Wild Strawberry Lodge Blog, Sitka Alaska

Lunch out on the boat, on a typical fishing day, is not usually the main focus of the day. Especially when a hot bite is on, the last thing anybody wants to do is stop for something to eat. And sometimes, during a slow time when lunch is served, it is quickly forgotten as a king salmon zings a line out or a halibut starts tugging ferociously. But whether or not the anglers on the boat make time for eating, the boat lunch is always there and ready.

Fishing is often so exciting that lunch is forgotten, or at least put on the back burner.

Here’s how the boat lunch process works: Between 3:30 and 4:30 p.m., the boats come into the harbor bringing back fish, clients, and also the empty lunch coolers. These are brought in so they can be cleaned, sanitized and re-stocked with goodies in preparation for the next day.

Each boat lunch must be prepared with care so that the captain and/or deckhand can make fresh deli sandwiches on the boat to fit each clients’ taste. Choices of meat and cheeses, as well as a variety of toppings and condiments are carefully packed into the cooler, along with chips and sodas.

The “dry box” is also part of the boat lunch. Along with an assortment of crackers, fruit, tea and hot cocoa packets and a couple choices of bread, dry boxes also contain a variety of fresh homemade cookies. Dozens and dozens are made daily to satisfy the sweet tooths of the clients (as well as the captain and deckhand!)

So if your preference is turkey and cheddar with all the fixings, roast beef and pepperjack with a little bit of mayo, or ham and swiss with lettuce, pickle, and mustard, the boat lunches are filled with plenty of options to fit your liking.

The captain prepares a fresh deli lunch while the anglers fish.

Boat lunches may not seem like a huge part of your stay at Alaska Premier Charters, but like everything else, they are just one more small thing we do to make your trip more enjoyable!

~ Written by Kellie: Boat lunch maker, breakfast cook, and housekeeper

When I first got hired at Alaska Premier Charters, Inc. as the head processor I didn’t know what to expect or how it would go. When I arrived it was a totally different world than cutting grass on a golf course. The first day of work was a whirlwind. The head processing job entailed many different responsibilities, all new to me.

The main duties involve boxing fish in the morning and processing all the fish when the boats come in, in the afternoon. It also involves making client fish boxes, labeling fish bags for the different species and making sure the clients’ fish gets processed the way they want it done. I had to learn the ins and outs of the processing room which include how to keep different parties of fish separated, how to fillet salmon, rock fishes, and lingcod, and skin halibut fillets. (I first had to learn how to look at a fillet and identify which species that fillet belonged to.) Finally, I had to learn how to weigh the finished product and make sure the weights are right for each party so they know how much fish they’re taking home.

The filleting part for me was the easiest to grasp, but the first king salmon I filleted was a complete disaster. I couldn’t feel the backbone or spine and I was going under the rib bones. When I was done, it looked like a sea lion almost ripped it to shreds. It took me at least 5 minutes to finish, and the second-year deckhands were filleting them in 30 seconds…I couldn’t believe it! After a few days of filleting, though, I got the feel and my fillets were turning out a lot better; eventually I was showing up the 2nd year deckhands.

The processor starts filleting a king salmon.

The routine for processing is simple. First, a boat will call in on the VHF radio, and I take the van to go pick up the fish at the drive down ramp. With the help of other processors and deckhands, I load all the lunch coolers, fillet totes, and fish coolers (sometimes heavy) into the van. Often, a creel survey person from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is there to measure king salmon, lingcod, rockfishes or take scale samples from king salmon. The coolers and totes come up with tags which tell me what party they belong to and how they want their fish processed. When we process the fish, we start with a party’s red meat (salmon) and end with their white meat (halibut/rockfishes). The next red meat starts a new party, and this is how we keep the fish separated between the different parties.

The processors and deckhands work together to get all the fish filleted, vacuum packed, racked, and frozen each day.

After filleting, the fish get cut into one pound pieces, rinsed off, bagged, vacuum packed, and then put on trays, which are racked, weighed, and put into a flash freezer. When processing is done, all the tables, vac pac machines, knives, baskets, coolers and totes need to be cleaned and sanitized and the floor needs to be sprayed and clean. Usually, the last deckhand up to the PR is the designated totes/coolers cleaner, the worst job! Trust me, everyone will tell them if they’re the last deckhand up.

In the morning I have to derack the trays of fish from the previous day and make sure the fish gets distributed evenly amongst each particular party. When I get done boxing the different parties, I have to write the number of boxes and the weight of the boxes for each party on a fish sheet. Typically they all weigh the same amongst the individuals in each party, since the fish are shared evenly. I also need to make sure to include the weights to any misc. items a client wants to put in their box on the fish sheet so we can include the weight to their catch. After deracking, the trays need to be sanitized, and I need to make more tags for each party, preparing for when they get back from fishing in the afternoon.

Fish on racks, ready to be put in the freezer.

The night before clients leave is called an exit night. We meet with them that evening so they know how many boxes of fish they are taking home the next day. We take the fish that they caught their last day and add it to the fish that is already boxed from the previous days to figure out how many boxes they are taking home and the weights of each box.

A full fsh box weighs 50 pounds, and can be brought as checked luggage on your flight home.

The following morning I get up extra early to finish boxing all the fish. Then I take their boxed fish and meet them at the airport so they can bring it on their flight home. If they live in the Midwest, on the east coast, or have a long flight schedule, I put foil insulated liners in their boxes so their fish will still be frozen when they get home.

As head processor, I have other miscellaneous duties as well. I have to take inventory of all the processing supplies we use and make sure we have supplies at all times so there are no delays while processing. I also have to keep track of the bait supply for the deckhands. Usually, I will run to the cold storage to get tray pack herring for salmon fishing, bag and vacuum pack salted horse herring, and box pink salmon for halibut bait. The freezers also need to be kept organized and clean, the vac pac machines need to be deep cleaned every other day, the oil and filters need to be changed once a month, and the area around the processing room needs to be kept neat. The lodge recycling needs to be taken care of every day. Weekly, there is lunch meat to vac pac for the boat lunches, and frozen goods from the food order to move for the chef to his freezer. If I have any downtime there is usually maintenance or additional cleaning to do. With the help of my assistant processor(s), we get it all done.

~ Written by Kent, Head Processor

We had another big arrival yesterday and a big departure this morning. Arrivals and departures are very important to us, because we know that first and last impressions are what people tend to remember the most. So we try to take care to make sure that everything goes as smoothly as possible for you at the airport.

Flying into Sitka is an interesting experience, especially for newcomers. The runway is located on Japonski Island, and takes up almost the entire length of the island. When flying in, you start getting lower and lower over the water, until suddenly the runway appears and you touch down almost immediately. We commonly hear, “I thought we were going to land in the water!” Fortunately, this has never actually happened.

The Sitka runway takes up the entire length of Japonski Island.

The Sitka Rocky Gutierrez Airport is not very big, but around flight times, it gets very busy. There are five flights in and five flights out every day, and just one gate. Alaska Airlines is the only commercial airliner that flies in, and most people connect in Seattle, Washington to get to Sitka, which is about a 3-hour flight.

We ask for your flight information before you arrive, so we know when to pick you up. When you come into the main terminal, our client coordinator will be there waiting to greet you, holding a sign with our Alaska Premier Charters, Inc. / Wild Strawberry Lodge logo on it.

Our client coordinator will greet you at the airport.

She will help you out with your baggage, and drive you and any other guests from that flight back to the Wild Strawberry Lodge. The lodge is a short 3 mile drive from the airport, less than 1 mile from the downtown shopping area.

Our biggest arrival on one flight this summer was 22 people. It required three vans and some extra planning, to ensure everyone was taken care of properly; it went without a hitch and before too long, everyone was sitting at the lodge eating fresh homemade cookies and signing their fishing licenses.

When you’re having a blast catching ocean-bright king salmon and feisty halibut, the fishing trip always goes by too fast. As staff, we love talking to you and getting to know you, so it is always hard to say good-bye at the end of your stay. Even if you arrived a stranger, you leave a friend, and we can only hope you’ll come back to see us again the following summer.

Theresa, the owner of Alaska Premier Charters, greets a client.

When we bring you back to the airport, again we do everything we can to smooth out the process. Since we have guest computers with Internet at the lodge, we can help you do your web check-in the night before you leave. That way you already have your boarding pass and can go through the short, fast lane at the airport. We aim to get to the airport two hours before your flight leaves. This helps ensure that your fish goes on the same flight as you. Sometimes the flight is very full, and if you get there too late, your checked luggage gets put on the next flight.

We transport guests and their luggage in one van. Your fish boxes go in another van, which the processors drive over, and have set up for you at the check-in counter before you even get there. Our client coordinator is there to see that everyone gets checked in and receives the proper fish boxes. It’s a very quick, efficient process, even through the chaos of a fully booked flight.

We pack your fish so it will stay frozen for up to 24 hours.

Your fish is packed in boxes that will keep everything frozen up to 24 hours out of the freezer. Of course we hope you get home sooner than that, but if there are any delays in your flight, your fish should still be fine; just get it into the freezer as soon as possible so it keeps its freshness and flavor.

Flying may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we try to smooth out as many wrinkles as we can so it is hassle-free for you. Our airport procedures stem from over 20 years of experience, and we’re constantly refining them so your arrival and departure leave you feeling good. We’re looking forward to greeting you at the airport the next time you stay with us at the Wild Strawberry Lodge!