home front, Emily reports that staying at home with a 3.5 and 1.5 year old is probably an equal challenge to commercial fishing!  Last year was probably a greater challenge than fishing and it's expected that next year will be easier than fishing.  Kyle is still eager for Small Scales Seafood salmon season to be a family fishing venture so he can pass on his fishing bug to his kiddos and not have to be away for so long.  We hope to get some good, calm skiff fishing for Alaskan Rockfish and Pacific Cod with Maggie and Ben aboard later in the summer! 

Thanks for reading.

 

 

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Unprecedented Late Run!

Emily Lints2 comments
20150702_184226_resized  Last week with his bags packed, Kyle decided to stay in Bristol Bay a little longer.  On his planned departure day too many fish were being caught to leave and yet his crew had to get home and his boat was already out of the water.  2015 set records for so many fish returning so late!  Commercial fishing is one big financially dependent decision after the other based on a complex, ever changing system of oceans, rivers, fish and management plans. In desperation Kyle took his permit aboard another boat and crewed for a handful of days.  A boat with two permits gets an extra shackle of gear allowing them to catch a little more fish.  This choice was the best option at that point and a nice way to unwind from the insanity of fishing Bristol Bay.  Kyle wanted more than anything to return to his baby, toddler and wife after almost two months apart and eventually decided that being home was more valuable than making more money. The run seemed  to slow down and most boats pulled out of the water a few days ago.  But even yesterday the remaining boats are catching a lot of salmon.  At this point 51 million salmon (!) have returned to Bristol Bay, out of the preseason forecast-ed 52 million.  During the season the return was so slow that even the scientists doubted the pre-season forecast and downgraded the forecast to 30 million.  There are just so many variables involved. ]photo 1(4) The many glaciers that feed into remote Bristol Bayphoto 2(4) Ahh Home Sweet Homer!

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