Deadliest Catch: Clooten Edition

I've been out halibut fishing with the Clooten family for two days now. It is a riot! We caught 102 pounds of halibut filet on the first day, and 126 pounds of halibut filet on the second day. We've been reeling in way more than this, but by law there is a limit of 2 halibut per person per day, so the goal is to catch the biggest halibut and throw back the little ones, the "chickens". Alana is the reigning champ so far, catching a 60-pound, 5-foot long halibut! Imagine pulling that sucker into a raft!


So this is how the Clooten's  fish, it's brilliant: two inflatable rafts, one motor each, and a couple paddles. We load the rafts on the beach with fishing poles, hooks, sinkers, tackle boxes, anchors, ropes, makeshift chairs, some snacks, and frozen herring for bait. We dress in warm layers and multiple wool socks, then boots, rain pants, lifejackets, hats, and gloves. We wheel the rafts to the water, remove the wheels, attach the motor, jump in the raft, paddle over the waves, start the motor, and then cruise for about 30 minutes and four miles out into the 50-mile wide Cook Inlet.


And then we drop anchor and fish! When the fish are biting, there is lots of activity on the raft- reeling fish in, pulling them into the raft where they flop violently all over the floor, then there's unhooking, rebooking, baiting, and changing out sinker weights, all the while rocking in the ocean waves and trying not to get lines tangled. It is so entertaining :) Soon enough, the floor of the raft is full of slimy slippery fish. 

When the fish are not biting, well... that hasn't really happened yet! We hit a two-hour dry spell on day two, but other than that there's been quite lot of action.

We've also been catching cod too. Some of the cod we keep for meat and some we use for bait. Since halibut are bottom feeders, sometimes you end up catching skate instead- and you know immediately when you've got a skate. One almost pulled me out of the raft! It stinks to pull up a skate though, which is a large stingray that spreads out its wings and spirals to pull against you. It's like pulling up a barn door from the bottom of the ocean! The skates also have barbs that could pop the raft if you're not careful in unhooking it and keeping it away from the boat. We let Mr. Clooten handle these guys.

Our second day of fishing was also my 23rd birthday! It was really fun being in Alaska on my birthday. The Cooten's went above and beyond and made it really special. Of course, being in Alaska is special enough :) We went out fishing for five hours with two rafts, then we had an amazing dinner of broccoli salad, moose meat lasagna, and halibut lasagna. This is the best meal I've had while camping, ever! 


Then I went on a drive to Homer, the Halibut Capital of the World, with Alana, her brother Nate, and her cousin Chip. It was about 8pm, and the sun was beginning to drop in the sky, which gave us some great views of the Cook Inlet, surrounding snow-capped mountains, and Homer Spit. We wandered around the marina and walked along the docks. A sea otter surfaced right near us and played around for a while before disappearing again. We then went over the Salty Dawg Saloon for a birthday drink, met some very colorful Alaskans,  played some songs on the juke box, took some shots with local fishermen, and left our business cards on the wall among the other treasures left behind by previous salty dawgs. We returned to camp in Ninilcik at 11pm, had surprise cake and ice cream for Alana's family, and watched the sun set behind the volcanos and paint vivid colors across Cook Inlet.

Land of the Midnight Sun

Alaska is grand! I love being here! It reminds me a lot of New Zealand actually, especially with its sharp, tall mountains plunging into the ocean water. The difference is that Alaska is so much bigger and has incredible natural wildlife- moose, grizzlies, eagles, etc.



Alana and I were picked up from the Anchorage airport at midnight by her older brother Ben and his fiancé Tanya. We drove for four hours from Anchorage to Ninilchik. Even though we drove through the night and into the early morning, it was light outside. In the Alaskan summer, the sun never sets! (The trade-off? In the winter, the sun never rises). Summer skies in Alaska get a bit dusky, but never dark. Hence, the name Land of the Midnight Sun.

We enjoyed a beautiful drive along the Turnagain Arm, staring out the windows in awe at the snow-covered mountains illuminated by the moon and lightened night, reflecting in the calm water below. As the sun started to "rise" around 3am, we saw lots of moose grazing alongside the road! 

We pulled into Ninilchik around 4am and went to sleep in the Clooten's camper van for a few hours. We woke up around 6:30 (mainly because it was so bright outside) and started getting things ready to go fishing, including dressing in layers and layers of warm clothes. I went to the general store in town to purchase a fishing license and frozen herring to use as bait, and then we prepped and loaded the Clooten's raft. Never had I ever been deep sea fishing on a little raft... this was bound to be a great experience!


Alana, myself, Mr. Clooten, Tanya, and Tyler took the raft four miles off shore into the Cook Inlet. Backed by the snow-covered volcanoes of the Alaskan Range and under a brilliant blue sky, we put down the anchor, baited our lines, and waited... or not!! The fish were biting like crazy! I literally put my line down on the bottom, got immediate nibbles, and then snagged a fish! Catch, after catch, after catch! We literally didn't have any time to breathe as there was always someone reeling in a fish, removing a fish from a line, or baiting a line for the next go. It was so fun! Before long, the entire floor of the raft was covered with flopping  halibut and cod. Yuuummmmm!


During our fishing trip, the sea was incredibly calm and peaceful. We had two whales come close to our raft, and we saw sea otters and a mama with her little cub sea otter. When we returned to shore for lunch with our catch, we immediately filleted the fish (10 halibut, 2/person by law, and 12 cod). Sea gulls and, get this, BALD EAGLES, swarmed the beach around us, waiting to feast on the fish remains. It was amazing seeing the bald eagles up close- they're such big birds and absolutely beautiful and so intense!


We enjoyed a large and rewarded lunch of french toast made by Mr. Clooten and were joined at the campsite by Alana's other brothers, Nate and Lucas, as well as her second cousin Chip, who actually lives in Atlanta too! It's a family affair at Ninilchik, and I'm so fortunate to be a part of it! 

Alaska Bound!

I cannot express how excited I am about this trip! I am heading to Alaska today with my good friend and fellow athlete and Industrial Engineer from Georgia Tech, Alana! Alana was born and raised in Alaska, and her family continues to live in Fairbanks. Alana is heading home for two weeks of vacation and invited me to join her. I am so pumped!


But first, I took my last flight as a Delta kid this morning to Seattle. I lose my standby privileges on Friday when I turn 23... sad times. It was a beautiful and smooth flight though. We flew into Seattle over the snow-covered Northern Rocky Mountains and you could see the tall snow-covered Mount Rainier looming in the distance. Because Mount Rainier is so tall, it is usually covered by clouds. It was the same case today, but since we were flying above the clouds, we got an awesome view of the summit!


I had a 12-hour layover  in Seattle though before meeting up with Alana and flying to Alaska. Having never been to Washington state before, I took the metro from the airport to the Seattle city center and spent the afternoon seeing the sights. I went to Pike's Place Market per Mom's recommendation, and it was awesome! There were fisher's markets, fruit stands, cafes, bars, delis, bakeries, restaurants, smoothie stands, ice cream huts, nut stands, and artisans selling their handmade jewelry, leather goods, and paintings. There were free samples and amazing smells everywhere! Within one block I sampled cheddar potato soup, chocolate fudge, mangos, golden raspberries, orange glazed pecans, and the best... smoked salmon! I also bought a big package of freshly-made granola mix for the Alaska trip.


After spending time in the markets, I walked along the waterfront, through the Olympic Structures Park (of course), and then up to the Science and Technology park and the famous Space Needle. I really liked Seattle. I had no idea that it was right on the water. There are so many inlets and larks and green space around the city. The people were incredibly friendly too. 

Now back to Alaska... so far on the agenda- flying into Anchorage, driving to Ninilchik, going Halibut fishing and shrimping, doing some hiking and camping. It's all so incredible, and I feel so blessed to be joining Alana and her family in Alaska. I can't wait, especially for the mountains, the wildlife, and the cool weather (it's been beastly hot and humid in Atlanta this summer). 

I'm not sure how often I'll be able to post updates. I'll probably get more writing time since there's 24-hr sun there in the summertime. But who knows, I'll probably be so tired by the end of the "day" that I won't have time to write... that's kind of the goal. 

Catch ya' later! ALASKA BOUND!

Back in the Saddle

I wasn't sure if I was going to write an entry for this one, but it feels good to be traveling again. After taking a little over a month off to take care of some things at home (apartment shopping with Tay to be one of them), I've been packing my bags and hopping on and off airplanes again, and it feels great! 

I went to Oklahoma to visit Grandpa for a few days. We battled the 100 degree heat and visited the Oklahoma bombing museum and memorial downtown, went to a horse show where the best part was walking through the stables behind the scenes, ate lots of great food, and just spent quality time together. 

Afterward, I flew directly to Michigan to visit Dad's side of the family. I stayed with Grandma at her house and we had a marathon of a day going out to dinner with Alex and Andrew, visiting Aunt Lisa and her kids, and sharing wine and travel photos and stories with Uncle Tim and Aunt Kim (who also made the most delicious chocolate cake I have ever eaten)! Many many thanks to Aunt Cindy for doing my airport runs too- I can't wait to see you at the lake over the 4th of July!

I spent a day back in Atlanta to repack and then flew out to Maryland to visit with fellow GT swimmer Christine and her family. I love Christine's family and their home! They are so warm and welcoming :) Christine and I wandered around D.C. for an afternoon and then went out to dinner with a mutual friend of ours from Tech, Jonathan Saethang, who lives in New York but is working in D.C. during the week. It was so good to see Saethang! It had been far too long! He had some great suggestions and tips for us in planning our trip to New York too!

The next morning, Christine and I took a five-hour bus ride from D.C. to the Big Apple! It was my first time visiting New York (apart from the airports), and I was super super excited! Christine and I were planning to see a lot, so we were getting prepared for some intense walking (and picture taking of course)! Side note: the bus we took to NYC was the Chinatown bus. Those five hours on the bus reminded me SO MUCH of Beijing that I literally forgot that I was traveling the the States- the language, the people, the sounds, the smell... haha everything.

So during Day One in New York, Christine and I saw Madison Square Gardens, the Empire State Building, NBC Studios, the Rockerfeller, Times Square (during the day and again at night), Radio City Music Hall, St. Patrick's Cathedral (the largest decorated gothic-style Catholic Cathedral in the US and the seat of the Archbishop of New York),  Central Park (where we got thoroughly lost and tired), the Metropolitan Museum, Grand Central Station, Greenwich Village, and the New York Public Library. The library was definitely one of my favorites- they were celebrating their 100 year anniversary and had many artifacts and documents out on display, including a rough draft of the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson, with lots of edits, cross outs, and mark ups. So cool! There were also real cuneiform tablets (the first form of writing), one of President Washington's rough drafts of his Farewell Address, and a rough draft of one of Beethoven's symphonies (I don't remember which one though... it was just cool seeing his hand writing and music notes, which were so messy they were practically illegible!). 

That night, we met up with two of Christine's friends from Tech, Evan and Mark, who are interning in New York for the summer. We shared a few drinks and then went back to Mark's place to stay for the night. Thanks again, Mark! 

Day Two in New York was just as fast paced. While day one was rainy and cool (glad we had rain jackets), day two sunny and sweltering (good thing we had sunscreen)! Christine and I took a ferry to Liberty Island to see the Statue of Liberty herself. It was an awesome experience to see her so up close! I would like to go back and get a pass to go up into her crown. They only let 240 visitors up there per day, and tickets are sold out for the next two months! We skipped over Ellis Island for the sake of time and instead walked along the Brooklyn Bridge and Ground Zero. There is currently a lot of construction going on to build the memorial and museum for the September 11th victims. There was a small museum that displayed pictures and had a model of what the finished memorial site would look like- two reflecting pools in the footprints of the two towers and one replacement tower called One World Trade Center (they've already built 104 floors of it). Being in this little museum was enough to bring tears to my eyes... I may have to wait years before I'm able to make it through the finished museum and memorial. 

The best part about this area was walking by St. Paul's Chapel, which is rich in history. This chapel was built in 1766, and it is the oldest building in New York city still being continuously used. In fact, George Washington attended mass here after his inauguration as the first President of the United States on April 30, 1789! He continued to attend mass at the chapel, and his pew is still present inside. Above his pew is an original 18-century oil painting of the Great Seal of the United States. Pretty cool stuff! This chapel survived the great fire in New York in 1776 by a bucket brigade. The chapel also faces the World Trade Center buildings, and on September 11th, the church received little damage and served as a refuge for victims, fire fighters, and relief workers. 

Keep in mind that I was only in NYC for two days, but so far, my overall impressions/observations of New York are that it is an awesome city. It is fun, alive, and exciting. The people are always in the move. I thought there would be a really trendy fashion sense, but NYC dress was just about as grungy as Sydney. Maybe that comes with a walking commute and crowded city- you wear what is convenient, comfortable, and practical. Also, even though the city screams "America!" with it's advertisements and commercialism, you would never know you were in America by looking at the people. New York City is so diverse! There are people from every background imaginable mixing on the sidewalks. Overall, I'm not sure if I could live in New York, but I would definitely like to go back and visit! I have a list of what I would like to do next!