Local businessmen go for the big fish

Imagine a fisherman's paradise, with breathtaking glacier and mountain views in an area that offers a fresh catch of diverse and abundant fish, with over 300-pound monster halibut and up to 60-pound king salmon available year-round.

Ardent fisherman Winfield Durham, owner of Sisters Coffee Co., asked his buddy, David Miller, RE/MAX Revolution principal broker, if he would like to go on the next fishing trip to Elfin Cove, Alaska. Miller visualized dangling a fishing pole over

the side of a vast fishing vessel, and reeling in a 100-pound halibut, roughly the size of a door. He answered yes within three seconds. Doug Mohr, owner of Mohr Solutions, had already acknowledged that he, too, would be going.

"I have experience with offshore and deep-sea fishing, and I had wanted to go to Alaska for the last 25 years," Mohr said. "Winfield encouraged me into it."

The three Sisters businessmen then carefully planned an all-inclusive fishing trip that started with a flight heading northwest to Juneau, Alaska, set for June 2014.

A fisherman's wonderland, situated on the Southeast Alaskan coast, tucked away in a small harbor, Elfin Cove lies on the northern shore of Chichagof Island, 85 miles west of Juneau, "Gateway to the Glaciers."

"We all took a float-plane ride from Juneau to Elfin Cove on the second day, and during the 40-minute ride saw pods of whales; it was a highlight," recalled Miller.

Fewer than 25 people call this quaint Alaskan outpost home year-round, but during summer when the salmon are running and the halibut are gorging themselves the population swells to over 200. The flask-shaped harbor of Elfin Cove has no roads, just one mile of boardwalks that connect buildings and homes in the community that sits across from Glacier Bay National Park, near the rich fishing grounds. The community becomes active during the summer, like most tourist areas, when local businesses serve the commercial fishing fleet, and guests fill the sportfishing lodges.

"We stayed at Eagle Charters & Cross Sound Lodge and got to know the proprietors pretty well. We were their number-one top priority," Miller said. "They cooked all our meals and anything else we needed, and they also supplied the fishing boats, rods and reels. We all had Penn Graphlite GLD-20 reels with 100-pound lines on Ugly Stiks."

"We called ourselves the 'Winfield team' since Winfield encouraged us to go in the first place; he was like the captain of our journey," said Mohr.

Elfin Cove's boardwalks are built on pilings, as are many of the homes. Fishermen are drawn to the year-round sportfishing. Just strolling around the dock or boardwalk you could be captivated by the wildlife.

"The wildlife was prolific," Miller recalled. "We saw bald eagles soaring over Elfin Cove, and a ton of sea lions and sea otters. The whales were phenomenal. We were at a vantage point being on a boat. We experienced many whale sightings, and groups of porpoises would swim by."

After a long first day with Captain Mike aboard the "Eagle Claw," hurtling across the rough waves of the ocean, the Winfield Team came back with king salmon and halibut, but had to return several ling cod to the ocean, because they were too big.

"They have strict rules on what fish you can keep; it goes by size," said Mohr.

Halibut is the largest of all flat fish, with an average weight of about 25 to 30 pounds, but they can grow to 600 pounds and are considered bottom fish. Ling

cod look like an ancient

ocean monster and are also a bottom fish that live in the rocky areas beneath the ocean. King salmon is the largest member of the salmon family and ranges in size from 10 pounds to over 60

pounds.

"During the day we might start off in the bay searching for halibut and ling cod," said Mohr. "The captain used sonar to find an area with abundant fish, and then anchor down. It was a bit more technical when salmon fishing, and we'd go out into the ocean and troll for king salmon. We were told that farther out in rougher seas you could catch more salmon. It proved to be true."

Captain Mark took over as team leader on the third day out fishing off the Eagle Claw. Almost 1,200 miles away from Sisters and it's still a small world. Mark's roots are in Central Oregon and he and his family spend their winters in Central Oregon, since it's much less brutal here than in Alaska.

"We all caught the fish to our liking," said Miller. "Doug caught a 50-pound halibut, two king salmon, but had to throw back all the ling cod due to size regulations. Winfield caught a 25-pound king salmon and halibut and, as for me, I caught king salmon, a 50-pound halibut, yellow-eye and several silver salmon. I learned that there is real skill to navigating the ocean, finding fish and then catching them with the proper equipment and bait. It's a real science.

"This was a trip of a lifetime, and it was sad as I was just about to check it off my bucket list, but decided to leave it on so I can go again next year."