The earliest salmon are just beginning to return to their natal streams to spawn in Bristol Bay, drawn home by a primal instinct to complete their ancient life cycle. Peak runs historically don’t hit until early July, but June has an air of excitement, as many fisherpeople are preparing their boats for a busy harvest.
For many Alaskans, the beginning of salmon season signals the official start of summer, the way that something like the end of a school year or a holiday weekend or even a balmy shift in high temps can give you that instinctive summer feel each year. As for me, I’m waiting for the purple and white lupine on the Homer Spit to reach full bloom — that’s my sign that summer is here.
Of course, reflecting on the start of salmon season feels bittersweet this year, as it marks the first summer that Arron and I will be spending without my father-in-law Walt Kallenberg. Bristol Bay is the place where my husband Arron (WAC founder + CEO) spent the summer months fishing with his father Walt; where Walt’s father Robert Kallenberg first began fishing on a wooden sailboat, nearly a century ago. I can’t help but draw parallels between the multigenerational Kallenberg legacy and the infinite cycles of Mother Nature. The annual cycle of returning to Bristol Bay, the generational cycle of life and death — it’s as much a story of commercial fishing as it is salmon runs. We will be thinking about Walt a lot this summer, as the sockeye runs approach their peak and the days grow ever brighter.
P.S. A little note about ordering frozen fish in hot summer weather: If you’re worried about your box defrosting on the doorstep, I want to reassure you that it’s always packed to arrive frozen on your doorstep and will stay frozen through to the end of the delivery day, even if you live somewhere where temperatures regularly climb above 100F. Our team keeps an eye on the weather from week to week, making sure to pack your box with more dry ice to match the season and protect your frozen fish from any heat waves coming through your region. If for some reason your seafood arrives less than perfect, please reach out to the Member Experience team.
Live Wild,
Monica
Pictured above: A throwback to summers past, with three generations of Kallenbergs on the Mary K.
