Alaska

Working in the bountiful fishing waters of southeastern Alaska, Tom Ohaus is an anomaly:

A fishing outfitter who’s sorry for anglers obsessed with packing home as much salmon and halibut as possible from a weeklong trip.

“I feel like fishermen are missing a lot when they come all the way up here and that’s all they can think about,” he said.

The co-owner of Angling Unlimited based in Sitka has therapy for the afflicted. While he continues to cater to the many anglers who don’t want a cure, others are finding comfort in his optional treatments, which include skill challenges, circle hooks and a professional chef from Seattle.

Rather than focusing on taking back 150 pounds of fish fillets, a third of which is likely to go bad in the home freezer before it can be eaten, Ohaus encourages clients to enjoy more of what they’re in Alaska for, even if it means taking home a little less.

“It’s easy to become spoiled here, as a fisherman and as a guide,” he said. “The fishing is so consistently good, I’m not sure I could go anywhere else and do this.”

Indeed, Sitka is the king of kings, producing the best saltwater sportfishing catch rates in all of southeastern Alaska, according to state Fish and Game Department surveys.

Ohaus sees this piscatorial gold mine in perspective. He and his wife were first lured into the sportfish guiding business at Neah Bay and Puget Sound during the 1980s, before Washington’s wild salmon runs lost their legs.

“We moved to Alaska and we never looked back,” he said.

Now he’s looking forward.

Gently and gradually, he is preparing his clients for the inevitable days when increasing pressure on ocean fisheries from both commercial and sport fisheries leads to more restrictions, even in the last great fisheries of Alaska.

Here’s a sampling of his options:

“Rewarding anglers who try more challenging fishing techniques.

Unless you are comatose, it’s almost impossible to go four days without catching salmon from one of Ohaus’ charterboats by using the traditional technique of mooching plug-cut herring.

New this year, Ohaus offered a free trip to the first customer to land a saltwater king by casting a fly in accordance with the International Game Fish Association rules.

“Encouraging catch and release.

When the bite is on and double, triple and quadruple hookups are common on his four-angler boat, Ohaus reminds clients that the state allows them to kill only two salmon a day. “If you hook one deep in the throat, you have to take it,” he said. “But I have a rod rigged with a circle hook that will let you keep fishing as long as your arms hold out.”

Some people think circle hooks are not as effective as traditional tandem bait hooks, a theory Ohaus refutes, noting that one simply needs to learn the technique of letting the fish hook itself.

“One thing is for certain,” he said. “A fish caught with a circle hook will almost always be hooked in the mouth so it can be easily released without injury to the fish.”

“Offering wildlife watching in addition to fishing.

Some anglers will fish until they drop dead, and the smile will still be on their faces when the undertaker comes. But others relish a little break from holding a rod, Ohaus said. For them, he offers the option to appreciate the nesting sea-birds, sunning sea lions, cruising orcas, back-floating sea otters, shore-cruising black bears and soaring bald eagles.

“Teaching anglers to savor every bite of the fish they bring home.

During “Hook It and Cook It” week in May, Seattle chef and restaurateur Ludger Szmania heads out with Angling Unlimited anglers during the morning and returns in the afternoon to teach the preparation of gourmet fish recipes on the catch of the day, including the freshest possible salmon, rockfish, ling cod and halibut.

Angling Unlimited boats are on the cutting edge of the trend to fully appreciate the value of fresh fish. Instead of going into a hold to soak in bilge, fish brought into the boat are immediately bled to leave the meat firm and bright and then packed with shaved ice and stored in a cooler until the end of the day, when the fish is immediately filleted, vacuum packed and frozen.

Especially popular with couples, the Hook It and Cook It anglers start sipping wine at 4 p.m. as Szmania discusses and creates simple but elegant salads, soups and entrees before their eyes.

By 7 p.m., everyone is educated, well fed, and enthusiastic for the next full day of fishing — and dining.