WEEK 17: KENTUCKY
Salmon and Sustainability: From the Icy Waters of Alaska to the Tables of Kentucky
By Jason McKinley, Alaska fisherman, Kentucky native, explorer, husband, father
I was born and raised in Kentucky, but I’ve always had a heart for travel and exploration that blossomed in second grade when my parents brought home a spear for me from Uganda. I’ve been traveling in my mind and soul ever since. I love to explore and find common ground with places and people. It has been nearly twenty years since I’ve spent a summer at home. Why? For the past two decades, I’ve traded in the hot, sticky summer months of June and July here in Kentucky for commercial fishing in the world’s largest sockeye salmon run in Bristol Bay, Alaska.
Even though I only spend a couple of months in Alaska every year, my fellow Kentuckians know me as the “Alaskan fisherman.” Kentuckians are enthralled with Alaska’s allure and rightfully so. There is an understandable mystery and pull to the “Last Frontier” when I talk about fishing and traveling there —it’s what continues to call me back, and allows me to bring delicious, wild-caught, healthy sockeye salmon from Alaska to the tables of my friends, family, and customers in Kentucky.
My passion for Alaska began when I was 22 years old as part of an unexpected road trip. Back in the late 90s, I had set out from my hometown of Danville, Kentucky intending to spend a couple months climbing with a friend in the Sierras. The friend backed out at the last minute, so instead, with a car full of camping equipment, I decided to drive north and see where the road took me. I ended up in Homer, Alaska, and spent two glorious months living in a tent surrounded by the grandeur of beautiful Alaska…open water, ice capped mountains, and fresh air. That fateful summer, I landed a job hauling and filleting fish for several charter companies, and my life hasn’t been the same since.
I returned to the Lower 48 to finish college then returned the next summer with hopes of jumping back into the “filleting circuit,” as we refer to it. However, my timing was a little early and I found myself in a sleepy fishing town awakening from a long winter — there was no work in sight. Luckily, I met a guy who knew a guy with a potential opportunity. The job interview consisted of a punch in the shoulder and a “Are you tough?” A little stunned, I replied, “Yeah.” To which this burly stranger replied, “You’re hired! We leave tomorrow.” The next day, we were on a small plane headed to Bristol Bay.
This summer, it will be will be my seventeenth season fishing in the Bay.
These days, my fishing passion has become a family business thanks to the support of my wife Mary Beth, who will often join me on the boat in Alaska. After returning from a day on the water, our salmon are processed right there on Bristol Bay. First, the fish are filleted to perfection, then the bones are removed and the fillets are flash-frozen and vacuum-sealed to preserve quality and freshness. We transport part of our season’s catch back to Kentucky, where my wife and I travel to farmer’s markets around our current hometown of Stanford, hand-delivering one of Alaska’s healthiest exports to Kentuckians. We also distribute to local retailers, specialty shops, and restaurants who are committed to selling and serving wild-caught salmon.
While salmon fishing in the Bay isn’t quite The Deadliest Catch (as my friends and customers in Kentucky may believe!), it can be rough. Winds coming down from the northern Arctic impact the air and water temperature on the Bay, affecting everything from a fisherman’s comfort levels to how the fish move in the water. There have been plenty of seasons where I arrived in Alaska from Kentucky and had to get my sea legs fast because we were fishing in large waves, rain, and cold (30 degrees Fahrenheit), wearing lots of gear to protect us. But it’s not always like that. We have also had seasons like 2015, when it was calm, hot, and we found ourselves fishing in t-shirts!
Wind and the temperatures of the air and water don’t just influence how comfortable we’ll be while working, but are critical factors in determining how much food the salmon have to eat, how large the size of a season’s run will be, and the size of the fish. When the winds are higher, the weather and water is warmer with more phytoplankton for the salmon to feed on, meaning we can typically expect bigger fish. The one constant I’ve learned with fishing in the Bay is that every season is unpredictable. Last year was the largest run we have seen in 20 years. It was also a very late run compared to the normal July 4th peak, and the fish were smaller. There is always talk among the fisherman about how climate change plays a factor in the run.
Today, climate change is affecting ecosystems around Alaska, and we are still learning how salmon are responding to these changes. Some scientists are predicting that Arctic warming will lead to changes in Bristol Bay watersheds, which will then lead to shifts across the entire ecosystem that supports our industry. The annual harvest out of the Bay for the past twenty years has been, on average, just under 30 million fish. 40% of our country’s wild-caught seafood comes from Bristol Bay, and it’s also the world’s largest source of wild-caught sockeye salmon, producing about 50% of the entire world’s supply. Continuing to study the impacts of Arctic warming and how we can adapt will help to ensure the sustainability of this precious resource, a resource that’s important to many not just as a source of income and nutrition, but as a way of life.
Over the years, I’ve learned much more about the importance of sustainability and its role in ensuring that future generations — both in Alaska and Kentucky — can enjoy the same bounty we do today. Alaska Natives and inhabitants of Alaska who have arrived more recently are, in my experience, excellent environmental stewards because of their close connection to the land.
I admire that Alaskans have been taking care of their land and water for centuries. The Alaska State government carefully oversees salmon fishing in the Bay — it is a highly regulated process. But this protects the rivers and salmon from over-fishing so local communities, wildlife and ecosystems can all benefit from the salmon run. These efforts will help to ensure that Bristol Bay remains one of the world’s healthiest and most sustainable fishing runs.
Like Alaskans, Kentuckians value sustainability. My wife and I love meeting community members in both places who share similar values about taking care of nature so that we can continue to enjoy what it provides. Even though our Alaskan salmon is not local to Kentucky, we have been welcomed into the local food circles by Kentuckians who want a wild-caught fish option. They greatly appreciate knowing their local fisherman and having a protein source that they can trust in terms of fishing practices, quality, and traceability.
It has always been important to me to take great care of our Mother Earth and what God has given us. I learned this from my grandfather who was a farmer in Kentucky. He and I shared many moments in his garden where he taught me about growing my own food, harvesting it, then giving it to others. Today, I put these values into action.
As I head out for another season this summer in Alaska and reflect upon how our business has grown in supplying wild caught sockeye to my fellow Kentuckians, I am grateful for the experience this livelihood has given me. What started out as simply a cool adventure in college has now become a meaningful journey deeply rooted in ritual that connects me, my family, and my community here in Kentucky with Alaska and its bountiful resources.
About the Author:
Jason McKinley is a commercial sockeye salmon fisherman in Bristol Bay, AK. In the off season, he and his wife reside in their home state of Kentucky, where they are raising their two young boys (ages 2 and 7 months) and sharing with them their love for adventure and the outdoors. They also own and operate Caught Wild Salmon. They market and distribute their Alaskan wild caught sockeye salmon in and around the state of Kentucky. You can learn more about Jason’s work at www.caughtwildsalmon.com and email him at info@caughtwildsalmon.com.
