Kodiak

 Kodiak 

September 10, 2022

Kodiak Island is the second largest island in the United States, second only to the island of Hawaii. 

The total population on the island is approximately 13,000 with the majority of those residents, about 5,500,  living in and around the city of Kodiak and its road system. The largest industries in Kodiak are commercial fishing (2,000 commercial fishing boats are based there) and seafood processing. Even the city trash cans are decorated with vintage canned fish labels. 

It is also home to the Integrated Support Command (ISC) Kodiak,  the largest operating installation run by the United States Coast Guard. It covers 23,000 acres of Kodiak Island with over 3,500 active duty, retired military, DHS civilians and family members.

The humans share the island with 3,500 Kodiak brown bears, the largest bears in the world. Two thirds of the island is the Kodiak National Wildlife refuge providing them with a pristine environment and plenty of food. 

The climate is relatively mild for the location, generally between 40 and 60 F. It’s also usually cloudy and always damp. 

We spent the morning walking around the docks and town with one of the best guides we’ve ever had. Anna has lived in Kodiak for 23 years, was married to a commercial fisherman and has worked for various business and government agencies in the area. Some of her most dramatic stories were told at the fisherman’s memorial with brass plaques naming every commercial fisherman lost at sea. And there were dozens and dozens of names, the latest from just last month. From these tragedies have come safety improvements that have saved many lives. She even pulled a bright red survival suit out and demonstrated putting it on. It protects the wearer from the icy seas and is also buoyant. She said she made her then 10-year-old daughter practice putting on her suit countless times before she went out on the Bering Sea with her dad. Yikes! 

We spent some time in the small but inviting history museum that had a great gift shops. The various museum shops feature art, jewelry, books and crafts by native artists which makes for very special souvenirs to take home. Ask me how I know. 

Then we walked up the street to the Russian Orthodox Church, claimed to be the oldest in the US as does the one in Dutch Harbor, a distinction of much debate between the two towns. 

After we left the tour, Jim remembered exactly where the quilt shop was. We’d visited years ago on another stop in Kodiak and he walked right to it. Bought some Alaska-looking fabric. Alas the near-by yarn shop was closed. 

Back to the ship on the  school buses the town provided as a shuttle service between dock and town. Kodiak is a bit cold, a bit damp, but everyone we met loved living there. The high cost of fuel was the main reason a lot of cruise ships had canceled planned visits to Kodiak this season. Too bad. 

Huge stacks of the unused huge king crab traps were stored on the dock. Also too bad. As the availability of seafood such as the king crab and cod is threatened by climate change and/or over-fishing, the state of Alaska is working with scientists to develop farmed seafood industries  such as oysters, kelp and sea cucumbers. I’m now on the  lookout for products made from kelp  under the “Barnacle” label— hot sauce, popcorn seasoning, bbq sauce. I’ll make Jim test taste them first!